Our New Machine, Pandora

[craigix]

Well the MMSP2+ could run Quake3 so this should have no problems there!

 

[christo930]

I think that Craig wouldn't ship people something without a battery charger as this would be a worthless chunk of plastic, metal, and epoxy without it.

Presumably, the machine itself will be the battery charger, so in order to charge 2 batteries at once, an additional charger would be nessesary.

Chris

 

[Firefox]

Is this kind of money worth gba, snes sfx chips, psx and N64 (most likely saturn and jaguar won't work
...at full speed.
Based on the details of the Craiginator that have been released so far I'm pretty confident that T2K (Jaguar emulator) will run at full speed on it.

 

[triksR4rabits]

But the big issue is if the system can emulate a system that the PSP cannot (DS, Saturn, Dreamcast, whatever) that and being able to play Quake 3 and perhaps Half Life (plus Counter Strike) would be the thing to get people to invest in it.

While I understand the Craiginator is not necessarily a handheld (sounds more like a fusion of a pocket PC and GP2X), I must agree with Vince2501; I hope this system can do things far better than a psp on the emulation front, since that piece of kit is far cheaper (esp for us Yankees).

I am definitely looking forward to this though; best of luck Craig, make it happen!

 

[narmak]

It's likely to be around $320 in the USA, and we have USA/Canada distributors lined up. The power of this machine really is next gen, (ie beyond the PSP). We are tweaking and pushing things to the limits in terms of battery life, size, controls etc.

It's very likely we wil release some major details/videos at the end of this month or in Dec.

While the device has been code named the craiginator it isn't just me working on it, it is an excellent devoted team of people from the scene.

And finally yes, it is a shame for the americans that their currency is almost worthless, but there is nothing we can do about that. If it was a couple of years ago this system would be around $240 for you.

That puts a little more perspective on things. I will be looking forward to the videos/details. Thanks for the quick update.

 

[christo930]

my $0.02
If I want more polished (or 3D) software, I'd forget open-source and stick with the PSP and DS.

If I want an full open-source computer Id buy the EeePC.

Just in case you want everything in one- buy the cr- um, serious, expensive all new portable Amiga equivalent for the 00's

That's what I've been waiting for and I can't be the only one. Lucky for me I'm in the UK but, it's been said before I wish you guys over the pond could be a little more accepting. It's one time where you don't get the sweet deal out of god knows how many tech releases and like Trooper said you don't even know what you'll be getting for the cash yet.

This is meant to be more than just the next GP2X! bigger in scope and quality but designed with and for the community of GP2X users/devs that want more. It seems like a lot of people overlook that. What else is there to say other than if you're happy using many different devices for different purposes, 3d doesn't interest you in the slightest and the price immediately puts you off, this isn't for you? h34r:


It isn't for you, over and over and over again in this thread. This kind of thinking is like saying "Take what we give you and like it, or lump it" Now, I agree you can't be everything to every one, but when a large percentage of your potential customer base is saying negative things, you should listen. The owners of GP2x and GP32 are the initial customers at least and will have a large effect on the initial acceptance or rejection of the machine. A lot of people are saying it's too expensive and all the tech in the world will not make it sell to these people. Maybe if Craig is expecting a price drop after a year then maybe we could join in. I think it's arragant to say if you don't like it, then don't buy it. It's not made yet, so listen to your customer base and see what you can do to address the complaints of a large number of people. That attitude of take it or leave it wins no friends.

Chris

 

[RockOut]

The Graiginator sounds very interesting. I will be especially interested if it can take notes with the touch screen and play warcraft 3 and/or starcraft.

 

[PokeParadox]

Sigh... that's exactly the point. The shoe is on the other foot now. For a change the technology and distribution is beneficial to those around Europe and the UK, and it's not so nice to feel like you are getting a bum deal of things is it?

People in and around the states will not have to pay VAT so that will reduce the price some. Shipping costs will cost whatever they will cost. Currency rates are what they are, just deal with it, just as we in UK have to deal with inflated costs for the price of most electronics. It really IS a case of like it or lump it.

Is it such a large percentage? Last I remember most of the users that currently frequent the boards are from around Europe with other scattered elsewhere. The majority of people that are complaining about price are from the US and as said before Craig can do nothing about the fact the Dollar is not as strong as the Pound right now. Do you think he will sell it at a loss if you nag him enough or something?

 

[zaffercharles]

It isn't for you, over and over and over again in this thread. This kind of thinking is like saying "Take what we give you and like it, or lump it" Now, I agree you can't be everything to every one, but when a large percentage of your potential customer base is saying negative things, you should listen. The owners of GP2x and GP32 are the initial customers at least and will have a large effect on the initial acceptance or rejection of the machine. A lot of people are saying it's too expensive and all the tech in the world will not make it sell to these people. Maybe if Craig is expecting a price drop after a year then maybe we could join in. I think it's arragant to say if you don't like it, then don't buy it. It's not made yet, so listen to your customer base and see what you can do to address the complaints of a large number of people. That attitude of take it or leave it wins no friends.

Chris

How large is the percentage then? should we create a poll to see? I'm not trying to be cocky, honestly I mean it. Then we can see rather than arguing our opinions. I don't see that many myself, maybe 12-20 people?

It's too late isn't it, to try to alter its course and strip the power back down and make the upgrade more akin to what GP2X was up to GP32 I imagine. It was bumped up in the first place through the original topics' posters.
And it's unlikely that we'll get 2 versions, one super powered and another slim version although if possible I wouldn't say no.
I asked earlier what you would have liked to hear about a new console, maybe you'd prefer that there wasn't one at all? aside from the price what else, would you prefer gaming use only to lose a few $ from the end price?
If I've been arrogant well, sorry about that. All I'm saying is that I could have posted many times about GP2X not being up to my expectations but where would it have got me? I just sucked it up and admitted that it was very close, but it wasn't for me. What about that poll seriously- not to prove you wrong, to find out the truth. Sorry we can't be friends

 

[Tobriand]

It strikes me that the one-click on-device install system is PROBABLY still on the table (this was mentioned waaaay back at the start of the previous thread to this one).

Assuming this uses the GP32x archive as it's repository (ED was making noises to that effect), the one-click system will already know emulators and interpretters (which are the hard ones to configure).

If ED were to add an extra couple of fields for uploaders to fill in, then you could do some very cool stuff indeed in terms of dumbing down. Specifically, a "rom path" and a "rom type" field for emulators, a "skin path" for things in general (with associated checkbox of "skinnable", of course), and a "data path" for interpreters.

The package manager or what have you would then be able to point it to where your roms are on your HDD, it scans for compatible roms, and you select which games you want from a list.

With appropriate matadata kept on playing, you could even do an iTunes esque thing of "play-frequency" to pick out favourite games. All without the emu author having to worry about extra standards of config files for the installation manager to interpret.

A "pick me a game I haven't tried before" feature would also be incredibly cool, but I think that would require the feature to be implemented by the emu author...

 

[DisgruntleElf]

Can the "Craiginator" survive long enough for the average consumer to afford it? There are production costs among others. The US market is big. It can't be ignored. The average consumer will sit on the fence and wait to see what the "Craiginator" can do before making that big of a purchase.
Take a look at the Gizmondo. That was a gaming machine trying to offer too much. It outpriced itself. It didn't survive long enough to make it to US shores. Will history repeat itself with the "Craiginator"?

 

[foft]

Surely $320 isn't much at all for most working people is the US anyway? Few days work? Sure it may cut the audience down in the younger members who are asking for it for christmas/birthday or saving, but...

I'd like the Craiginator as planned with all its power. It will be a substantial leap forward in portable, openish, handheld gaming for the first time in years. No I don't count phones or PDAs, I mean things with proper controls! Much more than the GP32-GP2X transition was. I'm actually shocked its so cheap (if it ends up so cheap) given what it is expected to do.

Mark

 

[morrissey2k7]

Blah!

Why is this thread in General GP2X Talk section? Shouldn't it be moved to Other Stuff/Other Consoles?

At least when everyone's complaining about the F-200 they're talking about a GP2X unit!

 

[Eolair]

Can the "Craiginator" survive long enough for the average consumer to afford it? There are production costs among others. The US market is big. It can't be ignored. The average consumer will sit on the fence and wait to see what the "Craiginator" can do before making that big of a purchase.
Take a look at the Gizmondo. That was a gaming machine trying to offer too much. It outpriced itself. It didn't survive long enough to make it to US shores. Will history repeat itself with the "Craiginator"?

Gizmondo failed because the company was run by Stefan Eriksson, a well known crime lord from Sweden. He just stuffed his own pockets and cared nothing for the future of the company. I think that's a bit different from Craigix and the Craiginator :lol:

 

[DaveC]

It's likely to be around $320 in the USA, and we have USA/Canada distributors lined up. The power of this machine really is next gen, (ie beyond the PSP). We are tweaking and pushing things to the limits in terms of battery life, size, controls etc.

It's very likely we wil release some major details/videos at the end of this month or in Dec.

While the device has been code named the craiginator it isn't just me working on it, it is an excellent devoted team of people from the scene.

And finally yes, it is a shame for the americans that their currency is almost worthless, but there is nothing we can do about that. If it was a couple of years ago this system would be around $240 for you.

Actually the thing that has me the most concerned about this new device is the almost rabid obssesion with making it small and super thin etc. While nice for portability, it may be *too small and too thin* to actually make it comfortable to actually play games on. That will be the primary use of this is to play games right? This is likely to have concequences on control placement, size of controls/keys, the orientation of games that work well, etc. The Zodiac was like this. While nice to look at it had absolutely horrid ergonomics to play games on. It was so thin you had nothing to hold on to. It was like playing games on a wafer and after about 10 minutes become very uncomfortable. Please don't blow the ergonomics.


As for the price I think it will be a deal for what it does. It is better if it comes out a bit higher in price now and has the power than come out cheap and be crippled from day one. Costs will come down as manufacturing costs are reduced and more are made. For those of us Americans complaining about the price, well that is what we deserve. You voted for a war mongering oil industry president that cares nothing about running up the national debt to record levels to make his cronies rich, and you did it *twice*. Next year when you elect Guiliani it will only get worse. Now you pay the price.

 

[Nr.56]

...
As for the price I think it will be a deal for what it does. It is better if it comes out a bit higher in price now and has the power than come out cheap and be crippled from day one. Costs will come down as manufacturing costs are reduced and more are made. For those of us Americans complaining about the price, well that is what we deserve. You voted for a war mongering oil industry president that cares nothing about running up the national debt to record levels to make his cronies rich, and you did it *twice*. Next year when you elect Guiliani it will only get worse. Now you pay the price.

Standing ovations from here for this statement. Only the half of Americans knows how to make a stupid babbling trigger-happy cowboy to a president. Maybe the next president rules the states as a part of the world and not against the rest.
Normally europeans pay more for electronics in spite of a strong euro. This time you have to pay the same price. In my opinion no reason to cry.

 

[sam fisher]

I'm actually glad the US consumers have to pay a greater price, and I hope this trend continues. It was about time the price conversions became for even.

 

[Dubya']

1. For those of us Americans complaining about the price, well that is what we deserve.
2. You voted for a war mongering oil industry president that cares nothing about running up the national debt to record levels to make his cronies rich, and you did it *twice*.
3. Next year when you elect Guiliani it will only get worse.

1. Not me.
2. I sure didn't, either time.
3. I won't.

The current b*stard tarnished one of my nicknames, the very least of his impeachable offenses. And the issues with the dollar are the result of many decades of foolish monetary policies on the part of both of the totally corrupt and OWNED (but not by the people) mainstream parties.

I've got a JXD301 on the way to hold me over until the Craiginator is available. I think that it would be pure justice if the best of the Chinese gaming PMPs (the Blackfin-based ones for now and probably for the foreseeable future) were reverse engineered and "opened up." Their firmware is already known to be in violation of the Gnu GPL, so what are they gonna' do about reverse engineering efforts? If they're as ignorant as GPH apparently is, they won't even notice it.

 

[atomicthumbs]

It strikes me that the one-click on-device install system is PROBABLY still on the table (this was mentioned waaaay back at the start of the previous thread to this one).

Assuming this uses the GP32x archive as it's repository (ED was making noises to that effect), the one-click system will already know emulators and interpretters (which are the hard ones to configure).

If ED were to add an extra couple of fields for uploaders to fill in, then you could do some very cool stuff indeed in terms of dumbing down. Specifically, a "rom path" and a "rom type" field for emulators, a "skin path" for things in general (with associated checkbox of "skinnable", of course), and a "data path" for interpreters.

The package manager or what have you would then be able to point it to where your roms are on your HDD, it scans for compatible roms, and you select which games you want from a list.

With appropriate matadata kept on playing, you could even do an iTunes esque thing of "play-frequency" to pick out favourite games. All without the emu author having to worry about extra standards of config files for the installation manager to interpret.

A "pick me a game I haven't tried before" feature would also be incredibly cool, but I think that would require the feature to be implemented by the emu author...

I think that the best way to go with the package manager would be to set up an apt repository for the archive site, then configure it to have a different section name, i.e. "Craiginator Software" for use inside Aptitude/Synaptic.

On a related note, is there going to be some sort of compatibility layer to use GP2X programs which the author hasn't ported over because they're too lazy/an ancient martial arts master living in the mountains/dead?

 

[DisgruntleElf]

Higher prices don't dictate bigger sales. The PS3 is proof of that. Though I am certain that part for part the "Craiginator"'s price is jusitified from a manufacturing stand point. However the longer the "Craiginator" delays the tougher the sell. I'd say it's still about 6 months to a year off. During that time the PSP, NDS, iPhone, and iTouch will all drop in price not to mention have a stronger emulation scene. If the "Craiginator" is going to survive it's going to need more than the usual emulator suspects. If it's claiming to be able to deliver Quake 3 and the like, then it's going to have to do that right out of the box.
The publicity of a crime lord backing the "Craiginator"(the name would really fit then) could actually help drive sales.