Description
RetroStone is a handheld console that use a H3 processor. This is the equivalent of a single board computer with external peripheral to make it convenient for video games, specially for retrogaming.
This is designed to be compatible with Armbian distribution of Linux, as well as with Retrorangepi the H3 version of the famous Retropie emulation software.
Please note that RetroStone does not come with any software, it should be considered as a single board computer. You will have to install the software to the memory card (which is really easy by the way). Tutorial can be found HERE
Please note that we ship from Shenzhen in China. For EUROPE customers, the VAT is INCLUDED.
For the rest of the world : Please note that we are not responsible for delays if your packet is handed to your country custom service. Some custom taxes may apply depending on your country. Any duties and taxes for international shipments are the responsibility of the customer. 8BCraft is not responsible for any extra charges once the original package has been shipped. If the customer refuses to pay these extra import charges, the return shipping and any additional fees will be taken out of the cost of the order, with any remaining funds being refunded to the customer. Please consult with your local import customs authorities about the import duties and taxes you have to pay before ordering.
Contents :
- RetroStone
- microSD card with adapter microSD-SD
- Pack of extra buttons
Charger (micro-USB 5V 1.5A+) is not included. (Because most people have tons of such chargers at home.)
See full description here : https://www.8bcraft.com/retrostone/
KimDeaHyoun (verified owner) –
I receive my retrostone yesterday!!
And i see the whole things about retrostone. IT IS REALLY AWESOME the box art, extra buttons include is nice.(i think buttons are famicon style) size is not too big just perfect for handheld gaming. i like the Buttons feels, i was surprise product quality. it is wellmade. I don’t know about allwinner h3 board, but I’m really enjoying now and wait for the retrorangepi full version. If you like handheld device or retrogaming. It’s perfect for you. I’m expecting your next project
Jonathan Heben (verified owner) –
I bought my Retrostone on 8BCraft and it rocks! Great feel and sturdy! Great forum support to!
Chris –
Kickstarter backer here,
Received it yesterday, and it is awesome!! Just plug in TV for really big fun!! Perfect sized, and all Games doing well so far! :))
Jonny –
Screen is terrible, unable to read the text on retro orange pi lite. The screen is blurry and unusable. Sometimes the emulator loads, sometimes its just a black screen. Sound is awful and the whole unit feels poorly made and the software does not work properly. Extremely disappointed and I am getting no support from the maker. Pierre does not reply to any emails sent to him. I will be claiming my money back from my credit card company. AVOID AT ALL COSTS – DO NOT BUY THIS TERRIBLE PRODUCT!
Admin –
Hi Jonny,
Sorry you feel this way, main issue is that Retrorangepi is designed for big TV so all fonts are too small and the user interface does not scale down very nicely, on which we are working. But in game it should be better. Yet it flickers a little bit indeed, but that has been discussed extensively in the kickstarter, I even posted a close video of the LCD in the Kickstarter, so it should not be a surprise that picture is composite.
About emulator not loading this is not a hardware issue, in Retropie for some emulator you need to add the bios, using google would probably have solved your issue. For some other games changing the emulator will also solve this.
Also I do not replied to your messages because I was in holiday for a week.
And if you’r not happy with it you can contact me to return it, I don’t want anyone to feel cheated!
Chibis0ra –
I received my Retrostone yesterday and decided to play around the whole evening. I’m a new user of a Raspberry pie in general and I must say I had more fun playing around with the Retropie than actually playing games on it! The case is very well made, the quality is excellent! I managed to get the NES Game Paperboy running and it looks great!
The Retrostone is very lightweight compared to the original Gameboy (according to my memories). I’m looking forward to playing some Gameboy advance and PSP games on it 🙂 Keep up the good work!
Mike A –
This is a fun little project. Ideally, I can source, design, solder, 3d-print, etc… but on my own, I would never get as a nice a build as this. You get a nice build and go and get connected. (retrorangepi) It’s quirky, but fun and now I have all these games on go in an attractive package. Thanks Retrostone and Pierre!
Chris –
Received mine last week too and its really awesome 😉 Nice feeling in my Hand and those Retrogames, just fantastic. Looking forward to your next Projects, and I recommend all to buy Retrostone 😉
Greets Chris
Jerome –
Very happy so far with my clear blue RetroStone. I connected it to Ethernet and that’s how I was add some ROMs stored on a Win7 laptop. The controls feel sturdy. Well done!
quique –
Well, this is my review about the Retrostone.
Where do I begin?…
My first impression was pleasing, both visual and tactile. You can see a compact console, a screen of an adequate size, very connectable and with very careful details. As I started to try it a bit more thoroughly, I started to find some other, let’s say, small disappointment. The first thing I did was install the retrorangePi OS, Slim version (today the full version is not yet available, which does not worry me too much, since I do not intend to use it as a desktop miniPC nor multimedia center). Once installed retrorangePi, as I do with any linux distribution, the first thing I always do is update it, and here’s my first disappointment: it does NOT have a Wifi interface.
Next step, connect to the internet via ethernet cable and update. Once this is done, I start surfing through the menus of EmulatioStation to see the options it offers. All very similar to Retropie (for Raspberry Pi).
The screen. I have already read some criticism in this regard. Ok, it is true that the small letters are not read well and with difficulty those of the terminal. My opinion is that it is a console, and the important thing are the games, so my opinion is that the screen is adequate, perhaps improvable, but acceptable.
Battery: correct. I have not been playing a lot of hours, but it gives me confidence. What I have noticed is that, as soon as the LED number 2 (starting from above) lights up, the screen starts to flash and you have to connect it quickly or the console will automatically turn off.
Another negative aspect that I see, in my opinion, are the back buttons, maybe because of the size of my hands / fingers, I find them uncomfortable, but you know that they are buttons that are used in a few games, the main ones are the 4 front ones.
And finally, something that has me worried is the boot process. I don’t know if it is due to hardware or software, but sometimes the OS starts the first time, but instead other times, you have to turn the switch off and on several times to start. I suppose that over time it will be solved (assuming it is software problem …)
Anyway, and not to extend more, my opinion is that it is a good portable console, to spend pleasant moments remembering old games of childhood, with a series of improvable aspects. It is for this reason that I give it 4 stars. In addition, it surely involves many hours of work behind and hours of insomnia on the part of the creators / creators.
I hope this review serves someone, it is simply my opinion.
Greetings,
Quique
LiRon H –
I ve received my RetroStone (limited edition) and it is truly AMAZING)
though Im a newbie and still have to read about all the tips and tricks its absolutely incredible and wouldnt even think twice about the project again- a work of art!
in any questions i get Pierre is very responsive, the forum is alive and responsive
really amazing job!
Admin –
Hi Ted,
Sorry you feel this way, main issue is that Retrorangepi is designed for big TV so all fonts are too small and the user interface does not scale down very nicely, on which we are working. We already changed the Emulation Station theme for better readability but have not changed retroarch yet as they are less users.
About the screen that flips it happens when battery is very low, just before the unit switch off. Note that you have LED2 that turn ON when you have low battery.
alex express –
Très bonne surprise la console est bien finie , la jouabilité est excellente , la batterie tiens bien la charge et pour un habitué de recalbox je me suis vite fait a retrorangepi ( transfert des roms et bios manquant via le câble ethernet et hop ) seul petit défaut mais ca vient de retrorange pi il est dur de lire les option de retroarch sur le petit ecran et le son qui manque un peu de peps .
Au final ca reste un bel objet bien fini sur lequel je peux jouer a mes jeux retro preferés
Paul Dunn (verified owner) –
Bought mine on a whim, and… It’s actually great, with some flaws. To be clear, although I raise quite a lot of issues in this review hardly any of them are the fault of the device itself, which is pretty solid. Most of the issues are due to the OS.
The device itself is well made, and sturdy. The case is very reminiscent of the old GameBoy, but somewhat shorter. I personally would have preferred it to be the same size as the GB, primarily so that a larger battery could be installed, but that’s just me. It’s comfortable to hold and doesn’t weigh much at all. The case is plain grey as opposed to the prototype’s stone-effect colour (and I’m hoping that there will be case mods including this stone colour available in the future!).
The controls are Ok. Not brilliant – not on the level of the OpenPandora, but they function fine. Pressing Left on the D-Pad requires a fair bit of force – a user on the forums says that they managed to fix theirs, so I’ll be taking it to bits shortly. The shoulder buttons on the back are pretty hard to reach however, but that’s just a matter of getting used to it.
Connectivity is great. You can run your ROMs from a USB stick in one of the four USB sockets, install them via Ethernet, or Insert your SD card into a Linux box.
Which brings us to setting it up.
This was pretty easy – just follow the instructions supplied to get the default firmware on there. You’ll need a small implement such as the supplied SD Card adaptor to get the uSD card out of the device – it’s recessed too deep, so you can’t do it with your fingers. The firmware has quite a lot of issues, but I’m sure they will be sorted in time and they’re out of the control of the creator of the device – it runs RetrorangePi and only the Slim version is available at this time.
Once it’s set up, Windows 10 users will find it difficult to get their ROMs onto the device. You have basically three options :
1. Dump the ROMs onto an external USB stick and run them from there. Depending on the speed of your USB drive and the amount of ROMs, this will massively increase boot time. Not recommended.
2. Install an Ext filesystem driver in Windows. This is problematic for both solutions available on the web – Paragon’s driver will randomly fail, and Ext2FS will just not run on the latest Win10. You need version 0.53 for it to work and that version has some awful show-stopping bugs.
3. So we’re left with Ethernet. Simply plug a cable into the RetroStone at one end and the other into your Router. Use the RetroPi menu on the ‘Stone to find your IP address, and tap that into windows Explorer. Presto! Your ROMs can be copied over swiftly. Note that you can’t “see” the internals of the firmware this way, so if you’re wanting to edit configs then you’ll need a USB keyboard at the very least.
I’d recommend going the Ethernet route as the cable can be bought pretty easily, if you don’t already have about 6 kicking about in a drawer somewhere.
After the ROMs are on the device, the fun can begin. I’d recommend the “TFT” theme for readbility (though the images can be really dark on the ‘Stone’s screen) and it does have a few systems missing from it so they show up very dark on the main menu.
You’ll need to alter your control config to enable N64 analog on the DPad. Once done however, it’s perfectly playable.
I still need to configure the screen properly – all the emulators are vertically stretched slightly so for example, the rings you collect in Sonic are ellipses. Some digging through RetroPi’s docs will likely get that sorted though.
Scraping of game art is best left going overnight. Don’t forget to make sure your ‘Stone is plugged in to the mains!
And so the emulation. This is the ‘Stone’s strong point. It’s fast. Much, much faster than a Pi Zero and probably faster than a Pi3. It’s been smooth in everything I’ve tried – from 2600 up to PS1 and N64. Really smooth. Sound is pretty good from the speaker, but headphones are broken due to needing a resistor fix in hardware.
And the screen, when emulating, is just lovely. You can set the brightness/contrast/colour to make it as brilliant as you like, and it looks great for Retrogaming for all but those systems that used their own LCD (such as GBA). Text on GBA games can be hard to read but they weren’t designed for TV use which back in the day was blurry as heck.
And using the screen in the OS for configuration work is painful. RetrorangePi (and to a degree Armbian) will only use a minimum of 640×480, which is scaled down to the screen’s 320×240 which results in blurring and unreadable text. It really is bad, and that’s the fault of the OS, not the device (though being a composite screen doesn’t help matters).
But I love it and I’m having a blast. Updates to the OS will be very welcome.
Jeremiah Doody –
Got my RetroStone just a few days ago via KickStarter. It took a little bit, but after flashing the micro SD card I got the system to run. Been playing with it since, and still really liking it. I got the KickStarter limited edition version, where the only difference is the color of the casing (a nice see-through dark blue).
The device itself is a fairly solid piece of equipment. The buttons feel responsive, the audio jack works, screen works, etc. All the buttons are very responsive, and I haven’t had an issue with them. The USB ports work, GPIO button works, lights all come on, and the speakers quality is like you’d expect–very retro. Not Surround sound amazing, obviously, it is a small device. I really like the design, and the see-through blue case really adds to the aesthetic. I’ve always loved how you can see the inner workings of the device that way.
The only one that’s shown any kind of quirk is the D-pad. It’s a bit sensitive, and if I press one direction in a game, I sometimes go another direction instead. It can be a bit difficult staying in one emulator screen for long without the screen switching. Same issue shows up when I play Mr. Boom. I’ve been told by the creator that this is a small misalignment issue with the D-pad. Not a big deal; I’ll just need to open-er up and readjust it.
I’m a small-time game developer myself, so the prospect of a handheld raspberry pi in the shape of a handheld game system is very interesting. Unity exports to Linux, which the OS runs on, so I’d love to see if this is a viable option for play testing. The potential for emulators is nice, but personally I’m looking forward to develop games with this.
Overall, I’m really glad I purchased my RetroStone.
Lar (verified owner) –
This doesn’t arrive ready to use, there’s a bit of setup involved so this is just something to be wary of, if you’re not comfortable with computers/technology you may need to have someone help with installing the operating system and loading roms, however once set up this thing is great, and the setup is not overly complicated if you follow the instructions. I’m happy with it so far, and have shown and recommended it to others.
Jules –
super console, très marrant pour jouer à des vieux jeux
bien lire le tuto et attendre apès le 1er boot, installation facile
super
Vincent –
Once you’ve succeed to install roms and configure Retrostone, everthing’s good !
I really like the “old portable console” design, makes me fall back in my childhood 🙂
Lot of people worried about screen quality, but let’s be honest:
The console is called “RETROstone”. Most of the games you will play on it won’t need HD resolution.
Great job, Pierre-Louis 😉
Darkam –
Reçu ma Retrostone depuis une semaine et pour le moment super satisfait.
RetroPie en version “OrangePie” tourne bien (et tournera de mieux en mieux avec les updates réguliers qui arrivent !), déjà de très nombreux émulateurs testés qui tournent sans problème (Pc Engine CD for ever !). L’écran est de bonne taille et les boutons repondent bien. L’ergonomie globale est très bonne. La batterie se charge lentement mais reste suffisante pour une soirée intensive.
Il manquerait juste une protection pour pouvoir l’emmener partout !
Achim –
I’m received my retrostone 2 days ago (kickstarter) and it’s absolutely awesome!! Playing in the train, coming home and changing to the big Screen and so on.
Easy to handle and perfekt retro-feeling!!
John c. –
I backed retrostone on kickstarter some months ago, and have been anxiously waiting ever since!! I received the product three days ago and havent been able to put it down. I highly recommend if you enjoy retro games!
fraenksn (verified owner) –
Very well built little unit with good controls and zero delay, a lovely low-res – like it was back in the days – retro composite screen and fast hardware.
I see there was a lot of love going into this!
Sehr sauber verarbeitete kleine Konsole mit guter Steuerung und null Verzögerung, einem hübschen low-res – wie damals – Composite Bildschirm und flotter Hardware.
Ich merke, dass da viel Liebe reingesteckt wurde!
Josh Borlase –
I’m loving my Retrostone. It is by no means a plug and play device, as it requires several specific processes to get games up and running. That said it performs wonderfully as a multi purpose retro gaming system. As of this writing (Sept 1/2018) the full version of the RetrOrangePi OS has been recently released and the team behind it (nod to AlexKidd) and Pierre are doing a great job of trying to fix problems as they come to light. It has been a rocky start but again this is DYI light baby!
I would not recommend it for primarily mobile gaming for two reasons. One the battery takes up to 5-6 hours to charge and lasts for 4-5 hours (this was the best battery available through the supplier). And two the better video out is routed to the HDMI port not the onboard screen. Both are passable in my opinion and help to keep a retro feel when portable.
I look forward to the continued maturation of the platform. Would buy again.
Daniele Ricciardi –
Received mine past thursday.
PROs:
Built really well, solid, fast (once you finish to install), absolutely as per the description in kickstarter.
CONs:
The display quality and resolution could be better. The microSD card slot need something to insert or remove the card. Installation of OS needs to be made manually by the user (no prebuilt software installed).
Finally I’m more than happy of purchasing this and I strongly advise anyone to go for that!
Nicolas K –
Je suis très satisfait de la retrostone.
Je n’ai pas eu de problème pour flasher la carte mémoire.
La console donne l’impression de solidité.
Le seul petit soucis rencontré a été lié au pad qui n’avait pas une bonne sensibilité au niveau de la direction gauche. Ceci peut être résolu en suivant le tutorial posté sur le forum. Ensuite ça fonctionne parfaitement: un mauvais montage des premiers modèles.
Je conseille la retrostone, c’est un bon produit.
Christian Weghaus –
I love the RetroStone alot and also Pierre´s work.
For those who love the old games from those days this little technical thing is a great thing. I really enjoyed setting it up and copy the roms easily on it.
Also looking forward and curious about the next projects of Pierre.
Go on like that Pierre! We all love your work alot!
Regards from Germany,
Christian
Mehdi Mansour (verified owner) –
I waited to try a lot of things before posting a review. I received the retrostone early and It took a bit of fidelling to setup at first because there wasn’t full RetrOrangePi to download. An overall great experience and the DIY aspect of things adds to the fun. At first I was disappointed by the onboard lcd but I learned to tweak it for a good retro experience specially for gameboy, and I wouldn’t want loose the hdmi connectivity like some suggested for a better look because it’s gorgeous on a big TV, I’m sure there will be updates to the screen so we can replace it ourselves.
So guys don’t expect a ready to use console it’s made to be tweaked.
The built quality is great for the price and I think (hope) it will last a long time. Man on the Tv what an experience i m still figuring out how to correctly map Xbox and PS controllers because I was able to run N64 ! After a few minutes of skipping frames the games seem to run smoothly. A lot to say cause this has been a great project to follow and now to enjoy
Wesley Stannard –
The RetroStone is awesome! Plays like every oldskool game!
If you have problems or questions the maker replies to you within 24 hours. There’s great feedback and great communication
Giuseppe Mannino –
Era da tempo che cercavo una console portatile con la quale poter tornare a giocare ai giochi di una volta potendo portarli sempre con me, ed ho trovato la mia risposta: Retrostone, un progetto che mi ha molto incuriosito e che mi ha indotto a farne parte.
Tenendolo tra le mani si ha davvero l’impressione di avere tra le mani un “Gameboy moderno”, facendomi tornare i bei ricordi da bambino quando insieme agli amici ci si scambiava o si combatteva con i Pokemon. Purtroppo la realtà dei fatti mi ha fatto sprofondare nella tristezza , o meglio dire, nella piccola delusione che ho avuto nelle prime “ore” di utilizzo. Dire ore è una banalità perché da subito ho riscontrato diversi problemi. Per prima cosa lo schermo non è il massimo, ma se si utilizzano solo giochi a 8bit o per console portatili alla fine non è una gran perdita. La batteria dichiarata- ore di utilizzo non svolge a pieno il suo compito, in quanto lo switch per l’accensione e lo spegnimento non funziona a dovere, perchè in diverse schede (come conferma anche l’ideatore della console), anche spostando la levetta su off il dispositivo non andra in totale spegnimento ritrovandosi così con la batteria sempre scarica oppure che fa fatica ad accendere il dispositivo con continui crash. Il software, Retrorange, è ancora in fase beta è non pienamente funzionante con il dispositivo portandolo ad instabilità nel sistema e ad avere una grafica non ridimensionata allo schermo. Che dire il prodotto è stato assemblato è spedito frettolosamente senza effettuare nessun test sui vari componenti hardware e software del dispositivo; un errore davvero imperdonabile mi sarei accontentato di aspettare un mese in più prima di averlo tra le mie mani, e non di avere tutti questi problemi. Fortunatemente , Pierre l’ideatore del dispositivo è molto disponibile ad ascoltare i suoi clienti e cerca di aiutarli come meglio può.
Admin –
Hi,
After reading your comment I think your RetroStone is probably faulty and should be replaced. It should not crash/LCD turning blue/crazy. Also if you have a low battery life it also suggest there’s something wrong. Please have a look there and fill the question to get a replacement : http://forum.8bcraft.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=1760
Andy –
The Retrostone is really a tiny wonder – it’s basically a tiny computer at the palm of your hand that enables you to do tons of emulation.
That being said, it’s not perfect too. Flickering composite screen that looks like VHS recording, unstable OS (which is to be loaded manually tho not a problem at all) and slightly on the pricier side.
But the beauty of this is that it give you the hands-on experience and yes, you’ll screw up somewhere when loading your OS or something but, it’s learning from it. Overall, still a great product. If you want a pre-packaged emulation machine you’ll be better off a certain android-powered handheld.
Thomas L’HOSTIS –
Merci pour cette console portable!
Après lecture de quelques petit tuto sur ce même site et sur le forum pour ne pas me planter. La voila qui fonctionne! et je suis vraiment agréablement surpris par toute les possibilités qui s’offre à nous en terme de portage!
Un très bon suivi du créateur et une très bonne écoute des différents problèmes de chacun. CHAPEAU !
Jicé –
J’en suis à mon 4 ème projet Kickstarter financé, et je dois dire que c’est la première fois que tout se passe parfaitement.
Des infos et mises à jour régulière hebdomadaire, au minimum, qui montre l’avancée du projet, un délai tenu, pas de retards, un envoi en temps et en heure, et une réception sans aucuns problèmes.
Le produit est conforme, dans le mail d’envoi il y a des liens vers des tutos pour flasher la memory card et mettre des jeux dessus.
Bref pas d’angoisses, alors merci !
Keyz Karanza –
Well, after much waiting, I finally received my 2 Retrostones. First off, the one star I took away is for the screen, as so many other have already talked about. It’s pretty rough, but it isn’t like it is supposed to be Super AMOLED or anything. Regardless, that is the only flaw. If you follow the various guides for getting set up, you should have no problem getting games on the system and playing them. It seems to be pretty well built and it runs smoothly. I look forward to testing the HDMI out tonight, as that will be my primary use for game nights.
Brandon –
Really great handheld gaming system. The build quality is amazing. Easy to install software. Creator is quick to respond with any problems or updates that will make the system better.
Harvey –
I love my RetroStones! I bought 2 and I’m very satisfied with my purchase. 🙂
Retail packaging: The overall packaging is excellent. The inner plastic does an excellent job at holding the RetroStone in place within the retail box. The retail box is very beautifully made and very sturdy. It is also encapsulated with an electrostatic bubble wrap bag that offers a lot of protection. The outer packaging has a very nice 8bcraft logo. Both of my RetroStones arrived from China is in flawless condition. There are no noxious odors that is often associated with factories in China.
Outer shell: The injected molded plastic is very dense, yet very light. It’s very sturdy and very resistant to scratches. Every square inch is purposeful and functional. There’s no gaudy, obnoxious branding. The overall device is very inconspicuous. The casing is very easy to open (just 6 Phillips screws).
Screen/HDMI functionality: The Achilles heel is the screen resolution. Navigating throughout the menu screens can be taxing on your eyes. It’s often blurry, distorted, or cut-off. Thankfully, this is not an issue during gameplay, video playback, or when exported through HDMI. The physical brightness/contrast/color controls is an awesome feature.
Switching to HDMI is very easy and straightforward. However, I did notice a very problematic issue. When playing N64 games, I notice that the video is not upscaled. The video is on the bottom left corner of my TV and is very small. As of this date, I am unable to find a solution (this is most likely due to an issue with the emulator).
Audio: The audio quality is phenomenal! Even in full volume, there is no distortion, interference, or any loss in audio quality. The headphone jack works flawlessly (no lowered volume as noted in earlier revisions) but there is a very noticeable hum from the mono speaker. I love the responsiveness and precision control of the analog volume wheel.
PCB Board: The only flaw that I can see is that the bottom left corner screw hole is slightly too close to the edge (the constant removal and insertion of the screw may degrade the integrity of the edge of the PCB). There are numerous GPIO ports that allow for future hardware upgrades. The overall build quality is excellent. I love the silkscreening of the 8bcraft logo.
Software: Mounting and installing the latest ISO image was straight-forward and very easy (just use Etcher for Mac/PC).
RetroOrangePi is not integrated with RetroPie very well (there are different submenus in RetroPie and within RetroOrangePi. Ideally, the menu system should be integrated into one subfolder in RetroPie or RetroOrangePi.
Wireless: Adding WiFi and Bluetooth is a gamble. Some dongles work, while others don’t. There’s no definitive list that shows full compatibility. However, once compatible devices are found, it is very easy to connect using WiFi and Bluetooth without the need for scripts or modifications.
Customer service: Throughout the KickStarter campaign and even to its completion, Pierre-Louis Boyer has been very responsive and helpful toward responding to everyone’s inquiries. Although English isn’t his first language, all of his posts are easy to read and very easy to understand. Knowing that he stands by his brand gives me confidence in the quality of his products and that warranties will be honored.
Overall: I love the RetroStone. It feels and operates like a very high-end retro gaming mini-PC. It’s a great device for people who like to tinker and have the patience to troubleshoot. It’s a great stepping stone for learning how to code and to mod.
Christian –
Ganz tolles Gerät!! Nur zu empfehlen!!
Man fühlt sich wieder in seine Kindheit versetzt. Vielen Dank Pierre dass du den RetroStone ins Leben gerufen hast. Ich hoffe es folgen noch viele weitere coole Retro Geräte von dir!
Einen lieben Gruß nach Frankreich und vielen Dank nochmal für deine HIlfe 🙂
Gruß aus Deutschland,
Christian
Brandon –
Love my retrostone! the tutorial made set-up super easy, everything works and performs well, Pierre has been very responsive and helpful.
Rob Pearmain –
Received my two retrostones a couple of days ago.
The web instructions made it easy to set up, downloading the. Retrorangepi image, writing to the SD card etc. Took me a while to work out where to put my MAME Roms (arcade). Note, once copied u need to reboot before they appear.
If it auto detected HDMI it would be great, but the factory reset button (undocumented?) at the top right saved the day when I selected the wrong video mode. (Discovered it whilst panicking)
So I think it needs auto detect HDMI, but that’s my only complaint,
Now, where are those N64 roms I have …
pepperextract (verified owner) –
I received my Retrostone today 11a.m
now11p.m
format refresh flush blackout format flush blockout
read forum and tutorial
format format format
How many times will it work?
Admin –
Hi,
Can you post on this forum http://forum.8bcraft.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=1760
Answer all the question seen in first post.
So I can help you finding root problem you’r having
ramonpks –
Perfecto, retrostone funciona perfecto, tal vez habria que matizar algun que otro aspecto referente al software, y estaria bien tambien que se pudiera comprar la tapa delantera de la retrostone ya modificada para hacer modding conjuntamente con el joystick y los pulsadores, por todo lo demas ningun aspecto negativo referente a retrostone, incluso me siento muy agradecido por el trato personal recibido por parte de Pierre hacia mi persona sobre un problema que surgio con el altavoz, respuesta rapidisima y solucion igualmente rapida, muchas gracias por todo
Abel (verified owner) –
ça ne marche pas du tout
ça demarre correctement une fois sur 20 pour ne fonctionner que 30 secondes.
Admin –
Ce n’est pas normal, je pense qu’il y a un problème dans l’installation de l’OS ou un problème hardware. SVP répondre à ce forum pour qu’on trouve la raison du problème :
http://forum.8bcraft.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=1760&p=3190#p3190
NordicPower –
Après avoir corrigé le problème de son de la toute première série de Retrostone, elle est parfaitement fonctionnelle. Le gain de puissance par rapport à un pi3 est visible, je peux maintenant jouer avec de nombreux plateformes de jeux dont les playstation, PSP, Dreamcast, Amiga… La finition du boitier est plutôt bien réussie et fait professionnelle; son look Gameboy interpelle mes amis. 2 points d’amélioration : le démarrage avec son écran mal-initialisé accompagné de quelques freeze encore et le système OrangePi pas aussi mature que PI3 (des gros progrès ont été réalisés en peu temps). Un excellent cadeau retrogramming… Je l’utilise tous les jours.
Casciavit –
I received my RetroStone before my holidays and am finally able to play with it now. It really looks fantastic for nostalgic Nintendo-loving feelings.
I hope the software will be more stable in the future. It won’t boot once in every 3 or 4 times. But it’s no big problem. I will have a look on the forum and keep updating when it is available.
Lee Ashmore (verified owner) –
The screen is very *very* poor. It amazes me how a handheld unit favours composite for the internal screen….. I mean it it designed foremost as a handheld unit.
The rear buttons are way too high a position.
The constant corruption has now been stated that yet another internal mod needs to be done to a resistor . This is in addition to the sound and dpad mods that are neccesary.
If your in the UK you can expect a 30quid import tax bill……
DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT……….
Admin –
Hi there,
Sorry you’r disapointed.
About the LCD it has been discussed extensively and indeed it’s composite signal so it flickers a bit. However the main issue is that Retrorangepi is designed for big TV so some fonts are too small and the user interface does not scale down very nicely, on which we are working. But in game it should be better.
About the boot problem fix, it’s a fix for the problem where the unit does not boot ~10-20% of times and stay on blue/white LCD forever. Please note that if your unit crashes/freeze/show text errors while booting or stuck on black LCD, then it’s not normal and you should go there to report for replacement : Here
I understand your disapointment… I’m really really sorry about these things to mod. I know there are several things that were not correct/perfect with the first run of Retrostone and that’s really embarassing for me.
From now on those mistakes will be corrected on all the RetroStones of course.
Rems (verified owner) –
I received mine a few days ago and I love it. Ok, it’s not perfect. I sometimes have to reboot a few times before it’s starting. I had to flash the card a couple of times after it got corrupted.
But what I like is that Pierre is very prompt to help and to advise. You have to mod it yourself? well, at least there is a solution. Remember that the company behind the retrostone is not So*y, Mic****ft or Ni*****o.
And these big manufacturers also have defect materials after launch.
That being said, the screen is composite but it does what it’s supposed to do. And fits well with the name RETROstone. The case is well designed and easy to handle I think.
It’s just a pleasure to play games of our childhood wherever you want. And the catalogue is huge. I’m so happy that my 10-year old boy can play “my” games.
5 stars, easy!
Jérôme –
La Retrostone (2ème envoi) est arrivée à destination.
Merci encore pour la qualité du service client et très bonne continuation dans vos projets actuels et futurs.
digitalanimenl (verified owner) –
The quiet headphone output problem seems to be fixed on my device, so I’m happy that it took a bit longer for my RetroStone to arrive after ordering so that I don’t need to check if my soldering skills are any good yet.
I personally had no issue installing RetrOrangePi and it was no problem to add any roms using the steps provided on the website in desktop mode.
The display is ok, but personally I would have preferred a display with a digital signal with a crisp output. Maybe there is a good reason why you went for this option and I can live with it.
This product may not be for everyone because it doesn’t work right out of the box. You need to install it and you require a PC with a microsd/sd reader for that step. To get games on the RetroStone you need a USB stick and a USB mouse for the steps that are provided. But if you want something as fast as a Raspberry Pi 3, portable and a finished product that you don’t have to assemble yourself then this a great device.
Things that can be improved on a future project :
– Display with digital output.
– Easier way to turn it off without having to shut it down in the RetrOrangePi menu first
– Stereo speakers
– A way to connect the RetroStone to the PC, to be able to drag and drop roms easier without the use of a USB stick.
– An official RetroStone carry case.
Thank you for this great device so I don’t have to DIY one myself!
Cyril (verified owner) –
Retrostone reçu, avec un peu d’attente mais comblé par le resultat.
Certes il existe quelques petits soucis (difficulté de lire l’inrterface sur le petit ecran, boutons arrières pas ergonomiques et 1 avec un probleme de jeu…à revoir) et necessite un peu de bidouillage pour installer et transferer les roms.
Malgré tout, une fois tout installé, quel bonheur de jouer à ma bibliotheque de jeux 8bits-16bits, neo geo etc…
Pas encore essayé la psp, dreamcast ou N64, mais tout le reste fonctionne du tonnerre.
En resumé, les petits désagréments sont largement effacés par les atouts de cette petite console.
Dernier point: effectivement, une petite carry case officielle serait tres appreciable.
Merci pour ce travail et bonne continuation dans ce projet.
Aklain –
Cela fait un petit moment que je l’utilise et rien a dire cote du matériel, une belle finition de l’ensemble, seul l’absence de wifi pose problème. Finalement la sortie HDMI n’est pas vraiment utile pour ma part, on aurait gagné a mettre un écran en HDMI plutôt que composite et pas de sortie EXT.
Le problème viens plutôt du soft qui ne gère pas encore correctement la résolution de l’écran et de l’absence de thème vraiment adapté. Malgré tout y joué est vraiment sympas et les sensations sont excellente.
Enfin le service après vente est vraiment top.
Manolis McRees –
I was waiting for my Retrostone to arrive to Greece like a kid waiting under the Christmas tree for Santa 😀
I really love the design and the screen, it brought up some really cool nostalgic memories.
Nice Job Pierre
Jan van der Lugt –
Really cool product!
Remo –
Great product, very responsive support.
The often criticized screen is good enough for a retro console.
Great fun to play all the old games.
Whayle –
Wonderful Job Pierre! And thanks so much for helping iron out my shipping issues. I’m very happy with my Retrostone, and I can’t wait to see what you’ll be up to next.
Chavatte (verified owner) –
reçue aujourd’hui le 14/11/2018 . Tout est nickel , l’émulation est bonne et la batterie a durée 2h30 ou 3h mais c’est arrivé de chine , passé par l’Espagne et la suisse environ 1 mois . Contrairement à certaines revues sur youtube metal slug n’a pas ralenti et les autres jeux non plus , la carte sd est maintenant bien chargée avec 9700 jeux , par contre, moi je ne met pas les bios nitendo 64 et autre ps1 (joystick analogique .)
Ekortal –
Imaginez toutes les consoles rétro ainsi que leurs jeux dans votre poches entre vos mains ou branché en hdmi comme multiconsole de salon. Et oui maintenant possible grâce à la RetroStone ! Les enfants adorent !!!
Techniquement :
En suivant bien le tutorial, tout sera simple d’installation. Il faudrait le traduire en français.
Pour le reste, internet vous le dira ;)!!!
Ekortal –
Vraiment satisfait. Un vrai petit bijoux !!
Lavric33 (verified owner) –
J’ai reçu mon retrostone hier, conforme a la description du site.
Déjà j’y ai installé retrorange suprême tuto d’installation ici:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zDoLqAKG-1o
Tout fonctionne nickel.
A moi les joies du retogaming en nomade!!!
Merci encore pour la qualité de ce produit et la rapidité de vos réponses par mails.
Lavric33 (verified owner) –
En un moment: terrible!
A moi les joies du rétro gaming en mode nomade.
L’installation de retrorange version suprême s’est bien passée. Je l’ai reçu hier et j’ai déjà tout installé.
La prise en main est top, les boutons répondent bien, et l’écran est juste super.
Je ne l’ai pas encore testé sur un écran de TV HDMI, mais je n’en vois pas trop l’utilité a vrai dire.
Petit plus pour la rapidité de réponse à mes mails.
Vous pouvez y aller sans problèmes les gars
Richard Cruz (verified owner) –
The RetroStone is the portable gaming console I badly wanted. The convenience of having so many classic arcade and home gaming systems available in one handheld is incredible for any retrogamer.
The unit is light yet sturdy, and the buttons are very responsive, though some airline passengers I was near complained the buttons were too noisy.
The screen is not LCD, but works well for the games I am playing. Also, the sound is good from the built-in speaker (a slight hardware adjustment is needed to improve sound though the built-in headphone jack).
One cravat I find is that there is no clear-cut way to transfer ROMS to the unit. There are 3 viable methods, all of which work very well, but a USB plug-and-forget-it method would be best.
I would recommend this unit to anyone who wants retrogaming on the go!
Kypski (verified owner) –
WOOHOO!! Been playing like crazy with this thing! 🙂 I think lot of users do need to realize this is not entirely plug & play and it helps if you like to tweak & modify things yourself. Maybe some people expect a ‘gameboy’ behaviour and then they are dissappointed. But maybe they should buy a gameboy then haha. I don’t care i’m having tons of fun with my Retrostone everyday. Once again thanks for the great fun machine 8BCraft bigups!!
Jim Lewallen –
I started out with the Retrostone with some previous experience with emulation on raspberry pi/retro pie configurations. As such, modulo a few things I needed to discover on my own the device has been flawless and now my 8 year old son has become a retro junkie too. Pierre has been great and helped me through shipping challenges with the original device promptly. Thanks for making my hobby portable!
Eddie (verified owner) –
I like the Retrostone very much. Especially the aesthetics and form factor. (Like common, it’s a mini-pc in a gameboy-like case). Openend it up and there is lots of room to custome it even further.
Been playing SNES games all day yesterday and it emulates it really nicely. Nice firms buttons. Maybe the Screen could be a little bit better, but I kind of dig the retro experience it gives me (plus the HDMI out is awesome) . 5 STARS
leclere.steph (verified owner) –
Console sympa mais aucun service client fabriquer par un français mais viens de hong Kong lol et 46,50 euros de frais de douanes à ajouter au prix de la consoles marquer sur leur site bien cacher mdr bravo l’arnaque merci
Admin –
Bonjour,
Désolé si ce n’était pas suffisamment clair sur le site. En effet des frais de douane peuvent s’appliquer en fonction des pays (et des modes de livraison, DHL tend à faire payer la TVA alors que les services postaux non).
Les paquets sont expédiés depuis l’usine directement pour simplifier la logistique car je suis une toute petite entreprise, ca coute très cher de faire livrer la production en France d’abord car il faut payer la TVA sur l’intégralité de la production à l’import. Alors que par la suite 90% des paquets repartent à l’étranger (et pour se faire rembourser la TVA sur les paquets qui repartent c’est long et compliqué..).
Bref désolé pour la mauvaise surprise, j’essayerais de mettre en place un entrepôt en Europe dans le future pour éviter ces situations.
ekampi (verified owner) –
¡I have mine now and i love it! 🙂
It’s portable and i can also play on my TV. I have lots of games from my childhood installed. It has very good quality. I recommend it to any retrogamer.
Chris Mac –
I’ve had my Retrostone since late August. From day 1, I have not had the boot issues that I see others complaining about on the forums. It has handled almost everything that I have thrown at it, with the exception of some N64 games. My only minor piece of feedback is that I would like a better battery indicator, with more of an idiot proof warning that the battery is about to die in the middle of my game. Pierre has been nothing but a true bud, answering my questions in a timely manner. I look forward to seeing future projects.
Jacques Dupuis (verified owner) –
One thing about the RetroStone that people might forget is that it is a computer first and a handheld game console second. It needs time to boot up so don’t expect it to boot up to games when you flip the switch. the unit itself feels comfortable in my hand and the first set of shoulder buttons are easy to interact with. there are only two criticisms that I have with the RetroStone, however they are both minor things in my opinion. First, the screen is not outputting to hdmi which can be a turn off for some. Yet, for me, it feels right with the kind of games that I am playing on it. Second, the sound of the unit can crackle at higher volumes and channels are missing from the audio jack. again I feel like this doesn’t hinder anything, except for when you want to use headphones.
Dereck (verified owner) –
fantastic little device! extremely happy with it. thank you for such personal and prompt service!
Modzii (verified owner) –
Superbe console! Il faut s’y connaître un peu pour la configurer mais il y a des tutos partout. Apres c’est un plaisir, toutes les consoles tournent nikel jusqu’à la PSX un rêve devenu réalité. Elle ne me quitte plus. Bientôt une vidéo sur la chaîne Youtube MODZII .
Rob (verified owner) –
Receive my Retrostones Friday and already have them running. I am having a blast with these devices. I know some people had concerns about the screen quality but I think it is fine considering I played many of these game in the past on tube televisions before flat screens were around. Also, great customer service from Michael and Pierre at 8BCraft.
Overall, an impressive device!
Marco Verhoeven (verified owner) –
Very happy with my unit! The unit is really nicely build and feels great. After fixing the resistor that gives the boot problem the unit works fine. I’m on the normal Retrorangepi.
rsyourist (verified owner) –
Only worked for at most an hour than I have to reinstall the operating system, I think mine may be defective or something but regardless, I want my money back or a working one
Admin –
Hi,
Of course if your unit has a defect it will need to be replaced.
Please open a ticket on the website and describe your problem with more details please. So we can help confirm if it’s a hardware problem.
Pablibiris (verified owner) –
I’m very very VERY happy with this machine.
Is the better way to take ALL games you want in a pocket computer.
THANKS!
Nate (verified owner) –
Great product, even better customer service! I did initially have some problems like other people have commented, but Pierre was very responsive and helpful and now it works flawlessly. Easily the best way I’ve found to experience retro gaming. Highly recommended!
zombieplasticclock (verified owner) –
Before I go into specifics, this is the tl:dr version. A fantastic little handheld that plays and runs surprisingly well, and is user friendly. It isn’t without it’s flaws, and if you have your doubts, maybe wait for a sale before committing to a purchase.
To elaborate…
The Good:
-Runs many RetroArch cores, comparable to a RetroPie setup. Cores are very configurable and seem to run very well without issue (including the PSP games I tested!)
-The Linux computer portion, which I expected to use very little of, is actually incredibly useful if you want to use your RetroStone to store files. It’s also the easiest way to add games to your system.
-Buttons are plentiful and very responsive. You’ll have enough buttons to run most games without a problem (although it’ll be a problem with DOS, N64, and Dreamcast). The buttons don’t feel cheap and they did their job for the hours I spent playing the unit.
-Battery lasts around 5-6 hours (less if playing PSX/N64/PSP games), which is a decent amount of time for a portable like this
The Disappointing:
-The screen. If you read anything about this unit, this is likely something that came up a lot. As it should, it’s one of the most contentious features of the unit. It’s neither as bad as most users say it is, but it’s not great either. Some games can look somewhat blurry, and small font can be difficult to read. Using different EmulationStation themes, tweaking RetroArch settings, and using the Supreme Retrostone firmware (more on that in a bit) mitigate this issue a lot, but you’ll never get sharp pixel-perfect quality. Also if the battery is low, the graphics get really messed up bordering on unplayable. I didn’t find it to be a dealbreaker, but I can definitely sympathize with those that did.
-The software seems to be pretty screwy. Unit can take up to 20 seconds to boot into EmulationStation, and hearing other people complain of the system taking multiple resets to boot at all. Low Battery Indicator seems to activate a minute before the battery runs dry outright, which adds to the problem that any time you power the device off without using the shut down button in ES runs the risk of corrupting your SD card. There’s a fan-made version of the RetroStone OS called “Supreme RetroStone”, and I highly recommend using it over the official one.
-Updating is kind of a pain. The unit is capable of updating through WiFi, but not wirelessly. Make sure to keep a backup of your files on your PC in case you have to re-flash your SD card.
joselgallardoalcala (verified owner) –
hello pierre, first of all thank you very much for the speed in your answer and resolution of the problem. I congratulate you for the attention of your company, the commitment with the client that you have and the professionalism of which you precede, nowadays, companies with your dedication there is not, it is something impeccable, today I receive the retrostone, and it will be even with more love for knowing who is coming. Congratulations for creating something so special and for being a company so deserved and with such a recognizable service, I will know from my experience with you many people so that you continue to grow, you deserve it, when the Retrostone 2 comes out, I will also buy it! a cordial greeting José
Chris (verified owner) –
Only four stars due to some minor flaws, that hopefully would be overcome in the next version of retrostone.
1) Screen clarity, a minor issue with some small text, easy fix if you are willing to change an appropriate skin for the GUI. Wish it could have more dpi similar to smart phones.
2) The buttons on the back side are in sort of awkward position which is impossible to use some combinations if you are playing games that requires it. (like tekken, street figher, etc)
Other than that, Retrostone is the best little machine I bought so far!!
Grando Thierry –
J’aimerais l’acheter mais bcp se plaignent de l’écran? Des avis plus constructifs que l’écran est nul, j’ai joué étant jeune sur des télé 38cm et cathodique donc bon…
Admin –
On a l’impression que beaucoup se plaignent mais en fait sur tous les utilisateurs ca reste une faible proportion. Clairement l’écran grésille un peu car c’est du composite. Mais c’est surtout dans le menu a cause d’une redimension d’emulation station. Dans les jeux ca grésille presque pas.
Volkan (verified owner) –
Its ok…
screen is terrible – dont tell me its made for tv-playing… if so, you didnt need to sell it as a gameboy device.
OS is laggy
does what it should do. emulates games.
i hope there will be a new OS.
Admin –
LCD is composite signal, which flickers a bit and some people hate it indeed. However in games it should be much better.
I have heard your comments and I am working on a digital LCD version of RetroStone (RetroStone 2) that will be on kickstarter in about 1 month.
Sean –
Please post the kickstarter. I have RetroStone and would love a version that is same size but with Digital LCD Screen
Admin –
RetroStone 2 is currently being prepared. We still have some software to setup.
Meanwhile to discuss about it you can check the forum.8bcraft.com or the discord channel.
Rom (verified owner) –
Perfect !
I had a tiny issue but they fixed it ASAP
No problem at all !
Markus (verified owner) –
Overpriced toy.
Display, sound, handling are disappointing.
For far less money you can get more professional devices with much more fun.
Martin (verified owner) –
Same as above.
Overpriced toy.
Display, sound, handling are disappointing.
For far less money you can get more professional devices with much more fun.
Waldemar –
Missed the battery cover on one of my two Stones but received the cover some weeks later. Thanks! 🙂 Nice product as expected!
Martin (verified owner) –
Have used it once, not working at all. Worst product i ever bought.
Admin –
Hi,
Sorry to hear that.
What do you mean by ‘not working at all’? Have you installed the operating system? Or tried opening a ticket on the website so we can investigate?
Maja Haaning –
Mit dem RaspiBoy und dem RetroStone war das Team von craft bereits uberaus erfolgreich. Gerade zweitgenannte Handheld-Konsole sammelte bei Kickstarter uber 200.000 Euro ein. Nun steht der Nachfolger mit dem wenig einfallsreichen Namen RetroStone 2 in den Startlochern. Und wieso soll das eine „ultimative Retro-Gaming-Konsole“ sein?
Buzon Garrido Pablo (verified owner) –
It moves very well all the games that I like (including those of n64 and play1). It is easy to copy the games. The ones that cost me the most were those of MAME that I had to download a configuration file and paste it in the same place as the games. From the screen I heard that they spoke ill of her. It’s not a bad thing in my opinion, in fact it looks great even with playstation and n64 games. I haven’t tried the dreamcast and psp ones, so I don’t know how they will look or if they will run correctly. The battery seems to have good life. What does take a long time is the battery charge. I charged the battery when it gave me the low battery warning and it took 11 hours until the full battery led turned on. And that I use a 5v and 2A charger.