{"id":141368,"date":"2022-02-03T05:51:20","date_gmt":"2022-02-03T05:51:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.techweekmag.com\/?p=141368"},"modified":"2022-02-03T06:47:42","modified_gmt":"2022-02-03T06:47:42","slug":"powkiddy-x18s-review-portable-console-with-android-11-to-enjoy-the-classics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stereoindex.com\/tech\/gaming\/powkiddy-x18s-review-portable-console-with-android-11-to-enjoy-the-classics\/","title":{"rendered":"Powkiddy X18S : Portable console with Android 11 to enjoy the classics"},"content":{"rendered":"

Powkiddy is a fairly expert company in the niche of portable consoles for retro emulation and the\u00a0Powkiddy X18S\u00a0is one of its best models to date, or at least it is when we talk about laptops for less than 200 euros, where its offer is difficult to beat, and this time we will see why;\u00a0Similarly, we will explore the considerations and disadvantages it has.<\/p>\n

We can anticipate that it is a device with a shell design, a 5.5-inch screen and competent hardware, which comes to life thanks to the Android 11 operating system, which is why it puts not only retro emulators on the agenda, but also the latest mobile games.<\/p>\n

This is the Powkiddy X18S<\/h3>\n

The Powkiddy X18S sports a clamshell or Nintendo DS design if you will, which combines a matte gray finish with a modern and aggressive aesthetic, but also has a retro touch.<\/p>\n

The machine is the size of a large mobile, measuring 152 x 92 x 22.5mm;\u00a0nothing to do with the keychain dimensions of the diminutive\u00a0POWKIDDY Q36 Mini\u00a0, another retro console we reviewed a few days ago.<\/p>\n

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The body is made of a plastic that doesn’t inspire confidence, but doesn’t feel flimsy either.\u00a0At first glance, the exterior design greets us with these sharp speaker grilles that look like they were taken from a sports car, next to it we also find the headphone jack that is well placed in the front so that it does not get tangled.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, at the opposite end we get a\u00a0USB Type-C port\u00a0, an\u00a0HD-Mini output\u00a0for connecting to an external monitor, and a Micro-SD slot.<\/p>\n

Now moving to the back is when the complaints start.\u00a0All users agree that the buttons on the shoulders are horrible;\u00a0we are talking about\u00a0R1, R2 and L1 and L2\u00a0, which suffer from their poor tactile response and tiny size.\u00a0Similarly, sometimes they get stuck in place and need to be pressed again to reset.<\/p>\n

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The buttons and directional pad don’t fare much better, as they feel low-quality and in the case of the D-pad, it sits directly on the console’s surface, which hurts responsiveness.\u00a0Also, the analog sticks are not tactile (no R3\/L3).<\/p>\n

On the other hand, the Android and home selection buttons are fine, sitting on top and having symbols that communicate their function.<\/p>\n

Screen<\/h3>\n

As a means of display, a 5.5-inch IPS screen with HD resolution of 1,280 x 720 pixels\u00a0awaits us .\u00a0It looks a bit dated due to the thick bezels, but it does a good job of enhancing the image of titles of yesteryear.\u00a0It should be noted that it is a\u00a0touch\u00a0screen , so if you prefer to play with virtual buttons, there is the option.<\/p>\n

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As you can imagine, one of the great advantages of its design is that it is compacted into a very portable and even elegant form factor, it is a pity that the rest of the elements are not up to par.<\/p>\n

What’s inside?<\/h3>\n

The Powkiddy X18S has an octa-core Unisoc T618 chip and\u00a0Mali G52 GPU inside\u00a0, which are combined with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage (expandable via Micro-SD up to 512GB).\u00a0The result is a device with performance similar to a low-medium range mobile, but thanks to its optimizations it takes the lead.<\/p>\n

In this sense, for the X18S\u00a0there is no problem when it comes to emulating 8-bit and 16-bit games\u00a0, so the real challenge lies with the fifth and sixth generation consoles.\u00a0When it comes to PSone the emulation is flawless no matter the title, and\u00a0we can almost say the same about Nintendo 64 and even DreamCast,\u00a0where performance dips are barely noticeable.<\/p>\n

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It\u00a0can even handle the most demanding PSP titles,\u00a0such as God of War: Chains of Olympus, at 60FPS with no stuttering most of the time.<\/p>\n

Where it doesn’t fare well is with sixth-gen home console emulation.\u00a0PS2 and Xbox are a definite NO\u00a0and GameCube results leave to be desired due to inconsistent frame rate, audio bugs and Dolphin emulator crashes;\u00a0It is\u00a0possible to emulate light Gamecube titles,\u00a0it should be clarified, but not with good results, however, for the price of this console, it is a lot to ask for.<\/p>\n

Operating system and other features<\/h3>\n

Since Powkiddy’s X18S is basically an\u00a0Android 11\u00a0device , we have access to everyday apps and the\u00a0Google Play Store\u00a0, which means we can download more apps and the same goes for games.<\/p>\n

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When it comes to playing native Android titles, this console is not bad,\u00a0\u00a0games like Genshin Impact and Call of Duty Mobile move decently\u00a0in the native resolution of the screen and with low-medium graphics, but the most demanding do have performance issues, so it’s not a perfect product.<\/p>\n

Speaking of Android, the interface is provided by a\u00a0launcher optimized for game emulation\u00a0, being preloaded with games and emulators already configured.\u00a0Naturally, we can install the ones we want in other ways.<\/p>\n

In another order of ideas, it is possible to enjoy\u00a0\u00a0PC titles on this console via Streaming\u00a0, although for this we will need to download the\u00a0Moonlight Game Streaming application\u00a0and have an Nvidia GPU compatible with Geforce Experience.<\/p>\n

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Finally, it is worth mentioning that this portable console has Wi-Fi to connect to the internet like any modern device and also Bluetooth 5.0 to pair with peripherals.<\/p>\n

PROS<\/strong>:<\/p>\n