Technologies
Mortgage Rates and the Fed: Everything to Know Before This Week’s Meeting
Don’t expect big changes to mortgage rates soon, as the Fed maintains its cautious approach.
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve is expected to extend a pause on interest rate cuts for a fourth consecutive time this year. Though mortgage rates could see some volatility, many economists expect them to stay somewhat flat until the economic picture drastically changes.
Rates will stay in the 6.75% to 7.25% range unless the Fed signals multiple cuts soon and backs it up with data, said Nicole Rueth, of the Rueth Team with Movement Mortgage. «Homebuyers waiting on rates to drop drastically might be disappointed,» Rueth said.
The relationship between the central bank’s interest rate decisions and home loan rates isn’t direct or immediate. Case in point: The Fed’s three interest rate cuts in 2024 didn’t translate into cheaper mortgages. The average rate for a 30-year fixed home loan has hovered around 6.8% since late fall.
Often, what the central bank says about future plans can move the market more than its actual actions. Mortgage rates are driven by the bond market, investor expectations and a host of other economic factors.
«Mortgage rates move on expectations, not announcements,» said Rueth.
The focus will be on what Fed Chair Jerome Powell says following the meeting. Should Powell express concern over lingering inflation or a reduced number of rate cuts, bond yields and mortgage rates are expected to rise. If he conveys optimism about inflation and suggests further policy easing, mortgage rates may decline.
«It’s most often the case that longer-term interest rates begin to decline before the Fed cuts rates,» said Keith Gumbinger, vice president at HSH.com.
Here’s what you need to know about how the government’s interest rate policies influence the mortgage market.
What is the Fed’s relationship to mortgage rates?
The Fed sets and oversees US monetary policy under a dual mandate to maintain price stability and maximum employment. It does this largely by adjusting the federal funds rate, the rate at which banks borrow and lend their money.
When the economy weakens and unemployment rises, the Fed lowers interest rates to encourage spending and propel growth, as it did during the COVID-19 pandemic.
It does the opposite when inflation is high. For example, the Fed raised its benchmark interest rate by more than five percentage points between early 2022 and mid-2023 to slow price growth by curbing consumer borrowing and spending.
Changes in the cost of borrowing set off a slow chain reaction that eventually affects mortgage rates and the housing market, as banks pass along the Fed’s rate hikes or cuts to consumers through longer-term loans, including home loans.
Yet, because mortgage rates respond to several economic factors, it’s not uncommon for the federal funds rate and mortgage rates to move in different directions for some time.
Why is the Fed putting off interest rate cuts?
After making three interest rate cuts in 2024, the Fed is now in a holding pattern. With President Donald Trump’s unpredictable tariff campaign, immigration policies and federal cutbacks threatening to drive up prices and drag on growth, economists say the central bank has good reason to pause.
«The Federal Reserve is in one of the trickiest spots in recent economic history,» said Ali Wolf, Zonda and NewHomeSource chief economist.
Lowering interest rates could allow inflation to surge, which is bad for mortgage rates. Keeping rates high, however, increases the risk of a job-loss recession that would cause widespread financial hardship.
Recent data show inflation making slow but steady progress toward the Fed’s annual target rate of 2%. But given the uncertainty surrounding Trump’s economic agenda, the central bank isn’t in a hurry to lower borrowing rates.
What is the forecast for interest rate cuts in 2025?
Though Powell remains noncommittal on any specific time frame, experts now predict an interest rate cut in the fall.
«I’m eyeing September for the first rate cut, if inflation keeps cooling and the labor market weakens,» Rueth said.
However, tariffs are the big wildcard. Rueth said that if a trade war fuels inflation, rates could jump even without a Fed move. Political dysfunction, rising debt and global instability are also a recipe for rate volatility.
«The mortgage market reacts fast to uncertainty, and we’ve got no shortage of it this summer,» Rueth said.
On the flip side, if unemployment spikes — a real possibility given rising jobless claims — the Fed could be forced to implement interest rate cuts earlier than anticipated. In that case, mortgage rates should gradually ease, though not dramatically.
Most housing market forecasts, which already factor in at least two 0.25% Fed cuts, call for 30-year mortgage rates to stay above 6% throughout 2025.
«We might see rates settle into the low to mid-6% by year-end,» Rueth said. «But we’re not going back to 3%.»
What other factors affect mortgage rates?
Mortgage rates move around for many of the same reasons home prices do: supply, demand, inflation and even the employment rate.
Personal factors, such as a homebuyer’s credit score, down payment and home loan amount, also determine one’s individual mortgage rate. Different loan types and terms also have varying interest rates.
Policy changes: When the Fed adjusts the federal funds rate, it affects many aspects of the economy, including mortgage rates. The federal funds rate affects how much it costs banks to borrow money, which in turn affects what banks charge consumers to make a profit.
Inflation: Generally, when inflation is high, mortgage rates tend to be high. Because inflation chips away at purchasing power, lenders set higher interest rates on loans to make up for that loss and ensure a profit.
Supply and demand: When demand for mortgages is high, lenders tend to raise interest rates. This is because they have only so much capital to lend in the form of home loans. Conversely, when demand for mortgages is low, lenders tend to slash interest rates to attract borrowers.
Bond market activity: Mortgage lenders peg fixed interest rates, like fixed-rate mortgages, to bond rates. Mortgage bonds, also called mortgage-backed securities, are bundles of mortgages sold to investors and are closely tied to the 10-year Treasury. When bond interest rates are high, the bond has less value on the market where investors buy and sell securities, causing mortgage interest rates to go up.
Other key indicators: Employment patterns and other aspects of the economy that affect investor confidence and consumer spending and borrowing also influence mortgage rates. For instance, a strong jobs report and a robust economy could indicate greater demand for housing, which can put upward pressure on mortgage rates. When the economy slows and unemployment is high, mortgage rates tend to be lower.
Read more: Fact Check: Trump Doesn’t Have the Power to Force Lower Interest Rates
Is now a good time to get a mortgage?
Even though timing is everything in the mortgage market, you can’t control what the Fed does. «Forecasting interest rates is nearly impossible in today’s market,» said Wolf.
Regardless of the economy, the most important thing when shopping for a mortgage is to make sure you can comfortably afford your monthly payments.
More homebuying advice
Technologies
As Tariffs Have Consumers Worried, Here’s What I’ve Found Watching Key Products for Price Hikes
There’s a lot of concern and uncertainty going around the economy amid Trump’s tariff plans, prompting a lot of early purchases to avoid price hikes.
For CNET’s tariff price tracker, I’ve been keeping tabs on several key products we suspect will be vulnerable to President Donald Trump’s contentious tariff policies, watching their price moves every day for possible long-term price hikes.
For the most part, prices for these items have remained steady in the last few weeks, aside from notable increases for the Xbox Series X and a budget-friendly 4K TV. A few have also gone on sale for brief periods, but as of now, they’ve all mostly reverted back to normal — though you should expect the sale prices to return as Prime Day approaches in July, a good time overall to make purchases that might get more expensive later.
With all that said, the broader impact of these import taxes is still on the horizon, especially as Trump now claims that tariff rates against China are going back up to 55% soon. The Trump administration has also been working to undo a trade court ruling, which found that Trump has no authority to set tariffs as he has been — a move now being argued before an appeals court. We’ll see how that ultimately plays out, but for now, the possibility that the president’s tariff policies will lead to price hikes remains likely.
CNET Tariff Tracker Index
Above, you can check out a chart with the average price of the 11 products included in this piece over the course of 2025. This will help give you a sense of the overall price changes and fluctuations going on. Further down, you’ll be able to check out charts for each individual product being tracked.
We’ll be updating this article regularly as prices change. It’s all in the name of helping you make sense of things, so be sure to check back every so often. For more, check out CNET’s guide to whether you should wait to make big purchases or buy them now and get expert tips about how to prepare for a recession.
Methodology
We’re checking prices daily and will update the article and the relevant charts right away to reflect any changes. The following charts show a single bullet point for each month, with the most recent one labeled «Now» and showing the current price. For the past months, we’ve gone with what was the most common price for each item in the given month.
In most cases, the price stats used in these graphs were pulled from Amazon using the historical price-tracker tool Keepa. For the iPhones, the prices come from Apple’s official materials and are based on the 128-gigabyte base model of the latest offering for each year: the iPhone 14, iPhone 15 and iPhone 16. For the Xbox Series X, the prices were sourced from Best Buy using the tool PriceTracker. If any of these products happen to be on sale at a given time, we’ll be sure to let you know and explain how those price drops differ from longer-term pricing trends that tariffs can cause.
The 11 products we’re tracking
Mostly what we’re tracking in this article are electronic devices and digital items that CNET covers in depth, like iPhones and affordable 4K TVs — along with a typical bag of coffee, a more humble product that isn’t produced in the US to any significant degree.
The products featured were chosen for a few reasons: Some of them are popular and/or affordable representatives for major consumer tech categories, like smartphones, TVs and game consoles. Others are meant to represent things that consumers might buy more frequently, like printer ink or coffee beans. Some products were chosen over others because they are likely more susceptible to tariffs. Some of these products have been reviewed by CNET or have been featured in some of our best lists.
- iPhone 16, 128GB
- Duracell AA batteries, 24-pack
- Samsung DU7200 65-inch TV
- Xbox Series X
- Apple AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C case
- HP 962 CMY Printer Ink
- Anker 10,000-mAh, 30-watt power bank
- Bose TV speaker
- Oral-B Pro 1000 electric toothbrush
- Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook, 256GB
- Starbucks 28-ounce ground dark roast coffee
Below, we’ll get into more about each individual product, and stick around till the end for a rundown of some other products worth noting.
iPhone 16
The iPhone is the most popular smartphone brand in the US, so this was a clear priority for price tracking. The iPhone has also emerged as a major focal point for conversations about tariffs, given its popularity and its susceptibility to import taxes because of its overseas production, largely in China. Trump has reportedly been fixated on the idea that the iPhone can and should be manufactured in the US, an idea that experts have dismissed as a fantasy. Estimates have also suggested that a US-made iPhone would cost as much as $3,500.
Something to note about this graph: The price listed is the one you’ll see if you buy your phone through a major carrier. If you, say, buy direct from Apple or Best Buy without a carrier involved, you’ll be charged an extra $30, so in some places, you might see the list price of the standard iPhone 16 listed as $830.
Apple’s been taking a few steps to protect its prices in the face of these tariffs, flying in bulk shipments of product before they took effect and planning to move production for the US market from China to India. A new Reuters report found that a staggering 97% of iPhones imported from the latter country, March through May, were bound for the US. This latter move drew the anger of Trump again, threatening the company with a 25% tariff if they didn’t move production to the US, an idea CEO Tim Cook has repeatedly shot down in the past. This came after Trump gave a tariff exemption to electronic devices including smartphones, so the future of that move seems in doubt now.
Apple’s flagship device is still the top-selling smartphone globally, as of Q1 of this year, although new research from the firm Counterpoint suggests that tariff uncertainty will cause the brand’s growth to stall a bit throughout the rest of 2025.
Duracell AA batteries
A lot of the tech products in your home might boast a rechargeable energy source but individual batteries are still an everyday essential and I can tell you from experience that as soon as you forget about them, you’ll be needing to restock. The Duracell AAs we’re tracking are some of the bestselling batteries on Amazon.
Samsung DU7200 TV
Alongside smartphones, televisions are some of the most popular tech products out there, even if they’re an infrequent purchase. This particular product is a popular entry-level 4K TV and was CNET’s pick for best overall budget TV for 2025. Unlike a lot of tech products that have key supply lines in China, Samsung is a South Korean company, so it might have some measure of tariff resistance. This model was most recently listed on Amazon at $421, up from the $400 price tag it’s hovered around for most of the year.
Xbox Series X
Video game software and hardware are a market segment expected to be hit hard by the Trump tariffs. Microsoft’s Xbox is the first console brand to see price hikes — the company cited «market conditions» along with the rising cost of development. Most notably, this included an increase in the price of the flagship Xbox Series X, up from $500 to $600. Numerous Xbox accessories also were affected and the company also said that «certain» games will eventually see a price hike from $70 to $80.
Initially, we were tracking the price of the much more popular Nintendo Switch as a representative of the gaming market. Nintendo has not yet hiked the price of its handheld-console hybrid and stressed that the $450 price tag of the upcoming Switch 2 has not yet been inflated because of tariffs. Sony, meanwhile, has so far only increased prices on its PlayStation hardware in markets outside the US.
AirPods Pro 2
The latest iteration of Apple’s wildly popular true-wireless earbuds are here to represent the headphone market. Much to the chagrin of the audiophiles out there, a quick look at sales charts on Amazon shows you just how much the brand dominates all headphone sales. For most of the year, they’ve hovered around $199, which is a notable savings on its list price of $249.
HP 962 CMY printer ink
This HP printer ink includes cyan, magenta and yellow all in one product and recently saw its price jump from around $72 — where it stayed for most of 2025 — to $80, which is around its highest price over the last five years. We will be keeping tabs to see if this is a long-term change or a brief uptick.
This product replaced Overture PLA Filament for 3D printers in this piece, but we’re still tracking that item.
Anker 10,000-mAh, 30-watt power bank
Anker’s accessories are perennially popular in the tech space and the company has already announced that some of its products will get more expensive as a direct result of tariffs. This specific product has also been featured in some of CNET’s lists of the best portable chargers.
Bose TV speaker
Soundbars have become important purchases, given the often iffy quality of the speakers built into TVs. While not the biggest or the best offering in the space, the Bose TV Speaker is one of the more affordable soundbar options out there, especially hailing from a brand as popular as Bose.
Oral-B Pro 1000 electric toothbrush
They might be a lot more expensive than their traditional counterparts but electric toothbrushes remain a popular choice for consumers because of how well they get the job done. I know my dentist won’t let up on how much I need one. This particular Oral-B offering was CNET’s overall choice for the best electric toothbrush for 2025.
Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook
Lenovo is notable among the big laptop manufacturers for being a Chinese company making its products especially susceptible to Trump’s tariffs.
Starbucks Ground Coffee (28-ounce bag)
Coffee is included in this tracker because of its ubiquity —I’m certainly drinking too much of it these days —and because it’s uniquely susceptible to Trump’s tariff agenda. Famously, coffee beans can only be grown within a certain distance from Earth’s equator, a tropical span largely outside the US and known as the «Coffee Belt.»
Hawaii is the only part of the US that can produce coffee beans, with data from USAFacts showing that 11.5 million pounds were harvested there in the 2022-23 season — little more than a drop in the mug, as the US consumed 282 times that amount of coffee during that period. Making matters worse, Hawaiian coffee production has declined in the past few years.
All that to say: Americans get almost all of their coffee from overseas, making it one of the most likely products to see price hikes from tariffs.
Other products
As mentioned before, we occasionally swap out products with different ones that undergo notable price shifts. Here are some things no longer featured above, but that we’re still keeping an eye on:
- Nintendo Switch: The baseline handheld-console hybrid has held steady around $299 most places — including Amazon — since it released in 2017. Whether or not that price will be impacted by tariffs or the impending release of the Switch 2 remains to be seen. This product was replaced above with the Xbox Series X.
- Overture PLA 3D printer filament: This is a popular choice on Amazon for the material needed to run 3D printers. It has held steady around $15 on Amazon all year. This product was replaced above by the HP 962 printer ink.
Here are some products we also wanted to single out that haven’t been featured with a graph yet:
- Razer Blade 18 (2025), 5070 Ti edition: The latest revision of Razer’s largest gaming laptop saw a $300 price bump recently, with the base model featured an RTX 5070 Ti graphics card now priced at $3,500 ahead of launch, compared to the $3,200 price announced in February. While Razer has stayed mum about the reasoning, it did previously suspend direct sales to the US as Trump’s tariff plans were ramping up in April.
- Asus ROG Ally X: The premium version of Asus’s Steam Deck competitor handheld gaming PC recently saw a price hike from $799 to $899, coinciding with the announcement of the company’s upcoming Xbox-branded Ally handhelds.
Technologies
Best Handheld Gaming Consoles Right Now
While the Nintendo Switch 2 and Steam Deck are the obvious choices for best handheld game consoles, we test out everything the portable game device market has to offer.
Our Experts
- Nearly 20 years writing about tech, and over a decade reviewing wearable tech, VR, and AR products and apps
I’ve loved gaming, and particularly gaming handhelds, all of my life. I grew up with every variation of the Game Boy and Sega Game Gear, and more. At CNET, I’ve reviewed mobile gaming and handhelds going back to the Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation Vita, through the launch of the iPhone and iPad, and up to the Switch 2. There are more handheld gaming options than ever, especially if you count phones and tablets. Here below are the best options right for dedicated handheld devices of all forms, and a look forward at what to expect in the next few years.
What is the best handheld game console overall?
It’s a tough time to pick winners, especially since there are so many types of different handhelds right now, but the Nintendo Switch 2 is a newcomer that’s wowed me with its graphics, its improved design, and Nintendo’s focus on making an already-popular Switch even better. The Switch 2 isn’t a necessary upgrade for everyone yet, and makes tradeoffs: Battery life is shorter than other Switch models, and there aren’t that many exclusive Switch 2 games yet. Still, the handheld’s got tons of new perks.
But I still love the Steam Deck, which remains one of the best-performing and versatile ways to play PC games on the go. The Steam Deck’s big and bulky — and a few years old now — but as a vehicle to play tons of interesting and well-optimized games on Steam, it’s a great option too.
Best gaming handhelds of 2025
Pros
- Slim design
- Large 1080p display
- Notably better graphics
- Great-feeling magnetic-attaching controllers
Cons
- MicroSD Express cards are hard to find right now
- Battery life is worse than the Switch’s
- Still needs more unique exclusives
Nintendo’s first true console successor to the Switch, the Switch 2 comes with all sorts of welcome upgrades, while keeping the concept and game compatibility with Switch mostly intact. The feel is more like a Windows handheld or Steam Deck, but slimmer, and its graphics upgrades both on handheld and TV-connected are notably better.
A new audio/video GameChat feature could be great for friends and family, the Joy-Cons are easier to snap on and off and double as versatile mice now for supported games, and the included 7.9-inch 1080p LCD display is a welcome improvement from the original Switch. It’s also still a unique perk over other handhelds that the Switch 2 comes with a TV dock and its detachable, shareable Joy-Cons, and the Switch 2 is backward compatible with Switch games and wireless controllers. It also looks capable of running games as advanced as those on Windows game handhelds and Steam Decks. And as always, Nintendo’s new console is family-friendly.
There are downsides, though, besides the price: Battery life is considerably worse than that of other Switches, lasting only a few hours before needing a recharge, and expandable storage requires more expensive and harder-to-find microSD Express cards.
You just may not need to make an upgrade yet, but the Switch 2 still stands out as the best new handheld system, and upcoming Switch 2 exclusives like Donkey Kong Bananza should make it even better. Just keep in mind you’ll need to live in Nintendo’s world and play games from Nintendo’s eShop.
- Display: 7.9-inch, 1,920×1,080 LCD IPS (up to 120Hz)
- Storage: 256GB included, microSD Express card expandable
- Games: Switch and Switch 2 compatible
- TV connection: Yes, dock included (4K output)
- Size: 4.5 x 10.7 x 0.55 inches
- Weight: 1.18 pounds
- Wi-Fi: Yes (Wi-Fi 6)
- Bluetooth: Yes
Pros
- Vibrant HDR OLED display
- Runs many Steam games well
- Excellent controls, improved haptics
- Better battery life
Cons
- Large size
- Doesn’t have removable controllers
- Some Steam games don’t run on it
- Screen can sometimes feel small for some games
Valve’s big and versatile Steam Deck is still a marvel. Although it’s three years old now, it can still play a wide variety of PC games surprisingly well, and is the dream portable for any hardcore Steam fan, or anyone who has a big library of PC games. The Steam Deck can get expensive for the larger storage tiers, but for what it’s capable of, it’s not a bad deal. And, while third-party hardware manufacturers are starting to make SteamOS handhelds (the Lenovo Legion Go S is the first new option, and CNET’s Lori Grunin’s preferred pick over Steam Deck), the Steam Deck still has a standout set of controls, haptics, and trackpads that make it feel great for me.
The model to buy is the OLED version: while more expensive, its more vivid, slightly larger display, better haptics and improved battery life are worth it. The LCD model costs $399 with 256GB of storage, while the OLED models ramp up to $549 and $649, with 512GB and 1TB of storage, respectively. Steam game downloads can eat up a lot of space, so larger storage sizes are recommended unless you’re playing smaller indies.
While the Steam Deck runs Linux as opposed to Windows and Valve’s own SteamOS, you can load other software and hack other solutions onto the Steam Deck if you’re up for the effort. You can play local PC games or stream cloud-based games, and connect to a monitor, keyboard or other accessories, too.
One of my favorite parts of Steam Deck is how Valve indicates which Steam games are Steam Deck optimized in the store, helping remove the guesswork that can make Windows handhelds so frustrating. More options for PC gamers are popping up every month, but for now, Steam Deck is the best way to go.
- Display: 7.4-inch, 1,280×800 HDR OLED
- Storage: 512 or 1TB included, microSD card slot
- Games: Steam compatible
- TV connection: Yes, dock sold separately
- Size: 4.6 x 11.7 x 1.9 inches
- Weight: 1.41 pounds
- Wi-Fi: Yes (Wi-Fi 6E)
- Bluetooth: Yes
- Processor: AMD Zen 2 APU
- RAM: 16GB
Pros
- Supports a wider library of games than non-Windows devices
- Good performance for its components
- Paddles for macro combos and some basic Windows navigation
- Bumpers feel clicky and responsive
Cons
- Expensive
- Display doesn’t support HDR and only has sRGB gamut
- Pressing the ABXY buttons only registers in the center
- No trigger stops
If you prefer running Windows on a PC gaming handheld, there are multiple options. The best for now is the Asus ROG Ally X, which has solid-feeling controls, a 1080p display and a battery that lasts for at least several hours of play. It’s heavy, though, and expensive compared to the Steam Deck.
You’re also best off waiting for the Asus ROG Xbox Ally, coming later this year, which promises streamlined performance for finding and launching Xbox games. But the big advantage of a Windows-based handheld is its flexibility running games from any source or game store, provided the games are compatible with this handheld’s AMD Ryzen 7 8840HS processor and integrated graphics.
- Display: 7-inch 1,920×1,080-pixel IPS LCD, 120Hz/60Hz
- Storage: 1TB included, microSD card slot
- Games: Windows 11 Home OS, can run games via any game store or Windows source
- TV connection: Via video-out
- Size: 11.02 x 4.37 x 1.45 inches
- Weight: 1.5 pounds
- Wi-Fi: Yes (Wi-Fi 6E)
- Bluetooth: Yes
- Processor: 3.3GHz AMD Z1 Extreme
- RAM: 24GB
Pros
- Crisp LCD screen makes old games look great
- Plays Game Boy and Game Boy Advance cartridges
- Adds Game Gear, Lynx, Neo Geo Pocket with extra adapters
- USB-C charging
- Other extras include TV dock
Cons
- No Wi-Fi means sideloading OS updates via microSD card
- A little too big for most pockets
The Pocket looks like a totally remade Game Boy, and it is, in a sense. Analogue’s gorgeous handheld can play original Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance cartridges perfectly, and can even play Sega Game Gear, Atari Lynx, Neo Geo Pocket and Turbografx-16 games using separately sold adapters. It has a high-res color screen and USB-C charging, and there’s a separately sold dock for TV play.
There’s also support for FPGA cores that can replicate classic game hardware and play ROMs. There’s no game store for buying games: Pocket is a system to play classic cartridges or other games in amazing quality, if you want to tinker around with FPGA. There’s also a big library of Pocket-compatible software in indie gaming channels like itch.io that can be sideloaded to a microSD card, too.
The Pocket also comes in a lot of different colors, many of which sell out fast as limited editions. It still stands on its own as a wonderfully complete retro-capable handheld for collectors of classic cartridges.
- Display: 3.5-inch 1,600 x 1,440-pixel LCD
- Storage: microSD card slot
- Games: Plays classic Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance carts, or Sega Game Gear, Atari Lynx, Neo-Geo Pocket or Turbografx-16 carts with separately sold adapters. Can also sideload games.
- TV connection: Separately sold dock
- Size: 5.86 x 3.46 x 0.86 inches
- Weight: 0.6-pound
- Wi-Fi: No
- Bluetooth: Yes
The tiny, yellow, black-and-white-screened Panic Playdate looks like a weird Game Boy with a mechanical crank sprouting from its side. But this system, made by the game company that developed Untitled Goose Game, plays its own indie-developed games. Twenty-four of them come included with the purchase and appear over time like weekly presents, and a new second season of games has been equally good. More games can be bought on the Playdate’s on-handheld store (the tiny gadget has Wi-Fi), or sideloaded via sites like itch.io. Alas, the Playdate doesn’t have any backlighting — you’ll have to find a lamp instead.
Even three years into its debut, the Playdate has been a constant source of weird little mini-games. If you ever loved Nintendo’s classic Game and Watch and wanted something new that could fill a similar magical desire, and don’t mind being limited to the mysterious games and apps that developers have cooked up for this, the Playdate is a bit of genius that no other handheld can match.
- Display: 2.7-inch 400 x 240 pixel black-and-white reflective LCD (no backlighting)
- Storage: 4GB included
- Games: Plays games from Playdate online store or can sideload games installed via Playdate website
- TV connection: No
- Size: 2.99 x 2.91 x 0.35 inches
- Weight: 0.19-pound
- Wi-Fi: Yes
- Bluetooth: No
Other gaming handhelds we’ve tested
Nintendo Switch OLED
This used to be our favorite Switch, and its battery life and vivid OLED are still good. But we’d recommend a Switch 2 purchase now over this expensive Switch model, unless you find it on sale.
Nintendo Switch Lite
The most affordable (and smallest) Switch lacks detachable controllers and TV docking capabilities, but it’s still a great pick as a lower-cost way to bring along Nintendo games on the go.
PlayStation Portal
Sony’s oddball streaming-only handheld companion to the PlayStation 5 is actually really good as an in-house way to extend your games on a remote screen with haptics and force-feedback triggers, but performance depends on internet connectivity.
ModRetro Chromatic
Possibly the best pure Game Boy recreation available, this well-built handheld has a great display and build quality, but it’s also pricey and can only play Game Boy and Game Boy Color games.
Lenovo Legion Go S with Steam OS
An excellent Steam Deck alternative (and Lori Grunin’s preferred pick over the Steam Deck OLED), this handheld benefits from a larger display and a different control layout.
Lenovo Legion Go S with Windows
Laggy performance and an awkward Windows-on-a-handheld experience made this one feel forgettable.
How we test the best handheld gaming consoles
There are lots of ways to play games on the go, and many of them are extremely different from each other. Since the common threads are often pretty different, our goal is to think about the whole play experience as a relative versus other options. Price comes into play, as does gaming libraries. But also, we pay attention to battery life, which we judge by playing games over time. Ideally, that’s for at least a week, preferably more.
When appropriate, we’ll also look into benchmark testing, although that currently comes into play for Windows-based handhelds because of common benchmark apps that can run on the hardware.
Is the experience family-friendly? Is it portable enough? Is it possible to connect to a TV, and would you do it? These are all parts of the equation. Most importantly, it’s key to look at each gaming handheld on its own terms, versus direct comparisons to products it’s not really trying to emulate. For instance: the Panic Playdate and Steam Deck are extremely different beasts.
What’s the difference between all these gaming handhelds?
Phones and tablets already do a fine job of playing tons of great games and streaming games from consoles or the cloud. Dedicated devices can provide unique features, exclusive games or extra power to do things your phone can’t. The difference between types of game handhelds at the moment can feel vast, but let’s break it down into some clear categories. Handhelds can be full TV-connectable consoles, tinier versions of full PCs, or smaller, purpose-built ways to play retro games, indies, or even novelty experiences. Some are, like PCs and phones, built on more standard OS forms. Others are locked down.
The Nintendo Switch and Switch 2
Nintendo’s consoles are a platform all unto their own. Nintendo locks down its hardware to only work with games bought in physical game card format or on Nintendo’s eShop, and the Switch and Switch 2 also require subscriptions for online play.
The Switch 2 can play nearly all the games that work on the Switch, with the exception of ones that either needed the original Switch dimensions (Nintendo Labo, if you can find it) or the original Joy-Con’s IR camera (Ring Fit Adventure, which works with Switch 2 if you pair original Joy-Cons to it wirelessly). It does have its own accessories and added functions: GameChat for talking to other Switch 2 owners, USB-connected camera support for games and chat, and the new Joy-Cons can work as optical mice with supported games. It works the same way the Switch does, but has better graphics and a larger screen, and worse battery life. To expand Switch 2 storage, you need to buy microSD Express cards, which are different from standard microSD.
PC game handhelds
A growing number of beefy handheld systems can run either full Windows OS onboard, or specific Linux-based SteamOS software. The Steam Deck, Asus Rog Ally and Lenovo Legion Go are the best current options and come in several forms and flavors.
Most of these handhelds run similar-performing types of AMD-based processors with integrated graphics which deliver surprising functional gaming on the go provided the games you’re playing are properly optimized. Valve makes this super easy on Steam Deck and on the new Lenovo Legion Go S with Steam OS, making it very clear on its Steam store which games are optimized to play well. On Windows handhelds, you gain the freedom of full Windows OS, and its complications. You could run any game from any source (and on SteamOS handhelds, with some tinkering, you could do this too), but your mileage will definitely vary. I’ve often had some games not run at all, or run so badly they were unplayable. Indie and smaller games are often great choices on handhelds for this reason.
Still, games like Cyberpunk 2077, Elden Ring, Spider-Man 2 and No Man’s Sky are a few of the games that are great to play on the go with these handhelds. Expect battery life to vary based on the type of game, and many of these handhelds are pretty heavy, too (up to 1.5 pounds). They can connect with monitors and accessories, too, but don’t come packaged with docks.
Retro handhelds
The Analogue Pocket and ModRetro Chromatic are remastered Game Boys for playing classic cartridges you might still have or buy. The Pocket can also play other game cartridges, and even emulations of games that can be sideloaded. The Evercade series of handhelds, alternatively, plays rereleased compilations of games on custom cartridges.
While the Pocket and Chromatic and Evercade models are geared towards physical cartridges, there are also tons of small handhelds that can play ROMs and emulated games. CNET doesn’t review those at the moment, but know that there’s a big space there to explore.
There’s also the weird stuff: the Panic Playdate is its own beast, a custom mini-handheld that plays its own library of games. There’s nothing else quite like it, but Nintendo’s limited edition Game & Watch re-releases come to mind.
Streaming handhelds
While Windows handhelds can stream games from sources like Xbox Cloud Gaming and Nvidia GeForce Now, so can your phone or tablet. Another streaming option to consider is the PlayStation Portal, which only plays either PlayStation Plus streaming cloud games or streaming games via your PlayStation 5, but also adds haptics and force-feedback triggers. The future of gaming might be increasingly streaming, but for now, it’s a tool that lots of devices are throwing in the mix.
Your phone, or tablet
Tablets and phones are extremely valid game consoles: The iPad has tons of games on the App Store, and hundreds more on Apple’s subscription-based Apple Arcade. The iPad can pair with Bluetooth game controllers, too. iPhones and Android phones have tons of games as well, obviously, and a number of great game controller cases are available, including the Backbone and the Razer Kishi.
Phones and tablets also offer other advantages, including an ability to cloud-stream games on a growing number of services including Microsoft Game Pass Ultimate and PlayStation Plus.
The Switch 2 was the big handheld console we were waiting on for years, and now that it’s here, don’t expect Nintendo to have a follow-up hardware variation for at least a couple of years.
Bigger changes are coming sooner in the PC handheld space. The Asus ROG Xbox Ally coming this fall promises to fix performance and experience problems on Windows-based game handhelds, and CNET’s early hands-on demos were promising. Microsoft may be working on its own dedicated Xbox handheld in the future, but nothing is imminent right now.
The Steam Deck could be due for a sequel in the next couple of years, but again, there’s no indication that big things are coming soon.
Sony looks like it’s dabbling in handhelds, too, although the PlayStation Portal is really a local streaming solution for playing games from a PlayStation 5. Will Sony make another PlayStation handheld someday? Again, it’s too early to tell, but you never know.
The Nintendo Switch is, by far, the best kids’ handheld experience. The Switch is family-friendly, shareable, and has its own TV dock and removable controllers. The Switch 2 is also family-friendly, and it’s compatible with older Switch wireless controllers and Joy-Cons, but its shorter battery life and more expensive price makes it a less perfect fit for kids right now than the classic Switch models.
Next to the Nintendo DS, the Nintendo Switch is the best-selling handheld game console ever, and one of the top consoles of all time. The Switch is still one of the best game systems out there right now, but we’d recommend buying the newer Switch 2, which is backward-compatible with almost all Switch games.
If you’re talking about pure graphics potential, the Nintendo Switch 2 shows the most promise right now. Its 4K and higher-framerate-ready modes when connected to a TV give it an edge over older PC handhelds like the Steam Deck, and Windows handhelds haven’t had a significant bump in processing/graphics power in the last couple of years. All these devices have similar capabilities to run more advanced games, but the Switch 2 has a far more limited library of Switch 2-enhanced games right now than Steam Deck or Windows handhelds.
CNET doesn’t review many emulation-capable handhelds at the moment, but there are lots of options out there. The Analogue Pocket can do it, and so can Windows handhelds and the Steam Deck.
Loading ROMs onto handhelds isn’t always intuitive and varies by hardware. There’s also a gray area between software piracy and the right to own ROMs of games you’ve already bought in physical form. We don’t offer guides on the process, but there are plenty of online resources.
- Sony PlayStation 5 review
- Microsoft Xbox Series X review
- Microsoft Xbox Series S review
- Nintendo Switch OLED review
- Meta Quest 2 review
- Valve Steam Deck review
See the latest CNET gaming coverage here.
Technologies
Death Stranding 2 Ending Explained: What Happened to Lou, Neil Vana and BB-28?
Confused about the ending of Death Stranding 2? So were we.
Death Stranding 2’s release date was Thursday but some players who bought a special edition of the game have already been playing it for two days. As it takes 30 to 40 hours to finish the game, some will see the ending and wonder what in the world they just experienced.
Death Stranding 2 comes from the mind of Hideo Kojima and he can be a little eccentric with his video games. This game is peak creativity from the legendary game developer but it’s not easy to follow what happened, even when you’ve finished his game.
Spoiler warning: If you haven’t beaten Death Stranding 2 yet, don’t read any further. If you’ve finished the game and are still scratching your head, keep on reading.
What happened with Lou?
Early in the game, Fragile is holding Lou when Higgs shoots at her. When she comes to, she tells Sam that Lou is gone. We see a month later that Sam is searching for Lou and finds her, yet this is clearly not Lou — it’s a dream. Sam continues to carry around Lou’s BB pod as if Lou is still a baby with him. He’ll hear Lou cry, he can comfort her and all the other actions he was able to do in the first game.
Toward the end, we learn a couple of things. First, Lou was Sam’s daughter with Lucy, Sam’s therapist, who is briefly shown in the first game. Second, the Lou that Sam has been carrying appears to be just a delusion of his that the Magallan crew has seemingly just gone along with. All those abilities that BBs can do, such as scanning for BTs, were done by Dollman. Lastly, Tomorrow is Sam’s daughter, in other words, Lou.
So, in the final battle with Higgs, instead of ending the world, Tomorrow, aka Lou, ends up helping take out Higgs in the most adorable way. She is brought over from the other side and it looks like she might be the star of her own Death Stranding game or maybe some DLC as a new porter.
Who was Neil Vana?
Neil Vana was a smuggler who worked similarly to Sam’s, but instead of a package of whatever, he delivered brain-dead pregnant women whose babies would be sacrificed to the Bridges project and become BBs.
His sections of Death Stranding 2 act similarly to the scenes featuring Cliff from the first game, in that they are segments that provide some background to the story while also just letting players stop thinking about packages and just do some shooting. During these sections, Neil wears an outfit similar to Solid Snake from the Metal Gear series, one of many references to Kojima’s famous series found throughout the sequel. Each segment featuring Neil represents a particular strong memory that Sam experiences, unlike the quick glimpses of the past Sam gets whenever he plugs himself into Lou’s BB pod.
When Neil was a child, the Mexican town he was in was being inundated with BTs, causing havoc. He had met a young girl who helped him, but when she was trapped, he tried to help her, leaving a scar on his and her hands. Years later, when he sought a therapist to help him deal with his troubling work, he met Lucy Strand.
Lucy is the sister of Bridget Strand, the President of the United Cities of America, and she was also Sam’s therapist. Lucy and Sam fell in love, and she was pregnant with his child. In the first Death Stranding, the story given to Sam was that Lucy committed suicide. That appears not to be the case. It seems that Lucy was approached to give up her baby to Bridges, likely because of Sam being the father. She sought the help of Neil to smuggle her into Mexico.
Neil thought Lucy was having his baby but she did make it clear that the baby wasn’t his. Nevertheless, he was not going to abandon her this time around, so he made arrangements to sneak her out of the country. Those efforts became futile as Neil and Lucy were shot by the Bridges guards. Lou was taken out of Lucy to be used as a BB, with her body left on a medical table waiting for Sam to show up.
While Neil did die, he didn’t cross over, thus becoming a BT. The doctors who were seemingly going to examine his body mentioned the need for corpse disposal as Neil’s soul, his ka, had left the body. While a BT would normally go to whatever person is near, Neil instead floats to Lucy’s dead body. Here’s when we see Sam show up and break down with his love dead and his child seemingly gone. Neil follows Sam, and whether it was done on purpose or was just the nature of being a BT, Neil makes contact with Sam, causing a voidout and destroying the city. This event caused Sam to retire from Bridges and develop his aphenphosmphobia, the fear of being touched. Neil’s final fight with Sam was enough to finally let his soul be at peace.
What’s the mystery of BB-28?
At the start of his mission in the first Death Stranding, Sam comes across a BB that was supposed to be destroyed. For some reason, he decides against it and takes on BB-28 as his own. He formed a bond with the BB, and after a successful mission, he left for Mexico to raise the baby as Lou.
Throughout Death Stranding 2, there’s a mystery regarding the origins of BB-28. What eventually comes out is that BB-28 wasn’t the 28th baby to be used by Bridges. It was actually the first, BB-00. However, there had been some secretive moves to seemingly erase Lou from the system. This resulted in Lou being in storage for 11 years and given the BB-28 designation. The most likely reason for this was to hide the details about where the baby came from and who the mother was. It’s also likely that the person who brought Lou out of storage to be used again was the President, who knew Lou was Sam’s daughter, and to possibly unite them when he came out of retirement.
Who is The President?
At the start of the game, Sam meets the President of the Automated Public Assistance Company or APAC. The company is bankrolling Draw Bridges and Sam’s effort to connect Australia to the Chiral Network. APAC also owns APAS, a system used throughout the game to improve Sam’s performance and skills.
Toward the end of the game, The President confides in Sam through a private channel that he believes there is someone working against them. He tells Sam not to inform the others.
It ends up that The President, however, is not to be trusted, and he wasn’t real in the first place. The President, who has been working with Sam, is just another robot controlled by an entity referred to as APAS 4000. Sometime in the past, there was a voidout that killed 4,000 people and these souls somehow converged with the APAS AI system that handled deliveries. The APAS 4000 then went about concocting a plan to make humans into souls that would be trapped in the world of the dead. APAS 4000 views this as reclaiming the world before there was a Death Stranding, but it would ultimately kill all humans.
What is Higgs up to?
Higgs continues to want to see the world destroyed. He said he has been alone for tens of thousands of years on the Beach after being given the choice to stay by Fragile at the end of the first game. Then APAS 4000 brought him back from the Beach to have him compel Sam to work with Draw Bridges and connect Australia. They even provided him with a Ghost Mech army. Higgs, however, had plans of his own.
His ultimate plan was to do the Last Stranding, an event where everyone would die and humans would go extinct. This is what Sam prevented in the first Death Stranding game, but with Tomorrow, Higgs could try again because she is an extinction entity, which is a being that will bring out an extinction event. He ultimately failed at his plan and was killed when Lou, in a giant baby form, ate him.
What’s with Die Hardman’s dance?
It’s Kojima. Just go with it.
Death Stranding 2 is out now, exclusive for the PS5 and costs $70.
