Playdate, the Console With a Crank, Will Not Ship Until 2022

Playdate, the portable, one-bit gaming system with an analog crank as a primary control option, won't be shipping to those who preordered the console anytime soon. According to CNET, "shipping has been delayed to some point in 2022." From the report: There's only one place you will be able to get yourself a Playdate. You'll need to head straight to the Playdate website, and be ready to pay $179 for the console. This price is for just the console, and not its Stereo Dock accessory or Pen, which can be ordered separately. The only accessory available right now is a $30 cover, which is only available in a bright purple. The prices and availability for these other accessories have not yet been announced.

To avoid a PlayStation 5-style hunt for availability, the Playdate will not sell out. Instead, the ship date will be bumped incrementally back to match the company's ability to acquire the parts necessary to assemble the consoles. At the time this was last updated, shipping has been delayed to some point in 2022. Oddly enough, there is no set launch date for this console just yet. The Playdate is supposed to be shipping the first 20,000 units at some point in 2021. It's likely Panic will be giving more information on a shipping date in one of its video updates like the one we saw in June.

Misleading reporting

[Mekabyte]

Misleading reporting on CNet's part. I cannot say whether or not there will be delays, but the headline should say Will Not Ship Until 2022 _If You Pre-Order Now_. Panic has been very clear about this, and updated their website to indicate whether you were in the first 20000 (which were allocated ahead of time to ship this year) or not. Those first 20000 sold out within minutes, so it's 2022 for most people.

Re: Misleading reporting

[r0ni]

This is true as my order made it in time and itâ(TM)ll be shipping in late 2021 according to my confirmation.

Re:

[brunoblack]

From TFS:

"Playdate, the portable, one-bit gaming system..."

Aren't you worrying about the performance you are going to get? According to TFS, the device seems to run on a 1-bit architecture:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]

Re:

[Rewind]

Not sure if you are joking, but it is a 32-bit ARM processor. The article is either trying to be cute or trying to make a joke about the B&W nature of the console.

Re:

[brunoblack]

Well, thanks for looking it up! Of course I was making a joke about the first sentence in TFS and I suspected it was at least 16-bit. I didn't even know "one-bit architecture" ever existed so I looked it up and found the wikipedia link about "1-bit computing".

I suspected a purely one-bit architecture couldn't work and I seem to have gotten that correctly although, from the wikipedia link:
"There are no computers, microcontrollers of any kind, such as programmable logic controllers that are exclusively 1-bit

Re:

[Kyogreex]

the B&W nature of the console

It is rather notable. Even the original Game Boy supported shades of green, where this seems to use its much higher resolution combined with dithering for shades of grey.

Re: Misleading reporting

[r0ni]

I am not expecting a ps5, I know exactly what I am getting here. Tons of great indie developed content on a platform that they will not have to fight to be noticed on, delivered to me on a weekly basis.

Re: Misleading reporting

[e3m4n]

Isnt there a lot indie content on steam? Im fairly sure the 2 or 3 shadowrun titles I played were indie games. Just curious why a console is required to play indie games? Though I just did a little bit of research and learned there is a fairly big indie community for nintendo switch. Im not a huge gamer, so my library consists of one or two new titles a year.

Re: Misleading reporting

[r0ni]

Sure thereâ(TM)s indie content on Steam, but I donâ(TM)t have a machine with specs to play most of it. Switch is also good as well, and Iâ(TM)ve got plenty there⦠but this is different, gimmicky stuff you wonâ(TM)t find on those services. If anything it will be interesting games. Different from the usual stuff.

Re:

[geekmux]

...Panic has been very clear about this...

Right.

As the rest of us try and figure out if you're referring to a Who, Wut, while asking Why...

Don't panic though kids...you'll get to crank on something other than your crank soon...

Re:

[An0nYm0u5c0wArD]

^ this

Re:

[OrangeTide]

it would have been sweet during the original era of Game Boy if only to play fishing games with monochromatic sprites. Now days? It belongs in the closet with the Game Boy Camera and Game Boy Printer. If it should even be made at all.

I do know a lot of people who ordered it. The market for retro-nostalgic kitsch is very real. And in a way I'm kicking myself for not actually building the Z80+VGA game console I sketched out in electronics class 20 years ago. If had dug up the schematics and order some new PCB

Re:

[Shemmie]

Someone in the previous article said hipsters.

Arguably, Panic's main clientele.

Re:

[drinkypoo]

dingdingding. There is no reason to screw with this thing but to be cool. And at this price, I'd rather be square than hip.

Much of what is done physically is better done in software, this is no exception.

Microconsoles &c are cool when they are cheap. This ain't. So it ain't.

Last two words of the headline are unnecessary.

[CrappySnackPlane]

n/t

Re:Last two words of the headline are unnecessary.

[shumacher]

I don't know the future, but this isn't just a kickstarter and some naïve geeks in a garage. Panic is no fly-by-night. They've been around for years shipping really high quality Mac and iOS software, and has a more recent bend toward gaming with titles like Firewatch and Untitled Goose Game. Hardware is completely new for Panic though. I don't know who is building their hardware, but they did partner with Teenage Engineering on design. Teenage Engineering has their own line of portable audio and music creation devices, and has become the Pharrell of high-design boutique electronics, with partnerships on hardware undertaken with Baidu, IKEA and Nothing.
So, I don't know if you're wrong, but I feel comfortable saying it's not a foregone conclusion that they'll fail.

Re:

[YoctoYotta1]

You'll be pleased to know the hardware is being done by Teenage Engineering who themselves are completely unbelievably dope at hardware. They do primarily pro audio equipment and also did those hip new Nothing Ear (1) ear buds the kids are flipping out about at the moment.

Re:

[YoctoYotta1]

Sorry, I'm an idiot and did not read your complete message. Disregard!

Re:

[bug_hunter]

I mean, here's a video of Giant Bomb's impression of a physical copy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]

So you know...

Crank handle seems useful

[DrXym]

For reeling in all the dumb fishies who preordered this thing.