After quite some buzz, especially after various videos had teased, Anbernic has announced its brand-new handheld, the RG Slide. Barely a day passed after the release date had been unveiled in the official video, whereby Anbernic lifted the curtains on its fully own specifications. They might surprise some enthusiasts since, unlike the latest device, this new gadget seems to borrow inner features from an older version.
The RG Slide still brings to mind the old PSP Go in its appearance, but the new design will not feature the latest and greatest of Anbernic's. Rather than harnessing the newer technology inside the RG557, it seems the RG Slide's heart comes from the RG556.
What does this mean practically Let us take stock of what Anbernic has packed inside
- Processor Power The Unisoc T820 chipset is what will power the RG Slide. This is the same processor part found in the RG556 and RG Cube of last year and not the definitely beefier MediaTek Dimensity 8300 that powers the RG557. Perf benchmarks have shown, over and over, that the Dimensity 8300 is significantly better especially in GPU capabilities.
- Memory and Storage We are talking about 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM, which is one-third less than the 12GB of the RG557. Speed of storage will also be reduced RG Slide uses UFS 2.2, where RG557 uses much faster UFS 4.0.
- Operating System It will run Android 13 compared to the RG557, which will be carrying the newer Android 14.
Power-wise, the RG Slide will sport a capacity of a 5,000 mAh battery, which is, in fact, 9% less than the original 5,500 mAh battery capacity of RG556. Full charge may also test patience, as it supports 5V/2A charging, which may take about three hours.
So what is the plus side Anbernic clearly seems to have put a priority on portability with the RG Slide. It measures fairly small at 154 x 90 x 26 mm and weighs in at 379 grams. Effectively, the RG Slide kind of turns out to be a very conscious decision for a smaller-form device even if it means taking a step backward in raw performance compared to their newer RG557 model.
While specs are now in the open, Anbernic is still keeping a couple of keys away official launch date and crucially, price at launch. Rumors have it that the RG Slide could drop later in October, slotting comfortably between other hotly anticipated Anbernic handsets such as RG35XX Pro and RG477M. Potential buyers need only wait a little while longer to see the whole image.
