Advice On Buying Gp2x/wiz/pandora


caliarbor

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May 22, 2008
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Hi,

I currently have an F200 which I pretty much use everyday for MAMEGP2X, FBA2x, Temper, SCUMMVM, PocketSnes, and Ruckage games. Is the Pandora or Wiz something I should even consider looking at? Or would it be entirely overkill for my needs? (Note: I also have a PSP 2000 running the latest CFW for PSX emulation and GpSp)

The second question would be I'm starting to see some GP2X F100 MK2s pop up on ebay/Craigslist fairly cheap. Would it be worth picking one of these up just for backup in case my F200 ever dies? I've heard a lot of complaints about the joysticks. But then again I've heard complaints about the F200's dpad, which I really don't have any problems using (I rarely if ever play fighters).

Thanks
 
I currently have an F200 which I pretty much use everyday for MAMEGP2X, FBA2x, Temper, SCUMMVM, PocketSnes, and Ruckage games. Is the Pandora or Wiz something I should even consider looking at? Or would it be entirely overkill for my needs? (Note: I also have a PSP 2000 running the latest CFW for PSX emulation and GpSp)


Hmm. Tough question. If you want something that will be very fast and basically be a small linux PC in your pocket, get a panda. If you want a GP2X with a nice OLED screen, get a Wiz. Performance-wise, your games will not be any different on the Wiz - if they run fullspeed on the '2X, then they will on the Wiz - though don't expect much better speed (though there will be some small improvements"] over the '2X though for games that don't currently run fullspeed.
D.[/quote]That is kind of a false statement. Every emu I have tried performs better on the Wiz than it did on the GP2X. MAME in particular performs better, compare Outrun on both, the Wiz is definetly significantly faster. Same with SNES, or GPSP it is smoother on the Wiz as well. They perform better than "small improvements", these are also mostly just quick ports and not optimised for the Wiz either. The thing is that you won't get the twice as fast performance that you may think just by seeing the clock speed difference.

The Wiz is good if you want something portable, is faster than GP2X, and has a high contrast OLED screen with perfect viewing angles and no ghosting. The downside is that the screen is small compared to the GP2X or Pandora.
 
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I guess I should probably be patient and see how Wiz software matures before committing. I've read a lot about the screen tearing issue and would like to see it resolved before purchasing. That's promising about GBA emulation performing better on the Wiz already. That, and and a small handful of commercial games, are the only reason I use my PSP these days. Also, the size of the Wiz's screen doesn't really bother me much. I was in the minority that didn't feel the GBA Micro's screen size was an issue ;)

As for the pandora, it looks to be hands-down the best for handheld emulation. The biggest problem I have is the price. For a cheaper cost I could purchase an Acer netbook. I realize that it wouldn't be an "ideal" portable emulator but it would provide me that function, access to a wealth of DOS/Windows software, and more versatility for my needs.
 
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