I bought the Lenovo G02 retro games handheld before it was pulled from sale – here's what you're missing
Is Lenovo's first retro handheld worth it if it returns to market?
Quick Summary
The Lenovo G02 retro gaming handheld was withdrawn from sale soon after it appeared on AliExpress, and there have been no signs of it returning.
But does that even matter? I got hold of one to find out.
The Lenovo G02 caused an all-mighty storm after it was spotted for sale on AliExpress a few weeks ago. Some thought it must be a rip-off or scam, using the Lenovo name illegally. Others expected it to be a rehash of a cheap Chinese device, such as the R36S.
As it happens, it turned out to be genuine. It's not made by Lenovo itself, but a third-party manufacturer officially licensed the brand for the device.
The tricky bit is that it was never meant to be sold on AliExpress or shipped abroad – it was licensed for sale in China only. But resellers got hold of it and offered it across the retail site for global purchases.
That wouldn't have normally been an issue, it happens all the time, but as with many retro gaming handhelds from multiple brands, the resellers also added their own microSD cards containing thousands of illegally sourced roms (games). And therein lied a major problem for Lenovo.
It was happy to lend its name to the affordable handheld, but didn't want to be associated with piracy – especially when it comes to Nintendo games (of which there were many included). Nintendo is rightly sensitive about its IP and titles, even its oldest releases.
And so the Lenovo G02 was withdrawn from sale on AliExpress or any other global online retail site. You can't even buy it without the "free" roms.
As it happens though, I managed to snag mine before the chaos ensued and it arrived about a week or so later. So, what are you missing out on, and is the Lenovo G02 worthy of all the fuss? Or can you buy something similar for around same price or even lower? Here are my 10 pennies worth (well, around 60 quid's worth).
Lenovo G02: cheap as chips
My first impressions of the Lenovo G02 is that you get what you pay for. Over the last couple of years I've amassed quite a collection of retro gaming handhelds in different shapes and sizes – and at different price points.
My current collection comprises devices that cost less than £50 all the way up to the Odin 2 Portal which set me back £100s. The Lenovo G02 was definitely at the lower end of the scale, around £60 with no games included.
As it happens, I had no interest in any of the controversial microSD cards containing roms as I have a curated library of my own. That kept the price down and also stayed clear of the choppier waters.
As soon as I got it out of the official Lenovo box and packaging, it was clear that this was far from premium and not normally what you'd expect from the brand. I own a Lenovo Legion Go S (SteamOS edition), and this is a far cry from that in build quality.
The body isn't bad – it's a cheap plastic but has a matte, textured grip to it that feels comfortable and sturdy in the hand. I also like the gradated red-black colourway I chose (additional black and white models were also available).
However, the buttons feel like they are made from cheap plastic, especially the triggers on the rear. Then again, what should we expect for the price point?
Funny enough though, the solitary thumbstick feels more expensive than on many equivalent devices – with a great range of movement and a comfortable rubber cap. There's also a nice click to all of the buttons, without being too noisy, so that's a bonus.
Strangely the biggest button on the face has just one function – to change the RGB lighting around the stick (or turn it off). It's a shame it couldn't do other things, but Chinese handhelds often come with their odd peccadillos.
Lenovo G02: the display
But what really stands out on the G02 is its IPS display.
At 4.5-inches it is much larger than most with similar pricing. It is also has a 1024 x 768 pixel resolution and 4:3 aspect ration, which is very decent for pretty much every retro system you can comfortably play on it.
Playing any 4:3 system (or close), such as Sega Mega Drive / Genesis, SNES, and original PlayStation looks great on this screen. It's big, bold and a darn sight better than most of the rivals I've used in the last few years.
It can run fairly bright too, while colour representation is decent. Even 16:9 games are playable on the display without the black bars being too obstructive – thanks to the sheer size. That being said, you're not really likely to as the the hardware inside will limit the systems you can safely enjoy.
Lenovo G02: the chipset and compatibility
The Lenovo G02 runs on the same Rockchip RK3326 CPU that has powered budget handhelds for half a decade. It's capable but maxes out around the original PlayStation. You can play some Dreamcast and N64 games, but don't expect miracles (or super smooth frame rates).
There's just the 1GB of RAM inside too, so that will also play its part. And, as this is a fairly unknown device running on Linux, you are unlikely to ever get a decent third-party front-end released for it.
That means you're restricted to using the stock EmuELEC system that comes preinstalled, and Retroarch for all the emulation support. That's decent enough and adjustable for the games that'll work best on the G02, but don't expect much more.
You can add your own roms, of course, via the microSD card slot on the side. It'll allow up to 1TB of external storage, although you'll never really need that much if you stick to the files that are most compatible.
I also had to tweak the Retroarch settings a fair bit after finding out that all systems were output at 4:3 by default, so stretched to fill the screen. I just went with core-specific aspect ratios and that did the job. You can also add scalers and effects if you want.
It's also worth mentioning the battery. There's a 4,000mAh cell inside that can last up to six hours on less intensive games – such as NES or Game Boy. And the solitary mono speaker is housed on the front (bottom-right) – it's a bit weak but does the job.
Lenovo G02: is it worth buying?
All things said, the Lenovo G02 isn't that bad. In some areas, it's actually very decent – especially that 1024 x 768 4.5-inch screen.
However, whether it's worth waiting for, to see if Lenovo allows it to go back on sale sans SD card, is another matter.
Even at £60 (around $80 for those in the States) it's a bit on the pricey side for the chipset and capabilities. You can get cheaper devices using the same internal hardware.
Admittedly, they tend to be 3.5-inch handhelds, so not quite as impressive in that sense. But they can play the exact same games (often with included rom sets).
Take the R36 Max 2, for example. It has a similar 4.5-inch IPS display with the same resolution. I'd put money on it being the exact same display, in fact.
And it looks similar too, but with an additional right thumbstick (and a really odd, football-themed customisable button). I'd even wager that it is made by the same manufacturer, based on the common denominators.
Where it gets interesting is that the R36 Max 2 is currently available on AliExpress for around £40 with free shipping – £20 cheaper than the Lenovo G02 – and in multiple colours. What's more, that price includes the (albeit dodgy) games.
If you're willing to pay a little bit more, but want faster, reliable delivery and a decent returns policy, it's even available on Amazon for just over £50.
So, with all that considered, it's hard to say you're missing out on much with the Lenovo G02 being withdrawn. Still, it was quite the talking point at the time.
