What's the best portable Genesis?

[Hateshinai]

Get a Nomad and use good rechargeable batteries (I use Sanyo Eneloop batteries and they last long and charge quick).

I have the screen modded with a new LCD and it's amazing - also saves on the battery life.

Oh -- that sounds awesome -- any guides out there on how to put one of these together?

http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 25&t=17415

[Betagam7]

I'm bumping this old topic because I want to ask the same question in 2015.

I'm enjoying the hell out of my recent taobao purchases. A Portable Famicom with hundreds of built in games and the amazing Super Fami DX which is everything I ever wanted in a portable Super Famicom/Snes.

I would really like to add some type of portable genesis/Megadrive to this list but I haven't turned up anything in my searches. Is there a particular reason that no Geneise/Megadrive alternative to the the Super Fami DX/Superboy seems to eist or am I just not searching properly?

Any recommendations. Ideally I'm looking for something that I can use to save or can run real carts/flashcards.

[Gunstar Green]

All of the system-on-a-chip portables like the Retro Gen or all of the various AtGames releases are really awful. They've got ear-stabbing sound and lots of games don't emulate very accurately.

There's really nothing comparable to the Supaboy for the Genesis that isn't garbage other than getting a Nomad modded with a better battery and modern LCD screen (which is of course pricey) or emulating off of a PSP or some other device. The reason for this is nobody's ever made a Genesis SoC that isn't garbage and the AtGames FireCore is especially bad.

[samsonlonghair]

All of the system-on-a-chip portables like the Retro Gen or all of the various AtGames releases are really awful. They've got ear-stabbing sound and lots of games don't emulate very accurately.

This is true. Avoid any Genesis clone made by atgames. Unfortunately, greater than 95% of all Genesis clones are made by atgames.

Around 2005ish, Jakks Pacific made a few good "TV Games" Sega Genesis clones with built-in games. The controllers are good, not great. These Jakks Pacific Sega clones don't suffer from the awful sound emulation of the atgames clones. Unfortunately, Jakks Pacific never released a portable version.

I think your best bet for Sega Genesis emulation on the go right now is the Nvidia Sheild handheld. A PSP is still a good choice.

[Betagam7]

All of the system-on-a-chip portables like the Retro Gen or all of the various AtGames releases are really awful. They've got ear-stabbing sound and lots of games don't emulate very accurately.

There's really nothing comparable to the Supaboy for the Genesis that isn't garbage other than getting a Nomad modded with a better battery and modern LCD screen (which is of course pricey) or emulating off of a PSP or some other device. The reason for this is nobody's ever made a Genesis SoC that isn't garbage and the AtGames FireCore is especially bad.

I guess my next question then is: why?

Is the Genesis really difficult to clone or something? What makes the SNES so much more clonable?

It seems weird that while there are a couple of excellent SNES handhelds there are very few cheap cheap multi-game clone systems yet the situation with the Genesis seems to be the exact opposite.

[CRTGAMER]

All of the system-on-a-chip portables like the Retro Gen or all of the various AtGames releases are really awful. They've got ear-stabbing sound and lots of games don't emulate very accurately.

There's really nothing comparable to the Supaboy for the Genesis that isn't garbage other than getting a Nomad modded with a better battery and modern LCD screen (which is of course pricey) or emulating off of a PSP or some other device. The reason for this is nobody's ever made a Genesis SoC that isn't garbage and the AtGames FireCore is especially bad.

I guess my next question then is: why?

Is the Genesis really difficult to clone or something? What makes the SNES so much more clonable?

It seems weird that while there are a couple of excellent SNES handhelds there are very few cheap cheap multi-game clone systems yet the situation with the Genesis seems to be the exact opposite.

Even the original Model 2 and 3 Genesis have crappy sound. Only the 1st generation console has the decent sound chips. I suspect all the PlugNPlays are emulating the later consoles along with not being able to duplicate the sound chip of the 1st generation Genesis.

I'm actually quite happy with the ATGames Genesis PlugNPlay. Though the sound is not perfect, it is not really that terrible either. The cart slot is a sweet bonus as well. The portable ATGames Genesis is great too and with a SD Card, one can have the entire library on the go. I prefer playing Genesis games on my original 1st generation Hi Def Genesis, but the ATgames are a great inexpensive choice for anyone curious about trying out a collection of Sega Retro games. There are also a couple rare games included in the ATGames units.

My review of the 80 game unit, the portable has the same built in games.
http://www.racketboy.com/forum/viewtopi ... 15#p758615

[Nyukki]

Back once again wid da ill behaviour!!!!!

Anyway...

I used to rock one of these which I bought from, you guessed it, good old T to tha A to tha OBAO mutha beeep!

Don't ask me about compatibility or sound. In any case the Dpad sucked balls and the cart slot had a mega death grip.

I really have no clue on this subject, but I'd say go for the Nomad with upped up screen and get some wicked batteries for it. Here's one on TB for a cold 300 kuai. You can't go wrong (well, you could, gotta do your research on how trustworthy the seller is etc.)

[marurun]

Even the original Model 2 and 3 Genesis have crappy sound. Only the 1st generation console has the decent sound chips.

This is not entirely true. Sega messed around SO MUCH with their manufacturing, changing supplies and designs, that there are at least a couple dozen different combinations of various revisions of sound and video chips, possibly more. Some of the model 1 Genesises had very poor sound, and there was one model 2 that had excellent sound that could rival the best model 1 (it had clearer treble but reduced bass output). I was lucky enough to find one of those model 2s last summer and it is indeed fantastic.

[Gunstar Green]

I guess my next question then is: why?

Is the Genesis really difficult to clone or something? What makes the SNES so much more clonable?

It seems weird that while there are a couple of excellent SNES handhelds there are very few cheap cheap multi-game clone systems yet the situation with the Genesis seems to be the exact opposite.

I think it has a lot to do with Nintendo's popularity, especially in the pirate markets in Asia. There was a greater impetus to improve and manufacture better Famicom and Super Famicom SoCs.

Even emulators made much bigger leaps with Nintendo consoles than with Sega early on and it's really only recently that we've gotten spot-on Genesis emulation. Also in regards to sound I think that yes, the SNES sound chip is ironically a lot easier to closely replicate than the specific FM synthesis the Genesis uses.

There are a few Genesis ones that are better than what AtGames uses, but they're still kind of disappointing and all of the handhelds I've run across have used awful SoCs.

I'm actually quite happy with the ATGames Genesis PlugNPlay.

I guess statistically someone has to be.

I love the 2nd gen stuff from AtGames but I've found their Genesis attempts to be nothing short of awful.

If only they'd include SD card support for the Flashbacks like they do the Sega stuff, but then I guess they wouldn't sell any new Flashbacks with extended libraries.

[Betagam7]

Back once again wid da ill behaviour!!!!!

Anyway...

I used to rock one of these which I bought from, you guessed it, good old T to tha A to tha OBAO mutha beeep!

Don't ask me about compatibility or sound. In any case the Dpad sucked balls and the cart slot had a mega death grip.

I really have no clue on this subject, but I'd say go for the Nomad with upped up screen and get some wicked batteries for it. Here's one on TB for a cold 300 kuai. You can't go wrong (well, you could, gotta do your research on how trustworthy the seller is etc.)

I found this seller to be an absolute joke, which probably explains why most of his items have had zero orders despite looking appealing at first. I tried to order NGPC light mod from him and had no reply from him for weeks, despite chasing it regularly (he claims only to check his account at weekends, despite Taobao showing he logs in every day) only to be asked what it was I wanted! (Doh, the things you advertised in the freaking listing!)

Eventually managed to get a squeak of communication from him by using the mobile app (Taobao's broken communication doesn't even save messages most of the time) and he claimed he would be "sourcing parts and a console next weekend". Didn't even have the base unit ready to mod!

I waited a further two weeks and after no communication cancelled the order. He refunded me without a word!

This is the problem with all of these light modders on Taoboa, they advertise things they don't have or, as the guy I'm currently failing to deal with is doing, ask for more money or want detailed communications after the purchase and bombard you with pictures of things you have no interest in!

I'm not saying they are scammers, they just have a way of doing business that is completely inscrutable to your average westerner.

That Genesis portable looks a decent bet, but the screen looks quite tatty in those pictures. Is it because of a screen protector? How did you find the screen to be?