R36S Plus Setup Guide: Controls, Wi-Fi and Adding Games

First charge and the two card slots

Start by plugging in the console. The charging port is the USB-C port marked "DC" on the bottom edge. Next to it are the 3.5 mm headphone jack, in the center, and a second USB-C port marked "OTG," reserved for accessories. A USB-C cable is included, but no wall charger is listed. Use a 5 V adapter that supplies at least 1.5 A. The Li-Po battery is 3,000 to 3,200 mAh depending on the batch (printed under the door on the back). When the battery wears out one day, you can replace it through that door.

While it charges, look at the sides. The console has two microSD slots. On the right, TF1-OS holds the system card: this is the card the console boots from. On the left, TF2-GAME holds the games card. There is no internal memory, so everything lives on these two cards. Don't swap them, and never remove them while the console is on. Before you change anything, keep a backup copy of the system card on a computer.

First boot and a tour of the menu

Hold the Power button on the left side until the screen lights up. Then let the console boot without touching Reset. The boot screen shows "R36S Plus," while the box says "R36Plus." It's the same device. The console loads its preinstalled open-source Linux system, with an EmulationStation-style menu. The menu first lists the emulated systems. Inside each one, it lists the games found on the TF2-GAME card. The section on adding games explains how to put your own there.

You navigate with the D-pad. One face button confirms, another goes back. Their exact roles depend on the installed system, and a quick try is enough to figure them out. The settings, often opened with Start, include language, network, sound and game list management, among others. Take a few minutes to look through them without changing anything. You'll come back here for Wi-Fi, language and shutdown.

The controls, button by button

The D-pad sits on the left of the front panel. On the right are four buttons in a diamond: X on top, Y on the left, A on the right and B at the bottom, with blue, green, red and yellow letters. The front also has two analog sticks. They click in and work as L3 and R3 when an emulator uses them. Between the D-pad and the buttons, the slotted grille covers the speaker, a single speaker on the front. Select and Start are in the center, with a small LED between them.

On the back, one block holds four shoulder buttons: L1 and R1 on the outside, L2 and R2 on the inside. In a game, the FN button is the one to remember. It opens the emulator menu, where you'll find save states, display options or the exit option, depending on the emulator. Power and Reset are on the left side, and volume is on the right side. Headphones plug into the 3.5 mm jack in the center of the bottom edge.

Connecting to Wi-Fi and what it can do

Wi-Fi is built in: no USB dongle or adapter needed, and the OTG port stays free for your accessories. It works on 2.4 GHz only. If your router broadcasts both bands under one network name, make sure the 2.4 GHz band is turned on. You set up the connection in the menu's network settings. Turn on Wi-Fi, pick your network, enter the password and confirm. For this first try, stay close to the router.

What the connection adds depends on the installed system. It doesn't turn the console into a general-purpose connected device. It doesn't support online play, network multiplayer, streaming or video. This model has no Bluetooth either. If one of the features below doesn't show up in your menu, the installed system doesn't offer it. Depending on the installed system, Wi-Fi can be used to:

• Fetch cover art and images for the games already on the card (scraper).
• Turn on RetroAchievements.
• Install free ports through PortMaster.
• Run the updates offered by the system.
• Transfer files from a computer on the same network.

Adding your own games

Only play games you have the right to use, such as free homebrew titles or backup copies of games you own, where local law allows it. The safest method uses a computer. Shut the console down from the menu, remove the TF2-GAME card from the left side and put it in a microSD card reader. The card has one folder per emulated system, named after the console. Copy each file into the folder for the matching system. A game in the wrong folder won't show up, or won't launch.

On the computer, eject the card properly before removing it. Put it back in the TF2-GAME slot, then turn the console back on. If the new games don't appear, run the game list update in the menu settings. The exact name of that option varies by system. Depending on the installed system, you can also copy files over the network from a computer on the same Wi-Fi, without removing the card. Leave the TF1-OS card alone during this process.

Menu language, saving and shutting down properly

You change the menu language in the system settings, often in the interface section. The available languages depend on the installed system. For saving, there are two methods. The first is the game's own save, the one the game itself offers: it's written to the microSD card, just as it would be on the original console. The second is save states, which freeze your game at any moment. These depend on the emulator. When they're available, you'll find them in the menu opened with FN.

To turn the console off, exit the game, then choose shutdown in the system menu. This gives the console time to write your saves to the card. Cutting the power abruptly or removing a card while the console is on can make you lose them. Save Reset for a real freeze. The R36S Plus sold here is the version with a square 4-inch screen and built-in Wi-Fi, the one this guide describes.