TrimUI Smart Pro is amazing

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TrimUI Smart Pro is amazing

I’ve built an edition to this site just for the TrimUI devices. Check it out here: TrimUI Hub

TrimUI Smart Pro

Normally, I would not give a title like that, but from my time using the little handheld, I was glad I bought it.   A while ago I stumbled on a Facebook ad for the TrimUi Smart Pro and saw it thinking oh great another crap handheld junk from China and with Facebook, they keep showing these crappy ads constantly.    I kept seeing the same one, and I thought,t you know, it would be nice to have a little handheld where I can play some of the old games I used to play a while ago.  I have restored my Game Gear, and that turned out great, but I want to play Pokémon too.  So I thought, why the hell not, let me look this thing up on Youtube and holly crap there is a ton of videos on it.  I watched a few of them, and the more I watched, the more I wanted this thing.   So a lot of the videos showed some places on where they got it, what’s the best OS for it and warnings that the MicroSD card it comes with is mostly crap with junk roms.

So, over watching a bunch of videos, I kept notes on what OS to get, what it can and cannot do and so on.    I am just looking to play NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, GBA, PS1, and some N64 games.  I am not looking to play PSP or Dreamcast.  From the videos, it depends on the games for those two and the N64 if this thing can play them or not.  After arming myself with watching a bunch of videos lol, I took the plunge and bought one.   I guess TrimUI builds them and ships them to sellers, so it depends on what you will get for a MicroSD card, what it comes with and so on.  So your purchase location can vary.

 

Where I bought my TrimUI Smart Pro

TrimUI Smart Pro

I bought mine from Amazon.ca / Amazon.com, and mine came with it in a case.  I never got the box, but everything was inside the case.  Which I have to say is the best case for this.  I did try to find it by itself, but the CredvZone case, I am unsure where to get it, so sorry I can’t provide a link to it, or I would be here.   Skip ahead, and I did buy another one of these things.  Yeah, I like it that much, I bought it from the same place again and this time before they shipped it I did ask where they got the case and if I can get both of the boxes and I got a cut-and-paste answer and a crappy one at that but oh well lol.  If you want to know that conversation with the guy I bought it from on Amazon, this was it.

 

YOUR CONVERSATION WITH
BSTXY

Me 10-Jan-2025 2:40 PM: Hi, I bought this TrimUI from you and love it. I like the case. However, I still wanted the box as well. I did order another one, the white version this time (Order # redacted). Could you ship that with both boxes and of course the case like you did with this one? I like the full sets. After that, I want to give you a full review.

BSTXY 10-Jan-2025 7:06 PM:
Hi, we don’t provide the box, because we only ship the console within case to Amazon warehouse for FBA, so we can’t ship you box.

Me 10-Jan-2025 7:21 PM:
That’s really a bummer, I was hoping to get the boxes as well. From the previous and this new one as well. Well ok, I guess. BTW question, where did you get the case it says CredevZone and it’s by far the best one out there. In love it. It’s the only one with an inside zipper.

BSTXY 11-Jan-2025 7:48 PM:
Hi, we are authourized to sell their case with that inside zipper, so please rest assured that.

So as you can tell pretty crappy responses so no boxes for me but the case is the only reason why I got it there again.    The MicroSD card is junk with barely any ROMS, but that was expected.   Since I have a Raspberry Pi, I am good lol. I can just add my own lol.

 

Other Things I bought

TrimUI Smart Pro

So I bought myself a few other things.   I picked up a 3D-printed Grip off Amazon, I’ll put all the links below.  I bought an official SanDisk 128GB MicroSD card and a screen protector that is glass.  The one with the case sounds plastic, so I did not put it on, yeah, one came with the case. They got their stuff free with a review thing.  Not me.  I paid for everything.  Someone wanna send me a review copy for free, jk lol. But really, haha.  Anyway, their MicroSD is Sandisk and filled full of ROMS and already set up.    So if you don’t want to mess with anything, just get their card.  Go with the 256 GB has more stuff.   It uses CrossMix OS I’ll talk about it below later.   I bought the card as a reference on where things are placed, as my plan was to download CrossMix and add it to my own card with my own games. That was the plan, and that’s what I did.

For the grip, I find the nubs to be a bit thick, but you get used to them.  I have a bunch of velcro that has sticky backs, and just to keep the TrimUI Smart Pro from slipping out, which it will over time, I put some of that on and solved that issue.  I can say get the grips, you can look elsewhere, but they sure help if you’re going to play this thing longer than an hour.  It will save your hands from cramping over time.

 

Where did I buy everything?

Well, you can buy this anywhere, but for what I bought, if you want the same thing, here are my links.  No, these are not endorsed or paid.  I bought everything myself out of pocket, and this review is of my own.  If I were paid or sent something for review, I would tell you about it, but keep things transparent as they should be.

  • My TrimUI Smart Pro (With case)
    Amazon.ca / Amazon.com
    Note: The guy is slow to ship it. It will stay a few days in your order before he ships it.  Makes me wonder if he is ordering it, then gets it, puts it in a case then will ship it to you.  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
  • Generic 3D-Printed Grip
    Amazon.ca
    Note: I checked for a .com link, and I guess Canada only, but if you do get it and the pads wear out, just go to Home Depot and get weather-stripping foam and stick it in there.
  • Sandisk 128GB Extreme PRO (Official Sandisk Supplier)
    Amazon.ca / Amazon.com
    Note: When it comes to storage, choose official suppliers.   This is one of them.
  • Tempered Glass Screen Protector
    Amazon.ca
    Note: Another that is Canada only.  Comes with 1 screen protector.
  • Lanyard Wrist Straps
    Amazon.ca / Amazon.com
    Note: Again, Canada only, but optional.   I needed some for my Game Gear, and they are nice for the TrimUI too.

Overall, that’s everything.   I also bought another case before I got to see the CredevZone case, and looking at it now, it’s a meh, the TrimUI is tight inside, but it will fit.  I recommend the one from that other guy.  I wish he had told me where he got it from and not led me on useless responses, but here we are.  This is the other one.  Amazon.ca / Amazon.com

 

What OS did I use?

I used CrossMix OS.   I picked this one because it is a modified version of TrimUI’s software with a ton more features and large community support. Pretty much contains more things like the ability to scrape artwork, better apps, postmaster, over-the-air updates and so on.   I made a blog review of that here: https://destructiveburn.com/trimui-smart-pro-crossmix-os/

TrimUI Smart Pro

 

What cool things can you expect from the TrimUI Smart Pro?

Well, I am used to Retroarch because I have a Raspberry Pi 3B, as I know it’s flexible and has two features I love the most about it.   Save States and Retroachievements.  As a kid in the late 1980s, gaming was hell! Want to save a game?  Well too damn bad.  Keep your system on or enter a game code if you have one.  What saved most of us was the Game Genie.  Unlimited lives and so much more.  Games then were hard.  I dare you to play Ghost and Goblins on the NES right now and see what we dealt with lol.  Any old gamer reading this right now will go yeah that sucked…. Remember playing a game, and you’re almost to the end of the game, and you die, then start back at level 1, or your system freezes.  That would be a cry and pouting moment.  Sure, PC gaming was worse even earlier.  Get a magazine and type in the code just to play the game.  You could be one of the lucky ones and save it to tape if you had tape but those, too, did not have save states.

Thanks to save states now on these old games, life is much better.  You can save at any point, and I guess you could inch your way through something with save states too. A godsend, kids back then would have loved to have.    What’s cool now is you can have achievements on old games.  Yeah, if you’re one of those people who love to complete games and show them off.  RetroAchievements got your back, and it’s built into RetroArch, and both are on the TriomUI Smart Pro.

The TrimUI Smart Pro has some other nice features, but the two above are my fav by far.  You’ll just need to try it for yourself and see what you like best about it.

 

What I don’t like about the TrimUi Smart Pro

I have watched so many videos and the complaints people have is about the speakers, joysticks and triggers and personally to me I say boo hoo.  Bunch of whiners.

  • For the speakers, there is no room to direct the sound out of the front.  As a design issue, they had not much choice but to leave it as is.   It directs sound from inside the case.   Maybe they could have directed the sound out the top as it already comes out of the buttons, but for the front, the PCB is already in the way.
  • As for the joysticks, I find them just fine. Yeah, they are not “push in” clickable, but so what? They are fine.
  • As for the triggers, I find them just fine.  I have no complaints with them at all.
  • As for the heat issue, it can be slightly annoying but not much of a biggy.  I use the grip so I never feel it.
  • I guess if I were to complain, the USB-C Host port at the top could have supported video out.  I checked it does not show any video out through that port.   I guess the Logo at the bottom of what some say was going to be a full HDMI port, but I guess they gave up on it.  The USB-C would have been a good idea on that one.

 

Were there any issues I found?

Yes, the issues I found were software-related.

Issues with PS1 Emulator and Joysticks.
So at the time of this post, I have tried to play Ape Escape on the PS1 Emulator, which by default is “PCSX-ReArmed”. When you go to play the game, you need to use the joysticks to move around.  I noticed moving the joystick directly forward and backward would make Spike walk show.  This is also the same issue with the right joystick for swatting motion, but if you move the joystick in any other movement, it works fine.  So you think, ok, I should go to the system, calibrate the joystick and do the calibration for both, then go back into the game, and it will be fixed?   Nope, he still walks slowly, and the swatting is a hit-and-miss.

But that’s not the only issue.   After calibration, everything back into the game or any other PS1 game ends up disabling the menu button.  The only way to back out is to press the power button and then press it again to show the menu so you can exit.  You’ll need to restart the TrimUI Smart Pro to fix it.

 

Issues with Game Gear Emulator and Shaders

Inside System Tools / EMULATORS / OVERLAYS, you can set it to (No overlays – max ratio) for Crossmix.
What this does is remove the image border on games that are in the 4:3 aspect ratio and give you black borders instead.   Well, there is no setting there for the Shaders.   What these do is show pixes/scanlines and such to make the games look old like a CRT.  I hate them and so do many others.

So inside a game emulator, you can press the menu button / Advanced Menu / Shaders / uncheck Video Shaders to disable those effects, then go to Overrides / Save Core Overrides.  This will disable it on all emulators that use the main RetroArch menu.  Well, it does not work on the Game Gear emulator; it still shows the pixel background regardless of having shaders disabled.  So it must be the emulator having its own?  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯   Not much of a big deal.

 

I have run into Save State glitches with the thumbnails, not in the correct locations, but it was rare and minor.   There is an open to resume where you last were in the game, and I have had it lag and crash over i,t making a wacky backup, but again, minor. I have also had it lock right up when playing Pokémon, but that happened only once.   Seems the issues are all software-related and not a big issue.

 

Is it worth buying?

Well, depends on what you want.  If you’re looking for something to play up to PS1 games and some, not all, N64 games, then sure.  Some will say Why not just get a 4:3 screen instead of a 16:9 for that, since you’re not using all that screen?  Well, my choice bugger off with your square. lol jk.  Maybe I’ll look into a 4:3 sometime.  But as it plays some PSP games, and some ports, that 16:9 sure helps, and in DS games, it does there too, but as this is not a touch screen, that depends.  But hey, it’s up to you what you do with your own money.

 

What charger should I use?

TrimUI Smart Pro

Short Answer

Use 5V 2A chargers only.  Nothing lower than 2A. Nothing higher than 5V.   Fast chargers may have some quirks, but most do default to 5V as that is the standard for USB voltage.

Long Answer

QC (Quick Charge) fast chargers communicate with QC 3.0+ compatible devices. The device requests a specific voltage, and if the charger supports it, it supplies that voltage. If the device is not QC-compatible, the charger typically defaults to 5V, which is the standard for all USB devices. However, I have noticed some quirks with my Samsung charger, which repeatedly cycles between charging and stopping, preventing proper charging while in standby mode. I am assuming the TrimUi Smart Pro doesn’t properly maintain a steady draw, so it’s cutting power intermittently. I also have another fast charger that won’t charge at all unless I use an adapter. Fast chargers are smart. They can cut off power or switch voltages. “Not all behave the same way. Some may have a fallback mode that works fine with 5V-only devices, while others may be more finicky”. 5V chargers typically output continuous voltage and don’t cut off. ” Some 5V chargers also have safety cutoffs if they detect abnormalities”. So the quirks you get with QC 3.0+ are not found on 5V-only chargers.

The Trim isn’t a fast-charging device, so fast chargers will only provide 5V. However, performance may vary, as I mentioned above. The Trim’s power requirement is 5V at 1.7A (which I have measured already), so using a 5V 2A charger is my recommendation to ensure proper charging without issues.

I am not saying all fast chargers are bad for default 5V, but you might run into some issues or not. This depends on the charger’s design. There are standards, but sometimes you might be unlucky. Just stick to the 5V 2A only.

Now that you got that info, your Brick is more than likely 5V as well, and your Samsung charger all along was just outputting 5v. I am curious, though. Turn off the TrimUI Smart Pro and plug your charger into it, and see if the light turns on, off, on, off. If it does, it’s the same issue. This will let me know if that is just a quirk of mine or if it’s on all, as long as you have the official, non-scam Samsung charger. Looks like you have an official charger. I compared the writing and fonts to mine and the imprint on the front. Mine’s black, though. I know it will change just fine when the screen is on. It’s just standby or off that the quirk happens.

 

Useable links to get you started.

There is a good tutorial here if you need one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCk9OwqN930

Posted in Gaming, TrimUI.