The MD-16BIT Genesis Clone Handheld

[retro junkie]

I posted this review on my "blog" site this week. Thought it might be of interest here. I love to tinker with things like this.

First Impressions?
I have been looking for a good Sega Mega Drive/Genesis clone handheld for a long time. This portable has been on my radar for several months. I have been digging around for some sort of review to sink my teeth into and have come up short. I found one on youtube but it was frustrating as the person just did not do his homework. He just opened the box and started fiddling with the console ending up with me having more questions than answers once he was through.

This is what seems to be labeled the MD-16BIT console model number HG-943. I am assuming it is manufactured by FEI HAO being that name is on the label located on the back of the console. The box has Shenzhen Tianzi Technology Co. Ltd.

You must understand that this is a System On a Chip (SOC) technology. It tries to emulate the original console on one chip. It depends on who is manufacturing the console whether or not they have been very successful in their endeavors. Some are close, some are not very.

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Size comparison against the 3DS, Nintendo Switch Lite, Gameboy SP, and the Gameboy Pocket.

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Basic Observation:
The console is shaped like a brick with a quirky look and the button configuration is not Sega. The whole arrangement, the directional button and the shoot/jump buttons are just not the "Sega" experience.

What's in the box:You get the console, two wireless controllers, charge cable, and an HDMI cord. You also get an instruction manual which does have broken English and poorly constructed sentences. No help here. The biggest problem with the instructions is that the illustrations do not match the console. So you are left with trying to figure out everything from scratch.

How does it feel:
I have medium sized adult hands. It feels very comfortable to hold and the buttons are intuitive to a handheld device. They are easy to reach, have short travel in the pushing, and are a little clicky.

The screen:
The screen is about 4.5 inches which is a very satisfying and nice acceptable size. The color is good and it does have a sweet spot when it comes to angling it for play, not too bad, just average and common on these devices. It would have been a whole lot better if it had been IPS, but it is what it is. There is no brightness control. If there is a lot of light where you are playing the screen seems to be darkened by it. It is better to play in the shade or in an area where there is not a lot of light. It was probably set this way so as to save battery life. The screen is sharp and the games look great on it, good color and contrast. There is no aspect ratio adjustment. It is on the console in the manual but not on the console that came out of this box. That could be a killer for some gamers. The picture is stretched across this screen, distorted. Some games it is not so obvious, just depends on what you are playing. But still you do notice the difference if you are a Mega Drive/Genesis fan. You have an HDMI out on this console, so guess what? Yes you are right the screen is stretched on the big screen, be it 32in or 55in. The console's screen is easily scratched. I already have a slight little scratch on the left side. You can't see it unless you tilt the unit a little in the light, but I know it is there, if you know what I mean. And I have only had this five days! The screen is better than the Sega Nomad unless you have performed a mod.

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The Console:
On the top you have the HDMI and AV out on the left and your charge input on the right. You also have two shoulder buttons. Bottom of the console, you have a port one and two, one on the left and two on the right, for your standard Mega Drive/ Genesis controllers. There is a switch on the right to turn these ports on when they are in use. There is also your headphone port with a volume control wheel. On the right you have two switches that are for region adjustment, NTSC, Japan, PAL. On the face there is the reset, select, and start, which are clearly marked in English. The shoot/jump buttons are arranged in a diamond configuration of four buttons, six buttons total when you include the shoulder buttons. And these buttons are marked just as you would find on a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis controller, just not arranged as you would want them. Oh, and the on/off switch is on the top right of the console. All things are clearly marked, molded in the plastic shell. The console feels of a good solid build and I know some of the weight comes from the 2000mAh battery. But really, the plastic housing has a good thick and sturdy feel, and seems very durable, impressive. There is only one speaker, on the back of the console, where I put my fingers, which can muffle the sound. Headphones are a must.

The console is a simple push the cartridge in, turn on, play, no menu to configure anything. The carts are inserted in the top of the console and the cartridge slot has a spring loaded dust cover.

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Games:
You guessed it, all the Mega Drive/Genesis games that are out there, except for Virtua Racing. But that can be expected. I have only found the newest Hyperkin console to be able to play that game. It is a common game that clone consoles just have a problem playing.

With a short learning curve due to the button placement you are playing some of your favorite games. I found it very awkward using the six buttons in fighting games. Vectorman one and two would only work after I did a reset using that particular button, strange. The Sonic & Knuckles lock-on tech works but I found it very finicky as it shakes and loses contact interrupting the gameplay. It would only be good for playing during a TV hookup gaming session. Yes the Game Genie works, but you still have that extension hanging out there for a wiggle. My Game Genie did feel tighter than the Sonic & Knuckles set up. I have tested over a hundred games, not all that I have, yet, but enough to satisfy me that the console has good compatibility.

Reproduction games work on this console. I only had a few that seemed to not boot, out of maybe thirty games. The Everdrive cart, Chinese version, works. Even hacks, and homebrew are included in this testing, like the cart version of Final Fight, Gun Slugs, Darius, Xenocrisis, they work. Reproduction, homebrew, carts are a mixed bag. I found some were difficult to remove from the console, sometimes certain games would lockup at certain points in the gameplay. If a cart which had a homebrew, reproduction cart, did not work, the game would play when put on the everdrive, or if it was preloaded on a multi cart, it would play.

The best route to go if you do not have a big collection of games would be an inexpensive multi cart or the everdrive. That way you would not have a lot of money invested. If you want to invest in the original games I would suggest the original console too. I don't have any PAL games to try except for Zero Wing. And it will play on any NTSC Sega console. I only have two Japanese games, only one of them would play.

(And I should mention that there are about 118 built-in games. Well, they call them games. I have a different opinion. Simply turn on the console with no cart in the slot for these (ahem) games to boot.)

What about the Audio:
We are talking about a clone console in which reproducing an accurate Mega Drive/Genesis audio has always seemed troublesome, with some clones being ear bleedingly off. Some games seem to be good, acceptable, other games where umm, there is something a little, you know, while others maybe the music drowns out the special effect sounds, nothing when it comes to clones, is perfect. It is just the nature of the present technology in cheap clones. You just accept it and game, or stick to the original console.

HDMI TV experience:
Understand I did not purchase this console for TV gaming. I totally had the sole purpose of playing my game in my hand. I have the original Genesis 1 hooked to my TV. With that being said this was an easy setup for playing. The two wireless controllers (two AAA batteries needed) were an instant connect, boom! My problem? The "A" button on the "Player one" controller does not work, defective. The light on the back of the controller shows that it is connecting with a flash for every push of the button, but nothing. That becomes critical for some games when it does not give you a way to pick button configuration in the options. Can I take the second controller and use it? No because each controller is set, with one being Player 1 and the other one is Player 2. Each has been pre-configured and has no way to change and switch. I have other wireless controllers that contain a switch for that purpose, but not these two, not this console's controllers. The wireless are very responsive and I did not detect any lag. Buttons sit kind-of high but overall a satisfying experience. And they do have the look of Sega controllers, small, but feel comfortable in your hands. I do have the option of using the original Sega controllers. That works well by flipping the switch on the console for that purpose. Found that a Hyperkin Mega Drive/Genesis controller works okay. I, personally, will never use this console in this manner. What about the bad controller, I will pitch it aside. I do not expect any type of compensation from the seller being that I got it from Aliexpress. No big deal to me, just the way it is.

Battery:
Not sure how long it takes to charge this battery to a full charge at this point. The longest I have had it charging was six hours, and that was a ¾ full. Must be a slow trickle charge. I have gotten a few hours of play time, about three. Nothing in the manual about charging.

And that is another annoying issue. In the upper right corner of the screen is the battery icon, which stays there in the corner of your game. No way of turning that off, that I know of. It shows how much of a charge that you have continuously. Is it a welcome or an annoying feature? To me it is both. It can get in the way of some games.

Final Thoughts:
Considering my hands-on experience, even though it has been a short time, it is easy to come to some conclusions about the gaming side of this console. The cons that I have mentioned above is the elephant in the room. If you choose to ignore those things, you find a console with some enjoyable gaming. It is with mixed feelings that I have begun to enjoy this thing. It is the best handheld clone system that plays game cartridges which I have owned. I do have the Sega Nomad. Is this a good replacement? That is the wrong question to ask. Can I have a good Sega gaming experience with this clone console? It is not for everyone. A diehard Sega fan would have issues with the elephant in the room. There is nothing about the look of the console design that says, "SEGA." But it does play my games that I want to play. The real question is, "Is it worth a purchase?" For me it is. And I hope I have given you enough of an Idea for you to make an informed decision. Is it for you? Only you can make that decision. How durable are these Chinese consoles? That is really a gamble. I have one which is the Retro Bit Retrogen, a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis clone handheld, cartridge based, have had it for years, it still works. Then there are some which die with a short life from cheap capacitors.

I give this console a thumbs up.