ModRetro Ships a $149.99 Transparent Chromatic, $50 Cheaper Than the Metal Handheld

The see-through Game Boy-style console arrives in Smoke, Green, Purple, and Red, and every unit includes a transparent Tetris cartridge.

IRVINE, Calif. - ModRetro on Thursday began selling Chromatic Transparent, a clear plastic version of its Game Boy-inspired handheld, at $149.99, fifty dollars below the magnesium-alloy Chromatic and a hundred dollars below the Sapphire Crystal edition.

The new shells are Smoke, Green, Purple, and Red. Through the ABS body you can see the circuit board, button contacts, screws, and, on the rear, the AA batteries. Every Transparent unit ships with a transparent Tetris cartridge, three AA ModRetro batteries, and the same FPGA hardware that plays original Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges plus ModRetro’s own carts.

Screenshot of @modretro post on X Screenshot: @modretro on X, Oct. 8, 2026

Hardware otherwise matches the earlier Chromatics. ModRetro lists a 2.56-inch, 160-by-144 IPS backlit LCD behind Gorilla Glass, PBT buttons, a 3.5mm headphone jack, USB-C for passthrough charging and video out, a link-cable port, and IR. Accessories that already work with the metal Chromatic, including the Mod Kit, Rechargeable Power Core, Link Cable, and case, remain compatible. The console measures about 5.2 by 3 by 1.2 inches and weighs about 6.2 ounces.

Chromatic Transparent in Green Image: ModRetro

Chromatic Transparent rear view showing the board and batteries Image: ModRetro

Dean Takahashi of GamesBeat, who tried a red unit with WayForward’s Sabrina Zapped!, wrote that knocking $50 off the price matters as memory costs rise. Patrick O’Rourke of XDA Developers, reviewing a green unit, said the transparent look evokes early-2000s clear electronics but that the plastic shell feels cheaper than the magnesium versions and picks up fingerprints. RetroDodo separately reviewed the Transparent lineup and showed the included clear Tetris cart.

Chromatic Transparent color lineup Image: ModRetro / GamesBeat

Transparent Tetris cartridge bundled with Chromatic Transparent Photo: RetroDodo

ModRetro’s official X account posted the Transparent store page Thursday with a short product video. The company, founded with backing from Palmer Luckey, previously sold out the first Chromatic run in late 2024 and this summer shipped the M64, an FPGA Nintendo 64-style home console. Chromatic Transparent is available now at modretro.com.

Sources: ModRetro product page, “Chromatic + Tetris Bundle,” https://modretro.com/products/chromatic-transparent (price, colors, specs, bundle, accessories); GamesBeat, Dean Takahashi, “ModRetro launches transparent version of the Chromatic handheld at $150,” Oct. 8, 2026; XDA Developers, Patrick O’Rourke, Oct. 8, 2026; RetroDodo review, Oct. 2026; @modretro on X, Oct. 8, 2026.

Maya Chen, Gadgets. Maya Chen is a senior correspondent covering phones, laptops, and consumer gadgets. Previously reported hardware launches for trade titles; based in San Francisco.