Game Boy Advance Console Black Edition

by Nintendo

Product Details

• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00007CWJ0
• Media: Video Game
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,190 in Video Games (See Top 100 in Video Games)

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

The Game Boy platform (which includes the original unit, the Game Boy Pocket, and the Game Boy Color) came to market when most video game consoles had a life expectancy of just a few years. More than a decade later, the system is still going strong. How did the Game Boy successfully compete--and in some cases bury--an onslaught of faster, more powerful handheld and home console systems? Let us count the ways: affordability, a huge library of games that consistently made the most of the hardware's limitations, smart power management that extended battery life, and uncluttered controls. But perhaps it was the system's ultraportable design, which allowed devotees to play video games around their schedules, making it the must-have system for kids and adults alike.

Now the Game Boy Advance (or GBA as its already being called) comes to us with power that would have been unthinkable back in the day. The portable's 32-bit RISC CPU runs circles around the former's 8-bit workhorse, allowing it to process program instructions much faster. What that means to everyday gamers is more intricate visuals, more simultaneous movement on the screen, and better sound. In fact, the often-annoying beeps and boops of old-school Game Boy titles are being replaced with digitized stereo sound. The extra processing muscle also means you can network up to four Game Boy Advance units together, via the communication cable, for multiplayer fun on one shared cartridge. Only two Game Boy Color units could link together, and each unit had to have a copy of the game.

What's not being replaced, however, is the wide selection of Game Boy games. Since the Game Boy Advance system is backward compatible, it will play its own line of colorful games--like such launch titles as Super Mario Advance, F-Zero: Maximum Velocity, Army Men Advance, High Heat Major League Baseball 2002, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, and Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2--as well as all the monochrome and color games that have already been released for the previous Game Boy systems (nearly 500 of them in total). Players can view the older games in their smaller, originally square dimensions or, with the touch of the shoulder button, expand the game to fit the GBA's larger screen. We tried enlarging the screen on a Game Boy Color edition of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 and found that Mr. Hawk was much easier to see.

When you first pick up the system, you'll wonder how they got it to be so incredibly lightweight. At a little less than 5 ounces and a little larger than a deck of playing cards, the system easily fits into a shirt pocket without any sag. The GBA's wider shape fits better into a wider range of hands. The former design too often pushed the left and right thumb knuckles together during game play. The new layout should be comfortable for all ages, and the center screen orientation makes it easy to see.

Game Boy Color owners will find the GBA's larger screen somewhat darker than they're used to, but that's because the screen is outfitted with antiglare technology. Like the old Game Boy Color, the color LCD is not backlit, so you need pretty good light to play by. Unlike that system, though, you won't be craning your neck and tilting the unit to see around the hot-spot reflection of the light bulb in your screen.

But you'll also notice the graphics. Sporting what's basically a redesigned SNES technology, you'll see things on the GBA that the big consoles do, such as scaling (making objects larger or smaller) and rotation effects--technological advances that will affect the look of everything from crossing a finish line to throwing a touchdown pass to crawling through a dungeon.

Some might argue that Nintendo could have tried to put even more power into this Game Boy Advance. After all, the 32-bit video game had its heyday more than five years ago. Perhaps, but after handling this new handheld, we're inclined to think that Nintendo wisely struck a balance between size, price, and power consumption. And considering how well the old 8-bit system weathered the decade's technological storms, we think the Game Boy Advance is here to stay, and we're glad. --Porter B. Hall

Unit Specifications

• CPU: 32-bit RISC CPU with embedded memory
• Screen: 2.9-inch reflective TFT color LCD
• Display Size: 1.6 x 2.4 inches (40.8 mm x 61.2 mm)
• Resolution: 38,000 pixels in a widescreen aspect ratio (10,000 per square inch)
• Colors: 512 simultaneous colors from a palette of 32,768
• Size: 3.2 x 5.6 x 1 inches (82 mm x 144.5 mm x 24.5 mm)
• Weight: Approximately 5 ounces (140 g)
• Power Supply: 2 AA alkaline batteries
• Battery Life: Approximately 15 hours continuous play

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Selling Gaming System Ever!, December 3, 2002

By 

Stephen J. Carlson (Overland Park, Kansas United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Game Boy Advance Console Black Edition (Video Game)

What is the best selling and fastest selling video game machine ever? PS2?...nope, Xbox?...hardly, that's right it is the
GAME BOY!

It is so popular in fact, the Game Boy Advance has sold over 1 million units in 10 days so far during this holiday season. All Nintendo-made products have been of high-quality and well designed. This is especially true for the GBA.

*** Note: Currently, Amazon.com is selling this same colored Black GBA with Super Mario Advance included for free for the same price listed as a different item. You may want to check this out if you will be purchasing a GBA.

The GBA has a 32-bit processor, just like the Playstation (the Game Boy Color had only an 8-bit processor). It has very good screen quality. In fact, the image resolution on the Game Boy Advance's screen is greater than that of some HDTV's. The Game Boy Advance has incredible sound and the speakers can play louder. The sound is even better with headphones. A nice added touch is the power light--It is green with new batteries, but turns red when there is 20-30% battery left and the light slowly fades out.

The GBA is able to connect to the Nintendo Gamecube through a special link cable available separately. You can also purchase an e-reader for Game Boy Advance that allows you to scan in paper cards that let you play classic NES games. Another exciting recent development is the annoucement of an accessory that plugs into the expansion port of your Gamecube and allows you to play GBA games on your TV. However, this product I believe won't be available until around March or so of next year.

All these improvements are very helpful and amazingly have virtually no effect on the size. The GBA still fits easily in your pocket and is only about a centimeter or longer and wider than the game boy color. In addition, the GBA has two shoulder buttons on top that aid in game-play.

The game paks are half the size of old game boy games but the GBA still plays all 1000+ Game Boy games already released. Due to the smaller size of the new games, the old Game Boy games stick out the top half-way, which is disappointing.

It comes in the standard colors of glacier (clear purple), indigo (purple), fuschia (pink-ish red), white, and special edition platinum. You can also buy a black verison with Super Mario Advance free here at Amazon.com (through Toys "R" Us) and I have seen a red version available at Target.

I would say that the Game Boy Advance is a very well designed portable gaming system and definately well worth its newly-lowered price.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very impressive piece of Technology., January 20, 2003

By 

Totenkopfstandarten (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Game Boy Advance Console Black Edition (Video Game)

First off, I will not cut and paste a bunch of info that you already know and have seen countless times before, like so many others do here... Ecard, 26bit...Bla bla bla.

I will write about the device itself. It is well designed and highly functional. The GBA is sturdy, compact and lightweight. It's design is well thought out from finger grooves for the middle fingers to secure it while playing too the placement of the control buttons. It allows you to play without cramping up and having sore wrists from an unnatural position. The battery compartment is impressive as well... The contacts are spring loaded instead of a small piece of flat metal bent out to maintain contact with the 1.5v power cells. It even has a lanyard divit (like most cameras) for attachment of a lanyard. It also has the standard Headphone jack, volume control and link port. The GBA does not have (or need one) contrast control. To view it without glare it is held at a certain angle and it the screen display becomes bright, crystal clear and colorful.

The BLACK GBA (available only at Toys-R-Us) is a very classy looking handheld. For older gamers it fits well with pagers and cell phones and would not stick out like a sore thumb (as the color cased GBA would) if stored in a briefcase.

Looking at the box the GBA comes in, I didn't expect much. I was amazed just how ADVANCED it jumped in evolution over my Gamboy Pocket (also in black). The Computer of the GBA is wonderful. The graphics are clear and colorful... I was expecting some blurring when the screens scroll, but I was surprised to see that it did not blur at all. The sound the unit produces is clear and not "tinky" like the past GameBoys. Some of the games I have, have actual human speech and it sounds perfect.

Nintendo makes a small Ziparound Padded case (available in all colors) that will fit everything you need in 2 compartments with mesh pockets to secure your investment. I suggest getting one. It will keep your GBA, Games and accessories safe from dust, scratches and small impacts.

I am very pleased with this device. Nintendo just took over the Handheld System gene by brute force and I seriously don't think will be topped by anyone else. The only thing better than the GBA will be the GBA-SP that will be coming out in a few months. I just hope later down the line they make it in Black as well.

GBA = Well worth the money.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How could you give it anything but 5 stars!, December 20, 2002

By 

"virallink" (Riverview, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Game Boy Advance Console Black Edition (Video Game)

The Gameboy Advance is by far the most capable and versatile portable gaming device ever made! With the E-reader, camera (to be released soon), lights, battery packs, and hoards of other accessories, this gameboy can do just about everything! On top of all this we haven't even mentioned its awesome graphic capacity, or its system specs.

So, with all this said, if your going to get this amazing gaming machine why not buy the special edition? It is by far the most cool looking Gameboy Advance yet (even though the platinum runs a close second), if you're going to get one anyway why not get the best looking for the same price!