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I am finally getting around to writing the GP2X review. I already wrote a review of gp2xstore.com where I purchased it, a few days back. The last handheld console I bought prior to the GP2X was the Sega Gamegear, if that tells you how long it’s been since I really dealt with handheld consoles. I don’t care much for the more recent Sony PSP handheld, but I think I could get attached to a Nintendo DSLite pretty easily. I think one of the reasons I like older game systems is the fact that the majority of the games can be picked up and played and stopped at any point. You pick it up and play when you want to play and can stop anytime. I find as I get older(there, I admitted it) I like games as a distraction and not so much just to make it past the next level. Anyway, from that perspective, here’s my thoughts on the GP2X.

Here’s the specs for the GP2X-F200 to get started:

• Dual 240Mhz ARM9 CPUs
• 64MB RAM
• Touch Screen
• TV Out
• Support for SD / SDHC upto 32GB
• Runs Linux & is Open source

I really like the dual core CPU feature and the fact that there are a multitude of console emulators available for the unit. While most software developed for the console doesn’t make use of the dual core at this point, some of the emulators are starting to use it for sound to make gameplay run smoother. More on gameplay later…here’s what’s in the box
The GP2X arrived in a small white box with a drivers/software disk, stylus, SD card reader, and instruction manual.

The unit itself is 5 & 3/4″ long by 3&3/8″ tall and an 1″ thick at the thickest part.(the battery compartment) As you can see below, the battery compartment protrudes slightly from the back. This doesn’t affect the comfort of holding the unit at all. A great comparison for size is that it is almost exactly the size of a folded DSLite.

Along the top of the unit you can see the SD/SDHC slot. With 16GB and 32GB SDHC cards available now, this slot is great for newer media.
You can also see the L & R shoulder buttons along the top. This is one of the reasons I purchased the GP2X as an emulator. Some of the emulators for my favorite console(the SNES) don’t have shoulder buttons, which kind of ruins the gameplay for some games.

The left side of the face has a directional pad, seen below. The only gripe I have with the d-pad is the gripe most others share, why in the world are they four separate buttons and not one piece? It would make it quicker to get used to, but as it is, you can get used to it within a few hours of play/use.

The second of three complaints I have with the GP2X is the size of the action buttons on the right side of the face. They are smaller and closer than most consoles. I think another 2mm between each would have alleviated this concern. It’s something else to get used to, but you get used to it. See the button layout below.

The last of my complaints is the power switch on the left edge. It seems flimsy, so handle it carefully. Its not pictured, but it’s just a small switch that slides vertically along the edge. Now, on to the good stuff about this console.

When you first boot the unit up, a GPH screen appears and a jingle plays. I say “boot the unit up” because it runs Linux and takes about 15-20sec to get to the user interface. Here’s the initial boot screen.

After booting, there’s an media center-style interface that can be navigated with either the stylus and touch screen or the d-pad.

You’ll notice in the two screens above, the power light is bright blue. In normal daylight, or indoors, this isn’t an issue, but it really stands out when in dim or dark conditions, almost to the point of interfering with use.

I mentioned before that I bought the device for game console emulation and it does that very well. NES, SNES, GameGear, and NeoGeo are quite accurate, depending on your emulator. I own SuperMario for the SNES and here’s what it looks like on the GP2X. The game, transparencies and audio are nearly flawless.

You’ll also notice that the screen is 320×240 which is awesome, since most older games were made to work well at that resolution. You might think that the screen resolution would be annoying to watch video on or that you don’t want to re-code your movies to that resolution. Here’s the best part about video…you don’t have to recode anything. I simply took a 16:9 format DivX movie and put it on an SD card, inserted it and started the movie. It played flawlessly with complete audio, scaled on the fly by the GP2X. A+ in video rendering.

The console didn’t come with a case or place to store the stylus, so I had to buy the case. Remember how I said it was the size of a DSLite? That fact came in handy when I went to buy a case. I found a “Switch N Carry” DSLite case for $8 at the local box store and it fits perfectly, with storage for batteries, SD card, card reader, and stylus.

Speaking of batteries, I get about 4 hours of gameplay from my 2650mah rechargeable NiCad cells, which is perfectly acceptable runtime in my opinion. Get rechargeable batteries for it, to save money.

Those are my thoughts, got questions, comments? Do you have a GP2X you’re happy or upset with? Let me know in the comments.