RetroFlag GPi Case 2
RetroFlag this month released the RetroFlag GPi Case 2 a second version of their GPi Case, for the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 (CM4).
I was super excited for this release as I liked the original GPi Case, but it had several negatives that meant it wasn't as good as I hoped.
- No rechargeable battery (requires 3xAA)
- Low resolution screen 2.8" (320 x 240)
- Powered by a Pi Zero (W)
All of these issues have been addressed with the new GPi Case 2! You can read the full specs above, but it now has:
- 4000mAh rechargeable battery
- 640 x 480 3.0" IPS screen
- Powered by a Pi Compute Module 4 (CM4) - full power of a Pi 4B+!
- Sleep mode button
- USB-C OTG port
- Optional dock, with HDMI out & USB ports!
With these changes the new GPi Case 2, has the horsepower of any other Pi 4 based retro console. This increased horsepower in combination with a rechargeable battery, better screen, and optional dock have pushed this device to the top of my list of cool retro handhelds. The fact that it has a design that closely follows the original Nintendo Game Boy DMG is just the icing on the cake!
TL;DR
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!!!
Hardware
So along with the case itself you will need one Pi Compute Module 4 and an SD card. Installation is super easy* just follow the website or included instructions.
*Screwdriver NOT required 😀
When selecting a Pi Compute Module 4, select either a 2 or 4GB model WITH WiFi.
Software
Like any retro console powered by a Raspberry Pi there are lots of options. The main three are RetroPie, Recalbox and Batocera. Each has it's own pros and cons, but this time I decided to go with Batocera as it is known to have the least amount of tweaking required, and will work right out of the box.
Installation
To install you first have to download the Batocera image, then write it to an SD card, and then apply the GPi Case patches.
Batocera
At this point in time there is no dedicated build of Batocera for the GPi Case 2, there is only one for the original GPi Case. DO NOT download the original GPi Case build, you need to get the build for a "Raspberry Pi 4 B", which the Pi Compute Module 4 is based on.
Once downloaded, use your disk image writer of choice (I prefer Raspberry Pi Imager), plug in your SD card and write the image.
At this point the SD card will not work until you apply the patches for the GPi Case 2 display output.
Patches for the GPi Case 2
There are two patches you need to apply. One for the screen and one for the "safe shutdown". Both can be found on the main product page on the RetroFlag website
Display patch
First you need to apply the display patch. There are instructions inside the downloaded zip file.
I was using Linux so I simply copied the 3 config*.txt files from the Batocera / patch_files directory inside the zip file, to the root of the SD card.
Safe shutdown script
In order to make the on/off switch safely shutdown the device you need to install a script. Again all of the instructions are on the RetroFlag site, but I think the Batocera instructions were not the clearest, so I will include what I did.
RetroFlag GPiCase2 Script Download
Once the device is up and running, first connect it to a WiFi network. Just hit the "Start" button on the screen, go to Network Settings, enable WiFi and then enter in your WiFi details. I'm assuming here you bought a CM4 module with WiFi, if you didn't go an buy one, it will make things so much easier!
Note
If WiFi doesn't come up when you try the "Scan" option just enter your SSID and password manually. If the WiFi doesn't appear to be working after you have done that, then just turn the device off then on again, yes seriously it will then work.
Once you're on your on the network then go to a PC and you will use your favourite SSH program to connect to the device and run a script to install the safe shutdown script.
ssh root@batocera
Enter the password, which by default is "linux"
wget -O - "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/RetroFlag/GPiCase2-Script/main/batocera_install_gpi2.sh" | bash
Done!
A cool look
At this point you might want to switch themes. On Batocera that is super easy, if you got your WiFi working. 😀
Hit "Start" and from the menu select "Updates & Downloads", then "Themes" and select the theme of your choice.
Two I can recommend are EpicNoir (this is quite a popular theme nowadays), or GPi Super RetroBoy for a cool retro theme.
Adding games
Don't forget to add your ROM backups to play some games!
On Batocera that's super easy just put \\batocera into the address bar on Windows Explorer and the shared folder will open up where you can copy games, bioses or whatever else you need.
Performance
There isn't much to say here, it's pretty much exactly the same as any other Raspberry Pi 4 based device. Basically it will run most consoles that existed up until the late 90's, with some limited support after that.
Competitors
This will by no means be an exhaustive list, as there are a massive number of devices on the market today that can play similar retro games. Instead it will stick to the models that are powered by a Raspberry Pi, and I either own or researched because they looked interesting.
GPi Case (original)
This was the original release of the GPi Case, and it was decent, but the negatives listed above really held it back. It was also much more fiddly to set up because of the low power of the Pi Zero, meaning you needed to tweak most games to get them to run well.
The Pi Zero 2 with the same power as a Pi 3 was just released, and does work in the case, but the added power needs combined with the use of 3xAA batteries, is an issue.
Gameplay on this device can suffer because of the lower resolution screen too. Vertical arcade games like 1942 or Pac-man end up not scaling so well. These look far better on the new screen of the GPi Case 2.
PiBoy DMG (Experimental Pi)
The PiBoy DMG was announced a couple of years ago and it looked to be the holy grail of Nintendo Game Boy DMG replicas. Bigger, great screen, more buttons, analogue stick, and housed a full size Pi 4B+!
But I have to say I have been a bit disappointed with it. My biggest issue was the fan. I want to have silent retro gaming and not the constant noise or buzz of a fan. I even went so far as to experiment with sticking in a big heat sink and removing the fan. This never quite worked as well as I had hoped, and then after the fan was silenced there was the sound issue.
There turned out to be a known issue with the sound on this device where it will emit a low buzz or hum though the speakers. This in itself makes me not want to use the device no matter how good everything else on it is. I even returned my device for repair, and it came back a little better, but when compared to any of the other devices listed here the added audio hiss is a deal breaker.
GPM280 & GPM280(4) (Waveshare)
The GPM280 (CM3 based) was another device I was excited about! It was the first model I saw powered by a Pi Compute Module 3. It looks like a blown up Nintendo Game Boy Micro in the Famicom colour scheme! Cool!
One of the biggest issues with this device is the price, it's probably the most expensive device outside of the LCL models below. It does have a great screen with 640 x 480 resolution, and the feel in the hand when playing it is great. I do enjoy playing this device but it has a rather small battery leading to short play time, and it was quite tricky to set up correctly and get going well. Now I have got past that, I think this is a solid but expensive device.
Earlier this year Waveshare released a version based on the Pi Compute Module 4, the GPM2804. Really the extra horsepower isn't needed, but I believe it was done because it became impossible to get a Pi Compute Module 3.
Game HAT (Waveshare)
The Game HAT is the original DIY handheld console released by Waveshare a couple of years back.
It's not very pretty with a Raspberry Pi, sandwiched between a couple of layers of plastic. The buttons are all big and clunky, and it has an analog stick stead of a D-pad. But, it's cheap, and you can put basically any Raspberry Pi in it, from Pi 2, Pi 3 A or B, and Pi 4B+, and all will do a great job. It also has the middle ground of screen resolution at 480 x 320, so this ends up looking pretty ok for most games and avoids the problems of scaling 320 x 240 screens have.
This device was my first dive into Raspberry Pi based handhelds, and I think even today it's a fun "project device" for learning, but playing games on this for any extended period of time is not so fun and a bit weird.
LCL-Pi Boy
The LCL-Pi Boy is the first device on this list that I do not own. They have models for both the Pi 3A+ and Pi Compute Module 4. It looks like it could be a nice device, but I never got one because of the price, and the earlier models looked a bit home made. The newer models looks much better, but aren't in my budget right now.
Retro Dreamer G4A CM4
The Retro Dreamer G4A is another device I do not own, but when the Kickstarter was launched, YouTube was flooded with reviews.
This one takes the form of the original Nintendo Game Boy Advance. There are lots of options from DIY to pre-built kits. Again the price was blocking me a bit, and the unknown of how good this device is until it's out in the wild.
Conclusion
If you made it this far, I'm sure all you can hear in your head is...
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!!!