🐱 Good day, and welcome to the Daily Authority. We hope you had a wonderful weekend. I’m a few weeks late, but I finally found time to get into Stray. I wish someone had told me what happens immediately after the tutorial.

The ultimate phone case?

We’ll provide a fair warning for our main story today, though. If you’re a retro gaming fan, toss your wallet in another room and lock the door. You’ll love the focus of Rob Triggs’ attention this past weekend — a functional GameBoy phone case strapped to his Galaxy S22 Ultra.

What on earth?

• In short, Rob got hold of a game-playing case made for select Samsung Galaxy phones and iPhone models.
• And yes, it’s exactly what it sounds like.
• The case features the usual spread of soft buttons, a small but usable LCD screen, and a surprisingly accurate recreation of the GameBoy aesthetic.
• Despite this, it’s not an official Nintendo product.

How does it function?

• Well, for what it is, surprisingly well.
• It’s no Nintendo Switch or PlayStation 5, but it does run games on the back of your phone as promised.
• There are 36 poorly-translated titles to choose from, including Super Mario Bros, Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong.
• You’re forced to reselect English as the preferred language every time you boot it up, which sounds a little tedious.
• As a case, it includes all the cutouts for your USB-C port and cameras.
• As a gaming console, the quality shortcuts taken are abundantly clear.
• Rob notes that buttons have popped out, the speaker is terrible, there’s no battery indicator, and the display is not centered.
• You’ll also need to charge the case every once in a while to power your procrastination endeavors.

So should you buy one?

• Why wouldn’t you?
• “The design perfectly encapsulates the classic GameBoy vibe, which initially lured me in.”
• If you appreciate form over function, this certainly is the product for you.
• But, be aware that you’ll have two things in your hand to worry about breaking.
• Of course, if you’re shopping for a serious phone case, don’t miss our comprehensive guide to buying phone cases.
• If you want to play more than 36 retro games without a case, why not grab yourself an emulator for Android? We cover the process in more detail, including the best products to maximize your experience here.
• Fair warning that you should own the retro games you want to emulate if you’d like to stay on the right side of the law.

The Roundup

🗺️ Do you keep a list of must-have travel tools? Our Rita El Khoury does. Here are her top 10 favorite travel products of the past year (Android Authority).

🕹️ Keeping with today’s gaming slant, The Verge’s Andrew Webster argues that subscriptions have made gaming on the iPhone “fun again” (The Verge).

😞 “I’m not a gambling man, but over the years, I’ve come to realize that buying into any Google service is a game of Russian Roulette,” laments AA’s Dhruv Bhutani over his decision to choose G Suite for personal use (Android Authority).

🌹 In sad entertainment news, American actress Nichelle Nichols, famous for her role as Lieutenant Nyota Uhura in Star Trek, has died at age 89 (BBC).

🛹 The 900 — a Tony Hawk Pro Skater soundtrack cover band — performed on stage this weekend with none other than Tony Hawk himself (Kotaku).

⁉️ The Google Pixel 6a is a good phone, but has Google lost its way with its budget series? AA’s Ryan Haines debates (Android Authority).

🔥 Northern California is experiencing one of the most dangerous uncontrolled fires of the season thus far, with more than 50,000 acres already burned (Los Angeles Times).

📲 The latest Nothing Phone 1 update is rolling out, bringing better charging performance and more (Android Authority).

👒 A surprisingly insightful deep dive into Rozy, Lucy, and the rise of South Korea’s virtual influencers on social media (CNN).

🔌 The US nuclear regulator is on the verge of awarding certification to a small, modular nuclear reactor design, opening the way to cheaper, more portable nuclear power (ArsTechnica).

🎮 From emulating Windows 95 to buying PhysX cards, these are some of the lengths PCGamer writers have gone to run games in the past (PCGamer).

🪥 “What purchase under $100 improved your life?” (r/askreddit)

Monday Meme

For once, let’s enjoy a somewhat topical meme.

It’s August, and that usually means a Samsung launch event is just around the corner. This year, we could see the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Flip 4 make their arrivals, and there’s never been a better time to catch up on the news and rumors surrounding both. For what it’s worth, Samsung’s foldables make for great gaming phones too, sans GameBoy case.

Have a great week,

Andy Walker, Editor.