Spectecular sounding handheld

[VirtuaLeech]

Seeing that some topics showed up on the board about the next great (portable) video game system and people getting all hyped about it, consider the following:

How about a portable gaming system with the following features:

- Two cartridge ports
- Touch screen with stylus pen
- Backlit screen
- Built-in organizer functions like phone directory, calendar, calculator
- Built-in (touch screen) version of Solitaire game
- Games library with titles like : Resident Evil, Mortal Kombat, Sonic, Fighters Megamix, Williams Arcade Classics
- Email and internet access
- Hardware and software at half the price of the GBA


If this sounds good to you, well ..... you are a couple of years to late. This system was called the game.com and is dead as a dodo. It failed because most of the games where rubbish.

So remember, no matter how good the specs and promises, it's the software that makes (or brakes) the system. Just like the emulators make out GP32.


NB. For the game.com 'experts' among us. Yes I know that backlit and two cartridge ports where never in the same version. The first version of the game.com had the two ports and the second version was backlit (with one port).

 

[racingclub]

those aren't really 'specs' though are they?

copied from the Game.Com FAQ on Gamefaqs:

Original System’s Size: 7.5”L x 4.25”W x .75"D

Processor Chip: Sharp 8-Bit CPU

Screen Specs: -3.9 square inches
-13 x 10 grid based touch screen.
-200 x 160 resolution

Color System: Black and White, with 4 gray levels.

Sound/Music: Mono, single speaker, located in the upper left corner.

Power Source: - 4 AA Batteries
- AC Adapter

Ports: - Serial Comm Port for the Compete.com cable
- In Jack for headphones
- DC9V in (AC Adapter)
- 2 Cartridge Slots (1 on the Pocket)

Buttons: -Power (On/Off)
-4 Action (A, B, C, D)
-3 Function (Menu, Sound, Pause)
-1 Eight-way Directional Pad
-Volume
-Contrast
-Reset (On system’s backside, must use small object to press)

doesn't sound quite as good?

 

[khephren]

A touch screen would have been a god send. Running photon paint on the ST emu, and drawing with a stylus would be brilliant If the GP had organiser functions, I could stop lugging my Psion around with me as well.

 

[VirtuaLeech]

@racingclub That's called marketing. I only highlighted the good points. This is exactley what all hardware companies do to promote their 'not available yet' system. It was part of me trying to make a comment on these announcements.

 

[Duddyroar]

"If the GP had organiser functions, I could stop lugging my Psion around with me as well"

Surely someone could just create an organiser program for the GP32? I got rid of my Clie PDA to get the GP32, all I used the Clie for was contacts so if the GP32 could do that, then I'd be very happy.

 

[Axeman]

I use my XDA (pocketpc) way too much to stop using it. It has wireless GPRS internet access (MSN on the move baby!). Was talking to bonks in work just yesterday on MSN. I prefer to keep my GP32 for gaming

 

[racingclub]

@racingclub That's called marketing. I only highlighted the good points. This is exactley what all hardware companies do to promote their 'not available yet' system. It was part of me trying to make a comment on these announcements.

exactly - and I was trying to counterpoint that with some facts.

 

[VirtuaLeech]

Oops :blink: seems you got the 'moral of the story'. Sorry, my mistake.

 

[liquidcross]

Surely someone could just create an organiser program for the GP32? I got rid of my Clie PDA to get the GP32, all I used the Clie for was contacts so if the GP32 could do that, then I'd be very happy.

I think Wind-Ups has a built-in address book.

 

[Arutha]

It does, and a text editor as well in case you want to take notes. Typing things in isn't quite as easy w/o a touch screen, but they have a system that works well. Try it if you need that!

 

[skeezix]

Do a search for TapWave and you'll find some interesting news about a potentially killer device; a gaming *PDA*, derived from Palm OS. So a well established highly useful OS, on fast ARM chips, in gamign oriented package. Thats some serious excitement...

jeff

 

[Duddyroar]

So long as I can store contacts in it, I'll be happy.

 

[divadsci]

Do a search for TapWave and you'll find some interesting news about a potentially killer device; a gaming *PDA*, derived from Palm OS. So a well established highly useful OS, on fast ARM chips, in gamign oriented package. Thats some serious excitement...

jeff

i think i saw a picture of that on a magazine today and thought that it looked a bit uncomfortable for playing games on. too sharp corners. thats is if its the same one

 

[Shrike]

heh, didn't it have to be connected to a phone line? expensive! and resi evil?!

 

[Mofokubik]

Why dont you just get a pda, even a cheap one will log contacts and such.

 

[skeezix]

Do a search for TapWave and you'll find some interesting news about a potentially killer device; a gaming *PDA*, derived from Palm OS. So a well established highly useful OS, on fast ARM chips, in gamign oriented package. Thats some serious excitement...

jeff

i think i saw a picture of that on a magazine today and thought that it looked a bit uncomfortable for playing games on. too sharp corners. thats is if its the same one

Thats what I thought about the GBA-SP, but people are buying it like mad

jeff

 

[Flack]

You know, as a really cheap organizer alternative, you could just put a text file on your GP32 and then browse it with one of the already available text file readers. That doesn't account for input while "out" ... but maybe someone could incorporate something like the Frodo pop-up keyboard, for entering data.

I bought a Palm IIIxe (the 8 meg one) off of eBay for $25 like a month ago. I guess when it breaks I might start thinking about using the GP32 for an organizer. It'd be tough to impress the boss with entering his phone number in via a joystick though, I'm thinking.