What is puzzling computer analysts and Nintendo's competitors alike is that the console is over 10 years old and is still selling. The average most consoles servive is about 5yrs. However, Nintendo and the buying public knows that this success is due to magnificent software titles. Even last Christmas('99) the Gameboy game Pokemon helped shift somewhere around the 4-5 million GameBoy Colors and that's in Europe alone! In Japan Pokemon is still the hottest thing some 4 years after it was first released there and has sold 25 million copies so far.
Apart from Pokemon the GameBoy is also home to the legandary title Tetris(which
was the launch game for the console). The American president George Bush was ever photographed
playing on a GameBoy.
The GameBoy has so far beaten off stiff competition from other handheld consoles like the Atari Lynx, and Sega's GameGear, and now even the new SNK Neo-Geo Color is having a tough time sales wise. It would seem that Nintendo have the handheld market all to itself, and with the new GameBoy Advanced being released towards the end of next year it look like it is going to keep the market for quite some time.
| GAMEBOY Specifications: |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dimensions: | 148x89x33mm | 124x76x23mm | 135.5x78x27.4mm |
| Weight(With batteries): | 394g(batteries included) | 148g(batteries included) | 138g(batteries NOT included) |
| Screen Size: | 2.5 Inches | 2.5 Inches | 2.2 Inches |
| Power Supply: | 6V(4 AA-Batteries) | 3V(2 AAA-Bateries) | 3V (2 AA-Bateries) |
| CPU Type: | Z80 8-bit CMOS | SAME | 8-Bit CPU |
| CPU Speed: | 4.19Mhz | SAME | Approx 8Mhz |
| RAM Memory: | 64Kbit(8Kbyte) | SAME | 256Kbit(32Kbyte) |
| Max Resolution: | 160x144 pixels | SAME | SAME |
| Color Available: | 4 colors(greyscale) | SAME | 32,000 colors |
| Max Colors at Once: | 4 colors | SAME | 56 colors |
| Max Sprite Size: | 8x16/8x8 pixels(switchable) | SAME | ? |
| Max Sprites: | 40 sprites | SAME | ? |
| Min/Max Cart Size: | 256Kbit-4Mbit | SAME | ? |
| Sound Channels: | 4 | SAME | SAME |
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