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[MrparisSM]

www.gizmondo.com


SELL YOUR PSPs IT'S ALL OVER!

Although I truely doubt they'll look this good, we'll see soon enough though...

 

[TekunoRobby]

Holy shit.

That impressed me since I figured this was going to be another throw away portable system. The website isn't working for me sadly. I'd love to learn more about this system.

 

[MrparisSM]

Holy shit.

That impressed me since I figured this was going to be another throw away portable system. The website isn't working for me sadly. I'd love to learn more about this system.

From the site:

Gaming

Gizmondo sets the standard for mobile gaming. With 400Mhz of processor power, a state of the art graphics chip from Nvidia and a huge, high resolution TFT screen, Gizmondo totally outclasses all other mobile gaming devices.

Built-in GPS technology allows players to discover the true meaning of mobile gaming. Some of the most exciting, innovative and interactive experiences the gaming industry has ever seen are currently in development.

High quality multi-level games can be installed through an SD card or downloaded remotely via the mobile phone network.

Unlike other mobile gaming devices, Gizmondo puts you in total control with an eight-way D-Pad, left and right triggers and four face buttons.

Music

The built-in Windows® multimedia MP3 facility enables users to download and enjoy their music on the move, in digital quality through the stereo headset socket.

The device's digital encryption technology uses digital handshake, restricted access and 'destruct at engagement' methods to prohibit piracy and theft.

The operating system enables easy downloading of music files while Gizmondo's integrated SD flash card reader lets users mix and store endless selections of music.

Gizmondo's unique Smart Adds system allows the music industry to deliver customized, feature-rich content via MMS.

Movies

Thanks to its Windows® CE operating system, Gizmondo has the most advanced video playback functionality ever seen on a mobile gaming device.

The opportunities for feature-rich media are endless. Not only is it possible to view and send video clips like music videos or film previews, but enabling technology will eventually allow users to view entire feature films.

Windows® Media Player 9 enables MPEG 4 video format viewing on Gizmondo's high resolution TFT screen.

Here ya go. There are some other features on the site, but I don't feel like posting them all.

 

[The Main Event]

I'm betting the games will look more like these:

 

[kaching]

Maybe, but definitely not @ 640x480, like the resolution of those screens suggest. Gizmondo's screen is 240x320, so the aspect ratio on these screens isn't even the same.

Edit: just realized that the Gizmondo site reverses the screen dimensions in print WxH instead of HxW. So aspect ratio is the same but not resolution.

I'm really interested to see the "real" Gizmondo and get an honest estimation of just how good it is. Wish they'd stop playing Phantom-like PR games and get the unit out on the market so we can judge for ourselves.

 

[MrparisSM]

I'm betting the games will look more like these:

From what I'm understanding it can play "regular" games that are designed for it. And downloadable "cell phone" games from the GPS network. That is more than likely a cellphone game you can download.

 

[The Shadow]

Yeah, those pics look a lot different compared to other games at that site. I think they just posted pics of the PC versions or something.

 

[D2M15]

That is more than likely a cellphone game you can download.

No, it's Stuntcar Extreme, one of the Gizmondo games.

Angelfish is kinda neat, if a little easy, though.

 

[TekunoRobby]

Thank you MrparisSM, that was kind of you.

I really don't want to be buying three portable systems in one year. Those crazy hardware wizards.

EDIT: That was sarcasm above but hopefully the system will be able to push those graphics.

 

[Lakitu]

The name "Gizmondo" alone makes me want to hulk smash it with rage.

 

[mashoutposse]

Holy Crap, can we truely expect Gizmondo games to look like this???

No.

 

[MrparisSM]

The name "Gizmondo" alone makes me want to hulk smash it with rage.

LOL I know right. That's got to be the lamest name ever for a gaming device.

 

[TekunoRobby]

The name "Gizmondo" alone makes me want to hulk smash it with rage.

Then let me show you what the thing looks like:

The system looks to be powerful enough and it has a lot of features but it looks dead in the water right now. Going against the PSP and the DS not to mention the GBA juggernaut pretty much guarantees this machine to be underground.

The name, the way the system looks, the buttons, everything about it makes me want to assault the design team.

 

[duderon]

Breaking news: Gizmondo revolutionizes connectivity with the Phantom!

 

[FortNinety]

The name "Gizmondo" alone makes me want to hulk smash it with rage.

Exactly. When we actually see the real games in motion, I predict the hilarity will be of epic proportions.

 

[mrklaw]

They've recently upgraded the graphics chip from a 2D one to an Nvidia 3D chip. I don't know if that means more like the first graphics, or more like the second ones.

In this weeks MCV in the UK, they have a big article on it, which expects the price to be £50 by next christmas, using an 'opt in advertising' model, where you subscribe to 'interests' and get sent adverts over the air (it has a GPRS cellphone built in which is used for text and picture messaging)

Sounds nice, and if Microsoft is supporting it with 8 titles per quarter like they say, it could be one to watch. It'd be like the US supporting the insurgents against the evil empire, without actually sending any troops.

 

[MrparisSM]

Breaking news: Gizmondo revolutionizes connectivity with the Phantom!

Actually it does revolutionize connectivity. It allows for multiplayer over the mobile GPS network. Meaning you can play anybody anywhere without having to be connected to a "hot spot", wi-fi or anything like that.... I wish the DS or PSP had incorporated this...

 

[sc0la]

And I thought explaining controls to newbs was cumbersome with PS2. "Push triangle"

"Press the nine dots button to fire"
"o_o ..."

 

[duderon]

Actually it does revolutionize connectivity. It allows for multiplayer over the mobile GPS network. Meaning you can play anybody anywhere without having to be connected to a "hot spot", wi-fi or anything like that.... I wish the DS or PSP had incorporated this...

Both the DS and PSP can connect to other systems over WiFi hotspots if i'm not mistaken. They just need something like Live to get everyone together.

 

[mashoutposse]

Actually it does revolutionize connectivity. It allows for multiplayer over the mobile GPS network. Meaning you can play anybody anywhere without having to be connected to a "hot spot", wi-fi or anything like that.... I wish the DS or PSP had incorporated this...

I would imagine that playing multiplayer over cellphone networks would only be well suited for turn-based games as the lag would be ridiculous otherwise.

 

[kaching]

Actually it does revolutionize connectivity. It allows for multiplayer over the mobile GPS network. Meaning you can play anybody anywhere without having to be connected to a "hot spot", wi-fi or anything like that.... I wish the DS or PSP had incorporated this...

GPS connectivity still relies on the device being near a "hotspot", its just that they're a lot more pervasive in cell phon networks than they are for Wifi right now. There's nothing revolutionary about it, even if your standard is the use of a cellphone network for online gaming since the Ngage was there first.

 

[Do The Mario]

I am tinkering with the idea of becoming this forums first “gizmo-boy”

 

[kaching]

Not Gizmondood?

 

[duderon]

Not Gizmondood?

Gizmondrone

 

[Do The Mario]

Not Gizmondood?

Yeah that’s a better name, collectively we can be called the Gizmondoods.

SELL YOURE PSP and DS it’s over!

 

[TekunoRobby]

Yeah that’s a better name, collectively we can be called the Gizmondoods.

SELL YOURE PSP and DS it’s over!

Gizmondulon

You can be champion of evil portables in the war of the fanboys.

 

[Fixed2BeBroken]

that thing is ugly as hell

 

[aoi tsuki]

Been a while since i've been to the site, but the teaser flash for Colors always cracks me up.

http://www.gizmondo.com/games/item.asp?id=4

Edit: "Gizmondo" reminds me of "Zombocom".

 

[etiolate]

Not Gizmondood?

Gizmonger

And wtf! Now we have heiroglyphs for buttons?

 

[DCharlie]

"Gizmondodo"

as in, dead as a...

 

[Unison]

Does that man have giant hands or is that machine really tiny??!

 

[Folder]

Holy Crap, can we truely expect Gizmondo games to look like this???

Oh yes. And all you need to do is smoke a lot of crack.
That's some kind of image upload error on the real.

 

[boutrosinit]

I guarantee you those SCi screens are NOT Gizmondo screens. I believe Folder's crack theory to be logistically sound. Add to that magic mushroom ingestion and the smoking of faeces and I believe those screens will bee a possibility.

 

[Chittagong]

I know startups need to do whatever they can to grab attention, but the lies coming out from this company are just sad - they seem to put out any crap to get attention:

- 500.000 preorders!!! Oh wait, they are just people who may or may not buy one, seeing the system somewhat interesting

- Gizmondo for 50 quid!!!! Unfortunately, again, no real world evidence to support this.

- Graphics blow away PSP!!! Technically, the screenshots are not Gizmondo graphics, or even close, but what the heck. Gizmondo's main graphic middleware partner is Fathammer, and that's the same crap you see on Tapwave now and the first batch of Ngage games (which were utterly shitty).

- Revolutionary GPRS gaming!! Actually, no it's not: Pathway To Glory and Pocket Kingdom for ngage are both out in the shops.

I could actually respect the guys for trying, but dishonesty is just irritating as fuck.

 

[Jacobi]

Hmm, I saw a screen of "Colors" and it looks pretty good.

 

[AnIco]

This:

is an identical (albeit slightly lower resolution) version of this Xbox shot:

I think this is what should be expected for the Gizmondo:

And here is an actual video of Gizmondo Richard Burns Rally (I've posted it before):
Prepare to not be amazed :/

Note the different HUD

 

[Do The Mario]

I know startups need to do whatever they can to grab attention, but the lies coming out from this company are just sad - they seem to put out any crap to get attention:

- 500.000 preorders!!! Oh wait, they are just people who may or may not buy one, seeing the system somewhat interesting

- Gizmondo for 50 quid!!!! Unfortunately, again, no real world evidence to support this.

- Graphics blow away PSP!!! Technically, the screenshots are not Gizmondo graphics, or even close, but what the heck. Gizmondo's main graphic middleware partner is Fathammer, and that's the same crap you see on Tapwave now and the first batch of Ngage games (which were utterly shitty).

- Revolutionary GPRS gaming!! Actually, no it's not: Pathway To Glory and Pocket Kingdom for ngage are both out in the shops.

I could actually respect the guys for trying, but dishonesty is just irritating as fuck.

Sony lied like fuck about the PS2’s abilties, Shiggy said all kind of crazzy shit about the GC.

Now we finally have the Gizmondo to keep the bastards honest!

Is Nintendo and Sony's dishonesty as annoying as fuck?

 

[aerodynamik]

The first screens are high-res shots of the PC-version of Richard Burns Rally. That's pathetic, and there's a name for it. A video was around some days ago of the final or close-to-final version of RBR for the Gizmondo (or that's what I was told) that didn't look bad, but nothing close to THAT. Bastards.

Edit: the video's the one posted by AnIco, I guess.

 

[Funky Papa]

The Gizmondo is a quite capable piece of hardware, it has enough potential to become the western's GP32. You'll see.

Some GoForce 3D 4500 specs and pics

GoForce 3D Technology

* OpenGL® ES / MD3D compliant
* Geometry processor
* Programmable pixel shader
* Bilinear/trilinear texture filtering
* Supports fixed & floating point data
* Intelligent power management
* 128-bit memory interface
* 40-bit color pipeline
* 6 simultaneous textures
* Signed overbright color
* 8 surfaces (color, Z, texture 1-6)
* Over 1 million drawn triangles/second

MPEG-4 and H.263 Hardware Codec

*
CIF encode or decode at 30fps
*
Full duplex 30fps @ CIF
*
MPEG-4 simple profile, Level 1, 2, 3
*
H.263 support
*
MPEG-4 post-processing including de-blocking and de-ringing filters, color space conversion, and image scaling

JPEG Hardware Codec

*
Encode and Decode of 3MP image
*
Motion JPEG capture/playback for VGA resolution at up to 30fps
*
Composite, framing, and overlay
*
Thumbnail support

High-Resolution Color Display

*
Support for up to VGA (640 x 480) LCD
*
Dual LCD support
*
18-bpp panel support


SD/SDIO Host Controller

*
1 bit and 4 bit SD/SDIO for storing JPEG and MPEG-4 files
*
MMC card support
*
Support for storage, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth cards

Video Input

*
Up to 3MP camera module support
*
ITU-R 656-compliant 8-bit interface
*
Horizontal scaling with horizontal averaging and low-pass filtering
*
Vertical averaging
*
Serial peripheral interface (SPI) bus for camera control & programming
*
YUV422 to RGB565 color space conversion
*
Fine-grained digital zoom, up to 8x

64-bit 2D Graphics Acceleration

*
BitBlt with 256 3-operand raster operations
*
Video scaling with range of 8x expansion to 1/60th contraction
*
Mono and solid pattern
*
Mono-to-color expansion
*
Mono source/pattern transparency
*
Destination read/write color transparency
*
All angle (Bresenham) line draw
*
Rectangle fill YUV422 to RGB565 color space conversion
*
Fine-grained digital zoom, up to 8X



Flat Panel (LCD) Interface

*
Direct interface to LCD drivers with embedded memory
*
Built-in timing generator
*
Color FRC S-STN at 4, 8, and 16 bits/clock
*
Color PWM S-STN at 9 and 12 bits/clock
*
Color TFT at 9, 12, 16 and 18 bit/clock
*
Partial pixel per clock mode
*
Up to 16-level FRC and up to 4-bit spatial dithering
*
CPU, RGB, Serial, NEC M-CMADS, AMLCD, LTPS, and Sharp ULC display support
*
Support for over 75 popular LCDs

Graphics Controller

*
Hardware rotation (90°, 180°, 270°)
*
Flip and mirror
*
Partial display support
*
Triple 6-bit look-up-table
*
Overlay support

32-bit Flexible Host Bus Interface

*
Indirect and direct addressing support
*
8/16/32-bit asynchronous interface to CPUs
*
Burst mode support
*
Fixed and variable latency host bus

Clock Options

*
On-chip oscillator for 2 to 6MHz crystals
*
Digital bypass mode for external clock sources (e.g. baseband or CPU)
*
Low-power relaxation oscillator
*
On-chip PLL with VCO range of 50MHz to 100MHz

Advanced Power Management

*
Fully-static CMOS technology
*
Low-leakage 0.15 micron process
*
Individual module enables
*
Automatic shut-off of unused pipeline stages

Packaging & Power

*
168-pin BGA, 12 x 12mm, 0.65mm ball spacing, 1.2mm height (GoForce 4000 compatible)
*
JTAG boundary scan
*
1.425-1.575V core, 1.71V to 3.60V I/O

The first demos were utter shit, but you should spect DirectX 6 quality graphics (at least) Not PSP, but far better than NDS.

I'll be getting one, so I'll tell you how is it.

 

[pestul]

Gizmongloids.

 

[Chittagong]

Sony lied like fuck about the PS2’s abilties, Shiggy said all kind of crazzy shit about the GC.

Now we finally have the Gizmondo to keep the bastards honest!

Is Nintendo and Sony's dishonesty as annoying as fuck?

Yes it is - whoever does it. And everybody does. Using the shipped vs. sold trick is old, as is doing highly optimized demos that run on your actual hardware but are in no way representative of actual gameplay performance. With Gizmondo, however, we are talking about posting screenshots from another platform as you own and using numbers of interested people as "sales data", so I guess Gizmondo is innovative!

 

[AnIco]

I think it's safe to assume that the cited pre-order figures for Gizmondo are massively more fantastical than the DS' 2 million Japanese pre-orders

 

[Chittagong]

I think it's safe to assume that the cited pre-order figures for Gizmondo are massively more fantastical than the DS' 2 million Japanese pre-orders

I know I'm sounding like a broken record, but the webraiding activity from Gizmondo is so aggressive at the moment I do not mind repeating:

The difference is that the DS 2 million pre-orders are actual financial order commitments from the Japanese retail channel, so we know for sure that Nintendo will ship 2 million units to the channel. Of course we don't know how much will sell through.

The Gizmondo numbers, on the other hand, are not financial commitments by anybody, not the channel or the consumer. They represent only the amount of people who are willing to say even without commitment that "Gizmondo is interesting". Interpreting them as orders is just sad. The Gizmondo guy said in the press release that they expect arond half of that figure to realize as sales to channel. We do not know how much will ship into channel (I say 50-100K would be phenomenal), and we know even less how much will sell through.

 

[Funky Papa]

Gizmondo will ship at least 30.000 units for Portugal and Spain (combined) They are being serious with their business, but they don't know how to handle it.

BTW they have been advertising the handheld quite a lot on TV.

 

[Chittagong]

Gizmondo will ship at least 30.000 units for Portugal and Spain (combined) They are being serious with their business, but they don't know how to handle it.

BTW they have been advertising the handheld quite a lot on TV.

Sounds like a big number - in comparison, any idea what are the GBA and Ngage sales over there?

 

[Funky Papa]

Got me with the GBA. I'll dig in my archives.

Nokia recently announced that they sold more than 100.000 N-Gage units in Spain during the last year, being one of their biggest hardware markets.

 

[Chittagong]

Got me with the GBA. I'll dig in my archives.

Nokia recently announced that they sold more than 100.000 N-Gage units in Spain, being one of their biggest hardware markets.

Holy shit how could I have missed that

 

[The Faceless Master]

Gizmonger

And wtf! Now we have heiroglyphs for buttons?

hahahah, yeah, wtf is up with that, . we've gone fro A and B to Triangle and Square to Black and White to .. Sine Wave and Parallel Lines!?

 

[impirius]

And I thought explaining controls to newbs was cumbersome with PS2. "Push triangle"

"Press the nine dots button to fire"
"o_o ..."

"Up up down down left right left right Squiggles Dots dots Lines Circle Dots Squiggles"

That and the alien antennae L and R buttons don't help the system out at all. (Although it's probably "Rhombus and Duck" instead of "L and R")

 

[Jr.]

In all honessty this thing should be to the PSP what the Xbox is to the PS2. It hink it will be able to produce FAR better graphics than the PSP. The main reason it does not really so far is because you have mostly low level devs doing stuff on it. If Tiger can get some real game support, then..... Sell you GP32's its all over!