Weeknote: AI killing gadgets, retro handhelds, MacBook Neo, the BBC, WalkStar, Prune, the ZX81 and more

AI is killing my favourite gadgets. And possibly yours. Over at Stuff, I look into how AI’s insatiable appetite for components is squeezing out the rest of the industry, and how that might impact the wider world of tech – especially the fun bits.
The Retroid Pocket 6 is fab. I reviewed this for Stuff, and it’s my favourite retro handheld to date. Although, as per the above story, Retroid got hit by RAM and storage costs and nuked the configuration I was sent – something that’s never happened to me before in more than 25 years of writing about tech. On the plus side, the remaining config is still great.
GamerCard is delayed. And still weird. Retro Dodo reported that Grant Sinclair’s handheld has also been hit by these issues and won’t ship for a while. However, while Retroid was solid with its comms, GamerCard was announced last summer with a shipping time of six weeks. The website since then has barely changed, and there’s been little attempt to make realistic timings widely available. I imagine those who bought one must feel… frustrated.
It’s a shame in some ways. Sinclair was clearly trying to do something unique, in the spirit of the family name. But when I reported on the device last summer, I questioned the controls and value. Now the latter looks even worse, due to a price rise making it more expensive than a Retroid Pocket Classic, or 3x the price of an RG Cube XX, both of which are significantly more powerful and have proper physical controls.
(The RG Cube XX features in my updated guide to the best budget retro gaming handhelds in 2026 to emulate classic consoles and video games.)
MacBook Neo has one big problem. Quite a few small ones too. But, as per my MacBook Neo column for Stuff, one in particular means this device is the budget Apple laptop we all wanted, with a major flaw we really didn’t.
Apple has new Studio Displays. Finally. And they’re… fine? Good, even? But while Apple fixed their biggest flaws, these displays cost a small fortune. Here’s a column.
The BBC is under review. Or, rather, the Charter is. But that kind of amounts to the same thing. If you want the Beeb to survive long-term, take part in the public consultation by Tuesday. If you’d like hints regarding what to say, British Broadcasting Challenge has published a PDF with thoughtful suggestions.
Exercise apps mostly suck. Or I suck at exercise. Definitely one of those. But one exercise app that doesn’t suck is WalkStar, which I wrote about for TapSmart/Swipe. In short, the music stops when you do. It’s a really clever motivational aid.
Prune is a classic iPhone game. Or at least it’s been added to my iPhone app and game classics series.
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Eins, Zwei, Drei! I can take or leave Eurovision at the best of times, and 2026 is… not the best of times. So I won’t be watching this year. Still, I can’t help smiling at the UK entry by Look Mum No Computer, which feels like a bonkers mix of Kraftwerk and Vitalic, with a singer who’s about 90% shouty Damon Albarn. I never thought I’d see the day when I really liked a UK Eurovision entry, but here we are. There’s a video here.
The ZX81 turned 45. Which makes me feel very old. Here is a piece about it, along with a lightning-fast round-up that covers six of the best ZX81 games.