dommie Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I'm about to begin work on a handheld 2600 (Ben Heck's design). Just throwing this question out there: would you buy something like this? If so, what would you pay? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 $100 shipped Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iwan-iwanowitsch-goratschin Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 $100 shipped lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost Soldier Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Wasn't there some rumors that the Flashback 3 was going to be a portable ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 $100 shipped lol okay, $100 plus shipping charges Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Wasn't there some rumors that the Flashback 3 was going to be a portable ? Not out yet, but the latest about it is this: http://www.retrothing.com/2009/03/atari-fl...k-portable.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fangorn81 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Why didn't he turn it on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Why didn't he turn it on? I think he borrowed that picture, I don't think he has actually made it yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wickeycolumbus Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I would say that after the FB2 portable comes out, there will be no market for a home made device. The retail price of the FB2p is around $70, hopefully it will come out soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dommie Posted March 26, 2009 Author Share Posted March 26, 2009 I would say that after the FB2 portable comes out, there will be no market for a home made device. The retail price of the FB2p is around $70, hopefully it will come out soon. The FB2 seems pretty cool, but nobody knows if/when it will be coming out. I'm thinking I could build the cart handheld pictured in like a week. Don't get me wrong, the USB/internal memory deal would be killer and I'd definitely buy one. I just like the look of the Ben Heck one. Plus the custom built one has a built-in knob for paddle games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fangorn81 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Not the picture, in the video, the guy never turns the FB2 on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wickeycolumbus Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Not the picture, in the video, the guy never turns the FB2 on. Maybe it is a nonfunctional mock up. Thats too bad, I really wanted to see it turned on Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klokwrkblu Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 I'm about to begin work on a handheld 2600 (Ben Heck's design). Just throwing this question out there: would you buy something like this? If so, what would you pay? It lookes like a game boy spray painted black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 A cartridge-based Atari VCS portable (or NES or Genesis or whatever) never made a lot of sense to me, in that the very portability of the thing is negated somewhat by the necessity of keeping cartridges handy, which get bulky quickly. Now the Legacy-designed FB2p, that works for me. I'm not sure the controller ports make a lot of sense (how are you going to hold the thing when you're using an external controller? Okay, 2 players...who are you going to get to squint over your shoulder at a 4-inch-ish screen? Unless the device can be connected to a television/monitor...), but otherwise a very cool design. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nathan Strum Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Now the Legacy-designed FB2p, that works for me. I'm not sure the controller ports make a lot of sense (how are you going to hold the thing when you're using an external controller? Okay, 2 players...who are you going to get to squint over your shoulder at a 4-inch-ish screen? Unless the device can be connected to a television/monitor...), but otherwise a very cool design. Except that the fire button is on the wrong side (should be on the left), and as far as I can tell, there are no difficulty switches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 I did notice there weren't any difficulty switches, but that doesn't really bother me. I don't use them most of the time anyway. They would be nice, but, barring a handful of games, they're not really essential. I also have no problem with the fire button/d-pad arrangement. It may not be "accurate," if you're trying to approximate a CX-40 (in which case, obviously, a d-pad isn't going to cut it anyway), but it's probably more familiar and adaptable to the general populace, since virtually every d-pad-type controller ever made is laid out that way. So no, it's not the same as a good, old-fashioned joystick, but I think I can understand why Legacy went the route they did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fangorn81 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 well you would need the difficulty switches for games like Space Shuttle and Ghostbusters... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dommie Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Now the Legacy-designed FB2p, that works for me. I'm not sure the controller ports make a lot of sense (how are you going to hold the thing when you're using an external controller? Okay, 2 players...who are you going to get to squint over your shoulder at a 4-inch-ish screen? Unless the device can be connected to a television/monitor...), but otherwise a very cool design. Except that the fire button is on the wrong side (should be on the left), and as far as I can tell, there are no difficulty switches. Personally, I wouldn't want to use a right handed D-pad. That would just feel too awkward. As for the difficulty switches, I do intend on including them. Same goes for the color/bw switch. The entire motherboard will be in the unit more or less, so it should have 100% functionality. I did hear that in most cases the driving paddle is a no-go though, so I should say 100% minus the driving paddle game(s). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 well you would need the difficulty switches for games like Space Shuttle and Ghostbusters... From post #16: "They would be nice, but, barring a handful of games, they're not really essential." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Forget any of those one-off homebrew hack jobs. Those are basically 2600 units disassembled and re-packaged into a different housing, along with all the associated unreliabilities of half-baked solder joints and loose screws. The long-term reliability and usability has got to suck. Just go get one of those mini-EE PC's or something, http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=24&l2=164 , for example and you can game all day long. You can bring multiple systems with you, and you can trade roms with your buddies, as well as keep up-to-date with atariage happenings. The stella emulator is as good as it gets and really is the wave of the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hhwolfman Posted March 28, 2009 Share Posted March 28, 2009 Forget any of those one-off homebrew hack jobs. Those are basically 2600 units disassembled and re-packaged into a different housing, along with all the associated unreliabilities of half-baked solder joints and loose screws. The long-term reliability and usability has got to suck. Just go get one of those mini-EE PC's or something, http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=24&l2=164 , for example and you can game all day long. You can bring multiple systems with you, and you can trade roms with your buddies, as well as keep up-to-date with atariage happenings. The stella emulator is as good as it gets and really is the wave of the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dommie Posted March 28, 2009 Author Share Posted March 28, 2009 Forget any of those one-off homebrew hack jobs. Those are basically 2600 units disassembled and re-packaged into a different housing, along with all the associated unreliabilities of half-baked solder joints and loose screws. The long-term reliability and usability has got to suck. Just go get one of those mini-EE PC's or something, http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=24&l2=164 , for example and you can game all day long. You can bring multiple systems with you, and you can trade roms with your buddies, as well as keep up-to-date with atariage happenings. The stella emulator is as good as it gets and really is the wave of the future. LOL, if I wanted to do that I'd just use the laptop I'm typing this message on now. Yes they are EXACTLY a disassembled 2600 with a different housing, reconfigured into a much smaller package, that runs off of batteries, with a built in screen and joystick/paddle controller. And it takes carts. Hence the name "portable handheld Atari 2600." I guess I can count you out on the pre-order list, aye? p.s. emulators are the work of the devil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cassidy Nolen Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 The FB2 seems pretty cool, but nobody knows if/when it will be coming out. I'm thinking I could build the cart handheld pictured in like a week. Good luck Its harder than it looks. What are you going to do for power? How about a backlight? How do you switch from paddle to joystick fire buttons (pins are different). What about ground loop RF after you have removed all the caps on the pcb (pack of 470pf solved my issues). What about CNC code, sublimation supplies and the various knobs, buttons, etc... More than a week..... CN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirage Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Forget any of those one-off homebrew hack jobs. Those are basically 2600 units disassembled and re-packaged into a different housing, along with all the associated unreliabilities of half-baked solder joints and loose screws. The long-term reliability and usability has got to suck. Just go get one of those mini-EE PC's or something, http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=24&l2=164 , for example and you can game all day long. You can bring multiple systems with you, and you can trade roms with your buddies, as well as keep up-to-date with atariage happenings. The stella emulator is as good as it gets and really is the wave of the future. LOL, if I wanted to do that I'd just use the laptop I'm typing this message on now. Yes they are EXACTLY a disassembled 2600 with a different housing, reconfigured into a much smaller package, that runs off of batteries, with a built in screen and joystick/paddle controller. And it takes carts. Hence the name "portable handheld Atari 2600." I guess I can count you out on the pre-order list, aye? p.s. emulators are the work of the devil. Don't waste your breath. He's not going to get it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dauber Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 LOL, if I wanted to do that I'd just use the laptop I'm typing this message on now. Yes they are EXACTLY a disassembled 2600 with a different housing, reconfigured into a much smaller package, that runs off of batteries, with a built in screen and joystick/paddle controller. And it takes carts. Hence the name "portable handheld Atari 2600." Heh...sometimes I think I'd be interested in a portable 2600, or how sweet it would be if a portable 7800 were possible, but then I remember I have a MacBook and can emulate anything. Really, the only thing a portable 2600 would be good for is what I saw someone do with (a pink) one in 2006 at the Midwest Gaming Classic: use it to test carts before buying them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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