Anbernic adds Google Play support to RG Vita Pro firmware update

Anbernic just made the RG Vita Pro feel a lot less like a workaround machine. The handheld’s v1.1.4 firmware, pushed on May 20, 2026, brought Google Play support to the stock Android build, which means owners can now move straight into the Play Store without hunting for custom images or juggling third-party app stores.

The update arrives over the air through Anbernic’s FOTA app, so the process is as unglamorous as it is useful: download, reboot, and the Play Store icon shows up on the home screen. That matters because the RG Vita Pro launched without Google Play services, and a lot of early owners quickly jumped to GammaOS Next to get the kind of app access and day-one usability the stock software did not offer. With v1.1.4, Anbernic finally closes part of that gap on its own firmware instead of leaving Android users to fill it themselves.

This is not just a storefront patch dressed up as a major release. Anbernic framed the update as a general software polish pass, with system optimizations and bug fixes folded in alongside Google Play support. On a handheld like the RG Vita Pro, that combination changes the daily friction points that matter most: installing emulator front ends, grabbing updates for Android apps, and keeping the device in sync with the broader Android ecosystem without extra hacks.

The move also fits a pattern that has been showing up more often across Anbernic’s recent hardware. The company has been more willing to ship device-specific software improvements, including a day-one update for the RG Rotate and an official Linux build for the RG DS. For the RG Vita Pro, though, the win is immediate and practical. Stock Android now starts closer to where custom firmware had already taken the machine, and that makes v1.1.4 the kind of update you notice the first time you sit down to install something instead of troubleshooting it.