X

Android-based PS Vita lookalike is the Yinlips YDPG18

An Android-based PS Vita lookalike has sprung up in China. While it resembles the Sony handheld, the software is anything but advanced...

Joe Svetlik Reporter
Joe has been writing about consumer tech for nearly seven years now, but his liking for all things shiny goes back to the Gameboy he received aged eight (and that he still plays on at family gatherings, much to the annoyance of his parents). His pride and joy is an Infocus projector, whose 80-inch picture elevates movie nights to a whole new level.
See full bio
Joe Svetlik
2 min read

If you can't wait until February to get your hands on the PS Vita... we still wouldn't recommend buying this Android-powered Chinese knockoff. Not under any circumstances.

Because while the Yinlips YDPG18 may look a lot like the PS Vita, really it's a Xperia Play-esque experience with a load of retro games, Engadget reports. And to be honest, the name alone should be enough to turn you off.

So what kind of specs are we talking? The website lists Android 2.2/2.3 (that's Froyo/Gingerbread -- either upgradable from one to the other, or Yinlips itself isn't sure which it ships with), and there's a 5-inch screen with a fairly naff 800x480-pixel resolution, as well as Vita-style analogue controls.

For connecting, it has HDMI and Wi-Fi, and inside is a single-core 1.2GHz processor, which isn't going to set the gaming world alight, especially with a mediocre 512MB of RAM. There's also a 5-megapixel rear camera, as well as a front-facer.

But of course it's the games that make any console. And to its credit, it does come with a few console emulators, including NES, Gameboy, SNES, Gameboy Advance, N64 and PlayStation One, though you can get your hands on those on any decently powered Android phone.

There's a gravity sensor (read: accelerometer), so any Android games with motion-sensitive controls will work without a snag. Unless they need a later version of Android than 2.3. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there's no Vita-esque touch panel on the back. There's no price listed, but to be honest we'd leave well alone if we were you.

This has to be in the running for lookalike of the year, although it can't hold a candle to the entire fake Apple Store. Have you seen any other gadgets looking suspiciously like another recently? Head on over to our Facebook page, or let us know in the comments below.