Handheld Hijinks Vol 8 - Field Programmable Gameboy Array
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03-06-2024 4:13pm#1
Ok so this is no Analogue Pocket, but it's a looot cheaper, and claims to punch well above its weight. So what is it? Well, it's the FPGBC, or, a complete FPGA recreation of a Gameboy/Gameboy Color (with all brand new components.) New shell, new buttons, new screen, new mainboard…the works. A big plus here, is there's absolutely no soldering needed at all, it's all plug n play. Let's see if its any good….
^^ As with many of my threads, we begin with a box of bits… Here, the complete kit is shown. Shell, buttons, membrane, stickers, and the goodies then inside the box….
^^ Inside the box, there's the screen, the FPGA based mainboard, and a new rechargeable battery.
^^ The mainboard for an FPGA Gameboy/Color. Certainly looks well designed, and well put together (sorry for the blurry pic!)
^^ A brand new speaker, ready to rock those chiptune classics…
^^ Ok, lets get assembling. We begin by putting the speaker into the mainboard.
^^ Buttons installed…
^^ Membranes installed, these should provide a fresh new feel to using the machine.
^^ Changed my mind, I want red A/B buttons. I went with a black case for this as I already have a White Funny Playing GBC which has their lovely IPS mod. This one being black, will differentiate it, and the red buttons have an NES Controller vibe to them when paired with the black shell.
^^ Next up is to fit the mainboard into the shell, again, all quite straight forward when you take your time.
^^ The three mounting screws installed. Tighten these carefully, threading forwards and then occasionally counter-clockwise to clear the threads (these are tapping their own threads into the plastic of the shell.)
^^ Power switch installed, it simply drops into place nice and easy.
^^ IR blanking cover the same, just drops into place (though the FPGBC lacks IR functionality at this time, so this is a cosmetic cover really.)
^^ Speaker plugged in, and wires tidied out of the way.
^^ Back shell then screwed into place.
^^ Round the front now, we need to install the screen itself. It simply plugs into the connector that's visible here (covered with a piece of kapton tape.)
^^ Done, and screen protector left in place for the moment. In this pic, the screen is only sitting in position, it's not stuck down yet. It's adviseable to test everything at this stage to ensure it's all working before sticking the screen down.
^^ My only complaint with this kit, is that I don't at all like the battery connector. It's very small, fiddly, and I'm not sure how durable it is (I really don't like leaving batteries connected to handhelds for very long when in storage etc.) A stronger connection here would be nice.
^^ Battery in, and then cover in place.
^^ It works! Annoying boot logo though, more on that later…
^^ I now lift the screen up, and peel the tape covers off. This will stick the screen down to the shell now.
^^ Rear shell stickers in place for that little bit of extra authenticity.
^^ Ok, time to test. I don't have an Everdrive for the Gameboy yet, so just grabbed these off my Zelda shelf. They'll allow me to test both modes, the Gameboy and Gameboy Color modes.
^^ But first I grabbed the patched firmware that has the original GB & GBC boot animations….muuuuuch better now.
^^ Ok, time to test it in standard Gameboy mode first…
^^ There's many different colour pallets to choose from, here's a small sample.
^^ Ok, time to test the Gameboy Colour mode now.
^^ It looks really good in person. Ok it's no OLED, but the IPS at this size is sharp, punchy, and responsive….I'm very happy with it.
^^ You have to manually switch between the two modes/cores. It'd be nice if in a future firmware update, it could detect whether or not to auto switch between GB & GBC. There's a nice selection of display modes too, from full screen, to integer scaled, with pixel grids, without pixel grids, etc.
^^ A look at the different display modes…
^^ And to cap it all off, a nice USB-C port to recharge the battery.
Great value little kit I must say, and while given the choice I'd prefer original hardware over modern recreations, this being FPGA based is a nice touch.
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