These are the best custom firmware options for the Anbernic RG35XX

 

The Anbernic RG35xx is one of the best retro gaming handhelds that packs a lot of power at a budget-friendly price point around $50. While it comes with a simple default firmware, there are several great Anbernic RG35XX custom firmware options for you to download like GarlicOS and MinUI that open up new features and improved performance. In this post, we’ll take a look at the custom firmware choices available and what each one brings to the table as well as a special treat which could see you testing out this budget retro powerhouse completely free!

Anbernic RG35xx Custom Firmware Options

The Anbernic RG35xx packs impressively powerful performance into an ultra-affordable retro gaming handheld priced around $50. While the RG35xx ships with a simple default firmware, the device has quickly become a hotbed of custom firmware development unlocking more advanced capabilities. Let's take a hands-on look at the top firmware choices to supercharge your RG35xx.

GarlicOS

GarlicOS delivers a refined, graphical interface modeled after the popular OnionOS. The streamlined menu system arranges games by console for intuitive browsing. Handy extras include a Favorites section to filter down choices and Recents to instantly jump back into games.

Additional niceties make for an enjoyable user experience. Custom box art support livens up the interface. Quick save and shutdown enables instantly suspending gameplay on the go. For a polished plug-and-play experience, GarlicOS shines as a top choice.

Performance is excellent for 8-bit and 16-bit classic consoles. More demanding systems like PlayStation 1 run impressively well but may require occasional overclocking tweaks in edge cases. All in all, GarlicOS sets a high water mark for an accessible all-around firmware.

MinUI

MinUI distills the retro gaming firmware concept down to an essence of simplicity and speed. The text-based menu dazzles with its no-nonsense approach focused purely on gaming. Lean and nimble, MinUI absolutely flies making launching games a near-instant affair.

Despite its austere interface, MinUI offers extensibility under the hood. A universal menu is accessible from within games allowing saves, loads, rewinds and an ample set of tweaking options for each core. Performance tuning and configurations can be saved per game or system-wide.

Gaming animation and performance meet or beat what GarlicOS can offer. For a blend of minimalist style and maximal gaming substance, MinUI is a top choice catering especially well to gaming purists.

Bottasera

Beta testing is underway for Bottasera on the RG35xx. As an advanced piece of software, performance isn’t as tuned up relative to GarlicOS or MinUI. However, for lighter systems such as NES and SNES, Bottasera performs admirably in this early testing.

The real value here is a glimpse of more advanced features percolating down to Ambernic’s budget offerings. As firmware matures across platforms, Bottasera on Ambernic devices promises a bright future. But for now, it's still firmly in experimental territory.

Koriki

Billed as a "simple, stable and smooth" firmware, Koriki certainly delivers the goods when it comes to catering especially to gaming. It adopts the Simple Menu front-end for a no-fuss menu system that stays out of your way. Lean and responsive, it feels swift in daily use for getting into games rapidly.

The real magic arises once you start playing games. PSX support struggles on Koriki, sadly. However, N64 performance sees utterly massive gains relative to expectations at this price bracket. Yes, N64 has imperfections with games running below full speed in spots - but the fact you can play a wide swath of the N64 library on a $50 handheld feels magical. This N64 boost alone may make Koriki a top choice for tinkerers.

Other nice touches include continued support for game libraries from other firmwares when using multi-SD card setups. With its focus catering to gamers foremost, Koriki should fit many like a glove.

MuOS

Taking RetroArch as its base, MuOS overlays a custom UI bringing lighter customization options compared to bare RetroArch. For general users, MuOS falls short of the polish found in most other options. Performance falters more than expected - gameplay suffers from less-than-smooth frame pacing.

Early on, MuOS shows more promise on paper than in practice. It may cater well to die-hard RetroArch fans wanting a streamlined overlay. But most users are better served by other firmware choices offering smoother performance and plug-and-play usability - like GarlicOS, MinUI or Koriki. As firmware continues maturing on the RG35xx, MuOS remains one to watch for future updates.

How you can try out the RG35XX completely free

For retro gaming at an unbeatable value, the Anbernic RG35xx is a miniature powerhouse. And thanks to the excellent custom firmware options above you can unlock more performance and features on a sub-$50 machine. 

But what about getting your hands on this compact powerhouse without spending a penny? Well if you head over to the Heyup Tryouts page right now, we're offering the opportunity to try, review and keep the Anbernic RG35XX completely free. Why you ask? Because at Heyup that's what we do, we bring you the best tech so you can inform our community on what's hot and what's not. So head over to Heyup Tryouts now and sign up for your free retro console. e