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Portable GameCube
Bodero writes: "After Slashdot ran a story about the Portable N64 over a month ago, many of us have been enlightened to the idea of portable home console systems. The Portable N64 was more of a novelty item whose cost and development factor outweighed its feasibility. However, IGN Cube is running a hardware review on the Interact Mobile Monitor 5.4, a 5.4" LCD that hooks up to your gamecube, providing a screen and power from either AC or an included car adapter. All that for only $150. For only $50 more, Interact sells an optional battery pack, which IGN claims can power the GameCube and monitor for up to three hours."
Now I'll get run off the road by some guy playing Luigi's castle instead of reading his morning paper? Isn't progress grand?
...$400 and it becomes portable for 3 hours of play. (Game cube retail $199 + 150 screen + $50 battery pack.)
This is getting into used laptop territory. Why would I want this GB setup when I can buy a used laptop with 10.4 inch active matrix screen and 5 hours of gameplay?
I think their price point is a little high. Maybe for $250 it would be sweet. At $400 it is for the rich kid that has everything and needs one more thing for the closet.
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Give me LIBERTY, or give me a check.
Over at Emugaming.com they have a short but informative article on IGN's portable GameCube. Includes some nice pictures.
What do you think of MusicCity now?
something like this is already out for the XBox, it's called a TV! if you have room for the XBox you can bring a television too :)
I used to work for InterAct Accessories, Inc.
;) In conclusion, I wouldn't purchase this product, it's most likely produced by STD, and will probably break for you in the not so near future.
First off, let me tell you that Interact has a very close business relationship with IGN. IGN/Snowball now hosts their website. In turn GameShark provides them exclusive codes, and other perks. So I don't trust this review very well to begin with.
I no longer work for them now, but I can tell you this, InterAct products are not of good quality. In fact InterAct makes no actual products. They are outsourced from two major companies, one, STD based in China, and Datel based in the UK. Datel makes semi-decent products (eg, GameShark), but STD makes shit products. For example, STD produced a Lightgun for the Dreamcast, not only was the Lightgun made of poor housing materials, but the aim wasn't accurate. It would shoot about an inch to the upper left of where you actually were targetting. When Interact gave STD a call to ask what was up about the lightguns, STD's response was merely, "Sorry, we're not very good at making lightguns." I'm glad I didn't work in customer service, because they god a beating all the time. Nintendo 64 GameSharks will fry randomly. Interact really didn't bother pressure Datel to figure out why, and just kept making them.
Secondly, InterAct/Datel has violated the GPL multiple times. Anyone that's listening, the GameShark that was produced for the PC (another horrible product, and has been discontinued), includes an MP3 player. The MP3 player is not of their own creation, but merely a hacked up version of FreeAmp, which they sold and never released the source too. As you can see I have a lot of greif with this company, so my views are a bit slanted myself
..There's a-dooin's a-transpirin'
natural progression of technology via miniaturisation and improvements in power consumption. We've already witnessed essentially the SNES being shrunk into the Gameboy Advance. The next handheld will surely be a shrunken version of the N64, and so on.
We're only really up to the second generation of portable consoles, so these things are naturally surprising to us. Not that I'm putting it down - I think we'll see a lot more power in portable gaming/computing units in future. I think the issue that needs to be addressed now is battery life.
Perhaps combining those technologies that provide power from body movement (eg, rapidly moving thumbs) with these handhelds is the answer...
This sounds like a fun device for those plane rides. I would think that the GameCube and the LCD screen don't put out enough RF to really interfere with the plane. I could get three hours of Rogue Squadron or Super Smash Brothers lovin'! That would make the ride THAT much more bearable. Of course, you'd also have about a dozen little kids clamoring all over your seat trying to play. You could then charge admission or something and make back your plane fare. :)
Where the wind blows, the tumbleweed goes.
I agree with you. I have a feeling Nintendo designed not just a powerful home system, but their next portable system in the next 5 years.
Think about that... by the time it launches you have a library of 500 or so games. Heck, by then they might even have an 802.11 adapter for it. Imagine the LAN Party you could have then? Everybody brings their GBA sized GCN and their Network cards, somebody sets up a cheap $100 wireless hub, and everybody sits around an apartment playing a cool game.
Heck.. have the party at StarBuck's or something. Heh.
"Derp de derp."
Are you the guy that made the Xbox controller? I'm asking because you apparently can fit both a flatpanel and a PS2 in your hands...
Wow, now that I think about it that really does make sense. I mean why else would they have gone with such small sized media (those mini dvd-rom things).
Doesn't really make since to cut the size of your game discs down so much, especially when your last gaming system was flamed so much for having cartridges that were lacking in space. They must be doing it so when they come out with the portable game cube all the games will still work fine.
Interesting.
FiGZ.COM - A waste of perfectly good web space
I fear purchasing one so my girlfriend doesn't think I'm gay.