Even though I grew up playing on the DMG-01 Gameboy, the GBC and various other vertical handhelds, I found myself drawn to the PSP and eventually the PS Vita as I got older. Maybe it was my transition from Nintendo to PlayStation as the behemoth that was the PS2 took over the gaming world. Maybe it was my lack of exposure to the GBA library. Either way, I abandoned my devotion to the big "N" after the GameCube was introduced. Sadly, I was one of the faithful that was turned away by the childish graphics of The Windwaker.....I was not the brightest back then.... Anyway, with my PS2 humming beside my dorm room TV, I embarked on the epic adventures of Ratchet and Clank, Kratos, and Tidus. When I stumbled upon a PSP at the local pawn shop, I couldn't stop myself.
I quickly hit up the local game store and came home with my first three UMD's: Valkyrie Profile, God of War: Chains of Olympus, and Lumines. I was instantly blown away by the technical capabilities of the PSP. These were games I had never imagined being able to carry with me on the go. My last handheld obsession having been Pokémon Gold on my GBC. I had my trusty PSP in my pocket or my bag everywhere I went. Even allowing an amateur "hacker" to mod my system allowing me to add SNES games to the memory card. My PSP was one of my favorite purchases at that time. To this day, I can't remember what made me decide to sell it.... perhaps it was to get some extra money together for my move back to my familiar Nintendo when I purchased my first DS. Whatever the reason was, I had all but given up hope of ever continuing some of those games from my early 20s.
Fast forward over fifteen years later, I had once again had my RG35XX kidnapped by one of my children. I decided I'd poke around online and see if I could find another device that might allow me to claim MY device while my kids could take the other. I stumbled upon the Trimui Smart Pro. I was immediately drawn to it's uncanny resemblance to the PSP. From what quick research I was able to do, it looked promising. I placed my order and waited. When my new device finally arrived, I was pleasantly surprised. The feel of the device was good, the screen was beautiful, and the UI was serviceable. It had a few quirks that I had to figure out, but nothing game-breaking. I loaded a few games on the included SD card and began putting it through it's paces. 8-bit systems were no problem at all. 16-bit systems played beautifully. I pulled up the GBA to really have a look at that 4.98 inch screen. I couldn't have been happier. It even handled PS1 games really well. I had finally arrived at the summit of the mountain. Could the Trimui Smart Pro open the door to PSP games after all these years.....well.....yes and no. God of War ran too slowly to be playable. Not a huge surprise, those games are some of the hardest to emulate in the PSP library. Dante's Inferno, same story. With some tweaking, it was so close. I was able to get Crisis Core, Guilty Gear Judgement, and Need for Speed Most Wanted to play, but it seems to be pretty hit and miss if different PSP titles will be playable.
All in all, the Trimui Smart Pro is a very nice handheld. It feels good in the hands, the controls work well (despite the D-Pad being a little small), the battery life holds up well, and the UI is responsive. Honestly, the Trimui Smart Pro has become my daily driver simply because of the quality of the screen. A 5 inch screen is just easier on the eyes than a 3.5 inch screen. So, even though this device has some shortcoming, I still give it a positive review. If you want to game on a comfortable, horizontal device with a big, pretty screen; the Trimui Smart Pro might just be the right fit for you.
I give the Trimui Smart Pro a 7 out of 10.
Pros
The screen...I can't brag on that screen enough.
Solid battery life. Get's a good 5 hours of playtime. Could probably squeeze more if you stick to less demanding games.
Light up analog sticks are a cool tough (though I turned them off to conserve battery)
Plays 8-bit and 16-bit games like a champ. GBA looks amazing!
The price is right. The Trimui Smart Pro can be had for under $100 all over the internet.
Cons
UI is lacking customization and doesn't seem to be replaceable with custom firmware.
Updating is a pain. The device does not have the ability to download updates over Wi-Fi
Artwork has to be scraped from a PC. There is no scraping ability from the device itself.
Amazon Link - https://amzn.to/4e643F7
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