The GKD Pixel is a Pocketable Delight, BUT... (One Month Review)

👉GKD sent Stubbs a sparkly green GKD Pixel to review (via RetroCN, thanks!). This $80-90 tiny Gameboy has some serious replay value. Supporting up to PlayStation 1, and with MinUI available in a great playable state, could the GKD Pixel be your next travel handheld? Let's hop in and see!
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⚠️ Disclaimer
Please be aware that this description may contain affiliate links. By purchasing something, RH may earn a small commission of the sale at no extra cost to you. This video is for education and entertainment purposes only and is not intended for kids. All opinions are our own.
#gkd #gkdpixel #gameboy #playstation #emulation #retrohandheld #retrogaming
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📖Chapters
00:00 - Intro
00:43 - Unboxing
00:54 - The Feel
01:51 - Specs
02:33 - Ordering
02:54 - Screen
03:19 - Comparisons
03:46 - Speaker
03:59 - Accessories
04:05 - OS Options
04:32 - Pocketability
04:56 - Stock Woes
05:07 - MinUI & Game Testing
07:40 - Final Thoughts
08:56 - Thanks for watching!

[@retrohandhelds]

Is the GKD Pixel worth your hard earned dollars, or are there better options at the price point for portable tiny Game Boys? Notes: on MinUI im not experiencing any heat, which I know was an issue for some on stock. I also recommend a screen protector if you're not using a case!

[@RetroGameCorps]

Great job with the video Stubbs! I can’t believe you were able to pack all this in under 10 mins. It’d take me 40 😂

[@retrohandhelds]

Ah dang, thanks man!! 😂10 minute reviews are my goal when possible, especially if i'm coming to the handheld a little later, but this started at over an hour. RGC 40 min+ reviews must never stop!

[@adinwalls]

Ya we know 🙄🍉🥸

[@adinwalls]

Jokes aside to jump in on this Stubbs I think you’re finding your voice here. You’ve developed authority as a community leader so you don’t need to be first, we all would just love to hear your honest thoughts.

[@retrohandhelds]

@adinwalls 🙏 I appreciate the feedback, Mr. Walls!

[@retrohandhelds]

@@adinwalls

[@zayanahmed6915]

Ngl I've had a thing for this handheld. I love how it's metal and the form factor seems friendly enough. I would get one personally in the future. Great content guys ♥️

[@krayozmines]

Your voiceover is so relaxing. You're one of the channels that help me sleep❤

[@matt_HM]

Awesome video! Really nice, crisp, clear close-up shots! Packed with tons of info!

[@retrohandhelds]

Thanks Matt! That means a lot coming from you, your shots are the best in the west!

[@JoeysRetroHandhelds]

Loved this video and how quick it was. So much information in a quick amount of time, great job Stubbs!

[@retrohandhelds]

Thanks Joey man! My mouth is happy to be your info cannon

[@JoeysRetroHandhelds]

@@retrohandhelds I love when you talk dirty to me.

[@retrohandhelds]

@@JoeysRetroHandhelds

[@mattdavis9601]

Stubbs is back! Whoo! I'd seen Joey's and Zu's GKD Pixel videos beforehand - both were excellent; but, for those folks who haven't yet you covered everything in this video that one would need to make an informed decision, one way or the other. And you did all of it in ten minutes. Brevity when done competently is an underappreciated talent, one that I wish I had. In regards to the GKD Pixel itself; on my personal chart, inspired by the one from the Bad Guy Good Audio Reviews channel, it's probably rated at "I'd love it if it were free" or "I'll happily cope if it's cheap". It's definitely not a dumpster fire. At the same time, it seems like it's too overpriced for what you get to truly compete with its peers. It reminds me of Zoolander's phone and those scenes of you playing on the GKD Pixel reminded me of him trying to dial his phone. It's expensive because it's small and stylish. Being small and stylish is the only reason you'd want to buy one. For everyone else, something slightly less small is going to be a lot better at actually playing games and save you a lot of money. Or you can pay an extra $10 and get the base Retroid Pocket 2S. It's still plenty small for fitting in the pockets of chinos; but, it's also usably big and considerably more capable.

[@retrohandhelds]

Matt, you write the absolute best comments man, appreciate this feedback and agreed with your take on the Pixel. 💪

[@NeoSpartan117]

Always a treat when we get a bonafide Stubbs review! ❤ Thought you were very fair and balanced. Really made me want one of these! However, extremely disappointed that you did not highlight the superior Chicken Boi. It is obviously the superior micro handheld. I will await your correction video. 😂

[@smileandlaughs]

Thank you for the honest review bringing both the good and the bad. The comparison to the miyoo mini was perfect for me, especially when it comes to screen quality.

[@retrohandhelds]

Hey there, I'm glad you found value in my video! Thanks for watching, and Miyoo Mini is still my favorite of these tinies!

[@chocho2188]

The man is back! 🙂

[@retrohandhelds]

[@2nd_rate_art]

I own MANY of these kinds of devices. Ever since I received my Pixel, about two months ago, I've taken it to work every night, and take it with me everywhere else. It just stays in a small case in my pocket. I installed MinUI on it and never looked back. It is the device I use most. I don't see issues with the viewing angles. I've heard some reviewers mention this, but it's just never once been a problem for me. The stock experience was a bit underwhelming. I'm so happy the community (thanks so much to Russ) came together to work this out. MinUI is made for this device. I'm just saying, this is the best small device I've owned to date. It's completely underrated. It's build quality is amazing, the dpad and buttons are small, but I adjusted to them pretty quickly. Speaker is great too. I think a lot of people rush to compare these devices too quickly. Sometimes we just need to appreciate them for what they are and what they do individually. This one checks all the boxes for me as a truly pocketable handheld. Find it for a good price, install MinUI, and take the dive.

[@retrohandhelds]

This is awesome to hear, and I love that you've found this as your ideal tiny! MinUI really makes this thing sing! I'm still enjoying it after the review, and one I'll be keeping in my collection. Thanks for watching!

[@seashepherdviking923]

Bought the rg nano for doing one handed pokemon but i feel it's a bit too small thinking of maybe getting this one for that.

[@VooDooDread13]

where did you get a custom case for the 35xx???

[@Orlyy]

Coming from the keyboard enthusiast market, this will be my first retro handheld, and I got it because of the all aluminum body hahaha. I hope it serves me well, it should be here this week.

[@retrohandhelds]

Absolutely the highest quality feeling in its category, great choice!

[@tim7392]

I love the look, and the feel would be great. I would like it to sit on my desk for asthetics and charm, but the price prevents me from buying it just to be a good looking paper weight. The end 😂

[@retrohandhelds]

absolutely, and you get extra credit for watching the end!

[@Metal-Josh]

Although the GKD Pixel isn’t THE device I’m interested in, I AM interested in it’s capabilities and it’s pocket ability. And because I’m a big music fan/collector, the idea of having a “MP3 player that I could game on” sounds like an awesome idea. How is the MP3 playback on it? Would you recommend the Pixel for such a use case?

[@retrohandhelds]

MP3 playback is fast and works well (even in MinUI) and with headphones sounds fantastic. I think if you want an mp3 player that can also game, this is a slam dunk.

[@seanbrent4245]

Awesome review! I think it’s still just a tad too small for me as much as i like it! Miyoo original is gonna still be my go to.

[@retrohandhelds]

Ah thanks Sean! That's a great choice, nice balance.

[@cedric15773]

Miyoo Mini v4 is still my #1 micro-handheld. It’s not even about the hardware; OnionOS is just too good

[@ninjason57]

I've considered buying the v4 but was curious if the miyoo A30 would be better if I was just patient.

[@StubbsStuff]

Soo good!

[@IndubitablyRetro]

I got my red one a few weeks ago and I love it. I’m surprised I’m able to play comfortably considering I have big hands. I’m replaying Chrono Trigger on it as we speak.

[@retrohandhelds]

Ah great to hear! I like the look of the Red. This thing is an RPG *BEAST*

[@IndubitablyRetro]

@@retrohandhelds It truly is an RPG beast. It has reignited my love for RPGs.

[@Autotrope]

I bought the trimui model s to satisfy my "tiny device" urge and I still really like it (I like the form factor of it better than this, but that's subjective), but in terms of software the ancient arm cpu and tiny memory on both (that has 64MB, this has 128MB) is really the limiting factor. Minui makes these as usable as you can make them

[@retrohandhelds]

Seriously! Love MinUI, and I need to revisit the Smart Pro (soon tm)

[@Cloud28693]

Great video! I agree: Miyoo Mini is the best pocketable device. Even if GKD Pixel is fancy, it falls under the "too small" category in my opinion. But for the super pocketable device, we're going to see amazing stuff: I am really excited for the Miyoo Mini Flip 😊

[@retrohandhelds]

Thanks Cloud! Yeah agreed, it is too small for general daily use (for me), my main use case in the long run is one-handed games like RPG's.

[@AishTalksTech]

Some of your finest work Mr. Stubbs

[@retrohandhelds]

Aw dang, thanks man. Put a lot of work into it. 🫡

[@RetroGameCorps]

Wait, his last name is Stubbs too? So his full name is Stubbs Stubbs? Learn something new every day.

[@retrohandhelds]

@@RetroGameCorps Stubbs Stubbs is my Father, you can just call me Stubbs

[@TheMagnificentGman]

How does Star Fox 1 & 2 on SNES play?

[@retrohandhelds]

If you use the standalone SNES emulator, they will run fullspeed.

[@jonathonearl482]

It looks neat but I have my 280V.

[@retrohandhelds]

Yeah that's such a good little handheld! I had mentioned it but ended up cutting it out.

[@bilditup1]

This thing is so small and has such a nice screen for the size that I wonder how feasible it is to port Rockbox to it. Surely it has much more powerful hardware than most of the PMPs Rockbox has ever been ported to, and if the headphone amp is clear enough and powerful enough, it might be a decent option! And it would be rather unique with the added gimmick of a mono speaker. Of course a music player app might be more doable, but wouldn’t be as elegant, feature-rich, and just plain cool

[@retrohandhelds]

That would be awesome! The sound is especially awesome through headphones.

[@EightPieceBox]

Is that the green one Zu wanted? Did Gary send that to you? 🤨

[@retrohandhelds]

Shhhh don't tell him!

[@Agumon5]

Honestly looks like a more durable Miyoo Mini

[@quadzilla3326]

Its probably amazing for a very tiny person. Great work on the video

[@retrohandhelds]

Thanks Quadzilla!

[@susanadistancia6903]

The onion os team is working on this device?

[@retrohandhelds]

Not on this device, on the miyoo devices (I was talking about the Miyoo Mini here, that I love it with OnionOS installed).

[@susanadistancia6903]

@@retrohandhelds Oh really? I remember reading a week ago in one of the discord groups that a couple of units had been sent to the onion os team in France

[@gotanks333]

Good work as always Stubbs! Did a great job at making me want another handheld 🥲 Which is your favorite color way? I can't decide between the green and that funkey purple.

[@retrohandhelds]

Thank you! I picked Green! This is my favorite one.

[@stevent7944]

I think that for most of us we all have a small problem with buying too many of these things! For me, I own severa and i hardly play them... if ever, BUT I keep buying more. So when I saw thing it was nothing NEW other then being so cute! Why do I need this after buying a Miyoo mini PLUS? Short answer.... I dont! So WHY would we buy this? The price? At $80 - $90 this is WAY out of our grasp. At $50? I may even buy two but at the $80 price I will pass and I think that a lot of others will too.

[@retrohandhelds]

Absolutely! haha. The metal shell is a lot of the cost, if it was plastic I think we'd see this at $55 - $65.

[@stevent7944]

@@retrohandhelds but I want the metal one. lol

[@jakesmith5278]

too damn small.

[@retrohandhelds]

It is so smol

[@ksavage681]

Too expensive. 118 bucks. No thanks

[@deadfred69]

Great video and I personally am a huge fan of this device. For short gaming periods on the go the size feels good. I use a 3d printed grip when I want more stability but the tradeoff is pocketability with the added bulk.

[@retrohandhelds]

Hey thanks Fred, that's a cool idea! We should have you on the podcast sometime, I would love to talk about some of these wild imports you're finding!

[@deadfred69]

@@retrohandhelds hey man that would be quite an honor I would love to do that anytime just let me know we can schedule it.

[@retrohandhelds]

@@deadfred69 Sure i'll hit you up on Discord, thanks man!