After All This Time...

[Yrx]

Hi all!

I use to be a semi-regular member here way back in the day, back when the GP2X was fairly new and still the most powerful opensource handheld on the market. I initially had a preorder on a Pandora, but with the bank transfer issues and the delays I gave up on that. A few days ago I felt like checking up on how everything in this community was doing, and was surprised to see that Pandora software is still nigh-useless (not to mention cost and hardware issues) and most everything on the Caanoo, Dingoo, etc. was all ported from GP2X.

I guess my entire point to this was how it's amazing that after all this time the GP2X has held up so well. When you consider the loops some of the community members went through to gain program on the GP2X, and how the performance in many cases still seems to be better than on much newer and more powerful systems (eg emulation), it's frankly amazing. After checking out the Caanoo and Dingoo (and almost immediately disregarding the Pandora) I ordered a set of super high capacity AA's and picked up a 16 GB SD card to give new life to my GP2X. (Remember when storage used to be so expensive? Amazing.)

Anyways, I wanted to stop in and say hi, since I was thinking of you guys. You always were one of the better communities out there.

 

[GameGod]

^^^ This!

Yeah, the GP2X has aged really well! I always thought the GP2X would become obsolete when better handhelds came out, but I was wrong. It still plays all these amazing emulators well, so why upgrade? And smartphones still don't come with gamepad controls, so it's clear by now they're never going to replace gaming handhelds. The GP2X community was (is??) legendary.

 

[b._.o._.b]

was surprised to see that Pandora software is still nigh-useless (not to mention cost and hardware issues)

GP2X is still a very nice device if you don't need the more demanding emulators (e.g. PSX) and programs. Having wifi, 2 SD cards, good battery life, keyboard on the Pandora is a fantastic upgrade though.
IMO Pandora is a very capable device with a great repository of software. I don't agree Pandora software is nigh-useless. It is also capable of running GP2X software through Ginge. It is pretty expensive and indeed has some hardware issues.

If the Pandora never was launched I would probably still use my GP2X. It can run 1000s of emulated games and has some great quality homebrew. Enough to keep you busy for years and years.

Anyways, I wanted to stop in and say hi, since I was thinking of you guys. You always were one of the better communities out there.

True, this was always a nice community (incl. some drama, like on every board). The board was messed up for a while, but I am glad ED fixed it so there is a separate GP2X section again.
Would be nice to see some more posts from old members that still use the GP2X or keep an eye on the forum.

 

[jmetal88]

And smartphones still don't come with gamepad controls

Unless you count the Xperia Play.

 

[smandrake]

And smartphones still don't come with gamepad controls

Unless you count the Xperia Play.

It will never be resistant enough, and btw closing and opening button keyboard lots of times gets the device faulty in about 6 mo.. (I used to be an xperia player)

-- GP2X user once again

 

[jmetal88]

And smartphones still don't come with gamepad controls

Unless you count the Xperia Play.

It will never be resistant enough, and btw closing and opening button keyboard lots of times gets the device faulty in about 6 mo.. (I used to be an xperia player)

-- GP2X user once again

Could be, I've never used one. I'm just pointing out that there is a smart phone with gamepad controls.

I wouldn't mind getting a GP2X again, but it would have to be an F-200. I can't stand the thumb stick on the F-100. I did manage to get a couple of GP32s for fairly cheap (like less than $40 apiece) a while back, and I've been having a blast with those. I actually got into this scene back before the GP32 BLU had even been released (and I had to buy a non-lit unit, since I couldn't afford the FLU). Now I have one working (but very scratched up) FLU, a BLU with some LCD issues, and another FLU where I accidentally ruined its ability to use a front light by polishing the anti-glare coating off the LCD. I'd love to get an FLU without the scratches (which I put on there while trying to repair it, it was in good shape from the previous owner) or a fully working BLU, but asking prices have crept back up to around the $150 range, which I just can't justify paying right now. Same goes for the GP2X F200, I just can't justify paying the asking prices right now.

EDIT: Oh yeah, I just remembered the other reason I'm reluctant to go back to the GP2X. Powering on takes a really long time. The Wiz (which I also own now) has a similar problem, but to a lesser degree. That's why I use my GP32 more often.

 

[coldfish]

Hi all, I thought I'd drop by the ole forum too.

I still have my trusty f100.
In many ways its still better than my Caanoo and Yinlips ydpg16.

The gp2x community had a real buzz with devs impressing us all by squeezing every bit of performance out of those 240-300 MHz.

 

[newbe5]

I found my F100 while tidying up ready for Christmas... I'm totally updating this and getting a SNES emulator on it now... It's just not the same playing with touch screen controls on my Android phone!
 
Is there anything new on the GP2x? What was the peak of development do you think?
 
Oh my god I just remembered the Neo-Geo emulator I used to love on my 2X... WakuWaku 7 and Metal Slug here I come!
 
n5
 
Edit: Wow, just looked at my profile - Member Since 23 Aug 2006 - Hah!

 

[jbrodack]

I still love my gp2x f200.  I had an f100 too but gave it away after getting the f200.  The stick on the f100 was just too unreliable even with the different cap plus the f200 had the bonus of touch screen controls.  There was a lot of great homebrew and it's really impressive just how good the emulators for it are considering how relatively weak the system is compared to say psp yet cause of the great devs we had emulators at least comparable to emulators on more powerful machines.  Actually, some of the gp2x emulators became my favorite way to play some emulators due to being easier to use than some pc emulators and displaying at around native resolution of most classic systems.  Some great ports too including cave story and my favorite version of nethack.  Overall gp2x was a great system with only negatives being controls on f100 being bad and f200 not working well for fighting games or any games requiring rolling motions.  Also they ate batteries for breakfast.
 
I never got a wiz or caanoo though.  I hated the dual dpad design of the wiz (though I do know one side was separated into buttons) and there were many reports of wiz screens going bad.  The Caanoo fixed those problems but also had an awkward transition from wiz to caanoo due to losing compatibility between the two.  The hardware was also not as big an upgrade as it could have been though controls were better and had a rechargeable battery.  I never could quite justify the wiz or caanoo while also having the gp2x.  GPH really didn't support it as much as they could and could have used more powerful hardware and lost interest of many devs.  They tried to push fungp for official games but then the whole company went bust.  I seriously considered caanoo but by the time I saw it for a decent price support was dwindling and didn't seem as attractive.  So that marks the end of the GPH era as a current development for open consoles.  I think the community was at it's strongest during the height of the original gp2x's popularity.  
 
However, there are other systems out there.  Pandora never interested me due to being way more than I'm willing to spend on such a console.  I feel sorry for all those that had to wait years for their systems. Dingoo is good but had generally been underpowered.   Anyway besides that, there are two systems coming out that both use the same cpu that got the right specs and price for this type of system.  GCW-Zero and NeoGeo X.  While the neogeo x isn't meant as an open handheld it's already being hacked and due to similarity with GCW-Zero should have an active development community.  GCW-Zero itself seems to do everything the pandora wanted to do at a much cheaper price.  It's got powerful hardware, proper gaming controls with a dpad and analog nub, wifi, and an old school 4:3 screen with 320 x240 resolution perfect for retro games.  
 
Regardless of what comes out I'll always remember my gp2x fondly and the community that went along with it.  

 

[dodgyville]

Ah, wow, so happy to stumble on this thread. For me the gp2x was love at first sight. It was definitely in the right place at the right time. The community was so awesome. I was thinking of zoo keeper the other day - the best game I played on the gp2x. And there was a great port of Elite too. I made a few games for it, including retrovirus RTS ... I should dig out the source code and release it!