bit-tech Shopping: Nintendo Game Boy Advance SP - Classic NES (GB)

Rating: 10

Time with product: 2 Days

Strengths: All the bells and whistles of the SP, all the nostalgia of the NES; huge quality game library; backwards compatible with GBC and original GB

Weaknesses: Need a headphone jack adapter; those who don't care about the old NES might not care for this hard-to-find item.

Summary: As most people know, the Game Boy Advance is the dominant force in handheld gaming today, and for good reason - it has a huge library of games and can also play games from the Game Boy and Game Boy Color libraries. Physically, the GBA is small - about the size of two coasters stacked on top of each other - but has a lithium battery inside good for 10 hours of gameplay. This particluar version of the GBA is a throwback to the original NES controller, and it looks as good in real life as it does in the pictures. In practice, it is essentially the same product as the other GBA's, but fans of the old NES will really get sentimental over this one. If you're just looking to play the GBA, this is becoming a bit of a collector's item and may be too pricey, depending on the vendor. But if you're looking for a retro look to your GBA, this is worth a good look.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 1 Days

Strengths: Great Colors, Love the "Old School" look & the compatibility with GB & GBC games, it's compact.

Weaknesses: None

Summary: I got the GBA SP Classic today in the mail and it's awesome. It brings back a lot of old memories of the games I grew up with. Very cool. The graphics for Super Marios Brothers are fantastic. I recommend this to anyone no matter the age group.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 30 Days

Strengths: size, backlit screen, large software library, backwards compatability with previous GB games

Weaknesses: size, pricing of higher end software, accessory connections

Summary: I had an original gameboy and an Atari Lynx. Both were fun but the SP surpasses both. It's small and slender and packs quite a bit of gaming power into a portable device just slightly larger (when opened) than the original GB and is probably only 20% of the size of the Lynx. Graphics are very good overall but vary depending on title. My main beefs with the SP is that the console itself is a bit small for my hands (I have a 9" hand span) and sometimes it's tough to hold onto due to the small size when you're mashing the buttons. Here is where the orignal GBA had one positive over the SP for me. Also would have been nice to have a standard size headphone jack rather than having to buy a separate adapter. Also, it would have been nice if the wireless link was somehow compatible with those games that could use the link cable. Currently, I think there are only two (technically three) games that are compatible: Pokemon Leafgreen and Firered and Digimon Racing...or at least those are the common titles I've seen in the stores that indicate compatibility. Hopefully, future game development will incorporate wireless compatibility. Overall, it's a very good portable system. We'll see how it fairs against the upcoming DS and Sony's upcoming unit. I think the SP will hold it's own for a while due to it's price point ($80 vs. $150+) and it's backwards compatibility with older GB games.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 10 Days

Strengths: light, compact

Weaknesses: none

Summary: This toy is great for keeping the kids occupied on long drives. Earphone jack also allow use of headphones. Back light is bright enough. Charge lasts upto 8 hours. Couldn't ask for more.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 25 Days

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Summary: When I first got it, I was dissapointed that there is no headphone jack. But then I found out you can get it for under six dollars. Here are some pros. and cons.: Pros. Backlight Rechargeable battery Cool, hot look Cons. There is only one con: to small to hold. Overall, I think it is a really cool game boy.