Losing My Love for My Pandora?

[Hồng Thất Công]

A little before Christmas 2012, I stumbled on an ad which sparked my interest in Pandora. I did a little research and convinced my wife I must have it as I would like to play some old games like Neo Geo, PSX and so on.  She agreed and I paid $700 and change to order the 1GHz one from Ithic.com.  After receiving it, I installed PCSX-ReArmed, NEO-GEO emulators and couple of other ones.  Played a little bit of PCSX-ReArmed and couple of Neo Geo games and fell in love with my new Pandora.  Love the Pandora Operating System.  Love the people supporting it.  Love the struggling story behind it and so on and so forth.  But then I realized that every game I tried played have some kind of glitch at some point or another, whether Neo Geo, or Playstation games.    I know it's the emulators and not the Pandora system itself, but it has given me disappointments.  For one, the >$700 price tag which I expect to have games run perfectly from beginning till end.  Second, the constant battle between trying to find the right settings for each game is a pain as well, even that won't eliminate glitches.  Third, the Wifi connection is the worst I've ever seen.  With an expensive machine like this I would expect the wifi should be better than the PS Vita and the 3DS.  There are other issues with the machine but I won't list them all here.  I've been trying to love the Pandora despite these shortcomings, but as time goes by, I kind of lose my love for it.  I haven't touch my Panda for about 2 weeks and didn't miss it.  I've been playing my 3DS and PS Vita and love them.  I know maybe I'm not using the Pandora for other things other than playing games, but still the Pandora has been marketed for it's emulation prowess.  3D is awesome on the 3DS, and the PSVita, to me, when officially cracked, will be much more powerful than the Pandora.  The thing is both of them (3DS and Vita) are way cheaper than the Pandora.  The Vita can play PSP games perfectly while the Pandora is struggling with PPSSPP.  The 3DS can play DS games perfectly while the Pandora is struggling with Drastic.  You can argue that the PS Vita cannot play PS1 games perfectly (currently no sound), but the Pandora can't  neither.  With the upcoming Retro 5 which can play 9 retro systems, I don't know if I will invest in the next Pandora 2.  Now, I would love my Pandora 1 all over again and will buy a Pandora 2 if there is a PERFECT Dreamcast emulator for it.  I know I'm expecting too much, but if I pay 5 times more for the pandora than other handheld systems then I think I have the right to expect a little more from it.  Don't tell me people who work on emulators are working for free.  I know that! and I appreciate that!   

Have you ever felt this way?

 

[leathco]

This is a community driven device, not one shoved out by a large corporation but made by retro game fans and portable pc enthusiasts. Emulation normally isn't perfect when done by a third party. However, think of it this way, sure a vita can play Ps1 and 3ds can handle ds, but can either device give you tens of thousands of games, plus full computer capabilities, plus completely open and not locked down by Sony, Nintendo, or even google, in your pocket?

Sent from my HTCEVOV4G using Tapatalk 2

 

[TrashyMG]

Have you ever felt this way?

Nope, but Emulators alone isn't what draws me to the device. 

 

[Binky]

You didn't pay $700 for perfection and polish (the big Apple can do that nicely ).

A Pandora is about freedom, flexibility and community collaboration (also alliteration)

If you don't value the opportunity to understand your handheld inside out, or being able to talk to the people who developed it, or have no need for the unique features it offers, then perhaps its not the right device for you.

Thinking in artsy terms, the pandora is a studio, not a gallery.

In addition, there is no element of the pandora's capabilities where it is best-in-class...

I use my pandora for:

• Web browsing,
• Email,
• Playing old-fashioned games (not emulation)
• Audio and video playing.
• Word processing
• Coding / paddling in the vast sea of hidden config options
• Carrying data around & accessing SD cards
• Hardware hacking (fun!)
• IRC
• Image manipulation
• Remote fiddling with desktop computers over SSH

...and I struggle to think of one pocket-size device that could do all that properly

I enjoy watching (and helping) things happen in this community, which continuously achieves more than I could have suspected.

This doesn't mean that the pandora is the perfect device, but I hope helps someone roaming these board to understand. The whole community & volunteer development setup isn't an excuse, its an advantage.

 

[Hồng Thất Công]

Maybe it's not for me.  

You didn't pay $700 for perfection and polish (the big Apple can do that nicely ).

A Pandora is about freedom, flexibility and community collaboration (also alliteration)

If you don't value the opportunity to understand your handheld inside out, or being able to talk to the people who developed it, or have no need for the unique features it offers, then perhaps its not the right device for you.

Thinking in artsy terms, the pandora is a studio, not a gallery.

In addition, there is no element of the pandora's capabilities where it is best-in-class...

I use my pandora for:

• Web browsing,
• Email,
• Playing old-fashioned games (not emulation)
• Audio and video playing.
• Word processing
• Coding / paddling in the vast sea of hidden config options
• Carrying data around & accessing SD cards
• Hardware hacking (fun!)
• IRC
• Image manipulation
• Remote fiddling with desktop computers over SSH

...and I struggle to think of one pocket-size device that could do all that properly

I enjoy watching (and helping) things happen in this community, which continuously achieves more than I could have suspected.

This doesn't mean that the pandora is the perfect device, but I hope helps someone roaming these board to understand. The whole community & volunteer development setup isn't an excuse, its an advantage.

Maybe it's not for me.  Based on what you said, the Pandora is "Jack of all Traits and Master of None"

 

[Linux-SWAT]

http://pandorawiki.org/Software_projects/OS/Slackware

And buy a usb-ethernet adapter:

http://pandorawiki.org/Software_projects/OS/SOLEIL

 

[Binky]

Maybe it's not for me.  Based on what you said, the Pandora is "Jack of all Traits and Master of None"

That's not really fair.

The pandora's retrogaming abilities , audio output, and hackability are several streets ahead of any smartphone.

 

[ptitSeb]

If it's game your looking for, the number of system very emulated is enormous. None of the system you list (DS, Vita, smartphones...) have so many emulators so usable (not just console, but also computer, at a very usable states, from 8bits era c64, appleII and cpc, to 16bits(ok, 16/32) with AtariST & Amiga, and even 32bits with PC).

But you can also create. The pandora can be use, on the go, for programming (so many language/environnement for developping: Basic, Pascal, C/C++, Fortran, Python, Perl, Ruby, even graphical language, try Scratch for easy to apreand langage yet quite powerfull).

There many graphical software also (many 2D, even 3D ones), and even musical creation one...

Try that on anything else...One the go... You need a laptop, but that way bigger.

Don't focalise yourself on what the Pandora is not yet ready for (DraStic is still young but improving rapidly, PPSSPP is also quite young), and look at what is already working very well.

well, just my 2cts..

 

[Mr_Loon]

...


With an expensive machine like this I would expect the wifi should be better than the PS Vita and the 3DS.


...

Buy one of these, the wifi is a shocker for a lot of people, it might be worth ED considering shipping 1Ghz Pandoras with the default inclusion of a mini USB Wifi stick, it would of course be possible to deselect this option if you already have one.

If you've got a decent HIFI or set of headphones, try using the Pandora as a music player, unlike the Wifi, the audio hardware is first class

 

[Kumaki]

This is a community driven device, not one shoved out by a large corporation but made by retro game fans and portable pc enthusiasts. Emulation normally isn't perfect when done by a third party. However, think of it this way, sure a vita can play Ps1 and 3ds can handle ds, but can either device give you tens of thousands of games, plus full computer capabilities, plus completely open and not locked down by Sony, Nintendo, or even google, in your pocket? Sent from my HTCEVOV4G using Tapatalk 2

Exactly.  And as such, if problems are found, and exist, usually someone will work on them to improve them.

I have had no problems with Playstation...or with Neo-Geo.

Suggestion:

With PCSXReARMed....are you also putting the .cue file in you directory?  This could be the source of the sound problem...if you use only the .bin file.

As to Neo-Geo...have you tried playing some of those games on FBA?  FBA supports many Neo-Geo games.

Have you ever felt this way?

Nope, but Emulators alone isn't what draws me to the device. 

Amen to that!

But if this guy is losing his love and wants to sell, he should post it in the Trading section.  He'll get a large chunk of his money back.

 

[PowerGod]

@Shenmue: I never felt like you, even if I have a broken LCD cable and Right nub and I should have sent it to repair months ago, I still can't find the time to send it away cause I just can't stop using it... every time I think "ok, now it's the right moment to pack it" I find something interesting on the forum or the repo that I have absolutely to try out...

I started to write down a backlog of things to do with it because them are too many to remember, and I need a LOT of free time to make/try them all...

 

[dgame]

Shenmue,

What Neo-Geo game glitches are you finding? What Neo-Geo emulator do you use?

 

[CocoCreekFisherman]

You used the word 'struggle' several times in your post. To me the struggle is part of the intrigue of the Pandora. I have had many,many nuances with this device. Yes more so than a Vita or 3DS. Yet i find through persistance I can improve things. For example I have found that certain files from web sites , though they might be the same named file, play better than others. I also discovered that 2 emulators that play the same roms will not play them the same. Yes I am a total newbie to this hole Linux/emulator experience but I would not trade it for any other device. For me, the chase is part of the rush I get so to speak . Questions I have asked in this forrum as usually answered promptly and with kindness and I also cherish that luxury of having such support. You don't find this in all forums as you might know. Lastly, I really believe the best is yet to come here regardless of there being a Pandora 2 or not [i believe not]. Don't forget the open source concept and how diligent most of these devs are to improve the capabilities of this device!!

Rethink it please. You can fall in love again.  :wub:  

I hope you let me know what you decide.??

 

[levi]

You should have set your priorities first, if you wanted PSP, DS or Dreamcast emulation, you should have done more research at first place


find a better place to it, sell it

As I read the thread opener, he wasn't looking for PSP, DS or Dreamcast emulation - he was looking for good Neo-Geo and Playstation emulation. I'd guess PS1 emulation is a bit close to the cutting edge on this hardware still - dunno, not got round to trying it out yet, but I'm surprised to hear it's not handling Neo-Geo stuff fine.

 

[gunrock]

You should have set your priorities first, if you wanted PSP, DS or Dreamcast emulation, you should have done more research at first place


find a better place to it, sell it

As I read the thread opener, he wasn't looking for PSP, DS or Dreamcast emulation - he was looking for good Neo-Geo and Playstation emulation. I'd guess PS1 emulation is a bit close to the cutting edge on this hardware still - dunno, not got round to trying it out yet, but I'm surprised to hear it's not handling Neo-Geo stuff fine.

Bar a few games that require instruction cache emulation, Pcsx-rearmed is absolutely a perfect PlayStation emulator. I've played Legacy Of Kain : Soul Reader (Which is a late psx game and very demanding) and it is perfect.

 

[rohezal]

Second, the constant battle between trying to find the right settings for each game is a pain as well, even that won't eliminate glitches.

I think we should create a database with the perfect settings. Or just ship a big config file with the pnd of psx rearmed, mupen64 and drastic.

 

[Gruntfuggly]

<sarcasm>

I'd love the opportunity to lose my love for my Pandora that I paid for over three years ago...

</sarcasm>

 

[ekianjo]

 The Vita can play PSP games perfectly while the Pandora is struggling with PPSSPP.  The 3DS can play DS games perfectly while the Pandora is struggling with Drastic. 

Huh ? What are you talking about ? On 3DS and PS Vita it's not emulation which makes playing the previous said consoles possible. It's specific hardware included for that! Plus, they have the advantage of knowing all the inner workings of the DS and the PSP and therefore for the manufacturer it's very easy to write bridges from one system to another. 

 

[ekianjo]

 but still the Pandora has been marketed for it's emulation prowess.  

That may be the issue here. I always thought that only displaying the Pandora as an emulation machine was diminishing its impact. Sure, it does that well enough, but if it's ONLY portrayed in that way it is not worth its price. It should be positioned as an ultra mobile computing solution (with game controllers) - it's not a console. 

 

[vcoleiro1]

I thought the wifi issues might have been fixed with the 1ghz model, is the wifi still bad even with the 1ghz models?