RetroHow this works
RetroHandheld is an independent price-comparison board for cheap retro handhelds. We don't sell anything or hold any stock, we track the real, live prices from actual sellers so you can find the genuine cheapest one from a shop worth trusting. Here's plainly how we do that, and the promises we hold ourselves to.
Real prices, checked constantly
Every price you see is a genuine, live price from a real listing on AliExpress, refreshed automatically through the week. We never invent a price, and we never show one we haven't actually seen on sale.
What the crossed-out price means
When we show a price with a line through it, that's the typical price, the everyday going rate across the sellers we trust for that device, right now. It is never an inflated "recommended retail price", never a made-up "was" figure, and never a number a seller asked us to show. If the current price isn't genuinely below that everyday rate, we don't cross anything out.
What counts as a "deal"
We only call something a deal, or show a "% under typical", when the cheapest trustworthy price is genuinely lower than that everyday rate. A rock-bottom price from a seller we can't vouch for doesn't qualify. And a price that only briefly dipped, or has already bounced back up, is never dressed up as a saving.
No fake urgency
No countdown timers we invented, no "only 2 left!", no manufactured scarcity. If we mention a sale, it's a real, publicly-running AliExpress promotion, nothing more.
How we rate sellers
Not every seller is equal, so we grade them plainly and honestly: Official is the brand's own store (direct from the maker); Trusted is a shop we've checked and rate; Established is a shop with a real, provable track record across the devices we follow. Newer or less-proven shops are labelled as such, so you can judge for yourself. Star ratings come from real AliExpress buyers, not from us.
How we're paid, and what it doesn't change
If you buy through one of our links we may earn a small commission from AliExpress, at no extra cost to you. That's what keeps the site free. It never changes the price you pay, never changes whether a seller is trusted, and never invents a saving. We may spotlight popular or standout deals on the home page, but every price and every saving we show is genuine and verifiable.
Always double-check
Prices and stock on AliExpress change by the minute. We work hard to stay current, but always confirm the price and the seller on AliExpress before you buy. Spotted something that looks wrong? Tell us, we'd rather fix it than leave it.