Advice on a GBA I found today garage saling, frontlit kit?

[Tanooki]

I had some incredible luck most the morning, for the kid at least. At the last place I found this kid and after I saw his dart board was broken asked me if I'd like a Gameboy. I was thinking original thinking great, ende dup being a GBC/GB black zipper case and inside there was like 10 or so games, more than half just kid fluff/potter/sports. Anyway what I was surprised to see was a white original GBA, and better yet, immaculate other than the scuffed up and easily replaced screen cover.

Question is though, I'm years behind the wave on this one. What do I do?
- Sell it as is, make like $15.
- Keep it

If I keep it, do I order an OEM Nintendo screen cover replacement kit for around $5? OR, does someone here know where to find an Afterburner (front light) kit I can apply to this thing? I've been mulling the last couple of years buying a GBA but never found one in such beautiful shape so the temptation is more than there to keep the thing, problem is the original screen without lighting is more crap than the GBC one.

If any of you know where to find a screen or an alternative for the same effect please clue me in, thanks. (Going to cross post this at another board.)

[Fragems]

So I'm a little confused did you get an Original Gameboy or a Gameboy Advanced? NM misread .

I would just keep it and get an oem replacement screen if you don't already have a GBA or GBA SP.

[Tanooki]

I have a micro and that's it for GBA stuff. About a month ago I did find a barely used adult only owned GBC (purple) so I kind of got one of each now as far as launch systems go.

[fastbilly1]

Do you have a source for afterburner kits? After tritonlabs died they went super scarce.

[Tanooki]

No I don't and I can't seem to find one. The options I can find suck, it's ebay, and the price is $95-100 shipped and you get a repurposed SP 101 screen, some bits of wire or a conversion ribbon cable, a screw driver I don't need maybe in that kit, and some have a replacement non-OEM outer screen cover.

All I want is basically the after burner itself or a 'like' kit.

While I am at it, want to do the same for the GBC, and I know people did make front light kits for that one and I think those are still made, just not sure where to get and who to trust with a good quality kit.

With all the abuse of Nintendo cart systems I re-discovered my love of Nintendo handheld gaming since they're not being wrecked and I've gobbled up a few dozen games in the last month and it's fun but I'd really like to better see what I'm doing not having to stay under my LED lamp directly.

[8bit]

I am the owner of an afterburner front lit GBA and I honestly don't find it all that great. The screen is unevenly lit, has a big screen air gap which causes light bleed, and the battery life on AA's suffers. That and the afterburner light system went out on me after a few years of very light use.

I recommend selling the GBA you found and buying a GBA SP - AGS 101 model. With it's backlit screen, rechargeable battery, and clamshell design, there is no better way to experience the platform! Do yourself a favor and just go that route.

[8bit]

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[Tanooki]

I thank you for your recommendation, I'll follow half of it.

Afterburner is off the table, but this looks very doable for the GBC at the least.
http://kyorune.com/modding/article.php?id=94 (just need a normal SP screen light on this and 2 bits of wire with a resistor.)

The reason I don't have the SP-101 is that I find them to be pretty uncomfortable to use on games that are more L/R button intensive. I love the feel of the original one because it fits the hands like a SNES controller not having all the tension. That's why I want to tweak the existing GBA I got the other day. I will avoid the afterburner, just need to find some other way it appears. Maybe getting a busted 101 and lifting the screen using an adapter cable may be the best way as I have a 40pin GBA so it won't even require soldering I'm reading (if this is right.)

[8bit]

I have pretty big hands so I agree about the L and R heavy games being a little uncomfortable on the SP. However, the other redeeming qualities of the AGS-101 I mentioned before make it worth it to me though.

The AGS-101 screens in the original GBAs are always slick. It would be cool if you completed that mod instead of the afterburner.

[Tanooki]

Well I can't do more poking around now, supposed to be working.

My understanding of it is that you have a 32pin and a 40pin ribbon cable style GBA. If you have the 32pin soldering is needed, 40 is not (I have a 40, thankfully.) What you need is a broken SP-101 with a good screen. You can take the entire assembly out of the 101 SP, attach its ribbon cable to some couple inch adapter cable someone more recently invented, and then slot that into the old original GBA ribbon cable jack. Smoosh all that back together, and you have a 101 style original GBA. I'm surely simplifying it, but that's the idea.

The GBC seems to me you go with the Kitsch-Bent $12 front light kit, LOCA adhesive optional. With that thing you already have a built in resistor on it, and you pop one wire on a point on the motherboard, the other on a ground (popular place metal plate over power switch.) Close it up and it just works. Optionally you can use LOCA for maybe a clearer screen? Also you could add a brightness POT to adjust it but they don't show anything to show me what/where to buy that not that it's really needed.


GBA original and GBC are the optimal systems to me with the mod(or even without) because you don't rely on no longer made OEM batteries and they're most comfortable as they are to use on the hands.