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[cheerup347]

.

[realhotstuff]

hi,

i want to play all my gba games on onecard so im going to buy a supercard minidsd one

are these 100& compatible with the game boy micro and gba sp?

whoch one shou,x i get?


thanks

If you are playing GBA games only, you should by M3. Both M3 and SCs work with GBM or GBA SP.

[dark_wing]

Trust me man. DO NOT get micro. it's too small. get the sp it's way better.

[Musulsa]

1)  Being an adult, I peronally prefer my Micro to my SP.  It's more portable, the screen is much crisper, and it is much less "toylike."  For younger people the SP might be a better choice.

2)  If you are going to be playing mostly GBA games and not DS games, I strongly recommend the M3 over the Supercard.  The M3 has basically 100% GBA support with no slowdown.  Supercard supports ~90% of GBA games.  This by itself wouldn't be a big deal but the 10% of games that don't work or have lots of slowdown includes some really good games.

[Souloni]

Gameboy SP now has a true-backlit screen (much like the new DS lite), unlike their older deep side light screens. You will be impressed w/ the new gameboy SP's. Make sure it says "With Brighter Screen!" on the box in big bold font.

[Altor]

Admittedly I know nothing concrete about the Micro's actual real-world durability, but some things pop into mind:

First, its screen will certainly need a protector.  Not really a big issue, I guess, since they're not that expensive.  But even with a protector, it'll be vulnerable to pressure damage.

I actually held a Micro in my hands recently at a Cash Converters (Canadian used goods shop), and holy crap it's tiny.  So tiny I'm just not sure how to hold it.  I'm afraid to look at it, because my piercing gaze might cause it to flop out of this dimension.  It's just so damn tiny.  Really.

If something's so tiny, it's hard to believe it's built up to the same standard of quality that regular SPs are.  I'd be afraid of damaging it from pushing the buttons down too hard, to be honest.  But that's just me.

So... if it were me, I'd probably wind up buying a sturdy case to protect it with.  I'd also probably want the case so I can carry more than one game with me at a time (unless you're just getting a SC, you dirty pirate you).

The unit being so small, and the screen so bright, it's hard to believe the battery/batteries (is it AA, or built-in?) would last very long, so I'd need a spare set.

What's the point of all this?  The unit itself, plus games, plus batteries, plus case... will wind up ruining its form factor, which is its main appealing point.  So, I say, get yourself a DS Lite.  You still have a very portable system which can slip into your pocket, which has a built-in protective case, can hold two games simultaneously, has 15+ hours of battery life in GBA mode even with the brightness high, gives you access to a rapidly-growing library of brand-new games (6 DS games are the size of 1 GBA game, too, so you can carry more), opens the way for awesome wifi and wireless LAN gaming, lets you get in on a whole ton of awesome homebrew that's slowly becoming available, and is a much bigger status symbol than a Micro.

Above all else, two words: Tetris DS.

My two cents.

[Musulsa]

Admittedly I know nothing concrete about the Micro's actual real-world durability, but some things pop into mind:

First, its screen will certainly need a protector.  Not really a big issue, I guess, since they're not that expensive.  But even with a protector, it'll be vulnerable to pressure damage.

The GBM has a built in screen protector.  The GBM screen protector is thicker and stronger than any screen protector that I've ever seen for any handhelf device.  The entire front faceplate is a 2mm thick acrylic screen protector that can be changed out at any time.   The actual LCD screen is behind the front faceplate and does not even touch the front faceplate.  The front faceplate curves away from the LCD, protecting it from pressure damage.

If something's so tiny, it's hard to believe it's built up to the same standard of quality that regular SPs are.  I'd be afraid of damaging it from pushing the buttons down too hard, to be honest.  But that's just me.

Being the owner of a 1st gen GBA, a GBA SP and a GBM, I can say without bias that the build quality of the GBM is 10 times higher than the GBA SP.  The outer case of the micro is metal while the plastic parts in the internal structure are reinforced with metal also.  The entirety of the SP is cheap ABS plastic.  There really is no comparison on the design or engineering of the two products.

I bought a silicone case for the GBM (helps with the grippability) and just throw it into my gear bag without worrying about damage or scratches.

The unit being so small, and the screen so bright, it's hard to believe the battery/batteries (is it AA, or built-in?) would last very long, so I'd need a spare set.

The GBM comes with a 460mah battery.  I bought a 600mah replacement battery at lik-sang.com that has tremendously helped in the battery life department.  Even with the regular 460mah battery, the battery life is about 12-13 hrs on the lowest brightness setting and about 6 hours on the brightest.  The battery life of the GBM playing GBA games is actually about the same as my DS Lite playing DS games.


Basically every one of your points is a nonissue.  The only real issue with the GBM which you did NOT really talk about at all is the screen size.  The GBM has a 2" screen while the SP has a 2.4" screen.  The new "with bright screen!" SP has the same bright backlight as the the GBM, but the color saturation and pixel density is much much better on the GBM.

After playing on my Micro for so long I was shocked at how... blurry?  the SP looks.  And to be honest I was disappointed that GBA games look better on the Micro than even on my new DS Lite.  If you don't want to believe me, basically every review of the micro that you find online will remark at how extremely sharp the Micro's LCD is.  I wish the DS and the DS Lite had the sharpness of the Micro's LCD.

Pros of the new SP:
-Significantly bigger screen
-MSRP is $79 making it cheaper than micro while having the exact same functionality (if bought at a retail store - i recommend ebay, though)
Cons of new SP:
-Annoyingly doesn't have a regular headphone jack.  You have to use an adapter (WHY NINTENDO?! WHY?)

Pros of the Micro:
-Sharper, more colorful screen
-More portable; cellphone sized
-Has a regular headphone jack
-More comfortable to hold than SP for long periods of time as it is quite a bit wider than the SP.
Cons of the Micro
-Smaller screen is definitely not for everyone
-MSRP is $99 which is only $30 less than a new DS Lite (I got a new micro on ebay for about $50)

[kaymm2]

I also have both the micro and SP.  It's hard to say which I like more.  The micro feels like it was better made, metal parts!  However the screen is too small.  The new SP has a screen that is just as good but bigger.  

Basically I use the SP for when I play games for hours.  And micro for quick games on the go.  

I don't really have a screen protector on my micro since the faceplates protect it and if I scratch up the faceplate, just get another one.  I love the design of that.  All portables should be like that...

[PharaohsVizier]

I had an SP for a long time, and I just saw the micro at EB, so this might be kind of biased...  But I think the micro looks great, but I probably can't stand watching it for hours because of the little screen.  I'd probably stick with my SP if I decide to bring it to trips and vacations because it is decent size, and if you drop it, you'll probably notice.  If I were to bring it to school, I'd probably get a Micro because it is tiny and looks nice, you probably won't play over an hour or two at school.  But IMO DS Lite is what you should buy.  For an extra $50 or $60? you can get a next gen handheld...

[Altor]

Meh, I said I was basing it all on gut feelings from 10-odd seconds of holding it in a used good shop...

If everything you say is true, it sounds like it might be the better deal.  Still hard to hold for people with large hands, and I don't know how much that extra battery cost but shipping probaby killed you.

[Musulsa]

The extended life battery plus shipping was about $13.

I did a battery test last night as this thread piqued my curiosity.  At the middle brightness intensity the battery life on my micro (with extended life battery) lasted about 15 hours.