GoRetroid has acknowledged an unfixable issue with its Retroid Pocket Mini handheld.
The issue affects screen-scaling on the device, with the device reportedly not scaling correctly to a full 980p. This is particularly noticeable when using certain CRT and pixel effect shaders and is an issue with the Retroid Pocket Mini hardware that cannot be fixed with a firmware update.
As reported by Retro Handhelds, when GoRetroid first caught wind of these problems, it promised on Discord to look into a solution and assured people it wouldn't leave "anyone out to dry, in the event this cannot be resolved". However, once it became clear that nothing could be done, its customer service was discovered to be denying return requests, with one user sharing an email from the company on Reddit that claimed it may have "overcommitted in our discussions on Discord."
Now the company is backtracking yet again, after experiencing a bunch of feedback from members of its community, posting in a Discord comment that it is offering users a $10 stackable off the Retroid Flip 2 and Retroid Pocket Classic, or a return. This return, however, is limited to just 200 units overseas and requires owners to pay for the shipping costs, with the company stating "This is a large and costly endeavour for our team". To make matters just a tad more controversial too, the return window is only open from March 8th to March 14th.
At this point, it's unclear whether GoRetroid intends to do a hardware revision of the machine or will simply discontinue the device moving forward.
If you're interested in seeing what these issues look like, the YouTuber Retro Game Corps has done a fairly comprehensive video showing which shaders are affected: