Retroid Pocket Nova Review

High-end 4:3

The Retroid Pocket Nova is the answer to many people’s question of: what is the best D-pad-top 4:3 aspect ratio handheld?

It’s about the PSP’s size in width, but much taller, and packs quite a bit inside with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor that we’ve seen in a multitude of different devices.

That means performance is essentially an afterthought rather than a worry. All of the 4:3 systems are handled here and upscaled, so there are no real concerns when it comes to PlayStation 2 or GameCube emulation. You’re covered.

The Retroid Pocket Nova is priced at $239 USD for the 8GB RAM, 128GB storage model, with a variety of different colors available, or a 12GB RAM model for just $30 more.

If we’re talking about 12GB of RAM versus 8GB of RAM, I can’t think of a scenario where you need 12GB of RAM on a 4:3 device like this. There just isn’t one.

Save the $30 and spend it on a grip or accessory instead if you want. The extra RAM is unnecessary here.

Display

Right off the bat, we have to talk about the screen since that’s the most important part of the handheld and the selling point.

It’s a 4.5-inch AMOLED 4:3 1280×960 120Hz display, which was custom-made for this device and is also a native landscape panel.

This is the major feature. It’s for people who want to experience 4:3 content with no black bars on the sides, while also getting that D-pad-top experience.

When compared to comparable 16:9 handhelds with 6-inch AMOLED 120Hz screens like the AYN Thor or AYN Odin 3, this means having a similar experience for 4:3 content, with just a 0.1-inch difference when integer scaling.

This changes quite a bit if you aren’t integer scaling, as all three handhelds have the upper hand then.

It really does show you how much of a value the AYN Odin 2 Portal is at $269. It’s an insane device for the price.

Brightness & Refresh Rate

The Retroid Pocket Nova’s screen is good, with one major negative.

I’ve noticed higher response times while gaming, which could be due to the native landscape display or something else. Unfortunately, I don’t have the proper tools to measure input lag, so this is based on my experience using the device.

The screen can get bright, reaching 500 nits, which is below the AYN Thor and Odin 3’s 550 nits and well below the Odin 2 Portal’s 800 nits.

That’s more than enough for indoor use.

The 120Hz refresh rate feels great in games, and there’s the usual benefit for 60FPS games running at 120Hz, including lower perceived latency, better frame pacing and an overall smoother gaming experience compared to 60Hz panels.

I also measured it as a proper 60Hz and 120Hz panel using UFO Test, which is a necessity.

Color & Saturation

The one big negative to the screen is the colors, or more specifically, the saturation.

The display is embarrassingly oversaturated, to the point where cheap IPS displays are showing more accurate colors in comparison. We’re talking about handhelds that cost a third of the price.

Even other AMOLED devices like the AYN Thor and Odin 2 Portal show how big of a difference this is.

There’s a lot of detail lost on the Nova’s screen that is present on other handheld displays.

For a handheld where the display is the selling feature, I was hoping for better here, and hopefully it’s something Retroid can solve in a future update.

That being said, playing 4:3 games on here is a wonderful experience.

If Retroid can solve the display issues, I think a lot of D-pad-top 4:3 users will have a great time with this device. If that’s your specific niche, this checks a lot of boxes.

Performance

Power isn’t an issue here.

You can just play through your PS2 catalog, minus the normal games that have issues, and upscale to 2x to match the panel. You’ll have a great time.

The same goes for GameCube games, which have absolutely no performance issues and look and play great here.

The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 has been used in so many handhelds by now that compatibility and performance have largely been solved.

16:9 Gaming

I don’t love the Nova for 16:9 usage.

I find the screen to be on the small side, and I think 16:9 gaming suffers quite a bit if you plan on playing systems that way.

But I don’t think anyone buys a 4:3 device to primarily play 16:9 games.

At that point, you’d likely stick to a 16:9 device that excels at that, and as mentioned earlier, those devices can still give you essentially the same 4:3 image size as the Nova.

Design

I wasn’t a fan of the design of the handheld when I first saw it, and I’m still not.

Compared to the Retroid Pocket Mini, which was the predecessor to this, I find this design less compelling.

As someone who enjoys glass fronts, I’m also missing that here.

That being said, a large portion of the community asked for this design, and so this is for them.

Crystal is definitely a nice-looking color in person, and I think anyone who chooses it will be happy with it.

Cooling & Fan Noise

There’s active cooling here, and like the display, there’s something great to talk about and a big negative.

The great part is the actual fan noise.

When it comes to the sound of air being pushed out, this is one of the best handhelds I’ve heard. The air noise is pleasant, it’s not loud, and it’s great.

However, that positive is ruined by the whine of the fan.

More specifically, it’s the frequency of the noise that’s present at all three modes: Quiet, Smart and Sport, whenever the fan is running.

This is a frequency that doesn’t bother everyone, but it’s something that extremely bothers me.

It’s one of those sounds you can hear from a room away, that tinnitus-frequency-type noise.

This is present on all of the models and fans I’ve experienced.

You Don’t Actually Need the Fan

The one big positive to all of this is that you don’t really need the fan.

I turned the fan off during all of my testing because I honestly wouldn’t have been able to use the device with the fan on.

While the device can get warm, it never got hot, even during upscaled PS2, GameCube or some PC emulation.

The fan does automatically turn on while charging, which is annoying, but also serves as a safety feature.

Otherwise, turning the fan off essentially negates this entire issue.

Controls

This is where I hoped for better.

D-Pad

The D-pad on my Crystal model is stiff and doesn’t feel like previous Retroid D-pads, which I’ve always liked.

The AYN Thor has a very pleasant D-pad with nice movement. It’s not stiff, and I find it great.

The Nova’s D-pad, in comparison, has sharper edges. That’s probably not the right word because it’s not cutting you, but they feel less finished.

The D-pad movement also feels restrictive, and it’s probably one of my least favorite features of the device.

Face Buttons

The buttons themselves feel fine.

There’s travel, they’re clicky and not silent, and otherwise feel like you’d expect normal buttons to feel.

The shoulder buttons are clicky, but you can push them at any point and they register.

The triggers have a lot of range, although they hit 1.0 about halfway through the travel. That can be a good or bad thing depending on the person.

Analog Sticks

The sticks being on the bottom isn’t my favorite.

I think for most people using this device, you’re using the D-pad first.

I find it to be a bit cramped, especially for scenarios like Super Mario 64 where you’re trying to use the shoulders and triggers along with the sticks and buttons.

I’ve never been someone who enjoys sticks on the bottom, so stick-heavy games haven’t felt particularly good on the Nova. That’s something I expected, though.

I think offsetting them a bit more like the Retroid Pocket Mini had would have helped, but that’s not the design they went with.

Stick LEDs

Speaking of the design and the sticks, Retroid made a weird decision regarding the LEDs on the sticks.

They’re angled instead of being in a cross shape, so whether you like having the LEDs on will be a personal preference.

Comfort & Ergonomics

Overall, when it comes to comfort, I’m mixed to negative.

I find it cramped if I ever have to use the triggers, as the spot where your finger rests is the hardest spot to push down on and you can feel your finger curling to reach.

I like to hold my handhelds closer rather than flared out, and so I’ve had a tough time getting comfortable with this device.

The weight feels great, though. It’s nice and light, and you don’t feel much heat in your hands at all.

I think I would need a grip, which defeats the purpose of a smaller device, or I’d want to see how the bumped-back shell changes things, as Retroid sells that as an option.

It might help with the comfort.

Speakers

The speakers sound fine.

Speakers are a touchy subject, as pretty much all of the devices in this price range have needed EQ adjustments to sound better, and this doesn’t escape that.

It’s serviceable out of the box, and I expect EQ adjustments with something like JamesDSP would make it sound better, but this won’t be an audiophile’s favorite device.

Your hands also tend to cover some of the speakers depending on how you hold the device.

I haven’t really run into an issue with muffled sound personally, but I think some people might if they tend to hold their devices close.

Battery Life

As always, I do full 100% to 0% battery tests. No guesswork in the numbers.

I tested ARMSX2 at 2x resolution running Dragon Quest VIII, with 100% brightness, 10% volume and the LEDs on for an essentially worst-case scenario.

I left the fan off for the reasons mentioned earlier, and I saw 5 hours and 15 minutes.

That’s really good. No concerns here.

I also started a Super Nintendo test and saw that it was going to run for more than 15 hours, so I stopped it.

Battery life is great.

Software

The software is what you’d expect from an Android device.

I also tested Syncthing usage to make sure the Android/data folders were accessible like they are on most Retroid devices, and they’re not.

I’m actually confused about what they did differently here, but Android/data Syncthing access, which works on pretty much any AYN device and used to work on Retroid’s devices, has regressed.

That’s unfortunate.

Who Is the Retroid Pocket Nova For?

I think the biggest question here, for anyone not sucked into FOMO, is who is this for?

And it’s a complicated answer.

I would honestly put this into the niche category.

This is for users who really want a 4:3 screen and a D-pad-top layout.

In a world where most users at this point have purchased an AYN Thor, AYN Odin 3 or the quite literally best Android handheld on the market at $259, the AYN Odin 2 Portal, there’s no real reason you’d want to buy the Nova.

We talked about it earlier, but it’s essentially a 0.1-inch improvement in screen size for 4:3 content compared to those 16:9 devices, while losing all of the benefits of 16:9, of which there are many.

Add in my concerns with the comfort, D-pad and screen, and it’s difficult to recommend the Nova over those alternatives for most people.

Unless black bars are really bothersome to you, it would be a weird decision to move from one of those devices to this.

And if there’s a decision to be made between the Nova and one of those devices, I would lean toward them, as I tend to prefer better compatibility and versatility over a narrower device at this price range.

Final Thoughts

That being said, for 4:3 lovers, this seems to be the handheld for you.

It’s not perfect. You may need to wait on some updates to the screen and see how quality shakes out between the different colors and so on.

But right now, this is about as good as it gets if you specifically want a D-pad-top 4:3 Android handheld.

If that’s your niche, the Retroid Pocket Nova checks a lot of boxes.

For everyone else, I’d be looking at a 16:9 alternative instead.