Gameboy Advance SP Released Today in North America

Txiasaeia writes "The latest version of Nintendo's venerable Gameboy has been released today in North America. The Gameboy Advance SP builds upon its predecessor by adding a front lit display, and a foldable design in order to protect the screen. Also, instead of using AA batteries to power the device, it uses a Lithium-Ion battery. Other than that, the basic architecture of the system remains the same as the original Gameboy Advance. Most online retailers' first shipment has been sold out, but my local Walmart had plenty of copies. Check out this Gamespy review." I snagged one at lunch today. The screen is vastly improved from the original GBA. Now the only question is how many Pokemon I can collect ;) (And yes Hemos, we got you one too ;)

Comments

Missing Features?

[Phucilage]

Unless I am completely insane, it seems they have forgotten to include a headphone jack on the unit I messed around with. Anyone else find it?

Re:Missing Features?

[thadeusPawlickiROX]

You aren't insane. There is no headphone jack... They released an adapter in Japan that connects via the the AC adapter port on the Game Boy. It's a strange way to do things, granted, and I'm not 100% if the headphone adapter is slated for US release (but I'd assume it will come out). It shouldn't be too expensive, but it's an odd feature to leave out.

What, ....

[phalse phace]

no link?

Re:GBA Cube?

[magicsquid]

The GameBoy Player is the device you're talking about. It's already been released in Japan, and it will be coming to the US in June or July. You can read hands-on impressions of it here at IGN.

Headphones

[heli0]

Those of you that will use this device in public may want to know that it does not have a headphone jack built-in. You have to buy a seperate add-on ($5) that plugs into the expansion port.

I picked up mine yesterday and the screen is evenly lit, and even the darkish Castlevania game is playable in a dim room.

The speaker is mono

[yerricde]

but it's truly bizarre that they didn't include it built in

For the same reason that tablet PCs and smaller laptop PCs don't have all the ports built in and need a "port replicator". There's just not enough space on the case.

after all it has a speaker anyway

Unlike the headphone connector, the internal speaker is monaural. Monaural audio is ill suited for first-person shooters such as Doom (now available for GBA) or 007 (coming soon for GBA).

The biggest problem that I have found so far with the description of the headphone/charger jack is that I haven't seen pictures of a headphone dongle with a passthru for AC, so I can't play with stereo sound and mains power at the same time; I would have to wait for the thing to recharge.

Re:Not an ergonomic design, though.

[handsomepete]

I have to disagree. The original GBA was like an overgrown SNES controller, so while it was a comfortable form, it always felt like my fingers were stretching just a little bit longer than they should, especially with the top buttons (yes, I know they were right there, but I always felt like I had to curve my fingertips around them). The SP fits in my hands perfectly and the top buttons feel good, but it's a pretty distinct size. If you have larger than normal hands it'll probably feel a little unnatural. The big positives for the new design (in my opinion - as with all other devices, your mileage may vary) are:

Sexy design. It looks slick.

Folds up to a size slightly larger than a pack of cigarettes. I can actually fit it in my pocket without walking funny.

Screen position can be adjusted so you can hold the unit flat but have the screen point at your face.

All that other stuff about the lit screen and rechargable battery pack is good too.

With one of the many GBA trade in opportunities at used game places, it can be had for $60. Wait until after E3 and I'll bet that'll go down at least $10.

I've had an import for several weeks now.....

[Malor]

I bought an import on EBay several weeks ago. I'm quite pleased with the system. I had previously bought Golden Sun and a GBA based on some strong reviews of it. I found the original GBA to be essentially unplayable. The small, dark screen was just too unpleasant for my adult (age 35) eyes to handle. I gave up on Golden Sun after a few hours.

The SP model is an amazing difference. I'd have preferred a true backlight, but what they provided is *almost* as good. It's a clever frontlighting system that puts some sort of glowing stripe on all four sides of the screen, hidden from view by the case.

The big problem with all the regular GBA lighting systems was that there were direct reflections and glare. (the Afterburner system is apparently better, but I haven't seen it.) This indirect front-lighting system is nearly perfect. You can see a sort of shimmering 'fringe' effect of widely-spaced squares (which I think are third-order reflections) if you are using it in a very dark room, but it's honestly barely noticeable, and about 20 seconds into the game you'll forget about it.

It seems pretty hard to use, though, in very bright light. This is a little ironic, because the original GBA required extremely bright light to be playable. This one is best in a slightly darkened room. The recessed screen doesn't pick up outside light sources well, and its frontlight is easily drowned out by more than normal room brightness. For outdoor use, you may actually prefer the original GBA.

Complaints: I wish the screen were just a *little* bigger, but it's usable. The lack of a headphone jack is also quite annoying. And I wish they'd stayed with regular AA batteries. I have the NiMH rechargeables, which pack an amazing amount of power in a small space. I'd have preferred to be able to charge up 2 or 3 pairs for an extended roadtrip. 10 hours isn't bad, but with regular AAs you have essentially unlimited battery life.

Nitpicks notwithstanding, this is the system Nintendo should have shipped originally. I'm quite happy with mine.

Re:TV Tuner???

[Newtonian_p]

Sure, you can get it here for $69.