Not true, at least not in this all encompassing clickbait sense. $25 buys you a hackable R36S with 4 core cpu, 1gb ram, runs Debian off dual microsd with dual usb-c for any peripherials, swappable battery, emulation perf up to PSX. There are many more cheap, capable options.

I'd say "retro console" in the linux handheld sense is the best value hobby gadget to buy for the HN crowd.