9 Retro Tech Gadgets Perfect For Upgrading Your Basement

The basement is a great area in the house for a gaming setup, home theater, or just casually hanging out. However, a lot of underused or unfinished basements still feel more like storage rather than an actual usable area. Practical upgrades like paint, lighting, and seating help, and once you have those practical matters sorted out, some extra gear along the way can add a bit of character. There's a lot of interesting tech out there, but retro tech gadgets with that old-school look can inject a hearty nostalgic flair into the area.

There are plenty of ways to turn your basement into a home theater or man cave, but we'll be focusing on the gadgets themselves here over furniture and decor. We'll be looking at products that are immediately eye-catching without sacrificing overall utility and fun ... or nostalgia. From arcade cabinets and turntables to replicas of classic consoles, these are some of the best retro tech gadgets for upgrading your basement with a personality boost.

Arcade1Up makes several excellent modern versions of arcade cabinets, and Pac-Man is as classic as it gets. The Pac-Max Deluxe Arcade Cabinet stands a bit over five feet tall and features a 17-inch color screen with the original arcade version of Pac-Man. It features 14 other classic games in addition to Pac-Man, including Dig Dug, Pac-Mania, Galaga, and Rolling Thunder. Arcade1Up has an official license partnership with Bandai Namco, which allows the brand to create a faithful modern revision of the 80s arcade machine. This model even features a coin slot, though it's more of a novelty than anything else.

Keep in mind that this cabinet does not arrive pre-assembled. Fortunately, it's easy to build in just one afternoon and only requires a screwdriver. The light-up marquee adds a lot of character, and there is support for two-player gameplay. This arcade cabinet also features solid, responsive buttons and excellent sound thanks to dual speakers. It's a great start for building a retro arcade at home, and Arcade1Up also makes a smaller countertop version if you're worried about space in your basement setup.

While the Sony PS-LX3BT has a relatively modern design, a turntable is bound to evoke some nostalgic feelings regardless of its appearance. Despite the somewhat minimalist design, this Sony turntable has a lot of great features that make sense for the modern home. It features Bluetooth, for example, which means you can connect it to your wireless speakers or headphones and listen care-free without tangling wires. You still get a phono stage here, which makes it compatible with a wide variety of speakers without needing an amplifier. It features start and stop buttons, so you won't need to fiddle with the tonearm either.

With the right pair of speakers, the Sony PS-LX3BT sounds incredible for the money ($398 on Amazon). It handles different genres of music quite well, and it still retains a lot of its musicality with playback over Bluetooth. Pairing this turntable with a dedicated phono stage or amplifier will improve the sound further, but it will still sound great without that hassle for the vast majority of people. It's one of the best modern turntables on the market, especially if your aim is to listen to your favorite vinyl records over Bluetooth in your basement retreat.

If you're looking to stock up on cute mini retro gadgets, the Divoom MiniToo Retro is definitely worth a look. Its design is an obvious highlight here, as this mini speaker features an (In-Plane Switching )IPS LCD screen with unique pixelated clock faces and animations. The exterior shell has a look inspired by 1990s PC stylings, complete with functional buttons and a joystick. This speaker works as an alarm clock, a white noise machine, and even a Pomodoro timer. It also comes loaded with some simple games, such as Brick Breaker and an 8-bit version of Flappy Bird.

As for audio, the MiniToo Retro supports playback over USB-C and Bluetooth, and through a microSD card. This obviously won't replace your primary Bluetooth speaker, but it's loud enough to perform alarm and white noise duties. There's also a companion app that lets you design your own pixel art and display it on the device. Available for $60 on Amazon, this is a fun novelty gadget that you can add to a coffee table, entertainment console, or even just on top of a sidetable in your basement.

There are plenty of great retro-themed gadgets inspired by classic gaming consoles, and the 8Bitdo Arcade Stick is undoubtedly a strong example. This arcade stick looks almost like an official NES accessory, and it's the real deal for modern fighting games. This fight stick is built like a tank, and it features rubber feet at the bottom so it doesn't slide. The eight-directional control joystick feels responsive, as do the rest of the buttons. It features support for the Nintendo Switch, Switch 2, and Windows 2 PC. You can connect it using a wired USB-C connection, Bluetooth, or the 2.4-gigahertz USB dongle.

There are fight stick purists out there who prefer genuine, retro arcade parts, and 8Bitdo's Arcade Stick fortunately supports modding. The universal mounting plate allows you to swap out the joystick, and you can even swap the buttons out for standard arcade buttons. However, even with the stock buttons and joysticks, it performs well in a wide variety of games. If you're a fan of classic games like Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, and even Galaga, this is a purchase you'll enjoy as you settle into your basement rec area for some old-school gaming sessions.

Games like Space Invaders, Pong, and Asteroids are some of the most important and iconic games of all time, and they all found a home on the Atari 2600. If you grew up with this console, the Atari 2600+ is a very compelling purchase. It's a faithful revision of the original machine, and it has a cartridge slot that supports original Atari 2600 and Atari 7800 games. And while that original cartridge compatibility is nice, the 2600+ also comes with a 10-in-1 game cartridge that includes games like Missile Command, Adventure, Yar's Revenge, and Maze Craze.

The 2600+ also features an HDMI output, letting you hook it up to widescreen TVs. It comes with one CX40+ joystick, which also retains the original design. Power is handled by the included USB-C cable, but it doesn't come with a power brick. Atari also makes a Pac-Man Edition of the 2600+, which features a completely new version of Pac-Man in the form of Pac-Man 7800. Any of these versions would make good additions to a retro basement sanctuary.

If you're looking for impressive-sounding speakers with a classic retro design, it's hard to go wrong with The Nines II. These are a gigantic pair of active speakers, with both units weighing over 30 pounds each. They look especially retro in the walnut and red oak finishes, and you can remove the speaker grille to reveal the signature driver arrangement: a one-inch tweeter and an eight-inch woofer. The virtualized Dolby Atmos adds a sense of height to movies and music, while Wi-Fi streaming (Google Cast, Apple AirPlay 2, Spotify Connect) makes high-fidelity audio streaming easy.

The overall sound quality is impressive, and the speakers are particularly great for larger spaces like an open basement area. These don't come with a subwoofer but can still pump out a good amount of bass. At over 18 inches tall and with a classic design, these retro-looking speakers will command quite the presence in your basement. They even feature a dedicated RCA phono input, making them perfect for pairing with turntables for playing vinyl records.

The Evercade VS-R is a very interesting and niche console that will excite retro gaming enthusiasts. Unlike modern mainstream consoles, the VS-R is cartridge-based and plays games made by Evercade itself. Many of these cartridges (sold separately) bundle popular games together, such as the Tomb Raider Collection, which includes the first three games in the franchise. Evercade has a gigantic list of similar collection cartridges, many featuring games from Activision and id Software (the creators of the DOOM franchise).

Other than the excellent library of games, the VS-R is also a unique console in terms of hardware. It supports two cartridges at the same time, meaning you can have multiple games easily accessible at once. The controller is wide and rectangular, and while it's not the most comfortable gamepad in the world, the VS-R does support USB controllers. You also get multiplayer support here, as the console features four controller ports. Emulation-focused Android handhelds may be able to compete with the Switch 2 and offer more versatility, but the Evercade VS-R undoubtedly has more retro character with its cartridge support — perfect for a little basement gaming nostalgia.

Arcade1Up may be known for its upright arcade cabinets, but its head-to-head collection is just as intriguing for many gamers. With two-player support and a set of controls on either side, the Ms. Pac-Man Head-to-Head Table offers plenty of fun with friends. The controls are surrounded by glowing lights for that old-school aesthetic, and there's a 17-inch color screen in the middle with an acrylic surface on top to protect it. Other than Ms. Pac-Man, this arcade table features 11 other games, including Rompers, Galaxian, Pac-Mania, Dig Dug, and Galaga.

You also get speakers on either side of the arcade table with adjustable volume. Like other products from Arcade1Up, you'll have to assemble this one yourself. Fortunately, Amazon reviewers say that it's relatively easy to put together, as it comes with clear instructions in the box. Put a pair of barstools on either side, and you have a solid centerpiece for a basement game area that won't take up much vertical space.

Most Marshal speakers already have a retro appearance, but the Acton IV amps up that effect with its physical knobs, a design similar to a guitar amplifier, and support for turntables thanks to the RCA input. Under the hood, you get a 60-watt woofer and two 25-watt tweeters, and the sound produced from these features strong brass and energetic highs. Because of the driver configuration, the Acton IV functions as a stereo speaker rather than a mono speaker. It's bigger than most Bluetooth speakers (which also tend to be mono), but at least it puts its size to good use.

Other than the great sound quality, this speaker is a joy to use simply because of the design. The exterior is faux leather, and the golden control panel on top has satisfying physical knobs, all of which would fit well in a retro basement motif. Other than the volume knob, you also get Bass and Treble knobs for equalizer (EQ) control. The only real downside is that the speaker lacks Wi-Fi connectivity, meaning there's no Google Cast or Apple AirPlay support. As a result, Bluetooth is the only option left available for wireless connectivity.

For this roundup of retro tech gadgets for the basement, we focused on products with a nostalgic appeal to them. Whether for gaming, listening to music, or just adding that retro charm, it was important for all our selections to look the part while still being usable in a modern setup. Our final selection mixes practical pieces like arcade cabinets, speakers, and turntables with a few novelty options (like the Divoom MiniToo Retro) that add a bit of character to a finished basement.

We cross-checked the specs and features from manufacturer listings, along with our findings on usability and features, against reviews from trusted outlets like WIRED, TechRadar, PCMag, What Hi-Fi, and CNET. For the audio-focused gadgets, it was important for each product to provide great sound quality while retaining the retro look. For consoles, ease-of-use, game availability, and HDMI support for modern TVs were key considerations. All of these products are currently available on Amazon or Best Buy and have generally positive feedback from both experts and users alike.