r/Vectrex • u/GrizzlyKreiden • 12d ago
Vectrex Mini downgraded
Quell surprise, but the Vectrex Mini screen has been downgraded from OLED to LCD IPS.
Pretty disappointed, even if this is par for the course with kickstarter projects.
Full update here. I genuinely think the creators have sincerity, but there is no getting over the fact it is a cheaper component, which would not acheive the right effect to emulate that Vector screen (even worse so than OLED)
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1852390947/vectrex-mini/posts/4811451
I remember before the KS came out, there was a poll here where redditors staunchly voted against buying one of these if it had an LCD, now everyone has.
To quote Brass Eye "this is the one thing we didn't want to happen"
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u/OSG86 12d ago edited 12d ago
I got the email yesterday and am pissed honestly.
Ive been very excited but now I am fighting with trying to cancel.
The one saving grace imo was that it was gonna have a OLED to hit the blacks better and more vividly. It cant have a vector screen but an OLED is atleast doing it some justice.
The whole time the question was what TYPE of OLED not IF.
Ive used a real Vectrex in the past and as close to original was what was promised. I cant afford an $800 Vectrex as thats what they cost so this was to me the next best option.
If they said LCD was a possibility in the kickstarter or anytime up till now id have canceled or never joined in.
Now we get this BS notice 2 months before its supposed to ship!!
Honestly i dont want it anymore at all. Idk if ima cancel or keep it as its already paid just to bash it after release as ive been excited for it till literally NOW.
This is honestly BS is all ima say for now.
Thanks whoever chose this you screwed many of us bigtime and trying to sugarcoat an IPS aint gonna work. This is BS and unacceptable and you know it. 😮💨🤬
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u/DirectedEvolution 9d ago
I love the spirit and the goal to keep the Vectrex legacy alive and accessible, but Vectrex IS the display. The one-of-kind screen is quintessential to the experience. Even an OLED alone won't get you there. I was hoping for some bespoke filters to simulate the glow, flicker, jitter, and hot spots of the vector display, but I don't think they're planning to do that.
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u/_Burning_Star_IV_ 1d ago
Look, you just can't make a display like that at any sort of reasonable production scale. It's not possible.
At the end of the day this is a sort of homage and way to play these games on something that looks like a Vectrex. That's the closest most people interested in this console are ever going to get.
Losing the OLED is a huge blow though. I respect anyone who cancels.
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u/paisleyboxers 1d ago
I just saw some updates at the PRGE - and it looks pretty solid, but hey, I won't actually know until I get mine in hand.
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u/yourshelves 9d ago edited 9d ago
Update #21, 08/03/2026
“As always, I want to remain transparent about the development of the Vectrex Mini. Right now we are still focused on one of the most important remaining decisions: the final screen selection\. The latest tests have produced some* very surprising and promising results*, and I am very excited to share them with you. I am currently preparing a* video showing the different options and the latest prototypes*, and I may even ask for your opinion before making the final decision. Stay tuned, this should be coming very soon.”**
Update #25, 03/09/2026 - discussing Gamescom 2026
“The vector rendering looks absolutely beautiful on the Mini's 5-inch IPS display, which reaches close to 900 nits of brightness. A huge part of the credit for this goes to Malban and his Vectrex emulator\, which has enabled us to recreate that unmistakable Vectrex look on a modern display.”**
Update #26, 30/09/2026 - discussing the final choice of an IPS screen
“The Vectrex Mini is equipped with a high-quality 5-inch IPS display with an 800 × 480 resolution.
We really wanted the Mini to have an OLED display. In fact, we talked about it extensively during the Kickstarter campaign. So why won’t the final Vectrex Mini have an OLED screen after all? There are several reasons.
First of all, cost. When we originally planned the Vectrex Mini, the information we had led us to believe that a suitable 5-inch OLED display would be significantly less expensive than what we eventually found when we started sourcing components for actual production. Our initial estimate simply turned out to be wrong, these things can happen when developing new hardware. But because we had announced OLED from the beginning, we really didn’t want to give up on it easily.”
So:
- They say, “We had announced OLED from the beginning”, but all of the hardware shown was IPS. And why choose to use a module/processor optimised for 800 x 480 at the outset, if an 800 x 600 OLED was really what they wanted?
- In March they were supposed to share the “different options and the latest prototypes” - but if they did, I certainly didn’t hear anything from them.
- As late as September the unit demonstrated at Gamescom 2026 was still IPS. Note also, “on the Mini’s 5-inch IPS display” - suggesting the decision had already been made and that they could have announced the choice of IPS a month earlier (at least).
- If the initial OLED estimate was wrong, then why are we only hearing of this now, almost a year later?
-
The word “switch” in, “But ultimately, we made the decision to switch to this display for the final Vectrex Mini” is doing some heavy lifting: how can it be a “switch” if no OLED Mini has ever been shown, or seen?
Personally, I pledged for a Founder’s Edition; so because all of the stretch goals were hit, I’m due a decent haul for my €99 plus shipping. But I’ll be honest: my enthusiasm has been tempered somewhat by these late shenanigans. Announcing a module and display change in the month that you’re supposed to ship? Not cool.
That said, the vector emulation looks decent in this shot, so maybe it’s not all bad? Or maybe it’ll be pixelated to hell from normal viewing distance? Who knows? We shall see.
Nevertheless, if you’re a backer and unhappy, be sure to at least register your displeasure with Kickstarter’s ‘Your Voice Matters’ voting buttons.
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u/GrizzlyKreiden 9d ago
I tried one out at Play Blackpool and it wasn't terrible. Clearly an OLED would be better, but my main concern is that there is a wash out due to the LCD backlight. It's not game breaking, albeit still disappointing to not get that premium screen.
I tried out the new Flea game without overlay and it was decent. The Minestorm demo had a UV overlay and i took a couple of photos of that in action. It looked okay.
I think my concern was in the value of it. I backed the £250 tier so anything at that price would bring a level of expectation with it.
I'm still staying in and not pushing for a refund, but fully respect anyone that does. It's a blow and there is nothing getting around that.
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u/yourshelves 9d ago
I agree with everything that you have said. I doubt I'll lose money if I choose to resell my €99 Founder's Edition, but no OLED at the £250 tier must feel like a kick in the teeth.
It is a little worrying - though understandable - how many people are requesting refunds on KS. Kudos to the creators though, they appear to be organising such without any fuss.
It
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u/GrizzlyKreiden 8d ago
That's something i said the the creators face, he is handling the disappointment well in spite of it. I disagree with his comments on "all devices are moving to IPS" as that is just npt true.
Devices move to IPS when they want a cheaper, entry level version with a modicum of quality. OLED is still the goal for premium.
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u/_Burning_Star_IV_ 1d ago
It's pretty unbelievable that they only just got informed of OLED pricing, lol. Incompetence or malice...take your pick. If pricing changed that would be one thing, we all know how rough the economy has been, but they are acting like they only just decided to look into pricing after making so many promises about OLED being the target. That's crazy and shady.
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u/gthirst 12d ago
I actually didn't know about this thing somehow. Sad I missed the kickstarter. That is pretty crazy to end the campaign and swap screen types like that, especially since OLED is honestly very important for mimicking the original Vectrex. That said, LCD tech has come a long way.
I have an MSI Raider and a Legion Go, first time I played them I thought it was OLED until I started looking really close.
Backlight bleed would be a killer on this, so hopefully they have great panels.
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u/sicsided 12d ago
Pledge manager is coming in November (see the link OP posted) so that MAY be a time the open up to more orders but not always. I would keep track of it though in case they do.
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u/_Burning_Star_IV_ 1d ago
This is why kickstarter is ass (most crowd funding is). They always always end up being worse products than what was promised.
I'm not saying they're scams or intentionally bait and switching people but they just always go big with these grand ideas and the realities of manufacturing always throw them right back down to reality...usually too late for all the people who already put money into the project expecting the original vision.
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u/paisleyboxers 12d ago
Fuck this post. Man, the creator is SO transparent and honest.
The post creator has never made anything and never had to make hard decisions. What a goddamned pussy.
Fuck this post
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u/_Burning_Star_IV_ 1d ago
Nobody owes the Kickstarter anything, lmao. The people who put money into it expect to get what they were promised.
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u/paisleyboxers 1d ago
Didn’t your bot farm get destroyed?
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u/_Burning_Star_IV_ 1d ago
The fact that you think a negative comment about a Vectrex kickstarter is somehow tied to the Russian bot farms is quite amazing. You are unwell.
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u/mattpilz 12d ago edited 12d ago
Probably many users who have never gotten to experience a true Vectrex will be okay with whatever the Mini presents, not realizing just how much is missing from the experience of a true x-y CRT.
Ultra high-resolution OLED seemed promising at least to help replicate some of that experience, LCD is a major downgrade. 800×480 even more-so no matter what they claim. The goal would be to mimic the pixel-less X/Y vector graphics, which is certainly more achievable at HD/4K resolutions. Similar to how Analogue Pocket can so perfectly emulate old handhelds because it uses such an excessive base resolution capable of 10x the resolution of the native systems it is emulating.