Teenage Engineering is a company that it’s hard to second-guess. You might think of it as a synth manufacturer, but it’s also in the business of creating desks, bags and - of course - a wooden doll choir.
As such, we certainly wouldn’t put it past TE to release a handheld video games console at some point, but rather than sit and wait for it, an industrial design student by the name of Nidharshan Suresh decided to create it himself.
The result is the XP-1, a piece of ‘hardware’ that has OP-1 vibes to burn. Before you get too excited, we should say that this thing only exists on paper as far as we can tell, but we’d love to see it built.
Suresh says that he wanted to create a handheld gaming console that “blends into any environment” and triggers a “nostalgic feeling” among users. Oh, and he wanted it to be fun, too.
By channelling his “inner child,” the designer came up with a variety of concepts, and the one he settled on looks pretty special.
We should point out that Teenage Engineering has actually dipped its achingly hip toe into video game waters before, co-designing a retro-looking handheld called the Playdate back in 2019. This offers a black and white and a hand crank, which works as a removable analogue controller.
What's more, the actual Nintendo Switch can be used to make music, thanks to a port of Korg's Gadget to the platform.
