Ever since the RGB30 hit the scene, there’s been a random smattering of 1:1 handhelds arriving. The latest of which is the ZPG A1 Unicorn, a retro handheld that we first saw late last year. However, after the Unicorn landed earlier this year, it might have just become my favorite in this form factor.
ZPG A1 Unicorn: Specs
Before diving any deeper into what the ZPG A1 Unicorn has to offer, let’s take a look at what’s under the hood. It all starts with the 4-inch touchscreen display with the unique 1:1 aspect ratio and a 720×720 resolution.
Powering the Unicorn is the MediaTek Helio G99 paired with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. Of course, there’s also a microSD card slot, giving us plenty of space for our ROM libraries.
- Display: 4-inch IPS Touchscreen
- Resolution: 720 x 720
- Processor: MediaTek Helio G99
- RAM: 6GB LPDDR4X
- Storage: 128GB internal w/ microSD Card Slot
- Battery: 4,500mAh
- Extras: Hall Effect Joysticks, 3.5mm Headphone Jack,
- Colors: Black, White, Pink
As for colors, the Unicorn comes in Black, White, or Pink. And while I love the White version, I can’t help but drool when I see the limited Transparent Purple version that Stubbs has. Just to make Ban roll his eyes a bit, the A1 Unicorn in White is what I EXPECTED the R40S to look like. But, we all know how that turned out.
ZPG A1 Unicorn: Design
Close-up on Face Buttons
If the RGB30 is too flat, and the RG Cube has too much of a badonk, then the A1 Unicorn might be the one for you. The grips aren’t that pronounced, but are enough that it’s comfortable to hold. Throw on the silicone case, and it’s even better, although I still prefer the feel without the case.
What I REALLY love about the Unicorn are the buttons. Once upon a time, I was knee-deep in the world of mechanical keyboards. Ultimately, I found that I prefer the sound and feel of tactile, and clicky keyboards.
The reason I bring this up is because that’s kind of how the face and shoulder buttons feel on the Unicorn. Every button push is just satisfying and makes me want to keep playing games even when I get frustrated or bored.
Close-up on D-Pad
As for the D-Pad, it’s been a bit of a mixed bag. Seeing as I’m accustomed to the D-Pad from my Xbox controller, there was a bit of an adjustment period when using the Unicorn.
While I like the way that it feels, it’s worth mentioning that I am getting some false movements occasionally. The best way I can find to describe this is by referencing Apotris.
Putting the blocks in the right spots isn’t a problem at the beginning of a marathon run. But when things are speeding up and a block ends up going one or two places over, it can get REALLY frustrating. Not to mention the few times that the game thinks I pushed up on the D-Pad, immediately dropping a block into the wrong place entirely.
It’s possible that some of this is just a case of “user error,” but it happens much more frequently than it should. While I don’t consider this to be a deal-breaker, I do kind of wish the D-Pad was a bit more rigid and less prone to accidental pushes.
ZPG A1 Unicorn: Software
Much like the RG Cube, the ZPG A1 Unicorn is running Android 13. When going through the initial setup process, you’re prompted to install various apps and emulators. However, the benefit of having an Android handheld is that you can just download them yourself. Plus, you can get Obtainium up and running to keep everything updated.
Surprisingly, ZPG doesn’t package a proprietary launcher with the Unicorn, but that’s not a problem. I’ve tried using Daijisho and Beacon, but I just keep coming back to ES-DE for Android. There’s nothing wrong with either of the other options, I just prefer the options and themes offered by ES-DE as opposed to the others.
Besides that, the only other problem you might run into is actually being able to sign into the Play Store. That’s because the A1 Unicorn isn’t “certified” to download apps from the Play Store. While you can manually install apps from other sources like F-Droid or GitHub, you’re not completely out of luck.
Instead, you’ll need to manually add Google Play Protect Certification for the A1 Unicorn. The video above from Explaining Android walks you through the necessary steps, so just follow along and you’ll be good to go.
ZPG A1 Unicorn: Performance
I’m going to be 100% honest here. If the Helio G99 was a brand new chip, I probably would have gone full “Retro Tech Dad” here, complete with benchmarks and frame rate comparisons. However, the G99 has been out for more than two years, and there are a plethora of devices powered by this chipset.
The “hardest” that I tried to push the Unicorn was trying to fire up MVP 06: NCAA Baseball for the PS2. Unfortunately, even when dialing things down, I couldn’t get the game to run at full speed, and pretty much gave up on that idea.
I did beat Wave Race 64, one of the three titles from September’s Game of the Month. As you can probably surmise, the Unicorn handheld is like a champ, although I did have to tweak the aspect ratio. But that just comes with the territory when using 1:1 handhelds.
Honestly, the Unicorn has turned into my default handheld for two games — Apotris and Pokemon Unbound. I don’t know what it is, but the D-Pad paired with the clicky buttons make playing Apotris more enjoyable on here than any other handheld that I’ve used. It’s even gotten to the point that I didn’t even bother changing the aspect ratio in RetroArch to play Apotris for a couple of weeks.
ZPG A1 Unicorn: Final Thoughts
If you’ve made it this far feeling like I haven’t really reached a conclusion, you’re not alone. There’s a lot to like about the Unicorn, and I really want to love it. But, it’s really ended up just turning into an Apotris machine. Sure, that’s probably a “me” thing and doesn’t apply to everyone. The problem is that Apotris is available on anything that runs Game Boy Advance games, so practically everything.
Don’t get me wrong. I actually have come to prefer the Unicorn over the RG Cube, partially because of the way it feels in the hand. But the main reason why I need to find more reasons to play games with the Unicorn are those sweet, sweet, light, and clicky buttons. Seriously, they sound and feel divine, and are something that I wish we had on more retro handhelds. No, I’m not going to go down a rabbit hole to replace every button switch I can with these, although the thought has definitely crossed my mind.
What did you think of this article? Let us know in the comments below, and chat with us in our Discord!
This page may contain affiliate links, by purchasing something through a link, Retro Handhelds may earn a small commission on the sale at no additional cost to you.