The ongoing trade dispute between the United States and China is beginning to show more visible effects on electronics and gaming hardware. With tariffs now reaching up to 145% on certain imports from China, companies in the PC and gaming accessories space are dealing with new challenges. One such company is 8BitDo, known for its retro-style controllers, keyboards, and other accessories.
A recent report from Polygon revealed that 8BitDo is currently unable to ship many of its products to US customers if those items are not already stocked in a domestic warehouse. This restriction is not clearly stated on product pages or other areas of the company’s website. Instead, the message appears only at checkout, after items have been added to the cart and the customer enters a US shipping address.
When we tested this ourselves, we received a general error message that read: “Shipping not available. Your order cannot be shipped to the selected address. Review your address to ensure it’s correct and try again, or select a different address.” Unlike Polygon’s test, which included item-specific messages, the response during our test did not mention which product triggered the issue. This lack of clear communication on the site could lead to confusion for US buyers trying to place orders directly.
Some 8BitDo items are still available in the US through other retailers. For example, the 8BitDo Retro Mechanical Keyboard C64 Edition, which could not be ordered through the company’s site, was listed on Amazon at $99.99. This suggests that stock held by third-party sellers or US warehouses is not currently affected.
This situation is part of a larger pattern. Framework, a company that produces modular laptops, also raised prices and paused some orders due to the tariffs earlier this year. The company later resumed US sales after exemptions were announced for specific categories like laptops and smartphones. However, these exemptions do not appear to include the types of products made by 8BitDo.
In recent weeks, other disruptions have emerged across the consumer electronics space. Retailers have reportedly suspended pre-orders for the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 due to concerns about tariff-related costs. Gamers Nexus also released a detailed report on how the increased import fees are causing supply issues, pricing uncertainty, and order delays for many PC hardware vendors and system builders based in the US.
Until further decisions are made at the policy level, it is likely that companies sourcing products from China will continue to face shipping restrictions, increased costs, or both. For customers in the US, this may result in limited availability or higher prices for some popular accessories and components.
