GeeekPi Retroflag GPi Case with Raspberry Pi Heatsink & Black Carrying Bag & 32GB Card for Raspberry Pi Zero, Zero W and Zero W 2 with Safe Shutdown

So let me start off by saying I own a couple raspberry Pi products, but never got the zero. What really brought my attention to this product was how it looks almost exactly like a Gameboy from when I was growing up. This is the COMPLETE kit of everything you need to get started with retro gaming. The screen is crisp, bright and easy to read. Putting it together was a snap. You put the pi zero into a a shell that sits on the back like a cartridge and slide it in to connect it. There is a manual included for detailed instruction. The heatsinks are standard fare and will help dissipate some of the heat. One of the biggest construction pros about the case is that it has a power switch that you can use via a safe shutdown script, which the manual will point where to download it. I wish it could be included on the sd card they provide, but it's easier to just download it for the right software. Buttons are tactile and clicky. My only wish is that the left and right bumper buttons on the back were a little more raised and easy to press.There's a ton of software that can be used with this, retropie, lakka, and recalbox. I've used all three, most beginners would probably benefit from recalbox, as it is the easiest.The case and bag were a bit of a let down, the case seemed nice until I opened it, and it may be more user error on my end, but I had trouble figuring out exactly how to put it in. The pouch seems unnecessary because of the hard case, but some people may prefer it.If I had to come up with one con for all of this, I would say it's that it doesn't have a rechargeable battery built in, which would immediately make this a MUST buy versus a nice toy. Then again, the nostalgia of changing batteries may bring the whole Gameboy feel even closer to the purchaser.

First off, if you have read other reviews and people have stated that there aren't standoffs in the kit anymore they are correct. However, this is because they updated the design and the standoffs are now slightly smaller and integrated into the case itself. They are pegs with screw holes in the middle of them that line up perfectly with the Pi Zero and you just attach the USB ribbon cable and drop the Pi onto the standoffs. From there you fold the cartridge PCB into place, line it up, pop the cover on and screw it down. It is an easier assembly than all the older videos show.Once your Pi is in its cartridge, do all the same things for setup of the SD card as outlined by the YouTube videos, install it, and you're off to the races.Yes, software setup can be a pain, but once you get it done you're in for a treat. The Pi Zero is a pretty good emulation device for lower end platforms. You'll have no problem playing Atari, Lynx, NES, SNES, Genesis/Masterdrive, Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Gamegear, NeoGeo Pocket, and some Arcade games. I had a little trouble with Gameboy Advance but after selecting the right emulator and BIOS file I was good to go. You can also expect to play some Playstation games but emulation isn't perfect, or rather I might not have found a way to make it perfect yet.Now, a lot of people gripe about the batteries. Yup, it uses 3 AA batteries. I use them as backups. For primary power I picked up a cheap 8000 mAh battery bank and use the included USB to 5V barrel cable to power the device normally. Alternatively you could use rechargeable AA batteries or if you are the handy type mod in a lithium polymer battery. There are YouTube guides on any kind of battery mod you want to try, but I'm a huge fan of my approach as I can use any battery bank for MUCH longer play time and I don't have to hack up my case.There also seems to be some confusion on the safe shutdown switch. If it is in the on position safe shutdown is enabled. That means when you turn off the power switch on the top of the case it will run a script to safely shutdown the Pi so you don't corrupt your SD card. The script should be installed when you install your software and setup the system. If the safe shutdown switch is in the off position that power switch on top of the system is a hard power switch. You'll have to manually shut down the software, then turn the main power switch off. Not a lot harder but a few more steps and I just like the convenience of the safe shutdown script. Also, the main power switch is a 3 position switch. You have on, all the way to the right, shutdown but not power off in the middle (when the safe shutdown switch is on), and all the way to the left is off. All the way off will run the script and power the device all the way off.Sound is pretty good from the included speaker. It is simple mono sound, but is clear. There must have been a problem with the early units because reviewers reported static in their audio, but that is not the case at all with mine. The sound is loud and clear. There is also a headphone jack, so if didn't throw out your headphones when you got a phone without a headphone jack, then you finally have another use for them.The buttons are pretty good. The ABXY buttons are responsive and feel good. The angle is a little off from say an SNES controller, but you get used to it in no time. The shoulder buttons are clicky ones just above the battery cover on the back and have a nice 3 bump ridge to let you know where they are. The Start and Select buttons are Start and Select buttons and as such work. My only gripe is with the D-pad. It isn't bad. It is responsive and the pressure required to use it isn't bad, but I have a problem with how easy it is for diagonal movement when I'm hitting down. I have a huge library and when scrolling through it sometimes pops over to another system in the RetroPi interface. It isn't a deal breaker, it is just annoying, and is the only real problem I have with the system.Finally, the screen is outstanding. It is bright and colorful, well sized, easy on the eyes, and has great viewing angles. It has a good refresh rate as well. In games that move quickly I've noticed no ghosting, tearing, or lag at all. You might get some in games that are harder for the Pi to run, but that isn't the fault of the screen at all, it all has to do with the Pi itself and its limited power. They really need to release a more powerful version of the Pi Zero.That's it. I am solidly 5 star happy with this device. Getting it to work was a fun time as I enjoy that, and playing games on it is even more fun. I might get another one to mod someday and install my perfect battery setup, but for now this is all I could ever want.After I got it set up I played Tetris, and that was one of the greatest gaming moments in my life to this point. Tetris on a classic form factor in this day and age.. and it plays thousands more retro titles perfectly on top of that. Who could ask for more?

I've been eyeing the GPi Case for some time now, but just didn't have the time to use it. Now that is obviously different so ordered the bundle last week and it got here very quick (A day ahead of schedule) in very good packaging.The case itself is just bonkers! Very smart engineering choices, looks beautiful, and assembly was about as easy as you can make something like this. Took about 30 min total, and while there were/are some quirks it's mostly software related so not really the cases fault. I'm using RetroPie for the OS, and at one point I ran an "apt-get dist-upgrade" from the command line and that seemed to reset the autologin feature (So the device would boot to a login prompt and just sit there). Easy enough fix, and again not their fault.The screen is great, have only used it for about three hours but I can't foresee any issues with it. Played GB and SNES games and both look as to be expected.The buttons are great, and the two shoulder buttons on the back are a slick way to handle supporting SNES games. I'm not a Sega fan so can't really comment on how natural that placement would be, but shouldn't be too much of a learning curve.If I have to complain about the device, there are two things I'm not over the moon about.The first is the D-Pad, it's a little swimmy, like you can move the entire D-Pad around in the frame. It's hard to explain, and doesn't seem to effect the usage of it...Just feels weird to me.The other is the power situation...You can either use an included USB cable or 3xAA batteries. The USB cable is not a typical Mini/Micro USB cable, so if you lose this one might be a pain to replace (It shouldn't be too hard to source on Amazon, but you're not gonna find it at Target or Best Buy). And the 3xAA is convenient but I can imagine a little wasteful. I remember burning through batters on the original GameBoy and was hoping to avoid that here. Would be really cool/smart if someone made a LiON battery that slots in perfectly to the case in place of the 3xAA...I feel like that probably already exists, just need to find it ;)The bundle is nice cause it handles everything...You can probably save a few bucks if you bought everything individually but sometimes that effort blocks you from every getting everything due to frustrations. I would highly recommend this to anyone wanting to play GB, GBS, NES or SNES games, no qualms at all.