RetroN 5 $129.99 with free shipping @ ThinkGeek - The RetroN 5 deals thread

Drclaw411

CAGiversary!
Feedback
4 (100%)
CURRENT DEALS:

$129.99 with free shipping at ThinkGeek


Important Information
​Warranty registration - http://www.retron5.com/warrantyregistration_/
Patch Notes / How to Update (Last update 6/10/2014) - http://retron5.in/?src=98f13708210194c475687be6106a3b84

I've included the text from the pre-order era of this OP in spoilers for reference.
UPDATE 5/27/14: It's real this time. Hyperkin's June 6 release date is happening. Many mom and pop stores that have received their units have started selling them already, and many people who have ordered from Amazon (myself included) are reporting getting emails from Amazon notifying them that their orders qualify for release day delivery and are updating estimated delivery status to June 6th, no longer showing the "we need more time" placeholder. It's worth noting that so far only people who have ordered the grey unit from Amazon are receiving order updates (which coincides with Hyperkin reporting on their facebook page that they had shipped Amazon's grey preorder units, but Amazon had yet to place an order for the black units). All consoles that have been shown off online by reviewers, people who have been able to buy them before the street date, or Hyperkin themselves have all been grey consoles to this point. No word on black consoles. Another note: Chris Gallizzi of Hyperkin responded to an inquiry about Newegg orders by saying that he is not aware of any issues with Newegg's preorders, and they should be good to go for the launch.

UPDATE 5/22/14: Just one day after IGN and Polygon reported that Hyperkin would begin shipping units to retailers on May 22 (today as of this writing), Hyperkin essentially confirmed that. They have announced that the launch date for the long overdue RetroN 5 is June 6th, 2014. In a much quieter fashion (just by responding to a random person's comment) they confirmed this would be for North America only and that the console would launch in the UK in September. There is also one more small hitch. The rumor that the first batch of units would be only for mom/pop B&M retailers and that NO units from this batch would go to Amazon or Newegg has been gaining some serious steam. While Hyperkin has been responding to a decent amount of comments on their facebook page from excited fans, they continue to ignore questions about when Amazon orders will ship. So it seems those of us who preordered on Amazon still don't have a solid release date. Fulfillment could happen any time between June 6th through September or beyond.

UPDATE 5/21/14: IGN today reported that the RetroN 5 would begin shipping out on May 22 (tomorrow, as of this writing)! This coincides with Chris Gazzilli, Hyperkin's project manager, posting a picture on his facebook page of a massive shipping container full of RetroN 5 units. Ladies and Gentlemen, it seems hell may have just frozen over.

UPDATE 5/13/14: Hyperkin has listed the RetroN 5, and it's controllers, on their company wholesale store for authorized retailers to buy. The console (both colors) and controllers (both colors) are listed as sold out. I'm not sure if they were in stock and sold out quickly, or if they haven't been made available yet. Regardless, it's good news that the system is listed for the first time ever. Additionally, reviewers such as GameSpot and several youtube reviewers have received their review units, which appear to be retail units. The RetroN 5 seems to finally be around the corner. We'll see, but things look promising right now. One thing to note: the listing for the console on Hyperkin's wholesale page indicates that each wholesale box contains six units. If this is the case, it would seem to debunk the previous report of the console being shipped in quantities of four per retailer.

UPDATE 4/25/14: While this hasn't technically been confirmed by Hyperkin, I take it as fact. It's worth remembering that NOTHING has been officially confirmed by Hyperkin. Hyperkin has remained silent until unofficially confirming almost all known info in random interviews with various youtubers and forum members. Therefor, again, I take this as fact:

I spoke to Hyperkin today.

Here are the "unofficial" details.

The "end of May" release is a "soft" release. Meaning they really are waiting for the next batch due in the summer for the official real release. Amazon is NOT getting any of the units released at the end of May. Each retailer is only getting 4 units. Retail on the unit is $139.99 and $39.99 for the additional controller. The reasons for the price increase are both cosmetic and technical but if it works as it should then it should be a great retro system.

Our 4 are already taken with pre-orders. If you know any stores locally that are getting units, and you want one for end of May, then i suggest you contact them and put money down. Keep in mind that each store is getting 4 units only for the soft launch.
UPDATE 4/17/14: Hyperkin has increased the price of the RetroN 5, saying "north of $100, between $129.99 and $149.99". Alll pre-orders from Amazon should be honored via their pre-order price guarantee. I believe Newegg has the same guarantee, I am not sure about Stone Age Gamer or 8 Bit Classics. Think Geek still hasn't opened pre-orders on the unit, instead offering a link to be signed up for email notifications as to when it will be available. Also on the Amazon front, they have sold out or pre-orders. Furthermore, it is more likely you'll learn the ETA from Amazon, Newegg, or whoever you ordered it from. Hyperkin has gone on record of saying they will never again announce a hard release date for anything.

UPDATE 4/12/14: After Hyperkin denied the console was delayed again and vigoruosuly shoved the month of April up everyone's ass for half a year, today they delayed the vaporware console yet again. At the Midwest Gaming Classic, they did their annual presentation. They ignored the planned April 2014 release, but finally somebody in the crowd asked about it. The Hyperkin rep said it was releasing in "30 days, guaranteed". This is not the first time they used the word "guaranteed", last time was about April so this doesn't mean jack shit. So maybe it'll randomly show up at people's houses at the end of may, maybe it wont, and maybe my ass will fly out of my ass.

Retron 5 Delay History:
-Summer 2013 (which they continued to say after summer was over, claiming they meant "Indian Summer" or "California Summer"....i'm not making this up)
-December 10 2013
-Quarter 1 2014
-Quarter 2 2014
-First two weeks of April
-April 2014, guaranteed
-Gauranteed within 30-40 days of April 12, 2014
-June 6 2014

DELAYED. ANY UPDATES FROM HYPERKIN WILL COME ON THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE: https://www.facebook.com/HyperkinGames

UPDATE: In a recent interview, Hyperkin confirmed that the initial batch of units WILL NOT BE ENOUGH to meet day ome demand. Also confirmed was the ability for the system to act as a multitap. Example: in a four player SNES game, two players could use snes controlles, one player could use the retron controller, and one player could use a genesis controller. Interview can be found here.


Pre-order at Amazon (SOLD OUT)
Pre-order at Newegg: Black (SOLD OUT) or Grey (SOLD OUT)
Pre-order at Stone Age Gamer (DUE TO HIGH DEMAND, RELEASE DAY DELIVERY NOT PROMISED)
Pre-order at 8 Bit Classics (DUE TO HIGH DEMAND, RELEASE DAY DELIVERY NOT PROMISED)





UPDATE: Hyperkin claims that they opened up some packaged retail units and discovered some units had faulty pins. because of this, the Retron 5 has been delayed. No new release date has been announced, although Hyperkin has stated the unit will release in 2014 and that they are aiming for Q1. This is the Retron 5's third delay.

EDIT: Preorders are sold out at Amazon and Newegg.

Retron5 pre-orders have finally (about damn time) opened.

For those of you who have been following this console, you know it's quite highly anticipated and looks to be far better than any clone system released before.

For those unfamiliar, here's a little info:

  • It's one system that plays games for the following systems: NES, SNES, Genesis, Mega Drive, Famicom, Super Famicom, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance.
  • Two controller ports for each console will be built in with the system. It will also come with one wireless universal controller.
  • Outputs in HDMI and upscales for HDTVs. Early impressions and videos of this have been extremley postive. From the website: "The RetroN 5 will up convert the video signal to show clearer and cleaner images, with vibrant colors on an HDTV with a resolution output of up to 720p through the use of shaders. You will also be able to select the aspect ratio in our GUI, from the standard 4:3 to the HD ratio of 16:9."
  • Features a user interface (dashboard. Somewhat similar of the PS3 interface in appearance, in my opinion).
  • Features save states. From the website: "Most games did not allow for you to freely save your games. The RetroN 5 will allow you to save their games at any point during gameplay, and will feature an autosave feature upon shutdown. You will be able to load your saves at anytime during gameplay."
  • Button reassignment supported. From the website: "Users will be able to program the controller to assign buttons to their preference. In turn, the RetroN 5 will save these custom layouts, so that users will not have to constantly reconfigure the button configuration. This feature will also be available to people wanting to remap their buttons on their original controllers."
  • 100% game cartridge compatibility, without lag.
  • Sega Power Base Converter compatible, allowing Sega Master System games to be played.
More information is here. It may be a bit dated since this was from back when they first announced the console, but I figured it was the best site to link since it also featured some screenshots as well. http://hyperkin.com/blog/2013/03/retron-5-details-revealed-from-the-midwest-gaming-classic/ There is also plenty of info on Hyperkin's facebook page.

I've been looking forward to this for a long time, and i'm extremley excited that pre-orders are finally open. For one console that not only plays all of these console's games, but upscales them and features save states (either to the cartridge (if supported) or the console itself)...this seems like a great deal. And if you've been following the hype for the console, there is a good chance it could end up selling out. Hyperkin isn't a huge company and this thing has a TON of pre-release demand (just check out the comments on the facebook page). I like the look of the black one a bit better, because it seems to be the traditional console color nowadays. But I opted for the grey model because the black console and controller seem like they'd be fingerprint magnets.

Preorder either color here at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Hyperkin-RetroN-Gaming-Not-Machine-Specific/dp/B00DZIX3CQ/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1378958043&sr=8-13&keywords=retron+5 or here at Newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Order=BESTMATCH&Description=retron%205&N=-1&isNodeId=1&RandomID=65244712392254220130925161655

Here are pictures of the two consoles, since the pictures on Amazon aren't that great:

Grey:
Retron-5.jpg


Black:
e3_retron5_03550.jpg

 
Last edited by a moderator:
So far, i've noticed that almost everyone who has chatted with someone over at Amazon has either bumped up to same day delivery or got an email shortly after confirming they will get it friday. My advice, keep bothering them until you get something. Plus, always mention that your "friend" has already received their email and you both preordered at the same time. 

 
Has anyone with the black one on preorder tried to get Amazon to change it to the gray? I wonder if they would be able to do that and get it shipped by Friday?

 
Soooooooo is Target or Wal-Mart or K-Mart going to carry these? What big local B&M stores are carrying these that anyone knows of?

 
You get it changed then have to wait months for them to restock while the black ones finally got stocked and shipped.
I just got off a chat with them and they tried to change my order to the grey but since it is showing as not in stock in their system there was no way for it to be changed. Even if I did want to put on the second wave. Didnt hurt to ask anyway just to see.

 
I ordered mine last September, I just word from both Amazon & my bank that the payment went through, & it's shipping soon. With tax it came out to $82, which is a fucking deal in my mind. Only thing is I'm going away this weekend so, I won't be able to play it.

I'm glad I stayed with my pre-order because, I wanted it despite the few problems, & I probably wouldn't have bought it if it started at $140. As someone who can't spend all his money on big ticket video game items anymore, I'm glad I can get this right now.

 
Just sent one. I'll report back. I'm expecting a solid "No", but we'll see.
Here's Amazon's response (as expected)

I understand that you want us to change the color of the "Hyperkin RetroN 5 Retro Gaming System" from Black to Grey.

I like to inform you that our systems are designed in such a way that we can't change the color of an item if the order is placed. Even if I wish to change the color for you, my system will not allow me to do so. I hope that you will understand my limitations and accept my apologies.

On further research, I see that the "Hyperkin RetroN 5 Retro Gaming System" is not available with us in Grey color also.

I've forwarded your requirements of this item in Grey color to our procurement team so that they can contact the manufacturer to procure this item. Once the item is available, it will be available for purchase on Amazon.com.

If you want the Grey color of the "Hyperkin RetroN 5 Retro Gaming System", I request you to cancel this order and place a new order for the "Hyperkin RetroN 5 Retro Gaming System" in Grey color when we will get the grey color of the item in stock.
Figured as much, but it was worth a try

 
Ok I had a very weird exchange with amazon rep. She didnt even understand at first. I told her other people got their item shipped and I havent received anything. i didnt say anything about black or grey ( i have black ordered). She said she would send mine release day and I'll have it. Who knows if ill actually get anything maybe ill end up with a grey..... fuck ill take anything. Ill get back to you guys and let you know what happens. My order was a late one too in April. Good luck everyone.

Hmm looks like my order changed to one day shipping.......I bet thats all ill get.

Also i fucked myself. I ordered a grey version day one last year. I cancelled it on april and switched to black, so I got the price hike to $100!!! I didnt know about that and now im not getting shit. someone slug my face please

 
Last edited by a moderator:
I wonder how the hell my ship date isn't until next week when everybody else is in two days? I placed my order on September 13th, but my delivery estimate isn't until June 12-14.

 
just glimpsed through some reviews of actual people who played it and idk if I like this comment since it will make me very picky with which games I play on it:

UPDATE 6-3-14: I wanted to correct some misinformation I had given out in the body of the review. The data loss on GBA is because of faulty coding. Apparently when you copy saved data off of the cartridges to the RetroN, the original data is deleted from the cartridge memory and as of this date, you cannot write it back. This affects all formats. Use this feature at your own risk as you cannot write the data back yet without external equipment aside from the RetroN.

 
[quote name="ravens52bears54" post="11816288" timestamp="1401979347"]Do you have Prime? I don't and I was given the same estimate.[/quote]Same, think that is the date they gave for non-prime members if they chose the free shipping.
 
Literally as I was talking to someone at a game store about doubting that it'd show up tomorrow like Amazon says, I got a shipping notice on my gray for delivery tomorrow ^_^

 
Last edited by a moderator:
just glimpsed through some reviews of actual people who played it and idk if I like this comment since it will make me very picky with which games I play on it:

UPDATE 6-3-14: I wanted to correct some misinformation I had given out in the body of the review. The data loss on GBA is because of faulty coding. Apparently when you copy saved data off of the cartridges to the RetroN, the original data is deleted from the cartridge memory and as of this date, you cannot write it back. This affects all formats. Use this feature at your own risk as you cannot write the data back yet without external equipment aside from the RetroN.
That's pretty damn scary.

I had interest in the RetroN, and saw that they are responding with (at least one?) firmware update. But I stay curious/observing for now :/

 
9/24 Grey order here. Card was charged and shipping updated this morning, expected to arrive tomorrow! Going to bring a few carts into work tomorrow for some conference room lunchtime shenanigans on the projector before I take this baby home.

 
That's pretty damn scary.

I had interest in the RetroN, and saw that they are responding with (at least one?) firmware update. But I stay curious/observing for now :/
whoa that's crazy. You would think that would be something easily caught during a play test.

 
just glimpsed through some reviews of actual people who played it and idk if I like this comment since it will make me very picky with which games I play on it:

UPDATE 6-3-14: I wanted to correct some misinformation I had given out in the body of the review. The data loss on GBA is because of faulty coding. Apparently when you copy saved data off of the cartridges to the RetroN, the original data is deleted from the cartridge memory and as of this date, you cannot write it back. This affects all formats. Use this feature at your own risk as you cannot write the data back yet without external equipment aside from the RetroN.
Someone else posted this on their wall about not being able to write back to Sega cartridges either.


Josh Davis
Hello again. Im sure youre insanely busy but I thought this might help to get feedback on the product after spending some time with it:

I have a couple bugs/suggestions for updates.

1. Fix saving feature for Sega Gensis carts. Currently the system will import a .sav file from a cart but doesnt appear to load it when the system starts the game. Also the system cannot export saves to known working sega carts. The progress bar shows completion but the cart shows no changewhen placed is a real sega genesis. The system will save and proceed to load those saves if they were created on the system. Save states work fine for genesis.

2. Sega master system games are not recognized as games with save games on them. Ex: Phantasy Star. The system loads and plays the game but will not import/export to the cart at all. Phantasy Star is a known working cart. Also ingame saving does not work. It appears to work while in game but does not create a .sav file to load on next play. Save states work fine. This is unfortunatly the only SMS title that I own with a save battery at this time.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Chris Galizza just said they shipped out extra REtron 5 controllers to retailers.  SO Amazon should have them shortly, if not tomorrow.  I want to get a black one, but then again Im thinking maybe a gray to just match my gray system.  I guess whatever is available at first.

 
My order has been charged, says preparing for shipment. Still says it'll arrive tomorrow. I'm hopeful, and also nervous that all the people who contacted amazon and got bumped to one day shipping may have bumped me and my prime shipping. I ordered on September 11. Also, a friend of mine is getting a retron 3. He ordered it off of my amazon. That is "shipping now". Normally amazon ships stuff from separate orders in the same box if they are to arrive on the same day. So it's a bit alarming that the 3 is "shipping now", while my 5 is still "preparing".
 
Mine got shipped but not sure if i'm going to keep it....just got put on notice that I may be losing my job....great timing

 
Same

ebay prices certainly plummeted. Were going $250-$300

Now going for $200. No real reason I don't think other than sellers wanting to SELL NOW and list it lower. So for those that ordered more than one and wanted to sell the other might not get as much right away.

 
Wow, just got my shipping notice, scheduled for delivery tomorrow. Should be interesting to see if Amazon can get it to me in under 24 hours!

 
bread's done
Back
Top