Retroflag FC Joy Con Charging Dock (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review
Product Information:
- Official Store: https://retroflag.com/rf_fc_joy-con_charging.html
Nintendo’s hybrid console has been a hit since it launched back in 2017. Featuring a tablet design with detachable controllers for quick and easy multiplayer gameplay on the go, it’s become the go-to for many for couch co-op and rooftop parties. But what do you do when your Joy Cons run dry? Nintendo expects me to walk all the way to my Switch console and slide in the controllers, it’s preposterous. And if you have more than the two provided Joy Cons for the additional multiplayer possibilities? For those too lazy to approach their Switch dock or just have too many friends for their own good, Retroflag are here with a solution. A stylish solution at that.
Now Retroflag are no strangers to the stylishly faithful Nintendo-themed accessory market. I’ve personally looked at their Game Boy themed Raspberry Pi handheld, as well as their brilliant NES cartridge SSD enclosures. Both lived up to the hype and even now I look on both happily. They’ve carved out a great name for themselves in terms of making something that looks great, and is genuinely functional. I’ll say in this instance they’ve definitely nailed the theming as always, but outside of the somewhat contrived use case listed above I’m struggling to see exactly what their market is.
To avoid further beating around the bush, this is a product that does as it advertises and very little more. I can’t call that a bad thing when the idea itself is so simple. You slide your Joy Cons in the side of the Famicom-themed device, and they charge. While the controllers are charging, the power switch and reset button light up to show the status of their respective Joy Con; when the light goes out it’s fully charged. I’m a little sad to see the power switch doesn’t actually function as a power switch, but they did make up for this somewhat by having a functional cartridge slot along with eject slider. The cartridges themselves open like GBA cartridges by sliding the front face down, and act as storage for up to four Switch games. I like it a lot, even if it does mean I will in fact have to approach my Switch after all if I want to use the Joy Con dock to its fullest potential.
Thematically they really did nail it. In both size and weight you’re looking at something close to Nintendo’s mini console series. Were it not for the Joy Cons sticking on the side, you might genuinely mistake it for one of them too. There’s nothing particularly standout of gaudy here either, outside of the red indicator lights mentioned earlier. You plug a USB C cable in the back of the unit and it just works. It’s a genuine challenge to pick apart and find flaws in such a simple product executed well.
Is this dock for you though? If you happen to have more Joy Cons than you do Switches to be able to store them in, I can see some utility here. For what is probably the majority of Switch owners who only own the two bundled Joy Cons, it’s hard to recommend it just for the lack of real use. It’s not so much the dock’s fault as it is the problem it’s trying to address. It’s something I’d be happy to receive as a gift and have on hand, but perhaps not something I’d buy myself. Retroflag did a great job, I just kind of wish it addressed a bigger issue. Even if this just fitting in another port to be able to charge a Pro Controller too.
Verdict
- Design great as always for a Retroflag product
- Does exactly what is advertised
- Compact package that comes with everything it needs
- No support for Pro Controller charging
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