by Following its tease yesterday, Evercade maker Blaze has confirmed that it is teaming up with Retro Games Ltd to produce two new clamshell handhelds based on the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64.
Entitled THEC64 Handheld and The Spectrum Handheld, each unit boasts 25 preloaded games, a 4.3-inch IPS display, simplified controls to compensate for the lack of a keyboard, and the ability to load your own games via MicroSD. You can also connect a USB keyboard using a USB-A I/O port.
"The clamshell case design takes inspiration from some of the most successful gaming handhelds of the past, while also evoking the style of portable computers, palmtops and organisers of the 1980s," says the press release. "Each console also has four function buttons designed to mimic the keys on the original devices and a menu/start/select button layout inspired by the same. These keys are tactile plastic on THEC64 Handheld and rubber on The Spectrum Handheld."
THEC64 Handheld and The Spectrum Handheld - Specifications
The specifications of these devices are as follows:
| Size | W136mm x H26mm x D86mm |
| Weight | 235g |
| Colour | Retro Beige (THEC64 Handheld), Classic Black (The Spectrum Handheld) |
| Controls | D-Pad and Face Buttons, Four mappable function keys and menu/start/select keys in tactile plastic (THEC64 Handheld) and rubber (The Spectrum Handheld) |
| Display | 4.3″ 840×480 IPS high resolution screen |
| Processor | Quad Core 1.2Ghz |
| Memory | 256mb DDR RAM |
| Connectivity | 3.5mm headphone jack, USB-A I/O port for external keyboard, MicroSD port for additional game loading |
| Battery | 3+ hour 2000mAH battery |
| Charging | USB-C (cable included). 5v 1a minimum required for charging (mains adaptor not included) |
| Formats | THEC64 Handheld Formats - Can select between C64 PAL/NTSC, C64C PAL/NTSC, C64SX PAL/NTSC, PET64 PAL/NTSC, C64 GS The Spectrum Handheld Formats - Can select between Spectrum 48K, Spectrum 48K (NTSC), Spectrum 128K, Spectrum +2, Spectrum +2A, Spectrum +3, Spectrum +3e,Spectrum 16K. Spectrum CPU under/overclocking supported. |
THEC64 Handheld and The Spectrum Handheld - Games
Each unit comes preloaded with 25 games, but you can load up more using the MicroSD card slot.
| THEC64 Handheld | The Spectrum Handheld |
|---|---|
| A Pig Quest | Head Over Heels |
| Sam's Journey | Manic Miner |
| Nebulus | Skool Daze |
| Boulder Dash | Tiny Dungeons |
| Speedball 2: Brutal Deluxe | Archon: The Light and the Dark |
| Paradroid | The Great Escape |
| Hunter's Moon Remastered | Bounder |
| Knight 'n' Grail | Switchblade |
| Aztec Challenge | Nightmare Rally |
| Krakout | M.O.V.I.E. |
| Lee | Avenger: The Way of the Tiger II |
| Druid | Bugaboo the Flea |
| Encounter! | Devwill Too ZX |
| Galencia | Hammerfist |
| Ice Guys | Hammer Knight |
| Metal Warrior Ultra | Penguin Attack |
| Millie & Molly | S1NCLA1R C1TY |
| Planet Golf | Shovel Adventure |
| Shadow Switcher | Snake Escape |
| Spherical | Sorcerer Kid Adventure |
| Squish 'Em | Splat! |
| Steel Ranger | Tourmaline |
| X-Out | Where Time Stood Still |
| Yeti Mountain | Zynaps |
| It's Magic 2 | Starquake |
THEC64 Handheld and The Spectrum Handheld - Price & Release Date
THEC64 Handheld and The Spectrum Handheld will cost £109.99 | $129.99 | €129.99 each and are set to launch in October 2026. Pre-orders go live today.
Also available are 'Collector's Edition' variants of each device, which ship with a hard shell case and
exclusive magazine – Crash with the Spectrum and Zzap with the THEC64. These units will only be available from Funstock.co.uk and Funstock USA, and are limited to just 2000 units each. They will cost £129.99 | $149.99 | €149.99.
Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.