Gameboy Advance SP Reviewed & Disassembled

lotech writes "lik-sang has a review with full photos of the new Nintendo Ganeboy Advance SP. Not just supplying heaps of photos they have even beaten the pack on voiding the warranty and include heaps of internal photos. The handheld market is heating up with new releases from Nokia too and also the feature packed GP32. Oh and maybe then there maybe some Sony competition soon?"

Comments

On the box it reads:

[Lethyos]

"New front light screen"

Sounds a lot like engrish to me.

"GameBoy SP new and much enjoyable front light screen! All GameBoy games can you have play!"

Re:On the box it reads:

[MidnightBrewer]

It's the same in Japanese, actually. They just use the English. :)

This is the TiBook of handheld consoles...

[Max Romantschuk]

No, seriously... I really think it looks much cooler than the stuff Nintendo has done so far. Anyone else think it's all or partially Apples "fault"? And I mean that as a good thing.

Linux?

[TiMac]

So who's gonna be the first Slashdotter to get a Linux distro to run on it?

PS2...Xbox.....Gameboy Advance?

No...it's not ENTIRELY flamebait. :)

With the size of a mini CD I don't see why Sony ..

[adzoox]

With the size of a mini CD I don't see why Sony ... could make something with a 3 inch screen and mini DVD and integrated controls. No expnsion slot needed just USB for ethernet, memory, etc.

Make it capable of using Mini DVD Videos like the Hitachi Camcorders. Other features: TV out, USB, Mp3 capability. I think this would be a popular convergence.

They could even release 5 game PS1 packs on one mini DVD. Most of those games were 100 - 300 MB.

I believe battery technology is where it would need to be for a unit like this as well.

More GBA SP Impressions

[Omkar]

Here (PGC)
and some nice pics Here. Boy, this is late!

Gameboy is made by NINTENDO, not Sony.

[Viewsonic]

But either way, none of Sonys products are competing with the Gameboy as they're all over $100 and arent specifically for games. They're PDAs first and formost, while games are at the bottom of the list, which is why the Gameboy will never be replaced. Same with the Nokia unit, it's nearly $400-500 and is a clunky phone first, and a game machine second. Wont work.

And another new console design...

[Memetic]

Another new design called B'ngo,a sub $200 handheld console / phone is covered on The Register.

Cynical Nintendo marketing or just bad design?

[DrXym]

The GBA shipped with a shiny, glarey, barely visible screen with no backlight. Was this just gross incompetance on the part of Nintendo or part of some scheme to keep selling us new models that promise to fix the massive deficiencies in the last one? I find it hard to believe they didn't know, all the way through developing and testing the thing that the screen was so appalling. How much would the backlight circuitry have cost them? A few cents maybe?

Frankly, I might have bought more games for my GBA if I thought I could actually see them. Instead it sits in a drawer except for occasional forays in good lighting. Nintendo can go to hell if they think I'm going to make the same mistake twice.

Re:Cynical Nintendo marketing or just bad design?

[SkreamNet]

One big selling point of the GameBoy has always been long battery life. Lighted screens eat battery life. Therefore Nintendo tried to make a screen that made the most of ambient light rather than to backlight it. I know of a lot of folks that appreciated that, and had no problems with the screen. My palm has a backlight, but I never turn the thing on... same with my TV's remote control. I'm not willing to lose the battery life.

Re:Cynical Nintendo marketing or just bad design?

[moncyb]

Why don't they put a hand crank on the side so you can recharge the thing? Then they could have a really bright screen and a fast power-hungry processor. I can see it now. All the kiddies playing their games and cranking on the box like a monkey! Well, okay, more like the organ grinder who owns the monkey. In fact, the game's goal could be to keep the unit charged. ;-)

So sell your GBA on ebay, and get a SP....

[Viewsonic]

Geesh, with all the awesome games on the GBA, you'll be missing out bigtime. Unless games really dont mean much to you. Or just get the GBAPlayer for the GameCube when that comes for 40 bux.

Nintendo Finally Does it Right

[antinous57]

After fumbling around trying to find the best source for light, whether it be my lamp in the living room or the ever annoying 'Worm Light' attachment, the Gameboy will come with a backlit screen. Not only that, but a rechargeable battery that comes standard, and a price tag (albeit you don't import it before the US release date) that will be less than $100. It will make it worth my time to give games like Castlevania a second look considering the first time I played the game I couldn't even see the game b/c the screen was so dark.

DMCA Timer

[OffTheRack]

It's nice to see inside of these devices without having the crack open one yourself. How long before DMCA is used by a company to prosecute anyone that shares such photos? Does anyone know if that has already happened?

crash test

[mirko]

Funny you should mention that because Lik Sang also published some GBSP crash test videos :

• http://media.lik-sang.com/content/gbasp-crash/gb asp-extreme-crashtest-liksang_com2.avi
  
• http://media.lik-sang.com/content/gbasp-crash/gb asp-extreme-crashtest-liksang_com3.avi
  
• http://media.lik-sang.com/content/gbasp-crash/gb asp-extreme-crashtest-liksang_com4.avi
  
• http://media.lik-sang.com/content/gbasp-crash/gb asp-extreme-crashtest-liksang_com5.avi

Re:GBA-SP has no region lockout that the GBA had.

[hyphz]

The GBA did not have regional lockout.

Americans get screwed

[Nakanai_de]

I just thought I'd point out that, here in Japan, the GBA-SP comes in 3 colors: silver, cobalt, and black. The U.S. version will only come in the first two. (IMO, this sucks, as black is the coolest.)

No Competition

[GweeDo]

As of right now the GBA has no competition at all. The GP32 can't even been seen as an issue due to its pure lack of power. While it has a higher MHZ rating it doesn't have any special hardware to deal with sprite effects, background effects and more...this is where the GBA really out muscles it. The Nokia NGage is still a vague object on the horizon if you ask me. And when we finally do get to truely see it, it will be an over priced monster without support from the big channels that it needs and with a customer base that is too small. The GBA SP is just Nintendo's next step in maintaining their control on this market.

Re:With the size of a mini CD I don't see why Sony

[Anonymous Coward]

If a PSOne + 4" LCD screen without battery or integrated controller costs $150, how much do you think your smaller version with integrated controller, 3" screen, hi-capacity battery (because of all the freaking MOVING PARTS), USB, and mini-DVD drive instead of a regular CD drive cost?

If your answer is $200 or more, congratulations, you have yourself a portable system that will sell so few numbers as to be unprofitable, and therefore unfeasible for any smart company to produce.

More likely scenario is that SUCCESSFUL portable game systems NEVER "evolve" to use optical media drives which use moving parts. They are OLD/inferior technology compared to current high-capacity solid-state storage media, and are completely unsuited to portability. Think discman vs. mp3 player. Nintendo will own this market for as long as they stick to cartridge-based portables that maintain compatibility with older software. The real next step, hopefully, will be a GB with back-compatility, front-lit screen, full complement of 6 or more buttons not counting select and start, wireless connectivity of some sort, minimum 16-bit 22.05 KHz 2MB wavetable sound, and Playstation-level 3d hardware. Such a system that is durable enough to be handled by children will not hit the $100 magic price point for another 4-5 years at least.

Re:With the size of a mini CD I don't see why Sony

[adzoox]

Current, "nearly CD diameter" CD Players get 20 hours off of two AA batteries. A Casio 4" TV gets about 4 hours off of two AA batteries. With a higher capacity LI ON or Polymer battery like the iPod has in it, the ability to play Mp3's and watch movies - like the rumored video iPod - could EASILY sell millions of units at $199. The gamecube could be shrunk, less controller, less bulk, less packaging = possibility to add the features I have mentioned. There would be almost ZERO cost for production (a little R&D) to produce a Gameboy cart interface for it. An entire gameboy "electronics set fits into a space about the size of a gameboy cart!

Besides, who YET has money money initially selling the hardware?

And I disagree with you. Cart games are EXPENSIVE to produce. optical games can be cranked out up to 20X faster and if I read right at Tokyo ETimes about this; a total "optical game" package costs even after royalty for about $4-$7 US. A cart costs up to $15 to produce.

Nintendo has LOST the home war. They will soon lose the portable war if they don't come up with something better than cartridges.

Re:With the size of a mini CD I don't see why Sony

[Guppy06]

"I don't see why Sony ... could make something with a 3 inch screen and mini DVD and integrated controls."

Because maybe Game Boy has been eating technilogically superior handhelds for breakfast for the better part of a decade now and Sony isn't dumb enough to spend all that R & D money on cannon fodder?

"I believe battery technology is where it would need to be for a unit like this as well."

This new Game Boy uses a Li-ion battery. What more do you want?