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GameBoy Advance SP Review - Hardware

The Game Boy Advance exploded onto shelves just over year ago now and has been a smash hit worldwide. It sat perfectly in your hand, and incorporated the shoulder pads for extra game play options. The screen was a tad bigger than the previous incarnation as well as being a lot more powerful. It was a massive success. But it had one galring fault that frustrated a lot of gamers; it was very hard to make out the screen unless sitting under a light at night. Various magnifiers and lights flooded the market but never really solved the problem. Nintendo have gone back to the drawing board and have released the next step in it's handheld console evolution: the Game Boy Advance SP. Lets give it a test drive shall we?

Visuals

Yes, Nintendo have well and truly addressed the lighting flaw. Your GBA SP is now front lit. This is activated by a little button sitting just under the screen. No need for those useless magnifier/lights now! Playing games at night no longer requires you to sit under a night light- activating the front light illuminates the screen and you won’t notice the difference. Battery life is stated at 18 hours normal play and 10 hours front lit but you now have the ability to plug your GBA SP into a wall socket and recharge the inbuilt lithium batteries. Yes, you no longer have to buy those AA batteries!

Design

There has also been an overhaul to the way the GBA SP looks. It’s a real throwback to the old Donkey Kong flip-top days. The actual console is a lot smaller than it's predecessor, and when the lid is flipped shut the square shape is easily able to fit snuggly into your pocket. The flip top lid also allows for a lot more protection of the game screen. The controls themselves have been streamline slightly as well, with the D-Pad a tad bigger while the shoulder pads are a lot smaller than those found on the GBA. It takes some adjusting to the shoulder pads but in the end it they are a lot easier to use. The game cartridge slides into the front of the unit and the GBA SP is backward compatible- playing both Game Boy and GBA games. Initially only 2 colours will be released in Australia, the metallic looking platinum silver and cobalt blue. The RRP for the GBA SP is $199.95 but various retailers are running trade-ins where you can upgrade at a small cost.

Verdict

Nintendo really do seem to have listened to all the feedback regarding it's GBA and have well and truly addressed them. If you were like me and didn’t play your GBA as much as you should have because of the lighting issue, go out and trade up for a GBA SP now. It really is a remarkably fun console and with plenty of titles on the way- with (continued next page)