Growing up in a family with festive customs, there were few things that could compare to the tangible excitement of Christmas morning. I spent months looking at the decorations in the stores and watching themed TV specials, and was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm. While the gifts were gradually piling up under the tree, I would look for potential boxes, casually offer hints, and just bask in the anticipation of the amazing gifts. (Open in new tab)

Trying to sleep on Christmas Eve was as challenging as running down the steepest hill in town. Bright-eyed parents were dragged from their rooms in gowns and weak mugs of tea and watched as their expertly wrapped presents were torn apart by filthy, ungrateful, unathletic little hands.

"It's NINTENDOOO SIXTY FOUR," screamed a delighted child with a brand new video game console in his hands. Next to him, a faint, distant voice said, "That ...... Thank you," a voice could be heard, showing a shifty child what probably looked a lot like one of these Powkiddy products. The name sounded like a punch in the kid's face.

What is Powkiddy? After browsing both the Walmart listing (opens in new tab) and the official site (opens in new tab), I'm not sure, but these appear to be console emulation knockoffs that are desperate for litigation. I'm drawing a faint line in the sand, trying to get as close as possible to the old and new popular consoles. Curiously, a selection of bundled games that are not on the list are included, and the product images all use suspiciously vivid displays.

Besides gifting disappointment this year, the Powkiddy device would be super useful for DIY enthusiasts. I wouldn't gift it to an excited child, but it would be quite useful for those who want to try emulation themselves. However, one should always be aware of the legal aspects (opens in new tab). The consoles sold vary in price and come in a variety of sizes and shapes.

There are GameBoy SP devices like the Powkiddy V90 (opens in new tab), now $20 off at $39.99 and known to run custom firmware. (opens in new tab) Or something like the more Switch-type Powkiddy Max2 open source system (opens in new tab), which has been reduced from $154.99 to $114.99. Specs for each are listed on the official site, but you won't get impressive hardware here.

They would be a great option for those who like to tweak their emulation machines and are looking for a fairly easy-to-use shell for their own projects. Buttons and spare parts are available, and if you don't need the full parts, they are currently on sale. Unfortunately, we don't know what the feel of these units is like, but we're sure it's much better than anything you could easily make yourself at home. It is definitely a much more sophisticated solution than this 3D printed Steam Deck shell (opens in new tab).