Nintendo Game Boy Advance SP

Early handheld video games were simple, purpose-built games with names like "Football" and "Soccer". Usually based on grain-of-sand lamps or red LEDs and often not even using a microprocessor, these games were simplistic in the extreme and could usually only play one game. Over time, as integrated logic became cheaper, the games became more advanced with features such as matrix graphics and interchangeable game ROM cartridges. While the earliest days were dominated by names like Atari and Mattel, the industry was rapidly dominated by Nintendo, first with the Game & Watch units and later with the Game Boy series of handhelds. One of the finest examples is the pocket-sized, folding, recharging Game Boy Advance SP. Released in February of 2003, the system blew away everything remotely resembling competition.

The Game Boy Advance SP (or "GBA SP") is not only yet another installment in the Game Boy line, but also itself a sequel to the original "Game Boy Advance". The new system is practically half the size of the original, has a rechargeable battery and a screen light, and even folds up to protect the screen. The Game Boy line has actually already moved on from the SP, with the "DS" and "DS lite" dual-screen systems that feature a touch screen but break backwards compatibility with the oldest Game Boy systems. The GBA and GBA SP do not have this problem, and so for classic game enthusiasts who like to play in other than direct sunlight, the SP is the logical choice especially given the quite reasonable price for which you can acquire it used. Even the original, classic Game Boy is still worth a few bucks, so it's not like they're lying around free, but you can get them without being robbed now (the new price for a GBA SP is still almost a hundred and sixty dollars at the time I write this article!)

The really striking thing about the SP is its sleek design. Out of technical necessity, the original Game Boy was about the size of a moderately fat paperback book, and its design is obviously inspired by the same school as that which produced the Super Famicom/Super NES. The SP looks like something a businessman might carry in his pocket, and indeed the SP is often credited with bringing casual gaming to the masses. The battery life is incredible and the frontlit reflective TFT LCD screen, a first in pocket gaming at the time, is a joy to look at compared to any prior handheld's screen. Today reflective and transflective TFTs are common on everything including handheld games and cellular phones. After September of 2005, the SP was updated with a backlit, transflective TFT.

Taking the GBA and SP even farther, there is a healthy "homebrew" software scene. People are writing games and even other applications for the GBA; for example there is even an automotive tuning system which uses a GBA SP for the interface. You can also get a flash cartridge into which you can load anything you like, including copies of GBA games or even emulators for older Game Boy systems and roms for those systems. All of this is perfectly legal if you actually own the games in question, and this technique can be used to be able to carry multiple games without having to carry multiple cartridges. Original Game Boy and Game Boy Color games stick out of the slot quite a distance, and using an emulator you can also use cheats and save the game state, allowing you to save anywhere and pick back up any time.

There are some other nifty GBA tricks you can play. An adapter cable allows the connection of either GBA model to the Gamecube for use as a controller. In some games (notably Zelda games) code is actually sent to the GBA at boot time, and game information is displayed on its screen. There are also music players, video players, and other cute add-ons which you can purchase from various suppliers.

The GBA SP is a great bargain, and plays literally thousands of games. Used Game Boy series games can be had very cheaply and everything but the latest (DS) games will work in the SP faithfully. Because the cartridge slot on the SP hasn't changed from the original Game Boy's, you can not only run the oldest games (although they stick out if you don't run them from a flash cart) but you can use the oldest cleaning kits, which you can get very cheaply and almost anywhere. You can charge it from the wall outlet, from USB, from a cigarette lighter, and so on, so the rechargeable battery (which really does last a long time - around 10 or 11 hours with the light on) is really never a problem.

Game Boy Advance SP Specifications:

  • CPU: 32-Bit ARM7TDMI with 32 kB RAM+96 kB VRAM embedded memory
  • Memory: 256 KB WRAM additional
  • Screen:
      • Model AGS-001: 2.9-inch reflective front-lit TFT color LCD
      • Model AGS-101: 2.9-inch transflective TFT back-lit color LCD
    • Display Size: 1.6 by 2.4 inches (40.8 by 61.2 mm)
    • Resolution: 240 x 160 pixels in a wide-screen aspect ratio
    • Colors: 511 simultaneous colors from a palette of 32,768
  • Fully compatible with Game Boy and Game Boy Color game paks
  • Size (closed): 3.3 by 3.23 by .96 inch
  • Weight: Approximately 5 ounces
  • Power Supply: Rechargeable lithium-ion battery
  • Battery Life: ~10 hours continuous play with light on; ~18 hours with light off; ~3-4 hours recharging