got mine for $24 and I gotta say it’s the best purchase I’ve made in a long time. The spruce updates helps it feel more seem less going through games, menu and turning it off and on without any glitches or stuttering. my new favorite
I have enough handhelds, but the A30 is tempting, I love the Famicom look. Thanks for putting this out and getting me that much closer to buying one of these.
I used to have a Hudson Famicom-styled controller for my NES, and wondered when I was a kid why it looked the weird way it did with the gold faceplate. Another one of those fun things you learn about when you get older.
Spruce OS does give it a breathing new life. It picks up the Miyoo stock system and takes it to another whole level. Tenlevels is awesome dev helping the comunity. The sleep mode is so quick now and saves a lot of battery life. I was playing PSX Final DOOM on this marvelous thing and the thumbstick does help a lot. Ah it's so nice the format the buttons the feel the screen. Also it's important to quote that the battery recharges very fast, around from 40 to 45 minutes (I recharge by using my PC USB). Average gameplay time is 4 hours. I paid $ 29 for it but I bought 2 units (Grey and Black/White, I can't help my self when buying Miyoo consoles, I need at least 2 of them). I thought it was a little bigger but it's fine. It's purpose is to be small. The build quality is suberb... Miyoo devices are really well made. Great colors, great buttons (a little stiff but I think it'll soften with time), great little screen and silent shoulder buttons. Works somewhat hotter than it should but it's ok. I "Spruced" it with Adata micro sd card and the speed is blazing fast. No big problems with Spruce at all almost everything works fine (some minor things but passable). I changed the default Core for Arcade changing it from FBNEO to MAME2003 Plus. Works like a charm. The case has a nice finish but I think is a lil too thick for this device. Man the pixels are displayed so beautyfull... Currently playing GBA Castlevania Circle of the Moon and man... it looks amazing.
Another way to get ride of the shimmering is enable bilinear filtering and then use the normal2x video filter. That way you can use the whole screen instead of integer scaling which makes the screen smaller. The picture will look super crisp and no more shimmering. Works for pretty much all systems. This is a good tip for any handheld using retro arch.
You sold me on it. I was disappointed with the reviews when it first came out because I had been anticipating it for so long. Ordered in famicom colors and will be here tomorrow. Immediately flashing spruce to it.
Spruce saves the day! Although the whole review cycle is becoming an issue. Manufacturers are needing to get to market quickly to compete, but sending out undercooked products for early review. It's an issue...
@@adinwalls update: I have the device with spruce installed and I love it. It’s a joy to use and play on. How much of that is nostalgia for the past? While I didn’t have a famicon I had some game & watch games in the same color as a child. This thing takes me back and there’s something to be said for that as well.
If minui allows you to play arcade games such as mame and fbneo and portmaster this would be the greatest device to use in your front pocket to play all the way to ps1
17:06 Have you tried any MSU-1 games? If you want to be blown away try Gundam Endless Duel for SNES (like the original version) and play a match. Then load up the MSU-1 conversion done by Kurrono & PepilloPev and do the same. Both run great on the A30 but THE SOUND on the MSU-1 hack is fantastic, even through a mono speaker. There are a bunch of MSU-1 hacks that run perfectly on the A30!
Unfortunately I had to return to the previous version, spruce 1.3.5. (Which is marvelous great so far). Thanks a lot Tenlevels! (I've tested it on my two A30 units). The most annoying thing is the brightness control that sometimes changes by itself at the lowest level. Version 1.4 is pretty good overall, but I think it's slower to boot the OS and to shutdown, I don't know... And it seems games boot time went slower too (maybe the navigation in general too?). The new function of holding down select for 2 seconds to save and turn off is amazing but still takes a long time altough very welcome. Of course I use a high quality micro sd card configured by using Rufus. Spruce 1.3.5 is blazing fast. I still think that if you save your state or simple leave the game (which Retroarch will save it's last position too), and go to settings then simply shutdown by pressing A, is much faster. But we all know Spruce is being worked on and will improve a lot more, thanks to Tenlevels with his amazing job, the community is grateful for this awesome CFW.
@@adinwalls I appreciate it, Adin Of course I use a good quality micro sd configured by using Rufus Spruce 1.3.5 is blazing fast. I still think that if you save your state or simple leave the game (which Retroarch will save it's last position too), and go to settings then simply shutdown by pressing A, is much faster. But we all know Spruce is being worked on and will improve a lot more, thanks to Tenlevels with his amazing job.
Having tinkered with the device, it appears there may some day be support for portmaster. There’s a copy of streets of rage under ports, but no access to the portmaster application yet.
Ah I just removed SNES (I'm having it as a dedicated NES and GB device) but you are able to use various emualtors. I recall running two different emulators with good results
I loved the look of this right from the off but held back as Stock OS was so bad but it’s looking in much better shape and I have two to set up so this is a good starting point. Just one question, if I buy the Pico package to download the raspberry pi build, can I still use .p8 carts I already have or do I need to source them from elsewhere. I love Pico 8 and it would be especially good on this device. Oh, one further question, how is N64? Many thanks Adin for your great content and contributions to the retro gaming community!!!
Hey man, Spruce actually only works with downloaded carts right now, so yes your p8 carts are fine. In terms of N64 I never pushed it much in this regard. Alot of guys are reporting fair performance. However I would aim at getting it for this. I know Super Mario 64 works well. Mario Kart - the usual easy to emulate suspects
Hello friend, can you give me a hand with the BIOS topic? I don’t need you to guide me towards them or provide them. After years and years dedicated to emulation, I already have all the necessary BIOS. But I have doubts about where to put them. Should they go in the RetroArch folder or in the main BIOS folder? Should they be placed in subfolders with the system names inside the BIOS folder? I’m talking about Spruce OS 2.3, which I believe is the most current version. I’m asking for help because everything on the SpruceOS GitHub is very confusing and I can’t find that information. Should they follow the same scheme as the RetroArch System folder, and would it work to simply copy them to that System folder, inside the BIOS folder on the SD card I’m preparing for the SPRUCE OS system? And when you use Skraper, what size do the images need to be? Thanks a lot!
For some reason this video felt a little scattered and was hard for me to follow. I’m a subscriber and like your content, so please accept this comment as well-intentioned constructive criticism.
I hear you. It was a bit scattered. Mostly due to me constantly changing things because tenlevels is so damn quick with his updates! So I blame him haha
Use a desktop app called skraper.net - there are a few videos on how to use this, then scrape the artwork directly to the Imgs folder within each roms folder
Can we get video comparing all the firmware versions and the best systems for each? The shutdown and resume feature made my eyes pop with some dollar signs for want
People install this for *what* reason? 12:48 > I haven't had a single issue like this with the stock firmware. So to me it looks like this is worse than stock to be completely honest. 🤔 I thought that this OS was supposed to be pre-configured?
The guys are constantly improving the custom firmware. There are other improvements from Stock like better looking UI, auto resume and some other creature comforts.
I'm playing Super Mario 64 great. Waverace 64 was a bit slow. Pilotwings 64 Copter level worked but not rocket belt 😅. I tried over clocking but need to experiment further
No I wouldn't say hot. Maybe an untidy room with a cool breeze? :-D As I may have added (or maybe I cut it out) a few PSP games play nicely, as someone has mentioned here, you've got some N64 gameplay, some Dreamcast aswell. But I wouldn't buy it for that though.
@@cappnplanetcappnplanet3237same Mario 64 runs good but other things have not only crashed the game but now I have system wide issues, can't tell you how many times I've re installed this OS now.
@@OhmCookedMeals I reinstalled Spruce after dorking around with gameboy shaders and screwing up the default green setting. I'm avoiding any retroarch changes going forward and I consider myself alright at Retroarch. Sorry that N64 caused crashes in other areas, that's weird. Did you change anything in Retroarch?
You've sold me. I'm flashing this today!
Please don't Flash anyone or anything!
Finally! I've been asking for you review for weeks!
Fun fact: TechDweeb only shows his hands because human minds cannot fathom his full form.
This
NO CANADIANS ALLOWED LOL JK Tech dweeb
got mine for $24 and I gotta say it’s the best purchase I’ve made in a long time. The spruce updates helps it feel more seem less going through games, menu and turning it off and on without any glitches or stuttering. my new favorite
Great to hear!
I just picked one up for 26 bucks with shipping. It's worth it. Plays DS pretty nice.
Thank you for this, I just purchased an a30 and there are woefully few up to date videos on this device.
Glad I could help
I have enough handhelds, but the A30 is tempting, I love the Famicom look.
Thanks for putting this out and getting me that much closer to buying one of these.
Yes the Famicom style is my childhood.
I used to have a Hudson Famicom-styled controller for my NES, and wondered when I was a kid why it looked the weird way it did with the gold faceplate.
Another one of those fun things you learn about when you get older.
That was awesome! Should help lots of new users get up and running.
Spruce OS does give it a breathing new life. It picks up the Miyoo stock system and takes it to another whole level. Tenlevels is awesome dev helping the comunity. The sleep mode is so quick now and saves a lot of battery life. I was playing PSX Final DOOM on this marvelous thing and the thumbstick does help a lot. Ah it's so nice the format the buttons the feel the screen.
Also it's important to quote that the battery recharges very fast, around from 40 to 45 minutes (I recharge by using my PC USB). Average gameplay time is 4 hours.
I paid $ 29 for it but I bought 2 units (Grey and Black/White, I can't help my self when buying Miyoo consoles, I need at least 2 of them). I thought it was a little bigger but it's fine. It's purpose is to be small. The build quality is suberb... Miyoo devices are really well made. Great colors, great buttons (a little stiff but I think it'll soften with time), great little screen and silent shoulder buttons. Works somewhat hotter than it should but it's ok. I "Spruced" it with Adata micro sd card and the speed is blazing fast. No big problems with Spruce at all almost everything works fine (some minor things but passable). I changed the default Core for Arcade changing it from FBNEO to MAME2003 Plus. Works like a charm. The case has a nice finish but I think is a lil too thick for this device. Man the pixels are displayed so beautyfull... Currently playing GBA Castlevania Circle of the Moon and man... it looks amazing.
Another way to get ride of the shimmering is enable bilinear filtering and then use the normal2x video filter. That way you can use the whole screen instead of integer scaling which makes the screen smaller. The picture will look super crisp and no more shimmering. Works for pretty much all systems. This is a good tip for any handheld using retro arch.
Thanks for sharing!
Looks like it finally makes the device worth buying
It does. A few glitches here and there but tenlevels is hell bent on improving this.
The greatest feature from 1.4 is fixed WiFi!
Great video, nice to see you back! Gotta love the A30
Yes the more I use it the more I think it's a gem
You sold me on it. I was disappointed with the reviews when it first came out because I had been anticipating it for so long. Ordered in famicom colors and will be here tomorrow. Immediately flashing spruce to it.
Spruce saves the day! Although the whole review cycle is becoming an issue. Manufacturers are needing to get to market quickly to compete, but sending out undercooked products for early review. It's an issue...
@@adinwalls update: I have the device with spruce installed and I love it. It’s a joy to use and play on. How much of that is nostalgia for the past? While I didn’t have a famicon I had some game & watch games in the same color as a child. This thing takes me back and there’s something to be said for that as well.
If minui allows you to play arcade games such as mame and fbneo and portmaster this would be the greatest device to use in your front pocket to play all the way to ps1
Great video! Does this also help with the heating?
It gets warm here and there but nothing to write home about
Nice video, Adin! You making me want to pick up this little guy. Always loved the look of it. 🍻
Yes it's really nice
17:06 Have you tried any MSU-1 games? If you want to be blown away try Gundam Endless Duel for SNES (like the original version) and play a match. Then load up the MSU-1 conversion done by Kurrono & PepilloPev and do the same. Both run great on the A30 but THE SOUND on the MSU-1 hack is fantastic, even through a mono speaker. There are a bunch of MSU-1 hacks that run perfectly on the A30!
Sounds great I will give it a go
Unfortunately I had to return to the previous version, spruce 1.3.5. (Which is marvelous great so far). Thanks a lot Tenlevels! (I've tested it on my two A30 units). The most annoying thing is the brightness control that sometimes changes by itself at the lowest level. Version 1.4 is pretty good overall, but I think it's slower to boot the OS and to shutdown, I don't know... And it seems games boot time went slower too (maybe the navigation in general too?).
The new function of holding down select for 2 seconds to save and turn off is amazing but still takes a long time altough very welcome.
Of course I use a high quality micro sd card configured by using Rufus. Spruce 1.3.5 is blazing fast. I still think that if you save your state or simple leave the game (which Retroarch will save it's last position too), and go to settings then simply shutdown by pressing A, is much faster. But we all know Spruce is being worked on and will improve a lot more, thanks to Tenlevels with his amazing job, the community is grateful for this awesome CFW.
I will pass that onto tenlevels
@@adinwalls I appreciate it, Adin
Of course I use a good quality micro sd configured by using Rufus
Spruce 1.3.5 is blazing fast. I still think that if you save your state or simple leave the game (which Retroarch will save it's last position too), and go to settings then simply shutdown by pressing A, is much faster. But we all know Spruce is being worked on and will improve a lot more, thanks to Tenlevels with his amazing job.
Gotta do this & the Cross-Mix OS to my TrimUI smart pro
Yes I see @retrogamecorps just released a good video on the Trimui smart pro - some excellent developments there.
Welcome back dude
Hey, thanks
Having tinkered with the device, it appears there may some day be support for portmaster. There’s a copy of streets of rage under ports, but no access to the portmaster application yet.
All the files of SOR comes with the Spruce files. I think you can play it just check again
Thanks it does work and looks awesome. Hope we can continue to see more support for ports and thank you for the efforts put into these updates.
What snes core is being used for the yoshi island test? One of the older/less accurate version of snes9x?
Or supafaust?
Ah I just removed SNES (I'm having it as a dedicated NES and GB device) but you are able to use various emualtors. I recall running two different emulators with good results
I loved the look of this right from the off but held back as Stock OS was so bad but it’s looking in much better shape and I have two to set up so this is a good starting point. Just one question, if I buy the Pico package to download the raspberry pi build, can I still use .p8 carts I already have or do I need to source them from elsewhere. I love Pico 8 and it would be especially good on this device. Oh, one further question, how is N64? Many thanks Adin for your great content and contributions to the retro gaming community!!!
Hey man, Spruce actually only works with downloaded carts right now, so yes your p8 carts are fine. In terms of N64 I never pushed it much in this regard. Alot of guys are reporting fair performance. However I would aim at getting it for this. I know Super Mario 64 works well. Mario Kart - the usual easy to emulate suspects
@@adinwalls many thanks as always Adin!! 💪👌👍
Hello friend, can you give me a hand with the BIOS topic? I don’t need you to guide me towards them or provide them. After years and years dedicated to emulation, I already have all the necessary BIOS. But I have doubts about where to put them. Should they go in the RetroArch folder or in the main BIOS folder? Should they be placed in subfolders with the system names inside the BIOS folder? I’m talking about Spruce OS 2.3, which I believe is the most current version. I’m asking for help because everything on the SpruceOS GitHub is very confusing and I can’t find that information. Should they follow the same scheme as the RetroArch System folder, and would it work to simply copy them to that System folder, inside the BIOS folder on the SD card I’m preparing for the SPRUCE OS system?
And when you use Skraper, what size do the images need to be? Thanks a lot!
Do you have to update the stock firmware first before installing this? Or does this completely replace the stock?
@@tenlevels84 Alright. Thank you, and great work on this, btw! I love the logo. It feels like we’re leveling up!
lovely
This device deffo needed something to improve, I’m still watching so let’s see if it is worth it. I’m sure it is.Awesome as always Adin👍🏾🔥
Thanks man
Is spruce the best cfw for the a30? I'm pressured to get one since it is on sale around 26 bucks
We'll stick is okay but yes I think Spruce is still your best bet
@@adinwalls is the heating issue was solved ? Or there is still a bit of heat while playing
For some reason this video felt a little scattered and was hard for me to follow. I’m a subscriber and like your content, so please accept this comment as well-intentioned constructive criticism.
I hear you. It was a bit scattered. Mostly due to me constantly changing things because tenlevels is so damn quick with his updates! So I blame him haha
Hi. is there a reason u went with the 1.35 and not the 2.0 ?
Because this video is almost a month of now! 😂
My save file is corrupted how do i fix it thanks in advance if you can help 👏
What if my console didn’t come with an sd card?
How is psp on this?
Very minimal gameplay if any. Sorry I don't recall exactly
How to add art box/ game thumbnails?
Put the box art in ROMS - (Whatever system) - Imgs. Keep in mind that the box art has to be a certain resolution.
Use a desktop app called skraper.net - there are a few videos on how to use this, then scrape the artwork directly to the Imgs folder within each roms folder
Can we get video comparing all the firmware versions and the best systems for each? The shutdown and resume feature made my eyes pop with some dollar signs for want
Auto resume is such an excellent feature
People install this for *what* reason? 12:48 > I haven't had a single issue like this with the stock firmware. So to me it looks like this is worse than stock to be completely honest. 🤔 I thought that this OS was supposed to be pre-configured?
The guys are constantly improving the custom firmware. There are other improvements from Stock like better looking UI, auto resume and some other creature comforts.
hey Adin Spruce 2.1 is out now
Oooooooooh
Thank you Adin
No worries
Is everything above PS1 still a hot mess?
I don't think so...
I'm playing Super Mario 64 great. Waverace 64 was a bit slow. Pilotwings 64 Copter level worked but not rocket belt 😅. I tried over clocking but need to experiment further
No I wouldn't say hot. Maybe an untidy room with a cool breeze? :-D As I may have added (or maybe I cut it out) a few PSP games play nicely, as someone has mentioned here, you've got some N64 gameplay, some Dreamcast aswell. But I wouldn't buy it for that though.
@@cappnplanetcappnplanet3237same Mario 64 runs good but other things have not only crashed the game but now I have system wide issues, can't tell you how many times I've re installed this OS now.
@@OhmCookedMeals I reinstalled Spruce after dorking around with gameboy shaders and screwing up the default green setting. I'm avoiding any retroarch changes going forward and I consider myself alright at Retroarch. Sorry that N64 caused crashes in other areas, that's weird. Did you change anything in Retroarch?
No idea why I bought a Powkiddy V10 over this... sigh...
Oh right, ah well the V10 is pretty cool too
Wow copy download 16gb miyoo a30