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GCW Zero - new retrogaming open source handheld!

What sets this apart from other open source emulation handhelds? Pandora, Dingoo, GP2X etc.. ? I remember the Pandora being hyped like crazy, and now I hear nothing about it.. although I guess it is out.
 
What sets this apart from other open source emulation handhelds? Pandora, Dingoo, GP2X etc.. ? I remember the Pandora being hyped like crazy, and now I hear nothing about it.. although I guess it is out.

You don't hear anything about the pandora because they had problems for years and now that it's sorted out the new ones produced cost $500

Dingoo's are unreliable and none of the gp2x consoles are produced any more. I guess the main appeal is if something goes wrong you can actually complain to someone.
 
What sets this apart from other open source emulation handhelds? Pandora, Dingoo, GP2X etc.. ? I remember the Pandora being hyped like crazy, and now I hear nothing about it.. although I guess it is out.

You'll have to forgive me for the following short response, but I'm really tired right now.

Read the OP and do some research on the other devices you listed. But in a nutshell, the Zero is small, affordable, powerful and has good controls. None of the others equal it in all those areas at once.

You don't hear anything about the pandora because they had problems for years and now that it's sorted out the new ones produced cost $500

Dingoo's are unreliable and none of the gp2x consoles are produced any more. I guess the main appeal is if something goes wrong you can actually complain to someone.

The newer 1Ghz Pandoras are more like $600+.

And the Zero is much more powerful than the Dingoo, GP2X etc. Several times more powerful, and with superior controls.
 
What sets this apart from other open source emulation handhelds? Pandora, Dingoo, GP2X etc.. ? I remember the Pandora being hyped like crazy, and now I hear nothing about it.. although I guess it is out.
The GCW Zero is a spiritual successor to the Dingoo/GP2X/Wiz/etc. It can't match the Pandora in certain areas, but most people can't afford the Pandora as it is. The Zero looks like it will fill a niche for a relatively cheap, open, well-crafted, and hackable gaming device that's up-to-date with 2013 standards.
 
2nd stretch goal reached! Free mini HDMI to HDMI cable for all Kickstarter Zeros!
5ab8f0e408c1950c9630bab5d18f5a3d_large.png

Now let's go for 200K and get some free GCW pouches.
 
2nd stretch goal reached! Free mini HDMI to HDMI cable for all Kickstarter Zeros!
5ab8f0e408c1950c9630bab5d18f5a3d_large.png

Now let's go for 200K and get some free GCW pouches.

I just hope the software will have HDMI output support before this ships. That feature is a big draw for me.
 
Which consoles does this thing emulate?

Gameboy? n64? ps1?

Also, I already have a dingoo a320. Would it be worth upgrading to this?
 
So how good would a GBA emulator look on this? Does the screen fit at full screen perfectly? or will there be black bars?
 
So how good would a GBA emulator look on this? Does the screen fit at full screen perfectly? or will there be black bars?

I really wish some of the new people would read the OP and watch some of the linked videos.

GBA is full screen in the videos.
 
I really wish some of the new people would read the OP and watch some of the linked videos.

GBA is full screen in the videos.

CTRL + F "GBA" isn't in the OP nor is "Gameboy" I also watched two videos and it didn't contain either of that.

And is that perfect pixel fullscreen or is that fullscreen with bilinear filtering?
 
CTRL + F "GBA" isn't in the OP nor is "Gameboy" I also watched two videos and it didn't contain either of that.

And is that perfect pixel fullscreen or is that fullscreen with bilinear filtering?

The long emulator video I linked directly in the OP shows GBA toward the end:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3t0aR4W3KRQ&feature=player_detailpage#t=1495s

OP also links to a list of all/most GCW Zero videos on Youtube. There are many. Here is an old one showing only GBA. Keep in mind all Zero emulators are alpha/beta:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_IXRT3rxQk

Zero screen is 320x240 pixels, the GBA screen was 240x160 pixels.
 
Best we can hope for with GBA is 320x213, which means black bars and bilinear filtering, unfortunately.

No, *best* will actually be native 240x160 with black borders on all sides. Smaller, but should be super crisp. :)

Although, if someone is highly concerned about GBA emulation on this handheld, they might be better off with just getting a Micro or SP. T

he Zero will most likely still be a solid secondary device to those with real hardware, or a decent GBA emulator for those without any other access to GBA games.
 
I have a few questions. Would I be able to buy this direct after the Kickstarter? Can you buy 2 during a Kickstarter? And I guess if you're in the UK you're gonna need some kind of stepdown to charge this or does it only charge via usb?
 
I have a few questions. Would I be able to buy this direct after the Kickstarter? Can you buy 2 during a Kickstarter? And I guess if you're in the UK you're gonna need some kind of stepdown to charge this or does it only charge via usb?


I hear it charges USB and they also will include a power adapter for your region. (Offers 8-10hrs of gaming on its battery!!!)

You should be able to buy this in a few months. With the pledges meeting the goal I think this will allow them to make more units? But right now Kickstarter is the only sure fire way to get one. They did make units and sell them for a while before kickstarter but it was on such a small scale. People took preorders in June 2012 and got them In November/December.


If you pledge you are guaranteed a unit by march. Now buying one outside of kickstarter? Who knows when they will be available next. Check out the podcast Justin was on and do a little digging and find out if you want to pledge now or wait. I would just go ahead and drop the money on the units now.

Also you can pledge for two units but you would need two kickstarter accounts. Or you can pledge 500 but thats tailored more to developers.


Hm.. Already have a Caanoo. Not sure if I should bite.

This device is vastly superior to the Caanoo. You should really upgrade but if you dig around on this thread you will find all the evidence you need.
 
Does the analog TV out support the native resolution for the emulated systems (example: 240p)? If it does, I'm definitely buying one.
 
Almost $183k with just under 2.5 days to go. Keep pledging people, I want that pouch!

Yeah, it's going really well. I think 200K is possible. In past weeks we've seen a frenzy of support on Sundays and Mondays, so let's hope.

Does the analog TV out support the native resolution for the emulated systems (example: 240p)? If it does, I'm definitely buying one.

We have no details yet about tv output. They are still developing the drivers.
 
Does the analog TV out support the native resolution for the emulated systems (example: 240p)? If it does, I'm definitely buying one.

We have no details yet about tv output. They are still developing the drivers.

I sure hope they can do native resolution on the video out. It sounds like the developers are very conscious of what people want, so I remain hopeful for them to deliver here as well.
 
I posted previously about the possibility of retrode compatibility, and am now wondering if perhaps we might be able at some point to use the retrode and the TV out and possibly have the best looking solution for classic gaming on modern tvs. If the controller ports work on the retrode, this could be really really fantastic.
 
I've got a Retrode and it works very well (SNES, MD, Amiga controllers).

So the question is whether the Zero will work with one or more of the Retrode modes. There are a bunch of different modes for compatibility reasons just like this.
 
I posted previously about the possibility of retrode compatibility, and am now wondering if perhaps we might be able at some point to use the retrode and the TV out and possibly have the best looking solution for classic gaming on modern tvs. If the controller ports work on the retrode, this could be really really fantastic.

This could very well be possible.

KS is almost $189,000 now.
 
I've got a Retrode and it works very well (SNES, MD, Amiga controllers).

So the question is whether the Zero will work with one or more of the Retrode modes. There are a bunch of different modes for compatibility reasons just like this.

I have a retrode as well. I also hope it works on the Zero, but if it doesn't, I'll just use wifi/Dropbox to transfer saves back and forth from cart to Zero. (Works great with my ipad!)

I really don't see any reason the retrode won't work with the Zero hardware. It uses standard USB protocols, and works with most everything else. Including iPads, Android, and PS3... And of course Linux!

It's the software that will have to allow loading and saving from a connected USB drive. If the Zero emulators have that, we should be golden.


Take a look here for retrode on various devices including Linux. http://www.hunterdavis.com/2012/01/09/retrode_preorder_glory/
 
Sorry guys. I'm out.

Had a bit of an emergency at home with the plumbing to the shower, and we've had to pay shitloads to replace piping and floorboards.

I now don't have enough in my account for the GCW after food and petrol, and I don't get paid for a week. Home insurance money won't be in for a month either.

ah well maybe next time.
 
Sorry guys. I'm out.

Had a bit of an emergency at home with the plumbing to the shower, and we've had to pay shitloads to replace piping and floorboards.

I now don't have enough in my account for the GCW after food and petrol, and I don't get paid for a week. Home insurance money won't be in for a month either.

ah well maybe next time.

Sorry to hear. Good luck with everything.
 
Seems the preloaded open source games will be:


POWDER (just announced)
Sqrxz3
Dink Smallwood
Puzzletube
SameGoo
Worship Vector
Spout
Astrolander
Blockrage
Biniax2
and Heroes

That some pretty good stuff right out if the box.
 
Seems the preloaded open source games will be:


POWDER (just announced)
Sqrxz3
Dink Smallwood
Puzzletube
SameGoo
Worship Vector
Spout
Astrolander
Blockrage
Biniax2
and Heroes

That some pretty good stuff right out if the box.

Very nice.

KS just passed $190,000! Onward to $200K!
 
The GCW-Zero seems great, pledged yesterday. Manages to get all the important things right, except for the name (which is cryptic) and the logo (which is boring).

So, just for fun, I made a new logo concept to better reflect and celebrate the games it will play.

Thoughts?

dDypmxY.png


tAmdHi9.png
 
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