When the initial Anbernic RG477M teaser dropped, I wasn’t sure what to make of it. After the RG Slide and RG557, I was sure Anbernic was going to release another budget-friendly option. But what we got instead, was an apparent successor to the RG405M, a handheld released back in 2023.

Seeing what Anbernic did in 2024, I assumed it was done with releasing metal-built handhelds, leaving that to the GKD’s and (apparently) TrimUI’s of the world. Nevertheless, I’ve had it for about a day, so without further delay, here are my Anbernic RG477M first impressions.

Anbernic RG477M Specs

• Display: 4.7-inch LTPS, Touchscreen
• Resolution: 1280 x 960
• Refresh Rate: 120Hz
• Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 8300
• RAM: 8GB/12GB LPDDR5
• Internal Storage: 128GB/256GB UFS
• External Storage: microSD
• Battery: 5,300mAh (~7 hours)
• Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
• Extras: Hall Sticks, RGB Joystick Lighting, Six-axis Gyro, Active Cooling, USB-C Display Out, Vibration Motor, 3.5mm Audio Jack
• Dimensions: 176 x 89.4 x 16mm
• Weight: 354g
• Price:
  • 8GB/128GB: $239.99 
  • 12GB/256GB: $289.99

Anbernic RG477M (Direct) Anbernic RG477M (AliExpress)

It’s a Chonk, but a Comfortable One

Let’s get the obvious out of the way: this thing is a heavy boy. The RG477M feels even more like a brick than the RG Slide, despite the latter weighing more due to the sliding mechanism.

Beyond that, I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how comfortable it is to hold and play games with. Like the RG405M, the RG477M is basically a slab of machined aluminum with curved edges. But thanks to those curves, it settles nicely into the palms of my hands.

The only issue that I have the sticks are just a tad too tall for my liking. And I feel like Anbernic’s kind of lost its way a bit in this regard, but not all hope is lost. I’ve recently gotten my hands on some of those Hype Stix that Stubbs and Rob keep talking about, swapped them out with the stock ones on the RG477M, and voila! They’re practically perfect.

The Display is Divine

I don’t know how much stock Anbernic has of this display, but man, I hope we see more devices with it. Anbernic first debuted this 4.7-inch LTPS screen with the RG Slide, and it’s back with the RG477M. Not only does it look good, but we also have a 120Hz refresh rate, which makes things even better.

There are some who prefer the look of OLED, but man, this panel just looks really good. I haven’t tried playing a bunch of games yet to see what looks good and what doesn’t, so stay tuned for my full review. However, since this is the same screen from the RG Slide, I suspect that it’ll hold up regardless of what kind of game you’re playing.

Speaking of which, I have bad news and good news to report about using this with an external screen. If you just plug in a display to the RG477M while on the Home Screen, all you’ll see is a mirror of the main screen.

However, I downloaded the melonDualDS fork, and after a bit of tinkering around, I was able to get the top screen to show up on the external screen, with the bottom screen on the RG477M. The experience does seem to be hit and miss so far, as it wouldn’t show up with other games in melonDualDS without first rebooting the device, if I just unplugged and plugged it back in.

Performance

Although I haven’t had much time yet to really put the RG477M through its paces, the early signs are that performance matches up with what we had on the RG557. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that things are even a little better, as I was able to play some Hades via Eden without much of an issue. Rob The Retro Tech Dad recently published a video showcasing Switch emulation on the handheld, and it’s just impressive what a handheld of this size is capable of.

That said, I have to agree with Stubbs, Zu, and Rob that Anbernic needs to release an update to do something about the fan curves. Whether it be in the form of proper performance profiles or not, it’s kind of annoying to hear the fans spin up and whine a bit when playing more intensive games.

You do get used to it after a bit, but I doubt those around you will really want to hear all of that ruckus. I have to imagine it won’t be too long before an update is pushed, but I’m also keeping my fingers crossed for some GammaOS here.

Bits and Bobs

In an effort to keep this brief, there are a few other things about the RG477M that I wanted to point out:

• Kudos to Anbernic for including the rubber shell in the box. It’s nice to have if you get tired of the metal feeling, or want something to help keep the heat off of your hands.
• While I’m a fan of clicky buttons, that’s likely not the case for everyone, and for whatever reason, Anbernic used clicky shoulders with the RG477M.

The more that I think about it, the more I realize that this is about as perfect of a successor to the RG405M that we could ask for. It has a larger screen with a 120Hz refresh rate, and a panel that looks really good.

So far, I’m enjoying playing games on the RG477M, so much so that I’m going to transfer my Earthbound save file from the Pocket DMG to it. I just hope that Anbernic releases a software update sooner rather than later to polish things up.

Stay tuned, as I hope to have my full Anbernic RG477M review in the coming days. If there’s anything specific you want to see tested, let me know in the comments below.

Anbernic RG477M (Direct) Anbernic RG477M (AliExpress)

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