Struggling to decide between the Miyoo A30 or Anbernic RG28XX? Help is here!

One of the most common inquiries I’m getting right now is around picking the right mini handheld. The mini handheld market has seemed to created a lot of interest this year. This isn’t a new category but it very well might be the most focus the big players have put into mini handhelds simultaneously…ever!

We have seen some major mini handheld releases in 2024 with the Anbernic RG28XX and Miyoo A30 both going on sale the same day. Both had been dangling the carrot for a few months and then during the Anbernic device launch Miyoo ghost dropped the A30. I’m not sure if they don’t understand their customer base often saves up for these handhelds even though they are relatively cheap, they are still an investment for a majority of gamers. This left gamers scrambling to make an immediate choice who were expecting to have time between these handhelds to rebuild there financials if they wanted both.

Having reviewed both of these mini handhelds I started getting flooded with questions on which to buy. Normally something really sets a device apart from another making this decision easier. Not saying that both devices don’t have standout features but at launch some of these features felt like they needed to get swapped around to make the most of them. If we could do this we could build the ultimate mini device as between the two they have everything needed to take advantage of small powerful retro emulation.

Let’s start with the Miyoo A30. I figure we knew about this handheld coming for longer but they kept pushing back the goalpost as to when it was going to launch. Every couple months we got updates on the A30 and the Flip coming out in 6-8 weeks from now. They continued to swap around which was coming first until Anbernic decided the 28XX was coming out before their 35XXSP (flip). By Anbernic launching the 28XX we saw a force of Miyoo’s hand or else we may never have seen this handheld. At initial launch it was safe to assume Miyoo was dragging their feet because they understood that the software just wasn’t right yet. Checkout my video review or write up here. This was almost immediately correct by 2 separate firmware updates.

One being for brightening the screen so you can at least see it outdoors on an overcast day and the other to correct the programming of the very flawed emulator settings. The Miyoo A30 went from a 4 to a 7 out of 10 with these updates. Day 1 launch had this handheld being nearly unplayable to anyone new to emulation and difficult for any veteran who wanted to play outdoors. They removed some janky filters and overlays that looked terrible and slowed down gameplay even when overclocking the device. This was causing the A30 to heat up as well eat up battery life. The warmth is difficult not to notice with something this size as your hands have no safe place to hide. The heating hasn’t completely dissipated but is now manageable. They still need to fix RetroAchivments in PPSSPP when playing PSP. Even if you type in your info with a keyboard the version of the emulator refuses to save your info which we have seen before because this version is made for devices without WiFi. Also PPSSPP is missing Vulkan drivers which allow playing of more complex ROMs.

Next when taking a look at the Anbernic RG28XX you can’t help but feel like this is a well built device. Video Review here It also gets warm but it’s nothing to complain about as day 1 it manages its emulators better by not pushing the CPU so hard. That being said the CPU in the 28XX is far stronger than that of the A30. Here we see the same processor being used in this years Anbernic RG35XX handhelds. Something this size really doesn’t need a processor that supports twin stick 16:9 systems but it does. Yes I understand you can use it as a console but odds are you aren’t going to.

In some instances it plays higher end emulators well but in most cases you find yourself unable to play them even when emulating the left joystick to the DPad. There is a lot of unused space on this handheld that could have been better used. The face buttons are way too small. Miyoo proved normal face buttons and even a recessed switch joystick could have been added but for some reason Anbernic made the decision to put micro buttons on its micro switches and leave that space for a joystick as room to I dunno put a sticker or something. Everything feels a lot of cramped on this device. It’s defiantly not designed for any lengthy gameplay and if you attempt it you’ll likely find yourself with cramps in your fingers and swollen wrists. Another 7 out of 10 mini handheld for overall design and the power to get even the job it can’t done.

The ultimate handheld would be a combination of the two. Take the cpu out of the 28XX and place it into the A30. Now you have the needed joystick to match the performance. Also give the fun colors the 28XX has to the A30 because even understanding Miyoo was trying to make the A30 retro in 2024 they are really banking on ugly being a selling point. One really could make the perfect device mashing these together.

But never fear…later this month the addition of the MagicX XUminiM is coming to market. This might be the obvious choice to recommend. Rolling in with the same screen, dual Hall-effect joysticks (not all hall-effect sticks are created equally), an RK3326S CPU (same CPU as the XU10) and some crazy colors. This handheld has a lot going for it on paper but will it perform? It really is hard to say. The MagicX XU10 really surprised people (myself included) after CFW was released to open up its completely locked down operating system. I can’t wait to review this device. Even though the 28XX will outperform the XUminiM with its H700 chipset, it’s possible if the firmware is unlocked that the XUminiM will be able to play the games the other two handhelds can’t due to their lack of hardware. Sure you may not be able to upscale Dreamcast, but it would be awesome to turn the corners in Sonic2 starting on the opening hill.

So as it stands today (after firmware updates) between the Miyoo A30 and the Anbernic RG28XX my recommendation is… find somewhere else to carry your cellphone because you are going to need both pockets to put these in. Congratulations if you weren’t a collector already this is a good place to start. As for the MagicX XUminiM… if they learned their lessons from the XU10 launch it stands to be a disruptor in the mini marketplace and I’m here for it.

GameOn