Powkiddy V90 – A Review of the Powkiddy SFC621 NES Game Machine for Smart Electronics
Powkiddy V90 – A Review of the Powkiddy SFC621 NES Game Machine for Smart Electronics
When the Powkiddy V90 quietly appeared on AliExpress a few weeks ago, it piqued interest due to its smart-looking design and low price. While it doesn’t come without compromises, its big, IPS screen, good ergonomics and great performance through 32-bit (including Saturn surprisingly) make it worth considering. However, the d-pad’s clicky buttons are a bit of a turn-off.
Features
The Powkiddy V90 quietly appeared on AliExpress a couple of weeks ago, and the smart design, low price, and quality screen have piqued interest in this little clamshell handheld. It doesn’t have the performance of a PocketGo, but it is still a great option for those who want a small handheld with decent ergonomics and a big screen.
This version of the V90 has a few problems, like the mushy d-pad and weird L2/R2 buttons (which make no sense for consoles that don’t use those controls). The 320×240 IPS screen is good, but it’s not nearly as sharp as a PocketGo.
SNES games work well, but some require a bit of tweaking (F-Zero is basically a slideshow until you drop the audio quality down to 480p). Mega Drive and GBA games work very well too.
Hardware
The Powkiddy handheld line has garnered a fair bit of attention from TikTok users due to its pre-installed noteworthy games. It’s a lineage of Android-based handheld consoles that also use popular emulation software. The hardware varies across variants, with the cheaper ones focusing on lower-demand games while the pricier ones are capable of handling the likes of N64 and even Saturn.
Aside from the games they come with, the Powkiddy handhelds can be loaded with ROMS from physical cartridges (not that TechRadar condones downloading pirated games). They also feature MicroSD slots to support this. The handhelds also have a nice layout with a decent-sized screen, good-quality chip and a battery that lasts up to five hours. The only downside is that the analogue sticks don’t sit flush with the case which can make playing for long periods of time uncomfortable. Overall, it’s a solid handheld that’s well worth considering.
Software
The PowKiddy V90 quietly appeared on AliExpress a few weeks ago, and has piqued interest due to its smart design and low price. The clamshell handheld is a lot like the PocketGo v1, but with a larger screen, better ergonomics and more power under the hood. It still suffers from the same screen tearing as that machine, though, but at least the custom firmware from PGv1 does a good job of minimising it (though not eliminating it completely). Overall, this is a solid little device and well worth a look if you want a cheap portable emulator with enough power to run most consoles up to the GBA era.
Powkiddy SFC621 NES game machine
Price
The PowKiddy V90 is an interesting handheld that quietly appeared on AliExpress a few weeks ago. It’s a little cheaper than the PocketGo, and while it’s not what you’d call powerful, it has enough juice to satisfy most fourth generation console emulators, even though the d-pad feels cheap and there’s some screen tearing. Thankfully, the custom firmware from PGv1 works on the V90 and minimises this – it’s still not a fix, but at least it makes things better. It’s a good handheld for GBA and up to 32-bit (although F-Zero is a slideshow until you drop the audio quality). It may be worth checking out if you’re after a starter portable retro gaming device. But if you’re looking for the best, I’d suggest a PocketGo instead.
