Slashdot Mirror
GBA Getting Bluetooth
Tofuhead writes "nReach recently announced their development of a Bluetooth adapter for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance. P2P wireless gaming, internet gaming (via a USB adapter to a net-connected PC), and messaging are featured, as well as service "hot spots" that will be set up in game stores and malls. Release date: Q2 2002."
Countless children shall go blind soon after. I can't imagine a harder to see
screen then my cursed GBA.
internet gaming (via a USB adapter to a net-connected PC)
And here we see the problem that I think Bluetooth is still facing - there just isn't enough market penetration on PCs. What I would really like to see is something bluetooth-style on the desktop (rather than USB) so that I didn't have to mess with all those cables all the time.
For 'network games' you could run a server on the PC (or a multiplexer for internet games), then just sit around on couches playing, rather than all huddling up withing controller-cable distance, or getting off your lazy arse to go untagle medusa-the-controller-herd.
Ahh for time to play games (flash is responsible for all sorts of evils on the web, and time-wasting games numbers among them I say. I've just taken out a few minutes from flash-games on the web to write a slashdot comment, while my girlfriend takes off ahead on the laptop - I think she's about 3 levels ahead of me now dammit. Must stop slashdotting......)
Grrrrrreat. Can't wait until I have to sit through 5 minutes of ads aimed at 10-year-olds just so I can play MarioKart Advance with a friend.
He who refuses to do arithmetic is doomed to talk nonsense.
Can't you imagine all the games you'll be able to play? With all those hackers around I already see some Quake port for the GBA ;)
Picture this: Keeping fragging your friends at work while you're sitting on the throne... Well some games are better played with a mouse anyway
But still I see great future for this bluetooth addon. Like Instant Messaging is something I've always been looking forward to. Especially on mobile agents. And bluetooth could also give the GBA some video / audio capabilities. How about listening to your MP3s on the GBA?
I may be dreaming here. But hey who's not...
"I can't imagine a harder to see screen then my cursed GBA"
Ever use a Virtual Boy? Now THAT was a screen to make you go blind (four actually IIRC).
sin(6cos(r)+5A)
It's just CmdrTaco's typical editorial soapbox comment that he attaches to most stories.
On a more positive note, this bluetooth adapter sounds awesome. Can anybody comment on the hackability factor of the GBA? I'd buy one if I could hop onto any wireless network for surfing, email, etc.
Jeez. The screen is fine, folks. You need to learn how to turn on the lights!
In fact, the screen is better than GBC's, and *loads* better than the original Game Boy's. (Dig yours out and see if you like the pale green and shadowing better..) Yet, these systems are very popular and successful. (Did you know that Nintendo had the #1 revenue in video games last year, despite the PS2 and Dreamcast release? Nearly twice Sony's earnings, and it was mostly the GBC.)
It would be nice if there were a back-lit version (I wouldn't buy it unless it had a long battery life, though), or if developers didn't make games with such dark graphics (castlevania...), but seriously, there are much worse things to complain about. How about a highly portable laptop that lasts more than 3 hours on battery? An input device that doesn't give you RSI? A car that doesn't pollute?
oddly enough, the screen is pretty damn good outside (natural light). which is where its portability comes in useful. (outside)
Instead of dictating that "battery live = good, backlight = bad", it would have been great if Nintendo could let us make the decision. Add a user-controlled backlight (like my Palm IIIxe), so that I'm responsible for managing the tradeoffs between battery live and having a viewable screen.
Slashdot: come for the pedantry, stay for the condescension.