I post this review and comparison to Pi 500 here because I too find this form factor very nostalgic like the article's author:
> For those of us that grew up during the home computer boom of the 1970s and 1980s, of which I am one, the form factor is nostalgic, and I can see some enthusiasts building their own home computer emulation systems using the Pi 500+, but, they could also do that with the $90 Raspberry Pi 500, or even the older Raspberry Pi 400. A few years ago, I managed to build a competent Commodore Amiga 1200 using my Raspberry Pi 400.
In the age of 3D printing, single board computers, and hobbyist kits and cases there are tons of projects. Atari, NES, GBA, up to Saturn and PS1 and even MAME.
I suspect that many if the 1UP cabinets are just an SBC running MAME but I can’t be certain. I’ve never had a closeup look.
> For those of us that grew up during the home computer boom of the 1970s and 1980s, of which I am one, the form factor is nostalgic, and I can see some enthusiasts building their own home computer emulation systems using the Pi 500+, but, they could also do that with the $90 Raspberry Pi 500, or even the older Raspberry Pi 400. A few years ago, I managed to build a competent Commodore Amiga 1200 using my Raspberry Pi 400.
The actual product announcement: https://www.raspberrypi.com/news/the-ultimate-all-in-one-pc-.../
I suspect that many if the 1UP cabinets are just an SBC running MAME but I can’t be certain. I’ve never had a closeup look.