G350 ArkOS vs Stock Firmware: Should You Switch?

What the stock system gives you

The G350 comes with a 64-bit Linux system and an EmulationStation menu. You pick an emulated console, then a game, and you play. This system lives on the microSD card in the TF1/INT slot on the left side. The TF2/EXT slot on the right holds a card just for games. The console has no internal memory, so everything runs from these cards. Keep that in mind for what follows: switching systems means changing what's on the left card, not modifying the console itself.

For straightforward use, this system does the job. It's set up for the G350's controls: D-pad, four face buttons, M button, two sticks and four shoulder buttons on the back. There's nothing to install. You add your own games and play. Its limit comes from what it is. It's a factory system, and little is known about how often it gets updated. That's usually what makes people start looking elsewhere.

ArkOS, dArkOS, ROCKNIX, PAN4ELEC: what are they?

These are community systems, built by volunteers, that support, among others, consoles using the Rockchip RK3326 chip, the one inside the G350. ArkOS, dArkOS, ROCKNIX and PAN4ELEC are the names you'll see most often. The custom firmware page on the Handhelds Wiki lists others. Each project makes its own choices: interface, emulators, how updates are handled. None of them has any connection to the console's manufacturer. Their documentation and forums are the only reliable source for what they support.

Before you try anything, check that the G350 appears on the supported devices list, with an image made for it. An image built for another console with the same chip may not boot, or may not handle the screen, controls or sound correctly. Avoid modified images passed around outside the projects' own pages: you have no way of knowing what's in them. And keep in mind that these systems keep changing. What's true today may not be true tomorrow.

Why some owners switch systems

Three reasons come up again and again: the interface, updates and PortMaster. Some people prefer the menus, themes or settings of another system. Others want to follow an active project that fixes bugs and tunes its emulators over time. PortMaster, available in several community systems, installs ports: games adapted to run natively on this kind of console, without emulation. Many of them require the files from a game you already own. As with emulation, only play games you have the rights to.

With no built-in Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, these benefits take a little planning. Depending on the system, updates and ports are copied over from a computer, or come with a fresh image of the card. The manufacturer says a USB Wi-Fi module can be plugged into the USB-C port. It's sold separately, takes up the only charging port, and whether it works depends on the system you choose. Don't count on it for online play.

Why many people are better off leaving it alone

A different system doesn't change the hardware. The G350 keeps its RK3326 chip, its 1 GB of RAM and its 640 × 480 screen. 8-bit and 16-bit consoles, classic arcade, handhelds including GBA, and a large share of PS1 games already run very well on this hardware. For N64, PSP, Dreamcast and DS, it all comes down to the game and the settings, whatever system you use. PS2 is out of reach. So switching systems is no guarantee that a demanding game will run better.

Then there's the time involved. Preparing a card, tracking down your saves, reorganizing folders and learning new menus takes patience. Some features, such as vibration, sound or sleep mode, may behave differently from one system to another. If the stock menu works for you and your games run the way you want, keeping the original system is a perfectly sensible choice.

First, back up both cards

This one rule prevents almost every regret. Before you change anything, back up the system card in the TF1/INT slot and the games card in the TF2/EXT slot. For the system card, make a full image on a computer with disk imaging software, so you can write it back exactly as it was. For the games card, copying the folders is usually enough. Pay special attention to game saves, settings and any BIOS files you have the right to use. Always power off the console before removing a card.

Then check that the copy is readable and complete: open a few folders and check the size of the image. Keep the copies in two places, for example on your computer and on an external drive. Depending on the system, game saves may sit on either card, so when in doubt, copy everything. It doesn't take long, and it protects hours of progress.

• Power off the console, then remove both cards.
• Make a full image of the TF1/INT card.
• Copy everything on the TF2/EXT card.
• Check the copies and store them in two places.

Try it on a new card, at your own risk

Since the system lives on the card in the TF1/INT slot, trying one doesn't require erasing anything. Install the community system on a new microSD card from a well-known brand. With the console off, remove the original card, put it in a small labeled box, then insert the new one on the left. If you like it, keep it. If not, power off the console and put the original back: you should get the stock system back just as you left it. The games card can stay on the right, but the new system sometimes expects a different folder layout.

Switching systems is a personal choice, made at the owner's own risk. For help, turn to each project's documentation and forums. The G350 shop, an independent retailer of the console, does not provide support for third-party systems. This guide is based on documentation from the manufacturer and the projects, not on tests we have run ourselves.