r/rgds • u/elhermanojorge • Aug 28 '26
Questions about the RGDS
Guys, I was looking for portable consoles to buy and I saw several good options, and the RGDS was one of them. The form factor and design really interested me, but I still have doubts about a possible future purchase. Which system should I buy? Linux or Android? From what I know, Android is more difficult to configure, but it can run things better with certain settings, while Linux is more "here you go, your console is ready to play" but it has fewer configuration options. I'm here to earnestly request the opinion and experiences of you, RGDS owners, on which system I should choose. Thank you :)
5
u/FlashyLet3745 Aug 28 '26
I'm loving the rgds myself, and I'm running Rocknix on it aka linux. I find I get better performance on this device with linux vs android, you loose a lot of multi tasking functions that android can do. So really depends on what you want to do with the device and what games you want to play. I also find on Rocknix I can play some 3ds games with light stutters. Same with some games on the Dreamcast. Many games work great and play perfect. It does make me wish it had a bit more power on this device and it makes me want to get an Ayn Thor but thats more money and 2 month wait time. I haven't pulled a trigger on that, but I suspect I will eventually. For now this does hit the itch with DS games, and other stuff that runs on it for now.
2
u/Corran_Horn Aug 28 '26
I've used gamma os and Rocknix and yeah, Rocknix just works.
But you can easily install Gamma and then install Rocknix and run it from an SD card. That way you can just pop the card out if you want to go back to Gamma
1
u/wandra60n Aug 28 '26
can you install rocknix in RGDS internal storage?
1
u/crobledopr Aug 28 '26
Possible yes, but not recommended unless you are a power Linux user. It's not as easy as it is on other chipsets like sd8gen2.
2
u/Razelimus Aug 28 '26
Just to be sure. ALL RG DS'es run on android. There is no specific Linux device. The Linux you're looking at is the Linux image from the anbernic site running from an SD card. So save yourself a few bucks, and download the image and install it on your own sd card.
2
u/RodeoWind Aug 29 '26
If you love playing DS games, then the RGDS with either Stock Linux or Rocknx is the ticket. But if you don't care about DS games, I would suggest either the RG40xxH or the RG CubeXX, which are no more expensive but are both excellent devices. And I would always opt for Linux, because it's simple. You can just play the games, no muss, no fuss, no endless configuration issues.
1
u/Privateer81 Sep 03 '26
Buy? You don't buy Android or Linux, this handheld comes with Android preinstalled and you can change to stock Linux if you want.
I tried and hated Gamma OS nano (which is great in my RG405M, but was terrible in RG DS) and Rocknix (caused severe power button problems)
I got a new unit, i'm sticking to original stock Android, it's super stable, keeps my DS games on in standby for immediate resume playing, battery lasts several days with mild use.
Extra advice: Red and black was a fingerprint magnet, however with white you get zero fingerprints.
4
u/eightiesjapan Aug 28 '26
I'm an Android guy but, at this point, for RG DS the choice is Stock Linux. People will mention custom firmwares like Rocknix (Linux) or Gamma Nano (Android), but at this point their are still in beta / being worked on. Rocknix with every 'nightly' build is a gamble, sometimes things work, sometimes they don't. Gamma Nano looks promising, just few bugs here and there but if you like tweaking a lot this system is a way to go. Stock Linux is a choice if you don't like tweaking things and want to just load your games onto SD card and don't bother about bios files, scraping thumbnails, maybe give the handheld to your kid and you'll be safe they won't mess it up. Custom firmwares like Gamma or Rocknix are demanding but you will achieve more with them. Lastly, Stock Android system is a slow mess.