YouTuber pushes OneXSugar Sugar 1 to its limits: $599 dual-screen handheld runs PS2 games at 3× resolution but throttles more than Ayaneo Pocket S2
The OneXSugar Sugar 1, an experimental dual-screen handheld gaming device that began life as an Indiegogo crowdfunding project, has been put through its paces by YouTuber Russ from Retro Game Corps. In a new hands-on review, Russ highlights both the innovation and the compromises baked into this $599 Android-powered handheld.
The 1X Sugar’s stands out from other Android handheld gaming consoles due to its modular dual-OLED design. It has a 6.01-inch primary display and a 3.92-inch secondary screen, both of which can rotate and flip depending on the intended use case. This allows the device to mimic various console layouts, including clamshell-style dual-screen handhelds reminiscent of the Nintendo DS and 3DS.
Powered by the Snapdragon G3 Gen 3 and 16 GB of LPDDR5X 8533 MHz RAM, the OneXSugar Sugar 1 doesn’t seem to handle stress very well. Using the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Stress Test, Russ recorded a high score of 5124 and a low of 4248, indicating a performance drop after 20 minutes of sustained load, with thermal stability clocking in at 82.9%.
For comparison, Russ recently tested the Ayaneo Pocket S2, which fared much better in the same test with a thermal stability score of 92.3%. Overall, the Pocket S2 scored lower than the OneXSugar Sugar 1, with the former achieving 4,882 and the latter 5,124 as the highest loop score in the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Stress Test.
For comparison, Russ recently tested the Ayaneo Pocket S2, which fared much better in the same test with a thermal stability score of 92.3%. Overall, the Pocket S2 scored lower than the OneXSugar Sugar 1, with the former achieving 4,882 and the latter 5,124 as the highest loop score in the 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Stress Test.
However, the ranking flips when comparing the lowest loop score, where the Pocket S2 scored 4,506 while the OneXSugar Sugar 1 scored 4,248, indicating that the Ayaneo is more stable between the two.
In terms of emulation and Android gaming, the Sugar 1 handles DS, 3DS, and PS2 titles well at high resolution. However, Russ faced issues while running dual-screen games like Yoshi's Island DS, where, although the gameplay was shown on the second screen, it failed to register touch input.
Other notable specs include 512 GB of UFS 4.0 storage, a 5600 mAh battery, and a fan-based cooling system. Battery life varies significantly depending on usage. The OneXSugar Sugar 1 lasted over 11 hours while playing Contra III via SNES emulation in RetroArch, with no shaders enabled and the device running in Saving mode. However, battery life dropped to under 2 hours when running God of War II via PS2 emulation in AetherSX2 at 3× resolution in Balanced mode.
While Russ praised the OnexSugar Sugar 1's design, they noted the device's 486-gram weight and boxy ergonomics as major drawbacks. Additionally, the modular D-pad and face button assembly, while clever in theory, felt uncomfortable during gameplay, as per Russ.
The 1X Sugar is currently priced at US$599 and is available through ONEXPLAYER’s official website. Russ concluded that the device is best suited for early adopters but is not yet ready to replace a dedicated DS or Switch Lite. Do remember to watch the review video linked below for a more in-depth breakdown.
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