{"id":490467,"date":"2026-05-18T11:05:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/490467\/"},"modified":"2026-05-18T11:05:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T11:05:11","slug":"this-dual-screen-android-handheld-costs-less-than-100-but-just-got-linux","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/490467\/","title":{"rendered":"This dual-screen Android handheld costs less than $100, but just got Linux"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img class=\"e_rg\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"eager\"  title=\"ANBERNIC RG DS launcher\"  alt=\"ANBERNIC RG DS launcher\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ANBERNIC-RG-DS-launcher.jpg\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Nick Fernandez \/ Android Authority<\/p>\n<p>TL;DR<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>ANBERNIC has released a brand-new Linux distribution for its dual-screen RG DS handheld.<\/li>\n<li>This version of Linux supports both screens for system navigation and Nintendo DS emulation.<\/li>\n<li>The new OS can be installed on a microSD card, so you don\u2019t have to wipe your Android installation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.androidauthority.com\/anbernic-rg-ds-review-3623951\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">ANBERNIC RG DS<\/a> delivers a dual-screen <a href=\"https:\/\/www.androidauthority.com\/best-android-gaming-handheld-3596915\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Android handheld<\/a> for under $100, making it worth a look if you\u2019d like to replay your Nintendo DS games on a more modern platform. You can also install the neat Rocknix Linux distribution if you\u2019d like to get even more out of the handheld, but ANBERNIC has now released its own Linux distribution for the device.<\/p>\n<p>ANBERNIC announced a new Linux system for the RG DS in a recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=eKoDHtU_ELk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">YouTube video<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Anbernic_JP\/status\/2056226960041460218\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">X post<\/a>. In a cool touch, the company says this Linux distribution is \u201cdesigned for dual screens.\u201d The top screen shows the main menu while the bottom panel shows detailed sub-menus. These sub-menus display game lists, emulator info, settings, and more. Check out the clip below.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Don\u2019t want to miss the best from Android Authority?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/andauth.co\/AAGooglePreferredSource\" class=\"e_pn\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer nofollow noopener\"><img class=\"e_rg\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"  title=\"google preferred source badge light@2x\"  alt=\"google preferred source badge light@2x\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/google_preferred_source_badge_light@2x.png\"\/><img class=\"e_rg\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"  title=\"google preferred source badge dark@2x\"  alt=\"google preferred source badge dark@2x\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/google_preferred_source_badge_dark@2x.png\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The dual-screen support doesn\u2019t end here, as ANBERNIC says you can also swap content between the screens and adjust brightness for each panel. Either way, this dual-screen support is particularly welcome, as it means you can make the most out of the RG DS hardware. It also means you can comfortably play Linux versions of Nintendo DS emulators, complete with stylus support.<\/p>\n<p>Otherwise, we get a good look at the Linux-based platform. We see support for navigation via the physical controls, integrated RetroArch for a wide variety of emulators, and your choice of three system themes.<\/p>\n<p>ANBERNIC\u2019s video also offers brief instructions for installing Linux on the RG DS, and you don\u2019t have to sacrifice your Android installation. This process entails downloading the Linux OS via <a href=\"https:\/\/win.anbernic.com\/download\/640.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ANBERNIC\u2019s website<\/a>, writing it to a 64GB or larger microSD card using a tool like Rufus, and then popping the card into your device and booting it up. Want to switch back to Android? The manufacturer says you can simply turn off your RG DS, remove the microSD card, and then boot it up again. It\u2019s unclear if you have to change the handheld\u2019s boot order, though.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, we\u2019re glad to see another alternative operating system for the RG DS. So between Android, Rocknix, and this new Linux platform, there\u2019s no shortage of operating systems for your dual-screen ANBERNIC device.<\/p>\n<p>Thank you for being part of our community. Read our\u00a0<a class=\"c-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.androidauthority.com\/android-authority-comment-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" data-stringify-link=\"https:\/\/www.androidauthority.com\/android-authority-comment-policy\/\" data-sk=\"tooltip_parent\">Comment Policy<\/a> before posting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nick Fernandez \/ Android Authority TL;DR ANBERNIC has released a brand-new Linux distribution for its dual-screen RG DS&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":490468,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[257],"tags":[71319,18,209861,19,17,25688,279,82],"class_list":["post-490467","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mobile","tag-anbernic","tag-eire","tag-game-consoles","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-linux","tag-mobile","tag-technology"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/116595256603679747","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/490467","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=490467"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/490467\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/490468"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=490467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=490467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=490467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}