Saturday, October 26, 2024

Cheap Retro Game Emulation Devices - Cheap Powerful Mini Computer

China manufactures hundreds of devices that play retro video games.  These are technically illegal because Chinese companies don't pay royalties for these games.  These devices are a form of software piracy.   However, nobody seems to care.  You can buy them on the Walmart, Target, Amazon, and eBay websites.  I have ordered several from the Chinese Ali Express website which has the lowest prices.  (Temu sells the same stuff as Ali Express, but reportedly the Temu app spies on its customers.)

U.S. Customs could ban these devices but it doesn't.  I have heard reports that the government wants to crack down on IP infringement, but so far they haven't. 

I have bought several of these cheap handheld game systems and given them away as gifts.


Although they are cheaply made, they are fun to play with.

Yesterday I found out about this 5 TB hard drive that contains almost every retro video game ever made.


This is plug-and-play with a Windows PC.  For more complex games it will need a cheap graphics card or APU, although the simpler 8-bit and 16-bit games will run on almost any hardware.

I was going to create my own emulation drive, which is very labor-intensive, but this drive already has everything set up.  The cost is $229 on Amazon, but only $128 on the Ali Express Website.  This is so cheap I ordered it.  An empty 5-terabyte drive costs almost as much.


I use an Xbox controller, which normally costs around $45.  I got mine for about $30 on Black Friday.

Last year I bought a very powerful mini-computer that has recently gone down in price.



If you need a computer that can play these games, this video talks about a cheaper mini-PC that is surprisingly powerful.



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