Half my inbox this month has been the same question phrased forty different ways: I already own an R36S — is the R38S worth it? Here’s the honest breakdown, category by category.
Screen
Both use a 3.5-inch 640x480 IPS panel, but the R38S lamination is cleaner and the brightness ceiling is noticeably higher. In a sunlit café the R36S washes out; the R38S stays readable. If you play outdoors, this alone might decide it.
Sticks
This is the real gap. Plenty of R36S units shipped with potentiometer sticks that drift, while the R38S standardises on Hall-effect modules. If you’ve ever rage-quit because your character kept walking into a wall on its own, you know how much this matters.
Software
Both run ArkOS and ROCKNIX, both have active community support. The R38S benefits from being newer — current firmware images target it first — but the R36S is so widely owned that it will be supported for years. Neither is a dead end.
Performance
Effectively identical. Same chipset class, same ceiling. Don’t upgrade expecting N64 to suddenly behave.
Price
The R36S floats around 45–60 euros depending on the seller; the R38S sits closer to 70. You are paying a premium for the screen and the sticks, not for raw power.
So, upgrade or not?
- Stick with the R36S if your sticks are fine and you mostly play 2D. You already own a great machine.
- Move to the R38S if your R36S has drift, if you play outside, or if you’re buying your first R-series device today.
The R36S isn’t dethroned so much as it’s been given a more polished sibling. There’s no shame in keeping the old king.