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Games Entertainment

GBA Getting Bluetooth 137

Posted by CmdrTaco from the i-got-no-strings-to-hold-me-down dept.
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.
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GBA Getting Bluetooth More

GBA Getting Bluetooth

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  • Blasphemy, though it is hard to see. Get a friggin' light.
    • or you can get the magnifying glass add-on.
    • I can't imagine a harder to see screen then my cursed GBA.

      Oh yeah? I put the crappiness of this Palm 505 screen up against your GBA any day!

  • Just buy the GBA to TV Adaptor if its hard to see. (Score:1, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I forget who makes it, but it's available. It around $70 and basically snaps to the bottom of the GBA and has 3 RCA plugs out that are for Video/Stereo output.

  • GBA (Score:5, Funny)

    by Refrag ( 145266 ) on Thursday December 27, 2001 @09:06AM (#2754615) Homepage
    If CmdrTaco hates his GBA so much, why doesn't he autograph it and sell it on eBay? That should net VA Software some revenues at least...

    • Re:GBA (Score:3, Insightful)

      by b_pretender ( 105284 )
      Countless children shall go blind soon after. I can't imagine a harder to see screen then my cursed GBA.

      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.

      • Re:GBA (Score:3, Informative)

        by rbeattie ( 43187 )
        hackability factor of the GBA? Good question!

        I just got my GBA for Christmas (yes, I'm 30 years old... what's your point?) and the first thing I started thinking about was how to start programming for it. Here's some of the stuff I found:

        And of course a Google search will bring up a bunch more, but these are the nicest I've found so far. The last link is great because it has "demo" programs that include the code - which is key for learning how the insides of this thing work. There's an asteroids example that's really nice.

        One thing that I just realized is that the GBA is based on a ARM/Thumb processor and includes a "Z80 like" processor also for when you insert GBC games. This is pretty wild. I think I'll submit an article to /. on how many companies are using ARM-based processors now. I just read that Simbian has just been ported to the ARM, PocketPCs use them exclusively, etc.

        -Russ

  • GBA woes... (Score:2, Offtopic)

    by dolo666 ( 195584 )
    Instant messaging for GBA. Now that's a dumb idea. GBA is just a whack product that makes me angry thinking about it.

    I bought my wife a GBA because she really wanted it. As soon as we brought it home we realized it was missing something! Backlighting. DUH. I'm spoiled but I guess I just thought that the people at Nintendo weren't stupid. Guess I was wrong.

    So I went back to the store and picked up a "Shark Lite". What a poor product! Whenever she tried to play with the Shark Lite, it would be in her way or it would cause a reflective glare.

    Back to the lamp behind her head while she plays. Oh the whole GBA backlight problem gives me post-purchase depression.

    What a nuisance it is to try and play a game on the GBA when you need to position yourself in a contorted manner just to get to see what you're doing in the game.

    Who knows, maybe my 1 year old daughter will find a use for it.

    • Re:GBA woes... (Score:2, Informative)

      by DGolden ( 17848 )
      Older Gameboys weren't backlit. Didn't stop millions of people buying them and playing them.
      All in all, I'm quite happy with my GBA, and can see it fine during daylight ("daylight, what's that?" cry 10,000 slashdot geeks) or with any electric lights at approx 60 watt tungsten-filament-bulb equivalent or above - i.e. anywhere I'd normally care to play it - and for those places where I wouldn't normally play it, there's GBA-compatible (with cable-pass-through) white-led worm lights available now (at least here in Ireland), which work fine for me.

      Honestly, you didn't expect to play older gameboys in the dark without a light, why should the GBA be different? Historically, backlit color handhelds didn't do well in the marketplace, because their battery life was so short, and seeing as the GBA is targetted at kids, who will mainly be using it in daylight anyway, one would hope.

      Now, if you live inside the artic circle, I suppose that the constant darkness in winter could make it a little more difficult... ;-)

      • Re:GBA woes... (Score:3, Interesting)

        by Junks Jerzey ( 54586 )
        Honestly, you didn't expect to play older gameboys in the dark without a light, why should the GBA be different?

        Once you've played a handheld with backlighting--I'm thinking specifically of the Atari Lynx--then you're spoiled forever.
      • No shit older gaemboys weren't backlit. It didn't matter. They were black and white and used traditional LCDs rather than reflective. With reflect you can't see shit at all unless you have an excellent light source. Compare that to a LCD watch and you will get the point.
      • Funny I play my GBA in a room with about 40-48 watts of compact fluorescent lighting which is I guess equivalent to about 150-200 watts of conventional bulbs. Or about the same amount of light for reading. Which is funny because I play GBA in the same spots I read. Funny huh? The advantage of the GBA is that it doesn't wash out the way even a TFT backlit sceen does. While I wouldn't mind an improved OLED display or a Side-lit screen using special materials, the price was right for a reflective display.

        Oh The GBA is targeted at classic gamers _and_ kids. It's the last best hope for 2-d tile based gaming. Oh well there is always Emulation to fall back on if gaming companies abandon us 2-d classic gamers.

        As for the artic circle that midnight sun during summer has to be a real seasonal boon for GBA users.

    • Re:GBA woes... (Score:3, Informative)

      by Mwongozi ( 176765 )

      Here in the UK (And probably elsewhere as well) they sell a neat little light for the GBA that's called the "GBA Floodlights". (Or something similar.)

      They work really well, take a look at photos of mine [mwongozi.net].

      I like the sound of the Bluetooth adapter, if only for multiplayer gaming without the damned wire...

      • i have one of those as well, it was branded a 'TrapLight' and works great. last night i replaced each bulb with 2 bright white LEDs and boy howdy is it nice now. you can move the arms farther away from thier normal upright position and it completely eliminates glare, but lights up my whole darkened bedroom. havent seen how long the batteries last yet, but so far so good.
        • oh yeah, it goes for $9.99 USD, ive seen it online as low as $6.99 (course, i just put $20 worth of LEDs into the thing, but hey, i can see now).
          also, flourescent lights work great, my biggest use for the thing is sitting someplace waitnig for something. customer service, food order to be ready, etc.
          • Can you suggest anywhere online that sells them? Because I'm sick of having to get up out of bed and turn the light out after I decide to end my nightly Golden Sun playing spree.
    • There's this light called the "Glow Guard" (it acts as a screen protector as well, hence "guard").

      It uses a very subtle "white, flourenscent looking" light and works very well - it makes the GBA screen appear backlit.

      $10 CDN at "Superstore" (in Canada).

  • Lack of Bluetooth on PCs (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Bronster ( 13157 ) <slashdot@brong.net> on Thursday December 27, 2001 @09:07AM (#2754617) Homepage
    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......)

    • Re:Lack of Bluetooth on PCs (Score:5, Informative)

      by Refrag ( 145266 ) on Thursday December 27, 2001 @09:11AM (#2754627) Homepage
      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.
      You would still have cables, unless all of your devices were battery powered. That is the one thing people keep forgetting when they talk about Bluetooth and PCs. FireWire and USB both carry power, allowing you to connect most devices with only one cable -- which you'd be doing anyway even with Bluetooth.

      Bluetooth only belongs on devices with their own power source, it isn't a replacement for FireWire or USB.

      • Re:Lack of Bluetooth on PCs (Score:4, Interesting)

        by Bronster ( 13157 ) <slashdot@brong.net> on Thursday December 27, 2001 @09:19AM (#2754647) Homepage
        You would still have cables, unless all of your devices were battery powered. That is the one thing people keep forgetting when they talk about Bluetooth and PCs. FireWire and USB both carry power, allowing you to connect most devices with only one cable -- which you'd be doing anyway even with Bluetooth.

        Sure - an example from right here in front of me is the Logitech Cordless Wheel Mouse[tm]. I am so in love with this thing (or something). It's responsive, reliable, chews through a couple of AAA's every year or so with my use (which is quite a lot) - I think last time I replaced them because it was being jerky, it was actually Windows bitrot, and changing the batteries didn't fix things - but I thought at the rate it eats them, no worries.

        What I'd like is for something in the PC to talk directly to the mouse, rather than having a PS/2 dongle hanging off to talk to it.

        Yes, there are issues with synchronising in a busy room - I'm sure they can be handled. Again, I think the logitech 'hold down this button on both devices' theory is good - make it a button on the front of the PC, and chances are very good that two people, even in a crowded office, won't try it at the same time. If they do, it could even detect that and emit a beep or similar, then use good old 'backoff for a couple of minutes or so and try again'.

        If I had keyboard and mouse chatting bluetooth, it would be a great start. Sure I can get the Logitech equipment that does that, but I have to have the connector box, and I can't move it from one machine to another. Add in a palm-type device that chats directly with the same protocol (no more lining up IR ports), and all would be wonderful.

        Don't mind my pipe-dreams, I see that ASIO are listening already, without needing radio equipment on my desk making their job easier. After all, I'm a subversive Linux user/probably hacker or virus writer.
        • I recognize the pains in getting wireless.
          My portable has only one usb port so I've set
          up a USB hub to be able to use my logitech
          cordless desktop. Yes it's one radio receiver
          with two very long cables attached! Add the USB cable and power cable to the hub and you have
          more cable than you can imagine...

          Any wireless idea is pretty much useless if it's connected by wire. So logitech, bluetooth, WiFi and the rest must get inside the hosts, and anyone making external accessories must realize that if they have a good product their market will disappear as soon as this happens.

          I've yet to see if portable computers with built in antennas will work. Compaq has something (expensive) going with their multiport, but first they should make sure their computers don't reboot when you get a call on your cellular.
      • i think the orginal poster was talking about bluetooth on a motherboard powered by your power supply
    • You may run into throughput problems, though. Bluetooth has a maximum bandwidth of 1Mbps, which can be degraded by the presence of other bluetooth devices or 802.11 signals. Plus then you are also sharing this bandwidth with X other players.

      May not be a big deal, but I remember when people were raving about USB devices because it gave them 12Mbps, decreasing their response time in games like Unreal and such.

      Just a thought.
      • Uh, whoever they were, they were morons. Bandwidth and latency aren't the same thing, more bandwidth won't do jack for your response times.

        Bluetooth may (I'm not sure) suffer from latency issues, but 1Mbps is more than enough for a mouse.
      • has a maximum bandwidth of 1Mbps, which can be degraded by the presence of other bluetooth devices or 802.11 signals.

        May not be a big deal, but I remember when people were raving about USB devices because it gave them 12Mbps, decreasing their response time in games like Unreal and such.

        I probably wouldn't be playing Unreal with it - but that is a good point actually - I guess in a cubical farm, anything networkish is going to want to play nice with a lot of other machines. For home use though, there wouldn't be _that_ many other devices competing.

        Ok, so bluetooth on the desktop maybe isn't such a good idea, but I'd still like to see bluetooth integrated with the motherboard, so that I didn't have to plug in a USB dongle/cable to talk to every little handheld device.
    • For me the major annoyance is the lack of a Bluetooth solution for the TRGpro (Palm III style case plus CF slot). I've got the Ericsson T28 compatible Bluetooth wireless handsfree kit, and as a wireless handsfree kit it rocks, but I really want to be able to check my email from my Palm without taking my mobile out of my pocket. Does anyone know how a BT TRGpro/Handera solution is coming along? Maybe I'll be able to wirelessly check my email on a GBA before I'll be able to do it on the Palm I specifically purchased for that activity.
      • Well, Socket makes a CF Bluetooth card:
        http://www.socketcom.com/product/bluetoothcard.h tm

        and IBM's AlphaWorks has a Palm Bluetooth stack:
        http://www.alphaworks.ibm.com/tech/bluetooth4pal m

        Theoretically, it should work. Theoretically. :-)

  • Backlit screen (Score:5, Informative)

    by SealBeater ( 143912 ) on Thursday December 27, 2001 @09:09AM (#2754620) Homepage
    Regarding the visability of the GBA, there is a project to modify it with a
    clear screen that serves the purpose of a backlight. You can visit the page
    and view screenshots here [portablemonopoly.com].
    Basically, people are just waiting for the guy to finish negotiations with the
    suppliers. He expects the cost to be about the price of a game, all said and
    done.

    SealBeater

  • AdBoy Advance (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Dan Crash ( 22904 )
    From the nReach products index [nreach.com] page: "The company is well positioned with this new product to introduce a cost effective solution for retailers and advertisers to reach the teen and 'tween' market through the most successful handheld device released in the United States."

    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.

  • Screen not bad (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Apreche ( 239272 ) on Thursday December 27, 2001 @09:13AM (#2754630) Homepage Journal
    I see nothing wrong with the GBA screen other than the dependency on lighting. Which I'm willing to accept because it means highly increased battery life. Other than that it's a vast improvement on past gameboys.

    As for this internet connection thing. It's pretty cool and all. But I'm so not buying into it. First of all, it's not an officially licensed Nintendo product. 3rd party hardware and peripherals suck. Also, if I'm going to play a game online, why would I sit next to a computer with a little GBA and a USB cable? I have a COMPUTER, I'll play me some (insert 3d online multiplayer game). Now what would be amazing would be if I could be driving in my car and playing against a kid in his car in California, with absolutely no wires attatched to my GBA. That I would buy no matter who made it.
    • "Now what would be amazing would be if I could be driving in my car and playing against a kid in his car in California, with absolutely no wires attatched to my GBA"

      NEWS FLASH: bluetooth is wireless and this product will get you on the internet, and i don't know if you realized this or not but the GB does not need any wires its battery powered bluetooth gets a good 30 ft of range

    • Car accidents? (Score:4, Funny)

      by Ch_Omega ( 532549 ) on Thursday December 27, 2001 @10:07AM (#2754763) Journal
      "Now what would be amazing would be if I could be driving in my car and playing against a kid in his car in California, with absolutely no wires attatched to my GBA."

      Is it just me, or did this sound really dangerous? :)

    • Re:Screen not bad (Score:3, Insightful)

      by kirkb ( 158552 )
      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.
    • I was the recipient of a GBA for Xmas, and I was very happy with it. Until I tried using it.
      I see nothing wrong with the GBA screen other than the dependency on lighting. Which I'm willing to accept because it means highly increased battery life. Other than that it's a vast improvement on past gameboys.
      I have tried playing a GBA in the following places:
      • on the couch
      • in the bedroom
      • in the bathroom
      • on the bus to work
      • on the train to work
      • with a halogen lamp over my shoulder
      • with the plugin light my girlfriend got me with it (causes glare)
      In EVERY SINGLE SITUATION the ability to see the screen has been poor to awful. I remember reading that Nintendo chose long battery life over backlighting. Quite frankly, this was a horrible mistake. With backlighting this would have easily been the best game system of the year AFAIC. I have no use for Xbox, PS2, or gamecube, but GBA is exceptionally small and has some fun games. But with a screen I can't see it's absolutely useless. Honestly, I got a set of rechargeable NiMH batteries (6 AA, 2 AAA, 2 C, 2 D) plus the charger for $30, so I don't care about battery life. 2 hours, fine. if it took 4 batteries instead of 2, fine. If I have to plug it into an AC adapter sometimes, fine. But in its current state, it's essentially useless. Unfortunately, it's the only game in town for portable gaming.

      Anyhow, how you can say "other than that it's a vast improvement on past gameboys" really confuses me. I was under the impression that the improved screen was one of the main selling points for the GBA. I've been playing Castlevania (which is great) and other than being much more comfortable to hold, how is this different from old skool gameboy/color? Please don't tell me that the graphics are so much better because I can't see them.

      • Unfortunately, the best place to see my GBA is in my bathroom. The lighting conditions are perfect for some reason (the white tile maybe?). So I spend a LOT more time in there than normal...

        "Are you alright, honey? You've been in there for a loooong time... What's that tinny music sound?"

        -Russ
      • Like you, I got a GBA for Christmas. Apparently unlike you, mine came with one of the many external lighting adapters available for the GBA. With it, I can play perfectly fine in any number of places, even in pitch black night.

        I don't know why people complain so much. Just go out and buy a damned light if it bothers you that much. They're not expensive and they work pretty well. Geez, the original Gameboy, the most successful console ever with good sales for 11 years, didn't come with any lighting and no one thought a thing of it.
        • You wrote:
          Apparently unlike you, mine came with one of the many external lighting adapters available for the GBA.
          But I had written:
          with the plugin light my girlfriend got me with it (causes glare)
          I did get a small light, which does a decent job of illuminating the screen, but the angle at which the GBA must be held to see the screen causes glare and I can't see it. Even in direct sunlight the screen is extremely poor. I can only hope backlighting will alleviate this problem. I also received a portable Sony tv (the one with the Straptenna) which comes with an active matrix TFT LCD screen, and cost ~$120. I would have rather paid more and gotten a higher quality display, even if it was smaller.
          • I'm sorry I missed that in your post, and I'm sorry yours doesn't work half as well as mine.

            Call it luck, but I've yet to find a lighting situation where I couldn't see the screen, and I find your pessimistic summary of the screen's abilities to fall quite short of my experience. Trust me that I am not lying, and trust me that I do not wear night-vision goggles when I play. So, given all my experience with the same screen that you have, I must strongly disagree with you and say that it is nowhere as bad as you claim.
            • Heh, I didn't think you were lying. Actually, today I had a better experience with the game, so maybe it just takes getting used to. But it's been a while since I had to deal with a display this dark, and there isn't even a contrast knob. But I tell you, Castlevania is a much funner way to pass the time on the train than the boring old newspaper. Plus 7 different people can have games stored! Amazing! Anyhow, hopefully with time I will grow more comfortable with the display, though I'm still looking at the backlit display at portablemonopoly.com [portablemonopoly.com].

              Thanks for your feedback. Glad everybody isn't as glum as I (was).

  • new babysitter? (Score:2, Funny)

    by gir ( 546369 )
    Imagine the kind of latchkey kids this will raise...

    "Honey, the movie starts at 7 and the babysitter isn't here yet!"
    "Let's just drop the kids off at Wal-Mart. It's open 24 hours right? And they have one of those Game Boy Blue Advanced Teeth things to keep the kids connected to their peers!"
    "Good idea! Those Game Boys were such a smart investment!"

    bleah on that!

  • ...P2P wireless gaming,...
    I can't real time action games working like this. What's going to happen if you are playing while riding in a car or bus and go out of range? What happens to your game? Not to mention the latency problems with P2P vs. a dedicated server.
  • Now children as well can experience a dying, overhyped, 2 year old technology still looking for a market!
  • ..who will be the first one to port linux to it? ;)

  • Can't you imagine? (Score:1, Insightful)

    by CoAX ( 313552 )
    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...
    • Do you *really* think you would be able to "frag your friends at home" in Quake with the controlls on the GBA? ;)

      Speaking of a Quake-port, I don't think the GBA have the guts to run it... I have an iPaq with a 206MHz Strongarm cpu and 32mb ram, and the latest version of PocketQuake [pocketmatrix.com] runs at 9-10fps tops. If my memory isn't terribly wrong, the GameBoy Advance have a far less powerfull cpu and have less than the minimum 8mb ram the Quake-engine needs to even run. :)
  • Instant GBA Messenger? Over 50-100m? Blegh. GBA/Net? Blegher. One non-blegh is if you could buy "game sets" with 30 or so lo-tech games to Bluetooth to your phone and store a game on the phone... A phone is much more portable than a GBA.

  • Ha! (Score:2, Insightful)

    by pi radians ( 170660 )
    "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).
  • Why doesn't someone find out what kind of LCD/LCD controller are in the Gameboy (I've heard two names mentioned as manufacturers - Sharp and Mitsubishi), find that company's backlit model of the same combination, and put it in the GBA? I am not an LCD manufacturer (IANALCDM - a new one, instead of IANAL), but it only makes sense to me that many of the components used between a backlit and non-backlit controller/LCD setup would be the same, for manufacturing cost-effectiveness reasons. My not-so-educated guess leads me to believe that one could find the backlit equivalent, siphon some power from the GBA's circuitry and have a backlit GBA. The battery life would go down, but it seems GBA owners are more than ready to do that. Are there technical things I'm overlooking here? Is the GBA hardware so unique that there is no backlit model of the same LCD from that manufacturer?
  • I hate to be the guy posting this, but it's "THAN". When comparing two things you say THAN. I see people posting on here all the time, annoyed by the sub-3rd grade literacy on every news posting. If you can't write, have someone who can read over it and fix it before you post.

  • The Screen is Fine (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Tom7 ( 102298 ) on Thursday December 27, 2001 @10:04AM (#2754754) Homepage Journal
    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?
    • "How about a highly portable laptop that lasts more than 3 hours on battery?"

      My iBook easily lasts 4+ hours on batteries.
    • "Jeez. The screen is fine, folks. You need to learn how to turn on the lights!"
      Nope. The screen is terrable. unless you are perfectly positioned under a bright light source you cant see a thing. If you are off center a little bit you get a screen full of glare. I had to buy 3 different versions of a lighting adapter until I found one that actually lit the screen well enough to play, and didn't cause too much glare.
  • The patent pending nReach Bluetooth Adapter .... Bluetooth is supposed to be open. But I guess attaching a wireless link to a game box that already has a wired and IRDA link is novel and non-obvious. :-)
  • From the press release:


    A GBA user can use the Bluetooth adapter in numerous ways including: connecting to the Internet through their PC via a Bluetooth USB adapter, through a Bluetooth enabled cell phone, person to person, or through a nReach deployed "Hot Spot". These nReach "Hot Spot" environments are being deployed by various retailers, malls, and locations that cater to gamers of all ages.


    Make no mistake, their market is retailers who want to flood kids with ads. I'm sure that their patent application will emphasize the link to their "hot spots" and delivery of targeted marketing materials.
  • check this out [portablemonopoly.com]

    the guy ahead of the above site is trying to piece together a frontlight kit for people to install in their own gba.

    give it a look & your support.
  • I'm still waiting for someone to do a Linux/XFree86 port for the GBA.

    Yes, I'm trying to be silly but no doubt someone will or has already done it.
  • I was pleased to receive a GBA this year for Christmas. Obviously I haven't been THAT good a boy this year, or Santa would've brought me one with a better screen...

    If you want to play it when you're not sitting right next to a lamp, there is a solution. Portable Monopoly [portablemonopoly.com] has details of a backlight hack for the GBA, and so far it's working extremely well. It uses white LEDs, can be switched on and off as you like, and consumes very little power.

    • Whoops, my mistake - the Portable Monopoly hack [portablemonopoly.com] is actually a frontlight, not a backlight. It uses something called monoreflective diode fabrics:

      "I then asked him about another technology we have been considering for this project - something called Monoreflective diode fabrics. MRD's are very thin, flat, optically clear sheets that have the miraculous capability of emitting light in one direction and allowing light to pass back through in the other."

  • GBA screens (Score:1, Interesting)

    by __aawavt7683 ( 72055 )
    Well, I was in #gbadev on efnet a week or two ago when someone came in commenting on how bright his new GBA's screen was compared to the old one. He had received a new one from Lik Sang [lik-sang.com] that was made in Japan, over the one he bought at a retail store that was made in China. He took a screenshot showing the difference between the two, and I must say it was absolutely amazing (I don't want to paste the address because I think it'd be kinda mean to slashdot his images). I can only hope newer GBA's will have the same brighter screen.. and I definitely know where I'm buying mine if/when I get a gba (lik sang!). For all the other GBA's out there though, there's always Portable Monopoly [portablemonopoly.com].

    -DrkShadow
  • screw GBA i want one of these http://www.gp32.com/English/system/system.html - usb, bluetooth, mpeg support, smart media slot, TFT 3.5" Reflective TFT LCD, plus its open source! matt w Chicks dig it ?, they certainly do

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