Game Boy Advance SP: Silver

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
At first look, you might think the Game Boy Advance SP is a sleek travel alarm clock; when closed, it's just as tall and deep as the original GBA, but only half as wide. Its clamshell design protects the screen from everyday scratches. Open it up and the hinge will seek out a preferred, pre-set angle (about 150 degrees), though you can open it a bit wider or narrower for your own comfort. The hinge stands up well to lateral pressure.

Many decried the original GBA's reflective LCD screen and its reliance on external light sources. The Game Boy Advance SP's main feature--optional built-in lighting--fixes this complaint nicely. The quality of the backlighting is very good; it's bright and clear when looking directly at the screen, though less so from other angles.

The SP comes with a power adapter that recharges a built-in lithium battery; our informal tests found that it takes about four hours to fully charge (you can play it while it's plugged in and charging), and the battery lasts about 11 hours with the backlighting constantly on. Using the backlighting less often will conserve battery power.

Size, power, and affordability don't come without trade offs, though. There's no headphone jack here--you'll need a separately sold adapter--and the system isn't very loud at its highest volume. The L and R shoulder buttons are a fraction of the size they were on the GBA, and thus are harder to hit, and the reduced size of the SP is slightly less comfortable for adult hands than the GBA. The cartridge port placement on the lower part of the console is fine for GBA games, since they are flush with the console body, but older Game Boy Color carts will stick out in a way that takes some getting used to.

Overall, the SP is a significant improvement on, and seems just as rugged as, its predecessor--which has proven to be very rugged indeed. --Porter B Hall

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Product Description
The new Game Boy Advance SP works essentially the same way previous Game Boy Advance models have, but adds a number of thoughtful features to the design. The most obvious difference you'll see is the lighting feature built into the screen so you can play in low-light situations without bulky external game lights that too often leave a hot spot on the screen or fail to reach the corners. You can shut off this internal light to squeeze more playing time out of the power source if you're in a situation with enough light to see the SP's reflective screen.

Speaking of power sources, the SP comes with a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that provides between 10 and 18 hours of gameplay from a three-hour charge. Also, the new clam-shell design will offer protection for the screen from scratches when it's all closed up. As well as playing all your Game Boy Advance games, the system is backward-compatible with almost all Game Boy/Game Boy Color titles.

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Manufacturer's Description
Nintendo is going totally retro with a classic collection of Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) games for the Game Boy Advance and a new Game Boy Advance SP that looks like the original NES console. The '80s were a long time ago. But everything from then is way cool again. Back then, games went from blocky bleeps and bloops to sweet side-scrollers like Super Mario Bros.. And the excellent NES saved the day for the video game industry.

These are some of the best games ever. And if you aren't just dying to get your hands on the new Classic NES Limited Edition GBA SP, you're a total dweeb.

The new Game Boy Advance SP has the same guts and everything as a regular one, but its casing looks just like the NES, and at the same price. Be sure to get to the mall, really early, because it's a limited edition.

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Customer reviews

review by: i did date: 2007-09-09 rating:
Oh boy I wish I still had mine!
I sold my GBA SP Classic NES edition to help pay for my Nintendo DS. I really like the DS but oh boy do I miss this beauty of a machine.

Let's get the moans out of the way, yes the GBA SP only had a front light and not a proper back light so the screen isn't as colourful as the DS. And yes, you had to pay extra for an adapter if you wanted to use headphones. But stuff that, this thing is amazing and I miss my old one!

So why was it so good? Well the design was spot one. I get finger burn and cramps from my DS light and my PSP when I try to play racing games, never got any pain from the GBA SP. Also this was the last portabl console to have the traditional Gameboy style layout of control buttons under the screen (instead of either side like the Lynx, GG, GBA, Neo Geo, DS & PSP). For some reason I find this layout better, don't ask me why it just is. Some truths are as unedinable as they are unquontifiable!
Next up: the NES design is a winner, easily the best looking console I've owned. The DS lite is sleek but this baby had charm. The light weight clam shell design is very small indeed and easily fits into any pocket I ever had. Also the battery life took a mighty wacking on many occassions.

But the main reason I loved this console was the games. The great titles just kept coming and coming. I was getting a soar neck from trying to angle my old GBA under a lamp to see them. The GBA SP meant I could actually enjoy my games without hurting myself, which I think you will agree makes a nice bonus!
Advance Wars, Mario Golf Advance, Sonic Advance, FIre Emblem, Metroid Fusion, Wario Ware Twisted, Aria of Sorrow, Golden Sun and Astro Boy are as good as the best any system has to offer. In fact I argue that the GBA has a lot more AAA titles then the N64, the Cube, the Xbox or any of the current gen consoles. I still play many of the GBA RPGs and SRPGs on my DS as they are yet to be bettered. But some how they doesn't quite feel the same as they did on the GBA SP NES edition. If you've got one KEEP IT!

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review by: date: 2007-04-27 rating:
one of the best!
I bought one of these the day it was released and I had so much fun with it and had some cracking games for it, notably Zelda! The handheld looks gorgeous, even today, its light and can easily store it in your pocket when not using it! I sadly no longer had it as I got a psp and a DS Lite, and I got to say, for a upgrade from the GBA SP, you got to get the DS Lite, as that can play the GBA games too as well as the many great DS titles that are available to own, but the GBA is still a greta buy today if you just want a handheld with no special features like touch screen. The GBA has a lot of games from all different types to offer and so you can't go wrong with this beauty!

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review by: amurphy245 date: 2007-03-02 rating:
everything you need to know.
FIRST GLANCE: this sp is coated in a non reflective silver plastic,it has L + R shoulder buttons which are a little small but work fine,in between these buttons is a link cable port and a power port.to the left of the sp is a volume slider which is very sensitive and to the right is of course the power switch.facing you is the cartridge port which supports all gameboy cartridges,but gameboy/colour cartridges stick out considerably.

UNFOLDING THE SP AND TURNING IT ON: their is of course a dpad to the left and a+b buttons to the right with start and select below.in the middle of all that is your speaker and above is a small button to turn on and off the light.the actual buttons feel very nice its hard to explain.right turning on a game ..KERBLAM! THEIR IS LIGHT!! its taken for granted now but finaly been able to play your gameboy games un-aided in the dark was a much needed upgrade.

PLAYING THE SP: now the screen isnt backlit its frontlit which isnt as good the light shines from the bottom of the screen and and lights it up,it produces a milky color becouse of this.its not that bad though im just nitpicking,but consider this milky screen when choosing between the beatiful backlit gameboy micro or the even better nintendo ds lite.

CLOSING THOUGHTS: the sp is a superb handheld,to be able to play your games in the dark was worth its weight in gold,the sp also has a long battery life and is the only handheld you can play gameboy and gameboy colour games with light.but if your just wanting to play gameboy advance games i highly recomend either gameboy micro or dslite. ^_^

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review by: pokemon-passion date: 2006-12-20 rating:
SP should stand for So Perfect
Everybody this is just brilliant. 10/10, 5/5, or 100000000/100000000 whatever its so good. I have got it!! Its much better than the DS, GO SP!! When i play on it, even though SP means special picture i think it should mean So Perfect!


review by: morning623 date: 2006-09-04 rating:
Easy, Flexible, Non-Irritating, Just About Perfect!
After a couple of years from the success from the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo released it's 2nd Edition Game Boy Advance: The Game Boy Advance SP (Apparently SP means Special), and, as far as I'm concerned! This is one of the best Game Boy Advance consoles around!

What I mean is. Unlike the Game Boy Advance, the Game Boy Advance SP is flat, flexible and it doesn't irritate you like the original may have done!

The Game Boy Advance SP features some new bits and bobs which the Game Boy Advance didn't really have. It has a rechargeable battery fitted in, along with extra battery life, allowing users to play up to 20 hours, it has a back light, so if you have too much botheration, you can dim the bedroom light down and fiddle about with this for a period of time and loads more.

You can also, play Game Boy and Game Boy Color games as well as Game Boy Advance Games, and, you can also use the Game Boy Link Cables on your Game Boy Advance SP to connect to your old Game Boy Color and trade Pokemon or so!

A disadvantage I would say is that if you have big hands, you may have a problem, as since it's so compact in size, your fingers may get into contact and irritate you! You may also, have to pause your gaming after 1-2 hours, since this console will wear down your hand's strength!

My Console Rating: 8/10: Enjoyable, Fair-Play, Thumbs Up

My Recommended Games For Console: Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire, FireRed, LeafGreen, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World, Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros 3, Sonic Advance, Sonic Advance 2, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, NES Classics: Super Mario Bros 1, Donkey Kong Country & Donkey Kong Country 2!

My Wish: Nintendo done some NES Classic Games for the Game Boy Advance system! One of which is Super Mario Bros 1 (NES Edition), however, they only did roughly 12 games! My wish would be that Nintendo would release a few loads more, like the NES Edition of Super Mario Bros 2, Super Mario Bros 3, Double Dragon, The Flintstones: The Rescue Of Dino & Hoppy, Mario Bros, Kirby's Adventure & Duck Hunt!

Final Comments: Overall, if you're after a Game Boy Console which has everything you really need, with no fuss in between, then I recommend you get one of these consoles, cause they are worth the hassle and they are starting to become cheap, since the Nintendo DS is starting to roll around!

Review By Captain Chris Kipper!

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Accessories

GBA SP Starter Pack
Nintendo Official Game Link Cable (GBA)
Logic3 Game Cases-6 Single Pack (GBA)
Official GameCube/Game Boy Advance Link Cable
Game Cases (4 doubles)

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