The Playdate finally gets a pre-order date and a launch price
Panic has revealed more details about the Playdate, its unusual handheld console. The company announced the Playdate in 2019, but it is now close to being available to pre-order. Panic hopes to begin accepting pre-orders in July and for US$179. The company is unclear on when it will begin shipping the Playdate, though.
The Playdate has a 2.7-inch display that resolves at 400 x 240 pixels, although only in black and white. The Playdate will come with 24 games, of which 21 Panic has announced so far. Apparently, Panic will release two games per week over 12 weeks.
Arguably, the Playdate has two innovative elements, its crank and its dock. As the video below shows, the former can control in-game characters, which is rather clever. The Playdate has conventional A and B buttons though, along with a D-pad.
On the other hand, the dock acts as a conventional dock, albeit with a built-in Bluetooth speaker. In our opinion, the Playdate resembles an old portable TV when docked, adding to its charm. The console attaches to the dock magnetically. You can also recharge the Playdate via its USB Type-C port, should you not have the dock to hand.
