F200 Review At Pocket Gamer

[Duddyroar]

http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/r/Various/GP2...view.asp?c=4676

 

[lubidog]

works now, thanks!

 

[Null]

link...? Goes nowhere for me.....

The site worked for me a few seconds ago, I must have broken it :lol:

EDIT: sites back.

 

[rlegault]

The site seems flaky, but it's up now and I added a nice comment to it.

 

[b._.o._.b]

Not a bad review (seen lot worse). I would have like to see some attention for homebrew and not only emphasis on the emulators.

 

[Esn]

I've always thought that the lack of a built-in battery was an advantage.

 

[Alghazanth]

I've always thought that the lack of a built-in battery was an advantage.

Me too :rolleyes:

nice review btw

 

[Duddyroar]

I've always thought that the lack of a built-in battery was an advantage.

Can I ask why?

You can't use 'off the shelf' batteries, and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

Compare that to the dedicated rechargeable batteries found in the PSP and DS - both are high-drain machines, like the GP2X - a standard charge doesn't take long and you even have the option to charge via USB.

I honestly can't see what advantages supporting AA batteries gives, but maybe that's just me.

 

[Alex.]

You can't use 'off the shelf' batteries, and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

How more off the shelf can they get? Walk into any major department store and you'll find some...

As for the charge, two 2500mAh's can get a quality charge that lasts 3-4 hours in less than 100 minutes.

 

[karmaKid]

You can't use 'off the shelf' batteries, and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

How more off the shelf can they get? Walk into any major department store and you'll find some...

As for the charge, two 2500mAh's can get a quality charge that lasts 3-4 hours in less than 100 minutes.


I think the point is that you can't just wander into a local shop and buy a couple of AA Duracell batteries to juice your machine up if required.

 

[trooper]

You can't use 'off the shelf' batteries, and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

How more off the shelf can they get? Walk into any major department store and you'll find some...

As for the charge, two 2500mAh's can get a quality charge that lasts 3-4 hours in less than 100 minutes.


I think the point is that you can't just wander into a local shop and buy a couple of AA Duracell batteries to juice your machine up if required.


But you can`t do that with a DS or PSP either.

Trooper

 

[StealthBagel]

Not having a built in battery is just unprofessional and makes the gp2x more like a cheap toy than a serious console. The last game system that used AAs I can remember was the original GBA, but mine could run 12+ hours on a pair of the shittiest AAs you could find.... not struggle to play for 20 minutes and crash constantly with them, and achieve 3-4 hours max with regular use on expensive high capacity things you have to take out of the unit to charge... not only that but they didn't even put springs in the battery compartment and all F200 adds is a little cord to pull to remove them.... very poor. It just screams 'low effort solution' more than anything. Not only that but you can't charge your batteries in the unit or you might damage it by trying to do so, and operating it with the AC brick in is equally crappy because the cord is in the way of your hand.

 

[trooper]

Not only that, The GP2x pretty much runs at 200mhz (Default), Whereas the GBA runs at 16mhz.

That maybe the reason why the batteries don`t last as long in the GP2x as they do/did in the GBA. :rolleyes:

Not only that, GPH are possibly one of the least professional companies to grace the electronics market, But it doesn`t stop them making unique gadgets.

Trooper

 

[sparr]

I have an assortment of high quality AA batteries. The GP2X using them means I can draw from the same pool of spares that I always carry when I am gadget-laden (I regularly carry 20000+ Wh worth of AAs around with me). If the GP2X required a custom battery then that would be something extra and unique that I would have to carry around, wasted space and weight if I end up using my camera or my mp3 cd player or my R/C camera car or my two-way radios more than I use the GP2X.

PS: This is the same reason I buy SD-based devices instead of CF, because I have standardized on it, and own many devices that use it, and many individual SD cards.

PPS: You CAN use off-the-shelf batteries, but they have to be lithium "camera" batteries, not alkalines.

 

[Alex.]

PPS: You CAN use off-the-shelf batteries, but they have to be lithium "camera" batteries, not alkalines.

Oh, I've seen those, Energizer lithiums, they cost almost the same as rechargeables :lol:

 

[Duddyroar]

You can't use 'off the shelf' batteries, and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

How more off the shelf can they get? Walk into any major department store and you'll find some...

As for the charge, two 2500mAh's can get a quality charge that lasts 3-4 hours in less than 100 minutes.


I think the point is that you can't just wander into a local shop and buy a couple of AA Duracell batteries to juice your machine up if required.


Exactly my point!

You can't use 'off the shelf' batteries, and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

How more off the shelf can they get? Walk into any major department store and you'll find some...

As for the charge, two 2500mAh's can get a quality charge that lasts 3-4 hours in less than 100 minutes.


I think the point is that you can't just wander into a local shop and buy a couple of AA Duracell batteries to juice your machine up if required.


But you can`t do that with a DS or PSP either.

Trooper


I never said you could, my point was why support AA batteries when you can't even use standard AAs? With the GP32 it made some kind of sense because Duracells would last quite a while (in fact I never used rechargables with my GP32) but the GP2X drains more power, so it simply screams out for an internal battery.

As for GPH being unprofessional - dedicated rechargeable batteries cost nothing, they could have included on at very little cost.

 

[Parkydr]

I've can use AA batteries on my F-100 - I only get 40 minutes but it's enough if you're desperate enough


As usual, they go on and on about f**king emulators as though that's all the GP2X does.

 

[Duddyroar]

I've can use AA batteries on my F-100 - I only get 40 minutes but it's enough if you're desperate enough

As usual, they go on and on about f**king emulators as though that's all the GP2X does.



Ahem. I wrote that review mate. <_<

And when you're working within a strict word count you have to focus on the main (or at least most appealing) function of the machine, which is undoubtably emulation. I do mention the other features briefly but within the required word count I couldn't really go into any more detail. I also didn't think I really needed to as the review is for a gaming site so the target audience aren't as interested in the other things the machine is capable of.

But thanks for the 'constructive' comments, anyway.

 

[Parkydr]

Shouldn't a gaming site be covering homebrew games and ports as well as emulation?

The GP2X is an open development platform, not exclusively for emulators, any more than a desktop PC is.

 

[kevcal]

..and high capacity rechargeables take hours to fully charge (ignoring quick-chargers as they are unreliable and when tested with the GP2X have proven to be quite poor, performance-wise).

Why people slag off the gp2x about this really defies logic.
Buy good quality rechargeables, a decent fast-charger and you can have as many AAs as you can carry with you - how can that be compared to an inflexible built-in/device-specific battery?? Plus you can use the charger for other AA-based things - I no longer have any non-rechargeable AAs in devices.
People have a very strange idea on how 'flexible' this is :huh: This was actually a bonus for me.
I have had no problems performance-wise with using rechargeable AA batteries on the gp2x; but then I guess I'm not some (sad) gamer that plays games for 3 or 4 hours at a time without rest :blink:
I can see why you'd concentrate on emulators though - the most popular use for the gp2x.