If you want a square-screen retro handheld, this is the fight that actually matters. The Powkiddy RGB30 was the weird little handheld that made people realize a 1:1 display is more than a gimmick. Then Anbernic showed up with the RG CubeXX, took the same basic idea, added better ergonomics, cleaner hardware, and asked one annoying question: why put up with Powkiddy jank if you don’t have to?
That’s why people keep cross-shopping these two. They target the same buyer, they hit the same nostalgic sweet spots, and both are especially good for Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Pico-8, vertical arcade games, and 8:7 SNES. But they are not equally good once you zoom out and look at software maturity, raw emulation ceiling, battery weirdness, and how much fiddling you’re willing to tolerate.
The Quick Answer
- Choose the Powkiddy RGB30 if: you want the better chipset, deeper custom firmware options, and stronger N64/Dreamcast performance for the least money.
- Choose the Anbernic RG CubeXX if: you care more about comfort, cleaner controls, HDMI out, and a more polished all-around hardware package.
- My Pick: Powkiddy RGB30. It’s rougher around the edges, but the extra performance and mature firmware scene make it the better handheld for most people who know why they want a square screen in the first place.
Side-by-Side Specs
| Spec | Powkiddy RGB30 | Anbernic RG CubeXX |
|---|---|---|
| Release Date | 2023-10 | 2024-08 |
| Price | $60-$70 street / $65 baseline | $67-$85 street / $85 baseline |
| Chipset | Rockchip RK3566 | Allwinner H700 |
| GPU | Mali-G52 MP2 | Mali-G31 MP2 |
| RAM | 1GB LPDDR4 | 1GB LPDDR4 / DDR4 |
| Screen | 4.0-inch IPS, 720x720, 1:1 | 3.95-inch IPS, 720x720, 1:1 |
| Battery | 4100mAh | 3800-3900mAh |
| Charging | 10W | 5W |
| Controls | D-pad, dual analog sticks | D-pad, dual analog sticks |
| Sticks | Fuller dual analog sticks | Short analog sticks |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 5 | Wi-Fi 4 |
| Bluetooth | 4.2 | 4.2 |
| HDMI Out | No | Yes |
| Speakers | Mono | Dual stereo |
| Form Factor | Landscape | Cube / ergonomic grip-heavy shell |
| Best Emulation Ceiling | PS1, N64, Dreamcast, solid PSP, some DS | PS1, some N64/Dreamcast/PSP, lighter DS |
The RG CubeXX wins the niceties. The RGB30 wins the silicon. That’s basically this entire article in one sentence.
Design and Build Quality
The RGB30 is one of those handhelds that makes sense the second you hold it and annoys you the longer you own it. The shape is surprisingly comfortable because the tall body gives your thumbs room to breathe and keeps the controls from feeling crushed together. Time Extension praised exactly that: the screen’s shape forces a body design that ends up being more comfortable than you’d expect.
But it’s still a Powkiddy. Community feedback around the RGB30 has been wildly split between “this thing rules” and “I love it, but I regret buying it because Powkiddy quality control is chaos.” That sounds dramatic until you look at what people actually complain about: inconsistent battery behavior, a shell that feels cheaper than the concept deserves, and the kind of tinkering that shouldn’t be required on a device this simple.
The RG CubeXX feels like Anbernic looked at the RGB30 and decided to sand off the dumb parts. Multiple reviewers have pointed to the CubeXX’s ergonomics as one of its best traits. The shell has actual rear contours, the grips are fuller, and the controls feel more in line with what Anbernic usually gets right. Joey’s Retro Handhelds specifically called out the Sega-style d-pad as accurate and the face buttons as mushy in a good way rather than cheap.
The CubeXX also dodges one of the original Android RG Cube’s most infamous issues: light bleed. That matters because the first Cube made some people gun-shy about Anbernic’s square-screen experiment. By most accounts, the cheaper CubeXX actually ends up being the safer buy if hardware consistency matters.
Where the RGB30 still fights back is analog sticks. They aren’t premium, but they’re more usable than the CubeXX’s short little caps. If you play a lot of N64, Dreamcast, or PortMaster titles that feel better with sticks, the RGB30 is easier to live with.
Winner: Anbernic RG CubeXX
Screen Quality
This is the fun category because both of these handhelds get the main thing right: a 720x720 1:1 panel. That means Game Boy looks gorgeous, Pico-8 looks like it was born there, SNES at 8:7 feels natural, and TATE shooters stop feeling like they’re being punished by modern widescreens.
The RGB30 has the slightly larger 4-inch panel, and it still has one of the most distinctive screens in this entire niche. It’s the handheld that made people stop treating square screens like a novelty. Time Extension described the display as fantastic for the money, with colors that pop and scaling that stays sharp. That matches what the community has been saying since launch: the screen is the reason people forgive everything else.
The RG CubeXX is functionally using the same idea with a 3.95-inch panel, and in real use the size difference is tiny. What matters more is execution. Several reviews have said the CubeXX’s screen actually looks better than expected and avoids the visual defects that haunted the pricier RG Cube. If you’re buying purely for Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Pico-8, and square-ish arcade games, the CubeXX absolutely nails the assignment.
Where I give the edge to the RGB30 is flexibility. The extra performance gives it more breathing room for shader use, system scaling tweaks, and heavier front ends without the whole experience feeling sluggish. That’s not the screen alone, obviously, but it does matter in day-to-day use.
Still, this is basically a photo finish. Neither screen is the reason to avoid either handheld.
Winner: Powkiddy RGB30
Emulation Performance
This is where the two stop being twins.
The Powkiddy RGB30 uses the Rockchip RK3566, which is an older chip but still clearly more capable than the H700 family Anbernic keeps stuffing into everything. That means the RGB30 has more headroom for the systems that live just above “easy retro handheld” territory.
What both devices handle well
Both the RGB30 and RG CubeXX are excellent for:
If your library mostly lives there, you can stop stressing. Both are overqualified.
Where the RGB30 pulls ahead
The RGB30 is meaningfully better for:
Not “magic handheld that suddenly does everything” better. Just enough better that it changes what systems feel realistic instead of occasional bonus wins. Its device data rating puts N64 and Dreamcast at great, PSP at good, and DS at great. That lines up with how people actually use it: PS1 is easy, N64 and Dreamcast are legit parts of the pitch, PSP is playable but awkward because of the square screen, and DS depends heavily on layout tolerance.
The RG CubeXX uses the H700, which is fine for PS1 and below, okay-ish for some N64, Dreamcast, and PSP, and not something I’d buy if those higher-end systems are a major priority. Joey’s review basically says the same thing in plain English: yes, it can run up through N64, Dreamcast, and PSP, but not full libraries, and PSP especially doesn’t make much sense on a 1:1 display anyway.
That last point matters. A square-screen handheld is not a PSP-first machine, no matter what the chip can technically brute force. So I don’t want to overrate either of them for widescreen systems that feel compromised on this display.
The real use-case question
What do you actually want a square-screen handheld for?
If the answer is:
- Game Boy and Game Boy Color
- Pico-8
- vertical arcade games
- SNES at 8:7
- some PS1, some N64, some Dreamcast
…then the RGB30 makes more sense because it covers all of that with more margin.
If the answer is:
- mostly 8-bit and 16-bit
- a little PS1
- comfort matters more than maxing out the chip
- you want something simpler and nicer in-hand
…then the CubeXX closes the gap.
But the performance winner is not close.
Winner: Powkiddy RGB30
Battery Life
This category is weird because the RGB30 should win cleanly on paper. Bigger battery, faster charging, stronger chip that has been worked over by multiple custom firmware options. Easy, right?
Not quite.
The RGB30 has had a long-running reputation for battery weirdness. This is one of the first things that comes up in community threads. Some owners say the issue is overstated or disappears once you install ArkOS. Others say the charging behavior is finicky enough that guides literally have to explain how to charge the thing properly. That’s not confidence-inspiring, even if firmware has improved the situation over time.
The RG CubeXX has a slightly smaller battery, but Anbernic’s XX line is at least familiar territory now. You’re not getting insane endurance, but you’re also less likely to end up in a Reddit rabbit hole trying to figure out why the battery indicator is lying to you.
In straight play time, these are both solid for retro systems. The RGB30’s 4100mAh cell can stretch nicely with 8-bit and 16-bit systems. The CubeXX’s 3800-3900mAh battery is fine, but its weaker chip and square-screen-first use case mean it doesn’t need to work as hard most of the time.
If I’m judging pure capacity and charging specs, RGB30 wins. If I’m judging whether I trust the overall experience, CubeXX makes the safer case.
So I’m splitting the difference and rewarding the one that causes fewer headaches.
Winner: Anbernic RG CubeXX
Software and Custom Firmware
This is the category that decides the entire comparison for me.
The RGB30 has a much healthier and more mature custom firmware story. It has well-known support or active community use around ArkOS, ROCKNIX, MinUI, and GammaOS Core. That matters because the RGB30 kind of needs software help to become its best self. Once you get it dialed in, the thing becomes extremely lovable. That’s why so many owners defend it so hard.
The RG CubeXX is newer, so it’s still catching up. Reviews around launch highlighted muOS and Knulli support in progress or early support, with the usual caveat that some features are better on stock firmware for now. Bluetooth support, for example, has been one of those little gotchas depending on firmware choice. That’s normal for a newer Linux handheld, but it means the CubeXX isn’t quite at the same “install your favorite OS and go” level yet.
There’s also PortMaster to think about. Retro Handhelds specifically praised the CubeXX for being a fun Linux-based answer to Android square-screen devices because it can run PortMaster games. That’s true for the RGB30 too, and honestly the RGB30 remains the more proven playground for people who like tweaking, adding ports, and shaping the device around their library.
If you hate tinkering, neither of these is perfect. If you tolerate tinkering, the RGB30 rewards it more.
Winner: Powkiddy RGB30
Value for Money
This is where the RG CubeXX had a chance to steal the whole fight, and Anbernic kind of fumbled it.
The RGB30 can still be found around the $60-$70 range, and even when it drifts upward it usually stays in impulse-buy territory for a device this distinctive. The Handhelds Wiki price reference puts it around $60, and that sounds roughly right for why people keep recommending it.
The RG CubeXX has shown up around $67 before shipping from Anbernic in at least one review, which is actually very aggressive. If you can get it there, this comparison gets much tighter. But the site’s own device baseline is $85, and that’s where the CubeXX becomes harder to defend. At $85, you’re paying more for less performance just to get nicer ergonomics, stereo speakers, and HDMI out.
That’s not a dumb trade if your priorities lean hardware-first. But for most retro handheld buyers, especially the nerds specifically shopping for a square-screen Linux device, performance-per-dollar and firmware maturity matter more than a prettier shell.
The CubeXX is the more polished object. The RGB30 is the better bargain.
Winner: Powkiddy RGB30
Score Summary
| Category | Powkiddy RGB30 | Anbernic RG CubeXX |
|---|---|---|
| Design and Build Quality | 7.5/10 | 8.5/10 |
| Screen Quality | 9/10 | 8.8/10 |
| Emulation Performance | 8.5/10 | 7/10 |
| Battery Life | 7/10 | 7.5/10 |
| Software and Custom Firmware | 9/10 | 7.5/10 |
| Value for Money | 9/10 | 7.5/10 |
| Overall | 8.3/10 | 7.8/10 |
Final Verdict
Choose the Powkiddy RGB30 if you actually want to squeeze the most out of the square-screen idea. It has the stronger chip, the deeper firmware bench, and better performance for the exact “one more tier above PS1” systems that matter on a device like this. You’ll put up with more nonsense, but you’ll also get the more capable handheld.
Choose the Anbernic RG CubeXX if you’re tired of quirky hardware and want the friendlier option. It feels better in-hand, the controls are more dependable, the stereo speakers and HDMI out are nice bonuses, and the overall hardware package is more polished. If your library is mostly Game Boy, SNES, Pico-8, and PS1, it might honestly be the one you enjoy more.
The bottom line: the Anbernic RG CubeXX is the better object, but the Powkiddy RGB30 is the better retro handheld. And if I’m telling a friend which one to buy with their own money, I’m still pointing at the RGB30 first.
Where to Buy
Powkiddy RGB30
- Amazon: Powkiddy RGB30
- Direct manufacturer: No verified direct link currently listed in
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Anbernic RG CubeXX
- Amazon: Anbernic RG CubeXX
- Direct manufacturer: No verified direct link currently listed in
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Recommended Accessories
If you’re buying either of these, I’d grab at least a 128GB card immediately. If you plan to mess with multiple custom firmware builds, ports, and scraped media, go 256GB and stop thinking about storage.