Game Boy Advance SP – Platinum
Product Description
Strong 32-bit processor. Huge screen. Splendid multiplayer features. Nintendo GameCube connectivity. And it slips easily into you hip pocket. The Game Boy Advance SP with the revolutionary Front Light Screen. Get your game on, even in the dark. Brilliant.Amazon.com Review
Early Adopters Pick: March 2003. As the world’s nominal video-game platform, the Game Boy Advance SP is also the first to use a built-in rechargeable array.
Many decried the original Game Boy Advance’s reflective LCD screen and its dependence on external light sources. The Game Boy Advance SP’s main feature–optional backlighting–fixes this complaint nicely, but it’s the wealth of other features that makes this system so surprisingly excellent.
At first look, you might reflect the SP is a sleek travel alarm timer. When closed, it’s just as tall and deep as the original GBA, but only half as wide. Due to its clamshell design, the screen is always protected from everyday scratches. A small button in the center of the console turns on the backlighting element for use in low-light situations, like in a moving car.
The SP comes with a well-designed potential adapter that recharges a built-in array; its prongs fold in for simpler storage. Our informal tests found that it takes about four hours to fully charge (you can even play it while it’s plugged in and charging), and the array lasts about 11 hours with the backlighting constantly on–your results may vary. Using the backlighting less often will conserve array potential.
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| With separately sold cables, you can connect the Game Boy Advance SP to other GBAs for multiplayer gaming (above) or to the Nintendo GameCube (not more than) to access secret levels, exchange data, or use other special features that vary from game to game. |
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The quality of the backlighting is very excellent. It’s bright and clear when looking directly at it, but degraded from other angles. This is only a conundrum for friends who are watching the screen from over your shoulder.
But size, potential, and affordability do not come without trade offs. There’s no headphone jack here, though Nintendo promises an adapter. The system isn’t very loud at its highest volume, and the sound can be turned down to socially acceptable levels. The L and R shoulder buttons are a fraction of the size they were on the GBA, and thus are harder to hit. Also, the reduced size of the SP is slightly less comfortable for adult hands than the GBA, but perhaps more comfortable for smaller hands. The cartridge port residency on the lower part of the console is fine for GBA sports meeting, since they are flush with the console body, but grown-up Game Boy Affect carts will stick out in a way that takes some getting used to.
Open it up and the hinge will seek out a preferred, pre-set angle (about 150 degrees), though you can open it a bit wider or narrower for your own comfort. The hinge stands up well to lateral pressure, and over all, the SP seems just as rugged as its predecessor–which has proven to be very rugged, indeed. –gatekeeper B. Hall
Unit Specifications
- CPU: 32-Bit ARM with embedded memory
- Memory: 32 KB with 96 KB VRAM (in CPU), 256 KB WRAM (external of CPU)
- Screen: 2.9-inch reflective TFT affect LCD
- Show Size: 1.6 by 2.4 inches (40.8 by 61.2 mm)
- Resolution: 240 x 160 pixels in a wide-screen aspect ratio
- Colors: 511 simultaneous colors from a palette of 32,768
- Software: Fully compatible with Game Boy and Game Boy Affect game paks
- Light Fund: Front light integrated with LCD
- Size (closed): 3.3 by 3.23 by .96 inch
- Weight: Approximately 5 ounces
- Potential Supply: Rechargeable lithium-ion array
- Array Life: 10 hours continuous play with light on; 18 hours with light off; 3 hours recharging
Buy Cheap Game Boy Advance SP – Platinum
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nintendo headquarters 2002. Ceo: hey since our NES and SNES are dead and buried in the grave. and we hardly make cash with our N64 and Game Cube, and the GBA everyone is whining about the no backlit screen What are we going to do? Manager: I know why not make a GBA that looks like a lap top computer with the same 32 bit graphics just with a backlit screen. Ceo: I agree we wouldn’t bother to increase the graphics just add a backlit screen with the same graphics hopefully costomers will not notice that. Manager: yeah and we will even place Sony and Sega out of affair with this. Ceo: brother i couldn’t agree more. now on to the review this thing is no better than the original all of you are decieved not me. i’m not wasting cash over this at all. IT stinks just like the original.
Rating: 1 / 5
HELO THIS SYSTEM SUCKS I HATE THE SCREEN WAS SCARCHED WHEN I GOT IT THE BATTERY WAS MISSING AND YOU KNOW WHAT IT WAS MISSING THE CHARGER MY SON WAS VERY DISSAPOINTED SO WERE SWICTHED TO N GAGE THE ARE SO MUCH BETTER 3 D GRAPHICS AND EVERYTHIG NO HE IS SO HAPPY EVERY DAY HE THANKS ME DONT BUY A SP THEY SUCK OR JUST WAIT UNTIL SONY COMES OUT WITH PSP SO PLEASE DONT MAKE YOUR SON DISSAPOINTED
Rating: 1 / 5
Nintendo is going down the drain with Gamecube, and we all know it. The statistics show that both Xbox and PS2 are prefered over Gamecube, and they lose more cash on it everyday. Nintendo’s solution? Make a new gameboy advance! I mean, everyone who wanted a GBA already has one, and the people wanting to get one are probably not going to spend 30 dollars more for a smaller one. And I don’t really trust this foldable design, because it is more fragile. And a rechargable array? Those go down to 7 dollars each! And there are afterburner kits around for the light… The only reason I am looking forward to this is because the originals will go down in price.
Rating: 1 / 5
Wow!! How dreadful. The GameBoySP is pointless to get. I expected more from Nintendo [on the Cube, too]. The SP was just a cheap trick to get more cash from you fools out there who bought it. Lets list the minuses.
1]It plays all Gameboy sports meeting, yet it has none of its own kind, so you don’t HAVE to buy it
2]Graphics aren’t much of an improvement
3]It cost 100 dollars.
4]It isn’t worth it.
5]It’s another change in shape you have to get used to
6]Not many excellent sports meeting [for all sports meeting]
7]’Lit screen’ add-in is terrible, buy a real one
I leave you with my message
Don’t get tha SP
Rating: 1 / 5
when i got my gba, 2 years ago, i thought it would last for at least 5 or 6 years on the top of the handheld market. but, nintendo unwisely released the sp, a machine twice as large and with the same 32-bit-engine, but backlit, and charge more for it. why? why? WHY??????????????
Rating: 1 / 5