Various Pandora Questions

[DRED]

Just had a few questions about the Pandora. I know this will be speculation at this point but that is OK. Since I own a wiz, I will be somewhat comparing it to that.

1) Will the development community be larger than that of the wiz? Like for example will the people making the emulators put more effort into them than the wiz?

2) I'm not too happy about some of the Wiz emulators, I can't run transparencies without frame skipping on many games. Someone mentioned that his PSP runs 60FPS with transparencies on, while the wiz can't do this. Will the Pandora most likely be able to do this?

3) Is the option for TV out on the Pandora worth the $20 dollar price? Is this built into the unit?

4) Is the Pandora something that you can really fit inside your pocket? When drawing the dimensions seems to be a bit large to fit inside pocket, mostly the 3.2" height.

5) With the Wi-fi built in, will I be able to go to free hot spots and get on the web? Will the web-browser let me be able to browse most pages that my Internet explorer allows me to do, like with full graphics and text? Can I view you tube videos?

6) With the resolution at 800x480, will the emulators screen size, (unscaled) be significantly larger than the wiz. The problem I see this is that it will be limited by the height of the screen, and will have significant bars on the left and right, due to the wide screen of the Pandora. This may not allow a much larger unscaled display size.

7) Will the girls think I'm more of a geek when playing games on the pandora or the wiz?

 

[borgqueenx]

Just had a few questions about the Pandora. I know this will be speculation at this point but that is OK. Since I own a wiz, I will be somewhat comparing it to that.

1) Will the development community be larger than that of the wiz? Like for example will the people making the emulators put more effort into them than the wiz?

2) I'm not too happy about some of the Wiz emulators, I can't run transparencies without frame skipping on many games. Someone mentioned that his PSP runs 60FPS with transparencies on, while the wiz can't do this. Will the Pandora most likely be able to do this?

3) Is the option for TV out on the Pandora worth the $20 dollar price? Is this built into the unit?

4) Is the Pandora something that you can really fit inside your pocket? When drawing the dimensions seems to be a bit large to fit inside pocket, mostly the 3.2" height.

5) With the Wi-fi built in, will I be able to go to free hot spots and get on the web? Will the web-browser let me be able to browse most pages that my Internet explorer allows me to do, like with full graphics and text? Can I view you tube videos?

6) With the resolution at 800x480, will the emulators screen size, (unscaled) be significantly larger than the wiz. The problem I see this is that it will be limited by the height of the screen, and will have significant bars on the left and right, due to the wide screen of the Pandora. This may not allow a much larger unscaled display size.

7) Will the girls think I'm more of a geek when playing games on the pandora or the wiz?

1. every human is different. emulators are made by humans. Humans also have various opinions.
2. Mmmm, is the wiz more powerful or the pandora? maby the most powerful device can do things alot better.
3. search button is really nifty. youtube to!
4. the search button and bar is in the top-right corner of this page. but since im in a good mood: its as big as a ds lite. little bigger.
5. seaaaaaaaarchhhhhhhh....... again my answer, you should thank me alot for this: yes, yes and yes.
6. wont be such a problem.
7. finally a question i didnt see anywhere else. i think they will see your pandora as a ds when you game on it, and as a notebook when you put it on your desk.
every girl is different, just like humans. girls are humans. humans have opinions. every human thinks something else about something.
'next time, use the nifty search button.

 

[mindlord]

Just had a few questions about the Pandora. I know this will be speculation at this point but that is OK. Since I own a wiz, I will be somewhat comparing it to that.

1) Will the development community be larger than that of the wiz? Like for example will the people making the emulators put more effort into them than the wiz?

The communities are largely made up of the same people. There will be a few loyalists here and there, but for the most part, they are one in the same.

2) I'm not too happy about some of the Wiz emulators, I can't run transparencies without frame skipping on many games. Someone mentioned that his PSP runs 60FPS with transparencies on, while the wiz can't do this. Will the Pandora most likely be able to do this?

Remember, the Wiz is VERY new. Things will improve with time, when the hardware guru's find little tricks to squeeze more speed out of the device.

3) Is the option for TV out on the Pandora worth the $20 dollar price? Is this built into the unit?

Is it worth 20$ to you? Do you want to plug you Pandora up to a TV and play games on a big screen? It's optional because it's not for everyone. The ability to display TV out is built into the device, the cable is just a cable. If you are willing you can buy the parts and build the cable yourself, but I doubt it would save you any money.

4) Is the Pandora something that you can really fit inside your pocket? When drawing the dimensions seems to be a bit large to fit inside pocket, mostly the 3.2" height.

I can fit my DS with a clear armor case in the back pocket of my jeans without much problem. According to my measurements it's just about the same size.

5) With the Wi-fi built in, will I be able to go to free hot spots and get on the web? Will the web-browser let me be able to browse most pages that my Internet explorer allows me to do, like with full graphics and text? Can I view you tube videos?

Yes. Yes. Yes, but it won't really be flash it will be the free alternative, should work fine though.

6) With the resolution at 800x480, will the emulators screen size, (unscaled) be significantly larger than the wiz. The problem I see this is that it will be limited by the height of the screen, and will have significant bars on the left and right, due to the wide screen of the Pandora. This may not allow a much larger unscaled display size.

It's totally up to the devs what they are going to do with that unused space.

7) Will the girls think I'm more of a geek when playing games on the pandora or the wiz?

I don't think they will care either way.

 

[lulzfish]

1) I don't know. I'm in the Pandora community, so there's one person / hopefully developer.

2) Probably, because the Pandora is a bit more powerful than the Wiz (IIRC)

3) It's built-in, but I think they use a special connector, so you'll need the special cable if you want to use the S-video out.

4) It's a little bit bigger than the original NDS, so it fit decently into a normal jeans pocket, or comfortably into a cargo pocket.

5) Yes, it will be essentially the same as using a laptop with Firefox running on it. YouTube, however, will not work immediately because YouTube is built on Flash, and Flash is made by Adobe, who are PRICKS. We might find a way to hack around it, but for now Flash will not work. Everything else (Javascript, CSS, HTTPS, possibly Java applets) will work fine.

6) No it may not. That's... not really a question. The Pandora's screen just isn't that much bigger than the Wiz's screen, I guess?

7) Probably the Pandora, because it has a keyboard so you can do 1337 command-line haxors and compile stuff from SVN. The ladies are all about command-line users.

 

[dflemstr]

Just had a few questions about the Pandora. I know this will be speculation at this point but that is OK. Since I own a wiz, I will be somewhat comparing it to that.

1) Will the development community be larger than that of the wiz? Like for example will the people making the emulators put more effort into them than the wiz?

2) I'm not too happy about some of the Wiz emulators, I can't run transparencies without frame skipping on many games. Someone mentioned that his PSP runs 60FPS with transparencies on, while the wiz can't do this. Will the Pandora most likely be able to do this?

3) Is the option for TV out on the Pandora worth the $20 dollar price? Is this built into the unit?

4) Is the Pandora something that you can really fit inside your pocket? When drawing the dimensions seems to be a bit large to fit inside pocket, mostly the 3.2" height.

5) With the Wi-fi built in, will I be able to go to free hot spots and get on the web? Will the web-browser let me be able to browse most pages that my Internet explorer allows me to do, like with full graphics and text? Can I view you tube videos?

6) With the resolution at 800x480, will the emulators screen size, (unscaled) be significantly larger than the wiz. The problem I see this is that it will be limited by the height of the screen, and will have significant bars on the left and right, due to the wide screen of the Pandora. This may not allow a much larger unscaled display size.

7) Will the girls think I'm more of a geek when playing games on the pandora or the wiz?

1) I guess, yes, because the Pandora is made completely by the community, so thus the community will be much "closer" to the Pandora.
2) Definetly, yes. I'm not sure about which emulators you're talking about, but transparencies in general shouldn't be a problem.
3) The TV-out thing is a cable, so you'll be able to buy it long after you've bought your Pandora and still be able to have TV-out. The actual Pandora hardware isn't changed when you've chosen this option.
4) If you can fit a Nintendo DS in your pocket, the Pandora should fit without problems.
5) The browser in the Pandora will be Firefox, so you will actually be able to visit *more* pages with the Pandora compared to Internet Explorer It will have fullg raphics, of course, but there is currently NOT a complete flash plugin for the browser. However, it will still be possible to watch youtube videos with an MPlayer plugin (If I've understood this correctly)
6) If you want a large screen, it has to be scaled (that's the whole point of scaling in the first place). And yes, if you want *proportional* scaling, there will be bars to the left and right of the display. This shouldn't be a problem, however, since the screen in general is larger than the Wiz's so even with the bars, the display should give you a better resolution.
7) Definitely, yes.

 

[WizardStan]

1) The community between the two is heavily overlapped. I think our half is better though
2) Watch this. That's Crono Trigger being emulated on an underclocked Pandora at faster than 100% (about double speed) with full transparencies. I don't think there's a problem here.
3) You need a custom cable for TV out. It has an auxiliary port which has the TV out, as well as line level audio out AND in, as well as a bunch of other stuff. Very hackable.
4) I made a cardboard Pandora, and, other than having trouble getting around the square corners (which won't exist on the final product) it does indeed fit in both my front and sticking out of my back pocket, both the dressy pants that I wear to work and jeans that I wear for comfort. It bulges, you'll not be able to hide the fact that you have a large rectangular object in your pocket, but normal motions like sitting and walking didn't cause any problems.
5) If you can find a free hotspot, you can use it. Youtube and other flash based technology is still a little questionable at the moment (blame adobe for that) but it should work eventually. Normal web pages without flash will render just fine. Install Firefox to see for yourself how well it works.
6) The screen size is physically larger than the Wiz, both taller and much wider. There will be black bars (or I think some emulators will have a stretch option) but that shouldn't be a problem.
7) The Pandora, definitely. Bigger screen, QWERTY keyboard, all screams "I'm a geek!". And if this is a bad thing, then I suggest that you start hanging out with different girls

 

[danielliu88888]

1) Will the development community be larger than that of the wiz? Like for example will the people making the emulators put more effort into them than the wiz?

i think they will be about the same size, considering that the same community supports them.

2) I'm not too happy about some of the Wiz emulators, I can't run transparencies without frame skipping on many games. Someone mentioned that his PSP runs 60FPS with transparencies on, while the wiz can't do this. Will the Pandora most likely be able to do this?

as i understand it, the wiz's emulators haven't been optimized very much and are just quick ports of gp2x emulators. the emulators on the PSP are pretty mature, give it time and the wiz should attain the same level. the pandora will most likely be able to do this also.

3) Is the option for TV out on the Pandora worth the $20 dollar price? Is this built into the unit?

i think it's worth the price. if you want to be able to play it on a television similar to a real console. i don't understand what you mean by "built into the unit".

4) Is the Pandora something that you can really fit inside your pocket? When drawing the dimensions seems to be a bit large to fit inside pocket, mostly the 3.2" height.

as proven many times before the pandora is slightly larger than a ds lite and smaller than the original ds.

5) With the Wi-fi built in, will I be able to go to free hot spots and get on the web? Will the web-browser let me be able to browse most pages that my Internet explorer allows me to do, like with full graphics and text? Can I view you tube videos?

yes to all of the above, except for youtube videos, the pandora won't have flash, but there will be some kind of alternative so you can watch youtube videos.

6) With the resolution at 800x480, will the emulators screen size, (unscaled) be significantly larger than the wiz. The problem I see this is that it will be limited by the height of the screen, and will have significant bars on the left and right, due to the wide screen of the Pandora. This may not allow a much larger unscaled display size.

there have been discussions on this, and i can't remember right now.

7) Will the girls think I'm more of a geek when playing games on the pandora or the wiz?

depends on what kind of girls. tell 'em it's a ds on steroids.

edit: beaten by five people...

 

[dflemstr]

WOW, the Pandora community sure is good at giving replies quickly

 

[danielliu88888]

WOW, the Pandora community sure is good at giving replies quickly

Lurker, First Class.

 

[rv6502]

depends on what kind of girls. tell 'em it's a ds on steroids.

... so that's what the two analog control nubs are: Gynecomastia! (a steroid side effects)

 

[WizardStan]

depends on what kind of girls. tell 'em it's a ds on steroids.

I wouldn't tell them that. Everyone knows steroids lead to shrinking penis.

 

[borgqueenx]

wow, i though i would be the only one giving a little bit serious reply's...
Normally everyone would link this newbie to the search...

 

[guizm]

Funny topic, i think most girls will think that we ( with our Pandoras ) are like some kinda of george cloony of geeks, and that make them hot
Sure

 

[Vorporeal]

In relation to the size, the official quote is "Dimensions: 140x83.4x27.5mm".

Not sure where you got 3.2" from, but 1.08" should be much easier to fit in your pocket.

Also, for the built-in video out stuff - what you're getting for 20 bucks is the cable that you plug into the Pandora on one end and into your TV on the other. The capability for Video out is built into every unit, but since they're using a proprietary plug format (because they're actually outputting about 7-10 different things from that one port), you have to buy a special cable.

 

[Adventus]

1) Will the development community be larger than that of the wiz? Like for example will the people making the emulators put more effort into them than the wiz?

I would suspect the Pandora's community will be larger, you get the GP2X devs and significant cross over from the other OMAP3 platforms (iPhone 3GS, Palm Pre, Beagleboard).

2) I'm not too happy about some of the Wiz emulators, I can't run transparencies without frame skipping on many games. Someone mentioned that his PSP runs 60FPS with transparencies on, while the wiz can't do this. Will the Pandora most likely be able to do this?

The Pandora is significantly more powerful than the Wiz and PSP. For the Wiz, You cannot expect the same performance gains that occured with the GP2X.... the wiz is similar enough that most applications already optimised for GP2X are optimised for WIZ. The Pandora will likely see larger gains over its lifetime, its architecture is a big departure from previous SOCs.

6) With the resolution at 800x480, will the emulators screen size, (unscaled) be significantly larger than the wiz. The problem I see this is that it will be limited by the height of the screen, and will have significant bars on the left and right, due to the wide screen of the Pandora. This may not allow a much larger unscaled display size.

You gain an additional ~43% vertical and ~79% horizontal physical space. Its significantly larger no matter how you look at it.

 

[Esn]

3) Is the option for TV out on the Pandora worth the $20 dollar price? Is this built into the unit?

I thought I'd mention that the Pandora can also be used as a DVD player replacement. The TV-out doesn't support HD resolutions, but you should be able to watch a DVD-quality movie on a TV screen just fine.

 

[WizardStan]

I thought I'd mention that the Pandora can also be used as a DVD player replacement.

Except that it doesn't have a DVD player. It's not quite a replacement if you have to rip the VOB files, first.

 

[fischju2000]

I thought I'd mention that the Pandora can also be used as a DVD player replacement.

Except that it doesn't have a DVD player. It's not quite a replacement if you have to rip the VOB files, first.

But you can always stream the vobs from a network attached computer with a DVD drive, or attach a DVD drive through a 5.25" external enclosure, or other solutions

 

[DRED]

Thanks for the info guys, I love multiple responses, especially when most of the questions were opinion questions. Sorry if some of the stuff was searchable, when I read the questions, they seemed mostly opinion questions. I was not to sure about that whole TV-OUT option, didn't know it was just a cable seemed like it was an actual added port to the back of the unit, so that is clarified.

I can tell already from responses here that the pandora has much more interest than the wiz. And I just looked at the forum posts for the general discussion its 354 topics for wiz and 3204 topics for pandora. That should help show that the development team will be there.

 

[musicalwoods]

Firefox + Greasemonkey + Totem is a great alternative to flash for video on a great many sites, but some sites like Hulu, CBS, NBC, etc., that I occasionally use will probably not work on the Pandora, at least until Flash10 from Android or wherever is hacked into the OS.

If it performs anywhere close to this P3 1000MHz laptop I'm typing on, I'll be a very happy camper.