ZX Spectrum Inventor’s Nephew Unveils GamerCard: A Gift Card-Sized Raspberry Pi Handheld with 4-Inch IPS Screen and Pre-Loaded Arcade Games

Alright, so I’m just sitting here thinking about how freaking wild it is that retro gaming’s come screaming back like some kind of nostalgic freight train. I mean, who’d have thought our old games would be all shiny and hip again? Anyway, here I am rambling on and it hit me—there’s this new gizmo, a teeny tiny gaming handheld, the same size as a freaking gift card! I mean, really?

So, it’s this dude, Grant Sinclair, making waves. And yeah, he’s the nephew of the guy who dreamt up the legendary ZX Spectrum. Talk about keeping it in the family, right? It’s kind of like he’s carrying the torch, or maybe just playing in his uncle’s massive shadow. Hmm, makes you think.

Anyway, back to this funky gadget—GamerCard®, they call it. Powered by Raspberry Pi, it shows off a neat 4-inch screen, like looking at retro magic through a magnifying glass or something. With snap-dome buttons that seem oddly satisfying—I haven’t tried them, but they sound like they’ve got that clicky feel we all love.

And what else? Oh right, it’s got some arcade classics right out of the box. Instant fun, as they say. There are emulators lined up too, so you can tinker with Recalbox or RetroPie, or even dabble in coding if that’s your jam. Coding on this thing—I know, I laughed at the thought too but hey, different strokes, right?

Moving on, they’ve even thrown in some indie games, Bloo Kid 2 and AstroBlaze DX, both tweaked to fit its little screen. Cute, right? If pixel-art’s your vibe, I guess it works. I mean, who doesn’t like a bit of pixel nostalgia?

But let’s not forget how absurdly thin this thing is—like a literal wafer—only 6.5 mm. It’s so thin you wonder where the rest of it went. Hanging on cash counters, it might just blend in with the gift cards. Maybe it’s a design statement or something. No idea why I noticed this, but it kinda sticks with me.

And get this, under those tiny plastic bones lies a Raspberry Pi Zero 2W. It’s a small bundle of nerd joy with 128GB of storage and a battery you’d hope lasts longer than your enthusiasm. They’ve even added a Qwiic connector. Don’t ask me to explain that—I just know it sounds techie and cool.

Ports? Yeah, you’ve got USB-C and HDMI. Think of the possibilities, turning this thing into a pint-sized computer if you felt like it. But then again, who’s splurging $170 on what’s essentially a palm-sized Raspberry Pi and hoping it’d cook up breakfast too?

Ultimately, it’s a hefty £125, and I’m sitting here comparing it to cheaper gaming goodies out there. You’ve got other devices offering more for less, so you’d really need to be besotted with knives-edge thinness and retro glee to justify splashing out on this.

It’s a quirky piece of tech, the GamerCard. Splashy, maybe. Overpriced, perhaps. Ingenious? Who knows? Depends if your heart beats to the tune of 8-bit chip tunes. Let’s keep the rose-tinted glasses nearby just in case.