Support NeoGAF

[nicoga3000]

Stupid question, but I kind of want to start collecting GB/GBC games. What should I expect to pay for a GBC? And can they be modded to be backlit? Also, do GBA's play GB/GBC games? I can't remember...If I should just hunt for a backlit GBA, I may do that instead.

 

[_PixelNinja]

are the rechargable batteries used in micros and sps a standarized battery? would they still be manufactured in the future for other devices?

As Gold said, no and that is my concern.

 

[JohnnieTheGamer]

Stupid question, but I kind of want to start collecting GB/GBC games. What should I expect to pay for a GBC? And can they be modded to be backlit? Also, do GBA's play GB/GBC games? I can't remember...If I should just hunt for a backlit GBA, I may do that instead.

They run $20-30, but I'm sure you can find them cheaper at yard sales, thrift stores, etc. To my knowledge, no, the GBC can only be front-lit. Yes, GBA's can play GB/C games.

 

[nicoga3000]

They run $20-30, but I'm sure you can find them cheaper at yard sales, thrift stores, etc. To my knowledge, no, the GBC can only be front-lit. Yes, GBA's can play GB/C games.

Aight - I may just hunt down a GBA SP. Thanks!

 

[v1perz53]

We had some posts about this about two weeks ago in this thread, that's why everyone was scrambling to buy one from eBay.

RCG still do much more than 101 mods though, so not sure why they'd be irrelevant.

I meant irrelevant in terms of this thread. Since the thread is about GB/GBC/GBA and RCG will soon no longer be doing those mods which is pretty much the only thing they do that gets discussed in here. I don't see their micro faceplates stirring up as much controversy here as the GBA mods did.

 

[sixteen-bit]

I'm pretty shocked how much I like 240p Game Boy Player on my CRT.

GB/GBC/GBA games were drawn with the intent on being displayed on fixed pixel LCD displays, and me enjoying the contrary really goes against my pedant nature.

 

[levyjl1988]

I got all my Gameboy Colour cases plastic sleeved. Gives a nice sheen and added durability to them.

 

[RadarScope1]

I've been lurking here because I've been considering buying some kind of GBA for a while. I already wanted the 101 modded OG form factor - but I never even considered the battery issue. That could be a big deal if you use it a lot (which I probably wouldn't but who knows). AA batteries will be around for a long time and I use Eneloops anyway.

Do the backlit screen eat AA battery life like crazy or what?

 

[Peagles]

I meant irrelevant in terms of this thread. Since the thread is about GB/GBC/GBA and RCG will soon no longer be doing those mods which is pretty much the only thing they do that gets discussed in here. I don't see their micro faceplates stirring up as much controversy here as the GBA mods did.

Hehe yeh maybe. I seem to remember a few GBC frontlit mods in here though?

Edit: Their micro faceplates are hellishly expensive, that's already been addressed though I guess.

 

[sixteen-bit]

The backlight mod had a noticeable effect on my battery life from what I remember, but nothing debilitating. I got about 10 hours per charge on my eneloops.

 

[RadarScope1]

The backlight mod had a noticeable effect on my battery life from what I remember, but nothing debilitating. I got about 10 hours per charge on my eneloops.

Thanks. I mainly game at home on the couch so that's more than enough. I'm looking at eBay right now. There's a nice one with seven games (six good ones) for $165. Seems pricey but with the games it's not terrible, I guess. And I have a lot of GB and GBA games in my collection already.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

I just bought a micro, silver one for £60. I couldn't resist.

I have one for collecting purposes. Have only played about an hour or so in the good few years I've had it. Screen is just too tiny.

 

[Peagles]

I'm pretty shocked how much I like 240p Game Boy Player on my CRT.

GB/GBC/GBA games were drawn with the intent on being displayed on fixed pixel LCD displays, and me enjoying the contrary really goes against my pedant nature.

I'm feeling the same way! They just look so damn good though.

 

[nicoga3000]

Any suggestion on which SP I should get? Or just jump on eBay or check my Disc Replay and go with it?

 

[sixteen-bit]

Any suggestion on which SP I should get? Or just jump on eBay or check my Disc Replay and go with it?

You'll want an AGS-101. That's the nicer backlit model, as opposed to the AGS-001, which is frontlit and produces a more washed out image.

 

[v1perz53]

I know people were talking about issues with the rechargeable batteries in the GBA SPs dying, but does anyone have real world experience with this? I only ask because I was wondering if the SP could still be played when plugged in even after the battery doesn't hold a charge. Modded GBAs are becoming way out of my price range and I actually prefer the form factor of the SP so I was thinking of picking up a 101 model, but I wanted to make sure 10-15 years down the line I could at least plug it in if I wanted to play.

 

[batrush]

I know people were talking about issues with the rechargeable batteries in the GBA SPs dying, but does anyone have real world experience with this? I only ask because I was wondering if the SP could still be played when plugged in even after the battery doesn't hold a charge. Modded GBAs are becoming way out of my price range and I actually prefer the form factor of the SP so I was thinking of picking up a 101 model, but I wanted to make sure 10-15 years down the line I could at least plug it in if I wanted to play.

The battery from my AGS-001 died several years ago. Not only that, but the device simply wouldn't charge any battery that I placed inside (those same batteries work perfectly in my other SPs). The device still works, but I need to use a different SP to charge the replacement battery. Same issue occurred with my first DS Lite. Like you I'm a huge fan of the SP's form, but I'm definitely planning to pick up a modded OG GBA in the near future. I'm not the biggest fan of rechargeable handhelds because of those two experiences.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Wonder if 3rd party companies like retrobit and hyperkin that specialize in accessories for obsolete systems like would ever make replacement batteries fro DSLites and GBA SPs.

 

[Seven Force]

Finally got around to ordering cases and printing DS case covers for some of the GB games I never got around to doing it for. Did a terrible job at printing it the right size, but I've gotta say... it looks pretty nice next to my stack of DS games.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Looking good Seven Force!

 

[nicoga3000]

Found an SP, bought it thinking I read the model as 101, but it's actually 001. I'll have to return it this weekend and continue hunting. Can't believe they go for $70 on eBay right now...

 

[Friend of Sonic]

Found an SP, bought it thinking I read the model as 101, but it's actually 001. I'll have to return it this weekend and continue hunting. Can't believe they go for $70 on eBay right now...

Stalk Craigslist. You might get lucky. I bought mine from parents and their little kid. Kept it and the box mint (good kid!) and I got it for 20 bucks.

 

[Agent Unknown]

Aren't all rechargeable batteries going to suffer the same fate eventually?

Yeah, I know I kinda answered my own question but the Micro was starting to look so pretty and I just had to ask ya know? Oh well.

Nope.

Well, that does that.

I've been lurking here because I've been considering buying some kind of GBA for a while. I already wanted the 101 modded OG form factor - but I never even considered the battery issue. <snip>
Do the backlit screen eat AA battery life like crazy or what?

I've been getting excellent battery life out of my AGB 001 backlight mod, roughly ten hours at my estimate, you have nothing to worry about. This is an amazing mod you don't want to miss out on before prices get insane later.

Edit: And that auction price sounds pretty reasonable considering it includes games too.

 

[Peagles]

Found an SP, bought it thinking I read the model as 101, but it's actually 001. I'll have to return it this weekend and continue hunting. Can't believe they go for $70 on eBay right now...

If you get a photo of it before you buy, look for a black LCD when turned off, rather than grey. For eg:

Left one is 001, grey in colour, right is 101, quite black when turned off in comparison.

 

[cafemomo]

I got all my Gameboy Colour cases plastic sleeved. Gives a nice sheen and added durability to them.

THQ published the Sanics for the GBA?

I learned something new, then again I don't follow that series

 

[mightynine]

I think I just scored a 101 off of eBay for $37 shipped.

There's no picture of the back label and the listing said black, but it looked graphite to me and other pictures of that model seem to match. The picture with the screen on looked much brighter than my Classic NES SP. I figured for less than $40 I'd take a chance. If it's backlit, nice find. If not, I can keep my NES SP tucked away and play this one.

Should arrive tomorrow, I'll find out then!

 

[Friend of Sonic]

I think I just scored a 101 off of eBay for $37 shipped.

There's no picture of the back label and the listing said black, but it looked graphite to me and other pictures of that model seem to match. The picture with the screen on looked much brighter than my Classic NES SP. I figured for less than $40 I'd take a chance. If it's backlit, nice find. If not, I can keep my NES SP tucked away and play this one.

Should arrive tomorrow, I'll find out then!

Good luck!

 

[Peagles]

I think I just scored a 101 off of eBay for $37 shipped.

There's no picture of the back label and the listing said black, but it looked graphite to me and other pictures of that model seem to match. The picture with the screen on looked much brighter than my Classic NES SP. I figured for less than $40 I'd take a chance. If it's backlit, nice find. If not, I can keep my NES SP tucked away and play this one.

Should arrive tomorrow, I'll find out then!

That is a 101

 

[mightynine]

Edit: Thanks, Peagles!

I'm sure this has been asked a bazillion times, but there's no region locking on the GBAs, right? I think I want to get the SMB GBA version, and just to be different, I'd pick up the Famicom Mini version, since there would be no language barrier there.

 

[Peagles]

Edit: Thanks, Peagles!

I'm sure this has been asked a bazillion times, but there's no region locking on the GBAs, right? I think I want to get the SMB GBA version, and just to be different, I'd pick up the Famicom Mini version, since there would be no language barrier there.

No probs! You can tell also by the black buttons. The black SP which is a 001 has lighter coloured buttons IIRC.

Correct, no region locking

 

[prateeko]

Wonder if 3rd party companies like retrobit and hyperkin that specialize in accessories for obsolete systems like would ever make replacement batteries fro DSLites and GBA SPs.

Uhhhh, store.nintendo.com, dude. They have batteries for GBA SP, DS Lite, DSi, DSi XL, 3DS and 3DS XL. I bought replacement GBA SP batteries (3 or so) a couple months ago to save for the future (along for DS Lite).

 

[NinjaCatfish]

Uhhhh, store.nintendo.com, dude. They have batteries for GBA SP, DS Lite, DSi, DSi XL, 3DS and 3DS XL. I bought replacement GBA SP batteries (3 or so) a couple months ago to save for the future (along for DS Lite).

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but if those Nintendo supplied GBA SP batteries have been sitting in storage for a decade, I don't think they will perform quite as well as new batteries.

 

[_PixelNinja]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but if those Nintendo supplied GBA SP batteries have been sitting in storage for a decade, I don't think they will perform quite as well as new batteries.

Yeah that's what I mentioned further up the page; we don't know how old they are and LIBs do indeed degrade over time.

 

[nicoga3000]

Think I found a guy with 3 101's about 20-30 minutes from me. I may go buy all 3 of them from him tomorrow, haha.

Also, I picked up a few games to start my measly collection!

Sorry for dick vicinity pic:

Wanted MI and Dragon's Lair because I remember reading about them back in the day. Kong was picked up because I can only imagine how bad it is. I loved one of the THPS games on GBA, so when I saw 4, I figured why not? And I needed 1 more game for the buy 5 items get the 6th free...The guy said the Turtles game was good (he was right, it's actually pretty fun).

Also bought Legend of the River King 1 and 2 off eBay this morning. Those are probably my favorite GB games of all time.

 

[psylah]

Sorry for dick vicinity pic:

You really shouldn't be doing this while driving.

 

[nicoga3000]

You really shouldn't be doing this while driving.

I was waiting for my shake at Sonic, haha.

 

[Rich!]

My Htc One died today. Piece of shit was at the point where it charged all night and only lasted three hours. Got a free upgrade to a Sony Z2. Its damn good

Either way, heres a photo of My GBA taken with it:

Awww yeahhh

 

[sixteen-bit]

Looks lovely, richisawesome!

 

[Rich!]

Looks lovely, richisawesome!

Sure does

....and it also happens to look tiny there lol

 

[nicoga3000]

Bought River King 1 & 2, Bomberman Max Blue and Max Red, Pocket Bomberman, Bomberman GB, and Bomberman Quest. So much Bomberman.

 

[Ultima_5]

Uhhhh, store.nintendo.com, dude. They have batteries for GBA SP, DS Lite, DSi, DSi XL, 3DS and 3DS XL. I bought replacement GBA SP batteries (3 or so) a couple months ago to save for the future (along for DS Lite).

Sitting on a shelf for the future will degrade the batteries. By the time you get around to using them they'll probably only hold a fraction of their new capacity. Not to mention they could have been manufactured a decade ago.

Best bet is sites that make repros and other oddities making replacements down the line when there's more demand.

 

[Pancakes R Us]

Looks lovely, richisawesome!

Ditto. Looks very neat.

 

[nicoga3000]

Any reason I can't just buy a pink 101 and repaint it? It seems like those are easier to find and a little cheaper than the ice blue or graphite/black.

 

[LAM09]

The faceplate on my Micro doesn't seem to click in on the top left of the device. Does anyone know how to fix the clip that holds the faceplate in?

 

[properpropaganda]

Think I found a guy with 3 101's about 20-30 minutes from me. I may go buy all 3 of them from him tomorrow, haha.

Also, I picked up a few games to start my measly collection!

Sorry for dick vicinity pic:



Wanted MI and Dragon's Lair because I remember reading about them back in the day. Kong was picked up because I can only imagine how bad it is. I loved one of the THPS games on GBA, so when I saw 4, I figured why not? And I needed 1 more game for the buy 5 items get the 6th free...The guy said the Turtles game was good (he was right, it's actually pretty fun).

Also bought Legend of the River King 1 and 2 off eBay this morning. Those are probably my favorite GB games of all time.

man i had so much fun wit mission impossible in high school. put it in a gbc and you can use the ir as a tv remote.

 

[sixteen-bit]

man i had so much fun wit mission impossible in high school. put it in a gbc and you can use the ir as a tv remote.

That's some really cool added functionality.

 

[RadarScope1]

Any reason I can't just buy a pink 101 and repaint it? It seems like those are easier to find and a little cheaper than the ice blue or graphite/black.

I had a similar thought. I want to put the 101 screen (or knock off) in an OG form. I'd love to try to recreate that original GameBoy color scheme that RCG did.

How hard is the screen mod?

 

[Peagles]

I had a similar thought. I want to put the 101 screen (or knock off) in an OG form. I'd love to try to recreate that original GameBoy color scheme that RCG did.

How hard is the screen mod?

Only some of the original screens work with the mod, but basically you just need a ribbon cable adapter ($10-15 on eBay) and then open it up and swap the screens. For better brightness you can solder a wire in, but it's not necessary for the mod to just work.

Any reason I can't just buy a pink 101 and repaint it? It seems like those are easier to find and a little cheaper than the ice blue or graphite/black.

You could also just swap the case with another SP. The 001 and 101 casings are interchangeable.



Edit: I just got my LCDs and the seller said he is now completely out of stock. I don't have all the ribbon cables yet but I have a couple so I'll begin testing ASAP.

 

[Gunsmithx]

Edit: I just got my LCDs and the seller said he is now completely out of stock. I don't have all the ribbon cables yet but I have a couple so I'll begin testing ASAP.

Nice, looking forward to how it turns out

 

[Agent Unknown]

Looks lovely, richisawesome!

It does indeed, and YI is the perfect game to test for color and contrast.