Should I Wait Until After Christmas?

[joewhite]

Will there be any physical changes to the Gamepark or is it all done through firmware upgrades? I don't know whether to wait until after Christmas you see.

 

[Aaaaaaaa]

i doint reckon there will be any physical changes.

Its up to you weather you wait.

But i guess if you wait or if you dont wait you will end up getting the same thing

 

[God Ginrai]

It's all done through Firmware upgrades unless they discover a massive hardware fault that probably would've been realized by now. And as they have announced, they have no plans to make a F200, so your decision won't have anything to do with hardware.

You just need to decide if you want to go through with the current Firmware stuff.

 

[LIZARDKING]

Go for it this year man! you never know about the new year... Might be Y2K all over again!

 

[Aaaaaaaa]

Go for it this year man! you never know about the new year... Might be Y2K all over again!

​

lol i had a theory a few years ago why this could be the apocalypse


i forgot why thoguh

 

[Digitalrat]

stick will be changed

 

[joewhite]

I guess I will risk the firmware then. Is the stick changed to give it more directions?

 

[SlackwareLinux]

I guess I will risk the firmware then. Is the stick changed to give it more directions?

​

Nope. The stick right now is convex, which some people complain is hard to use. It also features a large deadzone, which combined with the joystick's stiffness makes the joystick seem unresponsive. It is also uber-sensitive, so it can be a tad frustrating in the beginning. However, after the joystick wears out a little and you get used to the sensitivity, it works pretty well.

Firmware updates are easy, don't let them scare you. The only trick is to have a working and recognized SD card.

The only hardware thing that GamePark *might* change is the joystick's cap, but that pops right off, so end users are able to upgrade it, if it is ever released.

So, you really have nothing to lose by ordering now, except your money.

 

[DijiTao]

I would wait. The firmware updates are a real problem if you can't find a "magic" sd card that they work on.

 

[SlackwareLinux]

I would wait. The firmware updates are a real problem if you can't find a "magic" sd card that they work on.

​

It is not a problem if you buy from the long list of working cards, linked to by this entire sentence.

 

[Ferentix]

Oh I was under the impression that the official release would be the one where they would have fixed those dumb problems mostly related to shoddy workmanship like the padding on the back of the screen, the soldered on headphone jacks... If those problems are out of the way, I'll order ASAP Then I can get cracking

 

[SlackwareLinux]

Oh I was under the impression that the official release would be the one where they would have fixed those dumb problems mostly related to shoddy workmanship like the padding on the back of the screen, the soldered on headphone jacks... If those problems are out of the way, I'll order ASAP Then I can get cracking

​

Nope, I think those still exist on some units.

To my understanding, the first 500 were produced by a sub-contractor, who did a poor job. Those units are currently on recall.

The ones after that, which would be the ones you would get if you bought today, were built by a slightly better manufacturer. I think there are a few isolated reports of headphone jack suicide, but most people are not having that problem. I don't think GamePark plans on revising the hardware, so the one that is for sale now should be the final unit, minus the firmware.

 

[DijiTao]

I would wait. The firmware updates are a real problem if you can't find a "magic" sd card that they work on.

​

It is not a problem if you buy from the long list of working cards, linked to by this entire sentence.

​

I would still wait until you see that firmware comes out that DRASTICALLY improves compatability for cards when flashing. Even looking over that list you see the sad state of things when THE SAME CARD is listed on both the working and not working list. I'm lucky I found a card that worked, but to do that I can to borrow every SD card I could find and try them all.

 

[SlackwareLinux]

I would wait. The firmware updates are a real problem if you can't find a "magic" sd card that they work on.

​

It is not a problem if you buy from the long list of working cards, linked to by this entire sentence.

​

I would still wait until you see that firmware comes out that DRASTICALLY improves compatability for cards when flashing. Even looking over that list you see the sad state of things when THE SAME CARD is listed on both the working and not working list. I'm lucky I found a card that worked, but to do that I can to borrow every SD card I could find and try them all.

​

Not to draw this thread too offtopic, but if somebody has gotten the card working, then the person who was not able to get the same model working was likely just formatting it incorrectly. My GP2x was not able to flash until I had formatted my Secure Digital card as FAT32, under Linux. The factory FAT16 formatting did not work.