Game Gadget

{{Infobox CVG system

| title = Game Gadget

| aka = GameGadget

| image = Blaze Game Gadget 2.jpg

| manufacturer = Blaze Europe

| type = Handheld game console

| website = [https://web.archive.org/web/20120406194812/http://www.gamegadget.net/ GameGadget.net (Archived)]|

| cpu = MIPS Ingenic JZ4750

| CPUspeed = 433 MHz

| memory = 64 MB

| storage = 2GB Flash storage

| memory card = SDHC cards

| display = 320x240 3.5" LCD

| currentfw = 1.01

| release date = April 5, 2012

| marketing_target = Retrogamers

| os = Linux based

| baseprice = £59.99

| dimensions = {{Convert|140|x|75|x|16|mm}}

| units sold = 20,000

| successor = Evercade

| media = Digital distribution

| connectivity = micro USB port, TV out

| online service = Online store

| language = C, C++. Python 2.7, Lua, Ruby

}}

The Game Gadget is an open source gaming handheld that supports music and video playback, open game development, and some e-reader features.

History

=Development=

Initial development of the system occurred in the United Kingdom, and open source software was used to lower development costs.{{cite news |last1=Purchese |first1=Robert |title=Meet the £100 GameGadget handheld that has own retro download store |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/meet-the-100-gamegadget-handheld-that-has-own-retro-download-store |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=Eurogamer.net |date=26 January 2012 |language=en-gb}} Production occurred outside the United Kingdom.

The system had an initial release date of March 30, 2012.

=Release=

It was released on April 5, 2012,{{cite web |title=Video Games Interactive: Exposé: Is the Game Gadget Xploder's Way of Scamming Gamers? |url=http://www.videogamesinteractive.com/2012/06/expose-is-game-gadget-xploders-way-of.html |access-date=7 December 2020 |date=20 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130120031619/http://www.videogamesinteractive.com/2012/06/expose-is-game-gadget-xploders-way-of.html |archive-date=2013-01-20 }} The initial launch price of the system was to be £99.99 British pounds, though this price quickly dropped to a cost of £59.99 British pounds with those who paid the earlier price receiving a refund for £40. On launch the system's online activation system was incomplete, leading to issues.{{cite news |last1=McFerran |first1=Damien |title=GameGadget Review |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/df-hardware-gamegadget-review |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=Eurogamer.net |date=19 July 2012 |language=en-gb}} Following release, the system was transferred from Blaze to Xploder.{{cite news |last1=Purchese |first1=Robert |title=GameGadget: The empty promises and, finally, a response |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/gamegadget-the-empty-promises-and-finally-a-response |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=Eurogamer.net |date=31 October 2012 |language=en-gb}}

By October 2012 20,000 Game Gadget units were sold worldwide.

A Game Gadget 1.1, Game Gadget Pocket and Game Gadget 2.0 was planned.

The Game Gadget was eventually succeeded by the better received Evercade.{{cite news |last1=McFerran |first1=Damien |title=Review: Evercade Handheld - Can A 100% Physical Media Console Really Work In 2020? |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/evercade-handheld-can-a-100percent-physical-media-console-really-work-in-2020 |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=Nintendo Life |date=14 April 2020}}

Specifications

=Hardware=

The Game Gadget made use of a dual core MIPS32 architecture Ingenic JZ4750 CPU, which was clocked at 433 MHz. The system sported 64 megabytes of RAM. Storage consisted of 2 GB of internal flash, and a SD/SDHC for removable storage. There is no 3D acceleration hardware. The primary display was a 3.5" LCD with a 320x240 resolution{{cite journal |last1=Cutlack |first1=Gary |date=February 2013 |title=Retro handhelds |url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f6h&AN=85027730&site=eds-live&scope=site |journal=Stuff |language=English |volume=167 |page=92 |access-date=20 May 2022 }} and 16-bit color, though the system also supported TV-out. Additional outputs included stereo speakers, a headphone jack, and a micro USB port. Inputs included a D-Pad, 2 shoulder buttons, 4 face buttons, Start & Select buttons.{{cite news |last1=Kumar |first1=Harish |title=Blaze to come with handheld gaming console |url=https://www.gizbot.com/gaming/blaze-to-come-with-handheld-gaming-console.html |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=www.gizbot.com |date=30 January 2012 |language=en}} A lithium-ion battery powered the system for approximately 8 hours.

The system was relatively portable, though not particularly ergonomic,{{cite news |last1=Willington |first1=Peter |title=Blaze GameGadget |url=https://www.pocketgamer.com/hardware-reviews/blaze-gamegadget/ |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=www.pocketgamer.com |date=July 20, 2012 |language=en}} measuring {{Convert|140|x|75|x|16|mm}} and weighed about {{convert|160|g}}. It was only available in one colour, white.

=Software=

The Game Gadget ran an operating system based on Linux.{{cite news |title=The iPod for retro games |url=https://www.smh.com.au/technology/the-ipod-for-retro-games-20120417-1x52j.html |access-date=19 May 2022 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=17 April 2012 |language=en}} A free official SDK was available. Officially supported development technologies included SDL, C, C++, Python 2.7, Ruby, and Lua.{{cite web |title=Developers - GameGadget-Like an Ipod for retro games. Go Anywhere – Play Everything (Powered by CubeCart) |url=http://www.gamegadget.net/developers/info_14.html |website= |access-date=19 May 2022 |date=15 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615030121/http://www.gamegadget.net/developers/info_14.html |archive-date=15 June 2012 |url-status=dead}}

Officially licensed Sega Mega Drive games were run with a version of the PicoDrive emulator. The system could run DRM protected software in a locked down mode, or community software in a "Sandbox" mode. An online store was used for digital distribution.

The system supported stereo playback of a number of audio codecs including MP3, WMA, APE, FLAC, WAV, AC3, MOD, S3M, XM and RealAudio. The system included a voice and radio recording application that supported MP3 and WAV formats. The system included a photo viewer that supports JPG, BMP, GIF, PNG file formats. An included text reader application supported TXT file formats in English and Chinese, as well as English text to speech. Further functions of the text reader include bookmarking, auto browsing, font sizing, and it can open while music is playing.