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Atari Flashback Portable!


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Locked down on purpose? Or simply not provided due to it being a low-cost product?

 

I never specifically asked, but I assume it's on purpose. For the 2017 stuff, there was a possibility to not have a locked down system in case of needed updates, but that was shot down. Most of that is due to keeping it as simple as possible for the consumer (which again, is a casual audience, not us).

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It finally arrived at Bed Bath & Beyond in Longview TX. I'm now charging it up and adding roms to a SD card! The new Mattel Football and Basketball look just like the 70's versions, but they replaced the blips and beeps with digital sound samples, Not cool! To me that was a part of their charm, my high school banned them in 1979 because the beeps drove the teachers and cafeteria ladies crazy! :D

 

Atari Flashback Portable at Bed Bath & Beyond, Longview TX

Edited by WildBillTX
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Got mine a few hours ago. Technically it's a Christmas present for the kids, but I'd better test it out now! Unfortunately the packaging is somewhat haphazard, and there's a diagonal scratch across the whole screen. I'll probably exchange it for another. Otherwise, not bad at all for less than $40. The game selection will get old pretty quickly -- 60 games is cool, but no Pac Man, Activision games, etc., but who cares, there's an SD card slot! It can handle an 8MB SD card, which is way more than you need anyway. Pretty insane. And the video and audio quality are pretty great considering the price. Sure there's a little fatigue from the backlight, and the sound is tinny -- but it gets loud enough, and it's $40! Plus a library of Atari games I would have killed for (and spent a fortune on) as a kid is in the palm of my hand! Easy to take this sort of thing for granted these days, but it's pretty amazing just the same.

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BTW does anyone know how long it takes for the battery to be fully charged?

 

I've been playing some some roms on it. Found out that the latest version of Ed Fries Rally104905.bin wont play at all (it only displays the radar screen) and Galaxian-Expanded-gfx-hack-espire8(NTSC).bin has a doubling of aliens on the screens.

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Got mine a few hours ago. Technically it's a Christmas present for the kids, but I'd better test it out now! Unfortunately the packaging is somewhat haphazard, and there's a diagonal scratch across the whole screen. I'll probably exchange it for another. Otherwise, not bad at all for less than $40. The game selection will get old pretty quickly -- 60 games is cool, but no Pac Man, Activision games, etc., but who cares, there's an SD card slot! It can handle an 8MB SD card, which is way more than you need anyway. Pretty insane. And the video and audio quality are pretty great considering the price. Sure there's a little fatigue from the backlight, and the sound is tinny -- but it gets loud enough, and it's $40! Plus a library of Atari games I would have killed for (and spent a fortune on) as a kid is in the palm of my hand! Easy to take this sort of thing for granted these days, but it's pretty amazing just the same.

Did you remove the plastic cover on the screen? That's supposed to protect it during shipping and then you peel it off.

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It finally arrived at Bed Bath & Beyond in Longview TX. I'm now charging it up and adding roms to a SD card! The new Mattel Football and Basketball look just like the 70's versions, but they replaced the blips and beeps with digital sound samples, Not cool! To me that was a part of their charm, my high school banned them in 1979 because the beeps drove the teachers and cafeteria ladies crazy! :D

 

Kudos. I live about 65 miles East of you in Shreveport. Definitely interested in the Pacman LCD handheld foxglove mentioned. Being an only child with ADHD and growing up without an NES or GameBoy was rough, so my mom used to buy me cheap LCD games for good behavior, and I have a lot of nostalgia for those systems. I wish they just went with a Dpad instead of the microscopic joystick though. From Google Sponsored Ads, sorted by price (pay clicks have been stripped from the urls):

 

TRU $16.99 http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=87079216

KM $16.99 http://www.kmart.com/pac-man-mini-arcade-game/p-004W005373986001P

B&N $19.95 http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/toys-games-pac-man-mini-arcade-game/29930805

BBB $19.99 http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/pac-man-handheld-mini-arcade-game/1047038028/

 

UO $25.95 [!] http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=40828162

 

Urban Outfitters sounds like a big ripoff. Good thing I don't have one in my town, yet! :lol:

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I think I got a bad unit.

The LCD seems to be showing classic signs of color saturation.

I fully charged it up and the problem persists.

I guess I'll have to wait until the local Bed&Bath gets another shipment.

Also, the main menu screen gives me eye strain.

 

Also, the audio seems to suffer from allot of high frequency interference.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RW095_gwfUA

Edited by Kokovec69
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I've had my FBP for about a week now. I have to say... I love the thing. Sure, compatibility could be better (I wish it worked with more of the newer homebrew games), but all in all a nice effort by AtGames. I'm just glad there is a company out there putting out cool retro stuff. I'll support them just for that!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Did you remove the plastic cover on the screen? That's supposed to protect it during shipping and then you peel it off.

Ha! I'm an idiot. Criticism withdrawn! I actually did have that thought before posting, but found no trace of the cover. After picking at the edge of the screen with a toothpick, I finally caught the edge of the cover, and the screen is just fine!

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I hope there's room inside to hack in a 9-pin joystick connector! :)

I would assume that if the Genesis has one, and they use the exact same shell, you should be able to fit one, or even do some part swaps.

 

Finding the other three solder points would be the only issue.

 

Definitely interested in the Pacman LCD handheld foxglove mentioned.

I'm pretty sure someone posted a thread here about those a few months ago, I remember reading it.

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I would assume that if the Genesis has one, and they use the exact same shell, you should be able to fit one, or even do some part swaps.

 

Finding the other three solder points would be the only issue.

 

 

I'm pretty sure someone posted a thread here about those a few months ago, I remember reading it.

 

The Genesis portable does not have one. Presumably someone could match the placement of the Flashback 7, but the Portable uses a newer version of the same hardware, so I'm not sure they're directly equivalent. The only place I could see a stable placement for a joystick/paddle connector is on the center bottom of the unit where it has the most surface area, but that may not be viable because of how the screen is positioned. Perhaps the only way it would really work, assuming it's even possible in the first place, is to have a dongle, which kind of ruins the portability.

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Ha! I'm an idiot. Criticism withdrawn! I actually did have that thought before posting, but found no trace of the cover. After picking at the edge of the screen with a toothpick, I finally caught the edge of the cover, and the screen is just fine!

 

I tried to pick a little at mine, but I can't find evidence of a screen protector. The screen quality isn't bothering me, so I guess I'll leave it be and the thing will eventually peel back on its own (if I have one).

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I tried to pick a little at mine, but I can't find evidence of a screen protector. The screen quality isn't bothering me, so I guess I'll leave it be and the thing will eventually peel back on its own (if I have one).

 

You almost certainly do. It's actually rather difficult to get at, but definitely try at the corners. It does make the screen look a bit nicer without it.

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