It’s hard to believe that the Miyoo Flip was teased months before Anbernic even announced the RG35XXSP. Yet here we are, and the Miyoo Flip only began shipping in late 2024. Nevertheless, it remains one of the most highly anticipated retro handhelds, as it sold out in just minutes on both Amazon and AliExpress.

That being said, if you’re one of the lucky few who have already managed to get one in your hands but don’t know where to start, you’ve come to the right place. So, without further ado, let’s jump into the Miyoo Flip setup guide to get you up and running.

Table of Contents

• Miyoo Flip Specs
• Where to Buy
• Recommended Accessories
• Broken Hinge?
• Stock Firmware Tips and Tricks
  • Find Saves and Save States
  • How to Update Stock Firmware
  • Reinstall or Transfer
• Install More Apps
• Firmware Options
  • MinUI
  • GammaOS Core
  • spruceOS
  • KNULLI
• Unbrick Your Miyoo Flip
• Problems with the microSD Card?

Miyoo Flip Specs

Where to Buy

• AliExpress (Miyoo)
• AliExpress (Ampown)
• Amazon (Miyoo)
• Amazon (ELITGAME)
• GoGameGeek
• KEEPRETRO
• MechDIY
• ToRetro

Recommended Accessories

• Hard Carrying Case
  • AliExpress
  • Amazon
• Miyoo Flip Charging Stand
  • GoGameGeek
• Miyoo Flip Sleeve Cover
  • AliExpress
• Tempered Glass Screen Protector
  • AliExpress
• microSD Card
  • Samsung PRO Ultimate (256GB)
  • SanDisk Extreme (128GB)
  • PNY Premiere-X Prime 2-pack (128GB)
  • TEAMGROUP Pro Plus 2-pack (128GB)

Is Your Miyoo Flip Hinge Broken?

Image: r/SBCGaming

Despite the long wait before it finally arrived, many found that the Miyoo Flip’s hinge was susceptible to being easily broken. The worst part about it is that it’s due to the way that the Flip is built, resulting in a Flip V2 being made and recently released. However, it still seems that Miyoo hasn’t figured out the secret sauce just yet, as more people are reporting broken hinges on these supposed “newer” versions.

Currently, your only course of action is to reach out to the retailer and try to get a refund or replacement. However, that might not be the only option for long, as there’s an Amazon listing for just a replacement hinge. At the time of this writing, it’s not in stock, but you can save the link below and keep checking to see when it’s made available.

Miyoo Flip Hinge (Amazon)

Stock Firmware Tips and Tricks

While it’s widely considered that OnionOS saved the Miyoo Mini and Mini Plus, Miyoo’s stock firmware has improved over the years. It’s reached a state where you wouldn’t feel awful using it every day or leaving it on a handheld that you’re giving to someone else. With that being said, if you decide to just stick with the stock Miyoo Flip firmware, there are a few things you might want to know.

First and foremost, in the event that you find yourself needing to re-install the stock firmware, you have a couple of choices. The first is to download it directly from Miyoo’s website, but you can also find it over at the spruceOS GitHub. Just keep in mind that neither of these will include ROMs or BIOS files, so if you can, back those up first.

Stock FW (Direct)FW Backup (via spruceOS)

Find Saves and Save States on Stock

For the most part, every retro handheld firmware you come across relies on RetroArch for the bulk of the emulation. On the one hand, it’s great as you’ll already be familiar with the ins and outs. However, there are some instances where the actual save and save state files aren’t where you would expect. So here’s where you’ll find them if you’re using the Miyoo Flip with its stock firmware:

• Saves: /RetroArch/.retroarch/saves
• Save States: Roms/[console-core_libretro]

How to Update Stock Firmware on Miyoo Flip

1. Download the latest update.
2. Insert your microSD card into your PC and open the folder.
3. Delete the existing miyoo355 folder.
4. Unzip the update file that you just downloaded.
5. Move the miyoo355 folder and miyoo355_fw.img file to your microSD card.
   
6. Eject the microSD card and place it back into your device.
7. You should see a “System Upgrade” screen appear.
8. If not, use a paper clip and push the Reset button. This is located on the right side of the Flip, between the Power button and microSD card slot.
9. If you are still having issues, try moving the microSD card to the other slot.

How to Reinstall Stock Firmware or Transfer to a New microSD Card

If you are trying to reinstall the Stock Firmware from the Miyoo Flip and nothing is corrupted, make sure you back up the contents first. This is as simple as connecting the microSD card to your computer, creating a new folder, and then dragging and dropping all of the files into the newly created folder.

Those who want to ditch the included microSD card for one that’s new and shiny, here’s what you need to do:

1. Make sure Rufus is installed on your computer.
2. Format (non-bootable) microSD card to FAT32.
3. Copy files from the original card to the new one.
4. Put the microSD card in the left slot under the Volume Buttons.
5. Boot.

Install More Apps

You would be surprised at just how much the community does in order to improve the experience on various handhelds. This includes the Miyoo Flip, which has a few apps that can be added to the stock Firmware.

Installing either of these is rather simple. As with Dingux Commander, you just download the ZIP and move it to the App folder on your microSD card. With Pico8-Splore, there are a few extra steps, which include downloading the Raspberry Pi build of PICO-8.

From there, download and extract the Pico8-Splore file, then copy the App and Emu folders over to the root of the card. Then, unzip the PICO-8 folder, locate the pico8_64 and pico8.dat files, and move them to the App/Pico8/bin/ directory. Put the card back in your Miyoo Flip, turn it back on, and head into the Apps folder to make sure that everything installed successfully.

• Native Splore and PICO-8 on Miyoo Flip
• DinguxComma nder
• Custom Terminal
• Use SD2 with StockOS
• Profiler Script for Miyoo Flip (Track CPU/GPU/Power)

Miyoo Flip Firmware Options

• Available
  • Stock
  • MinUI
• In Alpha/Beta
  • GammaOS Core
  • KNULLI
  • spruceOS

MinUI on Miyoo Flip

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of MinUI around these parts, so you can imagine our excitement knowing that it’s available for the Miyoo Flip. If you’ve installed MinUI on other retro handhelds, then these steps will be pretty familiar.

1. Download the base and extras files from the MinUI GitHub.
2. Download Ry’s Custom MinUI Paks.
   

   

   

   
   
3. Format the microSD card as “non-bootable” to FAT32.
4. Follow the “How to Update Stock Firmware” steps.
5. Insert your microSD card into your PC and open the folder.
6. Reformat the microSD card.
7. Extract everything from the downloaded files to the microSD card.
8. Place the microSD card in the slot on the right.
9. Boot.

We’ve also included Ry’s Custom MinUI Paks, as it includes a variety of tools and standalone emulators. This way, you can get everything installed on your Miyoo Flip at once, allowing you to start playing your games more quickly.

MinUI GitHubMiyoo Flip Custom MinUI Paks

GammaOS Core

Going from the easiest installation process to arguably the most difficult, GammaOS Core can be downloaded and installed onto the Miyoo Flip. This is largely due to the fact that GammaOS is running “a minimal version of Android 13 TV (based on LineageOS).” In doing so, GammaOS Core aims to improve performance where possible while also opening the door for greater flexibility through sideloading.

At the time of writing, the latest release is Beta 3 and is currently available to download directly from the GammaOS Core GitHub. Gamma has provided an extensive and very detailed installation guide, walking you through the entire process. So, if you want to take it for a spin on the Miyoo Flip, hit the link below.

GammaOS Core GitHubGammaOS Patreon

spruceOS

The majority of custom firmware solutions for retro handhelds replace whatever firmware the handheld ships with. However, that’s not the case with spruceOS, as it should be looked at as more of a “desktop replacement” than a custom firmware. That being said, many would argue that if it weren’t for spruceOS, the Miyoo A30 would’ve never been anywhere near as popular as it has become.

Needless to say, when we learned that this excellent firmware would be arriving on the Miyoo Flip, our excitement practically spilled over. While spruceOS for the Miyoo Flip is in development, it has not been officially released just yet. The team is regularly working on making improvements and plans to bring support for the Miyoo Flip, TrimUI Brick, and TrimUI Smart Pro with the v4.0.0 release. Until then, you’ll just have to keep an eye on spruceOS GitHub as we await its arrival.

spruceOS

KNULLI

At the time of this writing, KNULLI for the Miyoo Flip is only available as an Alpha Build. As such, we won’t go into more detail about the installation process until after it’s released to the public. However, if you want to get in on the ground floor, you can hit the button below and submit a donation. Doing so will provide access to the alpha build and everything else that the KNULLI Discord server has to offer.

KNULLI Ko-Fi

How to Unbrick the Miyoo Flip

Remember how we said how excited we were about spruceOS coming to the Flip? Well, it’s for more reasons than just having another awesome custom firmware option at our disposal.

There have been quite a few reports of people ending up with bricked and unresponsive Miyoo Flips. Some tried reaching out and getting help from Miyoo, only for none of the recommended fixes to actually work. Thankfully, spruceOS saved the day again, as there’s an in-depth guide on how to unbrick the Miyoo Flip if you ever try to play a game and find that something went horribly sideways.

Unbrick Miyoo Flip Guide

Problems with microSD Card?

1. Download SD Card Formatter on your PC.
2. Connect the microSD card to your PC.
3. Format using “Quick” mode.
4. Open Rufus.
5. Format as non-bootable FAT32.
6. Install Stock or CFW as normal.

What did you think of this article? Let us know in the comments below, and chat with us in our Discord!

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