The very last thing I should be doing is spending money on yet another classic gaming emulation device. But oh god, these two new clamshell Commodore 64 and Spectrum handhelds are…I’m fighting it…oh no I’m placing a pre-order.
As spotted by Time Extension, the C64 Handheld and the Spectrum Handheld are two retro devices created by Evercade, the company behind the beloved VS. Each is a clamshell handheld that looks an awful lot like Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance SP, but with a design to match the classic 1980s home computers, and each comes pre-loaded with a collection of some of the best-loved games from each machine (with the ability to add your own via SD card). Oh, and they’re only making 2,000 of each. And I just paid for one of them.
Each has a 4.3″ screen running 840×480 in high-res, along with a quad core 1.2GHz CPU, which is hilariously more powerful than all of the computers of the time added together. And RAM crisis fearing people should know, the 256MB of DDR RAM isn’t exactly in high demand from the AI monstrosities. Each will support multiple incarnations of the C64 and Spectrum, including running in both PAL and NTSC.
While the Commodore 64 had international success, the Spectrum is perhaps not the household names in the U.S. as it was in the UK, where the earlier machine dominated the market. Clive Sinclair’s ZX81 and the following year’s ZX Spectrum began the home computing revolution in the UK, while the United States was using the much more expensive VIC-20. The C64 arrived in 1982 to create a long-term rivalry between the two cassette-loading computers, but for me the Speccy will always have my heart. And that’s made the adorable Evercade emulator irresistible to me. (And no, this isn’t advertorial, I just spent £130 ($175) on the machine despite already owning at least six other devices that can just as easily play Spectrum games. I just need help.)
I should mention that’s not the regular price. I’m that much of a mark. The handhelds themselves cost $130 to pre-order, due to release in the middle of October, although so far have yet to appear on the U.S. version of Funstock’s site. However, the UK version does have them, and ships internationally. Then there are the Collector’s Editions, which come with a bespoke carry case and a special edition of a classic British gaming magazine, either Crash for the Speccy, or ZZAP! 64 for the Commodore, and cost $150.
Now, admittedly, in my ideal world it’d have been a copy of Your Sinclair—the greatest gaming magazine of all time and the reason I’m a games journalist—but I can cope with Crash for my nostalgia fix.
For your edification and delight, here are all the games you get with each. I cannot wait to not be able to play Manic Miner any more in 2026 than I could in 1983.
The Spectrum Handheld
- Head Over Heels
- Manic Miner
- Skool Daze
- Tiny Dungeons
- Archon
- The Great Escape
- Bounder
- Switchblade
- Nightmare Rally
- M.O.V.I.E.
- Avenger: The Way of the Tiger II
- Bugaboo the Flea
- Devwill Too ZX
- Hammerfist
- Hammer Knight
- Penguin Attack
- S1NCLA1R C1TY
- Shovel Adventure
- Snake Escape
- Sorcerer Kid Adventure
- Splat!
- Tourmaline
- Where Time Stood Still
- Zynaps
- Starquake
The C64 Handheld
- A Pig Quest
- Sam’s Journey
- Nebulus
- Boulder Dash
- Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe
- Paradroid
- Hunter’s Moon Remastered
- Knight ‘n’ Grail
- Aztec Challenge
- Krakout
- Druid
- Encounter!
- Galencia
- Ice Guys
- It’s Magic 2
- Lee
- Metal Warrior Ultra
- Millie & Molly
- Planet Golf
- Shadow Switcher
- Spherical
- Squish ‘Em
- Steel Ranger
- X-Out
- Yeti Mountain
