iiRcade what's inside?!? Super Powerful or Weaksauce?

RetroRalph·video·4m 31s·analyzed·Nov 2, 2020

Analysis

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TL;DR

iiRcade uses powerful RockChip 3399, outperforming AtGames and most home arcade competitors

Summary

RetroRalph analyzes iiRcade's FCC certification filing, revealing it uses a RockChip 3399 processor—significantly more powerful than competing home arcade systems like AtGames Legends Ultimate (RockChip 3328) and comparable to Raspberry Pi 4. The analysis highlights iiRcade's differentiated approach: proprietary video connectors to discourage modding, planned app store for game downloads, and a robust 100-watt audio system. Success will depend on Michael Zhang's ability to secure quality titles for the platform.

Key Claims

iiRcade's RockChip 3399 performs about as well or better than Raspberry Pi 4 on benchmarks
high confidence · Direct reference to FCC filing documentation and comparative testing data
RockChip 3399 is approximately 2x more powerful than RockChip 3328 (AtGames Legends Ultimate) on CPU, and 5x more powerful on GPU
high confidence · Specific performance metric comparisons from technical specifications
iiRcade uses a proprietary LVDS connector (different from standard LCD controller boards) to discourage third-party modding
high confidence · FCC manual analysis showing proprietary connector design; contrasted with earlier Arcade1Up generation connectors
iiRcade features a 100-watt audio system (50 watts per speaker)
high confidence · Manual specifications showing Blackwater amplifier details; marketed as '1.21 gigawatts of sound'
Michael Zhang is building an app store for iiRcade to allow game downloads and future title expansion
medium confidence · Referenced as strategic differentiation and path to product improvement over time

Notable Quotes

“the RockChip 3399 is a pretty powerful system... this chip actually performs on the RockChip 3399 about as good, if not better, than the Raspberry Pi 4 on a lot of the tests”
Jon (RetroRalph)@ 0:41 — Establishes baseline processing power comparison; indicates iiRcade can handle N64 and Dreamcast-level emulation
“the Arcade1Up, you know, kind of creams it as far as performance... almost 2x in some of these, some of them even more... almost five times as powerful from a GPU perspective”
Jon (RetroRalph)@ 2:45 — Quantifies performance advantage over AtGames Legends Ultimate; key competitive positioning
“Michael Zhang isn't looking like he's encouraging people, obviously, to do modding... they're trying to have an app store so you can go download the games”
Jon (RetroRalph)@ 1:58 — Explains iiRcade's design philosophy: prevent modding to maintain app store ecosystem control
“the thing that truly is going to be where the rubber meets the road is, can Michael Zhang get other titles that we going to want to enjoy on this arcade”
Jon (RetroRalph)@ 3:11 — Identifies content/licensing as the critical success factor for iiRcade platform viability
“we also haven't seen a a home arcade product with a sound system that good”
Jon (RetroRalph)@ 3:46 — Highlights audio system as competitive differentiator; indicates quality above market average

Entities

iiRcadeproductMichael ZhangpersonJon (RetroRalph)personRockChip 3399productRockChip 3328productArcade1UpcompanyAtGames Legends UltimateproductRaspberry Pi 4productBlackwatercompany

Signals

$
market_signal: iiRcade positioned as more powerful alternative to AtGames Legends Ultimate; represents performance-based competitive differentiation in home arcade market
high · Specific 2x CPU and 5x GPU performance advantages documented; marketing claim of being 'not going to be any slouch' vs competitors
?
product_strategy: iiRcade explicitly designed with proprietary connectors and app store model to prevent third-party modding and maintain ecosystem control
high · Detailed analysis of proprietary LVDS connector design; stated motivation to encourage app store adoption rather than hardware modding
?
product_strategy: iiRcade app store platform in development; success dependent on securing quality titles and third-party publishers
medium · References to app store as critical success factor; suggestion that platform will improve as Michael Zhang secures more titles
?
technology_signal: RockChip processors proliferating across consumer hardware (China handhelds, Arcade1Up products, iiRcade); represents shift toward ARM-based processing in arcade/retro gaming space
high · Multiple references to RockChip adoption across product lines; performance data suggesting viability for advanced emulation

Topics

Hardware specification and processing powerprimaryHome arcade competitive positioningprimaryApp store/content ecosystem strategyprimaryAnti-modding design decisionssecondaryAudio system differentiationsecondaryArcade1Up history and modding communitymentioned

Sentiment

positive(0.78)— RetroRalph expresses approval of iiRcade's hardware power and audio system, with cautious optimism about app store execution. Acknowledges design philosophy (anti-modding) without criticism. Main concern is future content availability, not hardware quality.

Transcript

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Hey guys, welcome back! Alright, we're gonna jump right into it. So, iArcade passed their FCC certification, and it's about time because the product's about to ship this month, so they need FCC certification. So anyways, the thing I thought was interesting is it's running the RockChip 3399. Now, we're seeing RockChips pop up in everything. These China handhelds are running RockChips. Actually, the new, the couple new products from Arcade1Up are running RockChips, But this one in particular is kind of interesting because the 3399 is a pretty powerful system. Now, if you look, if we scroll up and look at this article, this article is comparing the Rock Pro 64, which is running the same chip as the Aya Arcade, to a Raspberry Pi 4. Now, we're not going to jump into all the details of that, but this chip actually performs in that Rock Pro 64 about as good, if not better, than the Raspberry Pi 4 on a lot of the tests. So that's pretty significant because it means, you know, the Raspberry Pi 4 is running things like N64 decently. It's running things like Dreamcast decently. So we may see Xiong try to go after more advanced titles on more advanced arcade systems that would require a little bit more processing power So I think that a pretty interesting stat there So let go back and look at this manual for a couple more minutes here. But we'll look, they also have specs on their video output board that goes to their LCD monitor. Now this thing is using LVDS, but they've put a proprietary connector on it. So if John Youssi this connector, that's actually the connector for video. Now, those of you that have been watching my channel for a while, you know we've done a lot of arcade 1-up modding, and on the arcade 1-up, they use a very different connector at the end. This is sort of a standard connector, and there's actually a lot of LCD controller boards out there that would accept that connector, providing you have the right resolutions, and as arcade 1-up modding became more popular every generation, the board changed slightly because they changed the resolutions. Like, for instance, the newer ones use 960p. So anyways, you'd need a different video board. So, Zhang isn't looking like he's encouraging people, obviously, to do modding. That's one reason for that. But the reason is they're trying to have an app store so you can go download the games and stuff like that which I think is really exciting And then if he continues to get great titles that product will continue to get better And the cool thing is with the processor that he using he could potentially get some higher you know higher titles that would require more horsepower So that's pretty neat. Now, doubling down on this, this RK3399, there are other systems that use RockChip. One of them is the AtGames Legends Ultimate. It uses the RockChip 3328. but when you compare the one in the iArcade to the 3328, the iArcade, you know, kind of creams it as far as performance. You can look, here's sort of just a couple of metrics. The top line is the 3399. You can see it significantly beats the 3328 by almost 2x in some of these, some of them even more. So it's about two times as powerful from a CPU perspective, but it's almost five times as powerful from a GPU perspective. So this iArcade is not going to be any slouch and it's definitely a lot more powerful than some of the systems we've seen in the home arcade space, so that's encouraging. So that's it, guys. I just wanted to pass along this news because I think it's interesting. Now, the thing that truly is going to be where the rubber meets the road is, can Zhang get other titles that we going to want to enjoy on this arcade Because as he builds that app store that going to sort of dictate how good the product is right because i think everyone agrees the sound system is great by the way he did a little funny thing in the manual i show you really quick he's been talking about his sound system having a 1.21 gigawatts of sound he actually has a little comment on here it says gigawatt sound this is actually the power amplifier for the speakers so it's 100 watts total 50 watts per speaker so kind of cool we also haven't seen a a home arcade product with a sound system that good. So that's pretty cool too. So I got to hand it to Zhang. It looks like he's really trying to build something that's unique and differentiated from the other products in the market. But that's all I have. So if you enjoyed this video, please give us a thumbs up. Consider subscribing to the channel. And always turn on notifications to keep informed of other videos like this. That's all I got, guys. We will see you on the next one. We'll see you next time.