BittBoy - Begging For A Pi Zero W?

obsidianspider

Our good friend @celly told me about the BittBoy the other day and I'm really intrigued by it. I kind of really want to put a Pi Zero in one, but at $40 it's pretty expensive to buy just to cut up.

backstander

Their website is pretty scarce with words. They give no explanation on how it works, what hardware is in it or any videos showing it in action. The only glimpse that we get to see is that it has a 500mAh lithium battery and 2.2" IPS Display. Also all the pictures with the device "on" are actually just photoshopped showing the same Contra game main menu screen. What are they trying to hide?

tikiandskull

celly

@obsidianspider I'm buying one just to have. I collect and mod gameboys so it will look nice along side some of my other handhelds. Of course, I'm going to tear it down and see what its got under the hood. 👍
If the unit is a bust, then its perfect for a Pi Zero W.

obsidianspider

@celly said in BittBoy - Begging For A Pi Zero W?:

I'm going to tear it down and see what its got under the hood. 👍

I can't wait to see the tear down photos!

thereminhero

Here's a teardown photo.
Screen appears to be one of these:
http://b2b.hc360.com/supplyself/132183119.html

Flash chip is a S29GL256S so could be read / reflashed with the right tools.

fras3r_mc

@celly
Any further thought on modding a bittboy
The new bittboy just came out and I was wondering whether this would make a difference to modding one

celly

@fras3r_mc I decided to pass on the BittBoy and picked up an Odroid Go. I think it was the better option.

Clyde

@celly What were the reasons for your decision?

celly

@Clyde quite a few really. The interface, the ability to add/remove games, the actual assembly of it (which my son had a lot of fun doing with me), the price. Although it does have its flaws, I really enjoy the Odroid Go.

fras3r_mc

@celly
do you have any ideas on how to to achieve a modded new bittboy because it is something i would love to do for i love the form factor of it thanks for the advise so far.

fras3r_mc

@celly
Are you talking about the old bittboy because the new one has the ability to add nes gb and gbc games

celly

@fras3r_mc yeah, the older Bitt Boy. I know the new one lets you add games (and doesnmt come preinstalled with any). Just keep in mind the button layout, the B and A buttons are sorta janky.

mediamogul

@celly said in BittBoy - Begging For A Pi Zero W?:

Just keep in mind the button layout, the B and A buttons are sorta janky.

It looks that way from pictures and I thought the same thing, but my muscle memory adapted pretty quickly without any real trouble. Plus, your thumb rests more ergonomically over the buttons in that configuration, so once you get used to the difference, response time is very fast. I actually broke 300K on NES 'Tetris' a few days ago with the little guy. I'm gonna start practicing for a half max-out of 500K next.

fras3r_mc

@celly
I recently bought the new one and I have no idea where to start with this but I’ve been thinking the pi’s micro card reader could be desoldered and the resoldered at some length then glued it the space of the old one??

EDIT: I was also thinking the top left and right corners reminded me of ds lite bumpers so it might be possible to add tactile switches underneath them

celly

@mediamogul I had no idea you were such a player at Tetris. Man, thats my game. Are you starting from level 0 and working up or jumping right in CTWC style level 18?

@fras3r_mc idk man, couldn’t you try and place the piz in such a way that you could use its own sd card slot, in the BittBoy case?

mediamogul

@celly said in BittBoy - Begging For A Pi Zero W?:

I had no idea you were such a player at Tetris. Man, thats my game. Are you starting from level 0 and working up or jumping right in CTWC style level 18?

I've been meaning to improve my standing in the game for a while. Before Christmas, I was looking into a quick and portable way to have the game be more accessible and then my friend happened to gift me the Bittboy. Since the scoring system in NES 'Tetris' rewards beginning at a higher level, I don't start at zero. However, seeing as I've only been at it for a few weeks, I'm not currently good enough to start at 18 either. Right now, I take the Goldilocks approach and start at level 9. My current goal is a half max-out, but I'd really like to see it through to a full max-out before it's all said and done. Is the NES variant your favorite? I've also been playing a decent amount of 'Tetris Battle Gaiden' on my RetroPie. That game is an absolute riot.

celly

@mediamogul I play them all, NES, Arcade, Gameboy, all versions. I recently purchased an original NES just to practice on original hardware. Let me tell you, that is the way to play.

mediamogul

@celly

I've still got my childhood NES. I want to get it RGB modded at some point to look nicer on a newer television. Of course I could just keep a smaller CRT available for the games that benefit the most from lower input lag. Apparently, many people have gotten a Tetris max-out through emulation, but the drawback is that your timing becomes trained to the difference, making the possibility of competing in a tournament more difficult.

I've been trying a lot of Tetris variants myself here recently and if you haven't already tried it, be sure to take a look at 'Magical Tetris Challenge'. Specifically the Game Boy Color version. With the Disney License, it'd be easy to write it off as a cheap cash-in for children, but there are a wide variety of game variants with unique and unusual winning conditions that are a lot of fun. It really makes you look at the game in a number of new ways.

fras3r_mc

@celly
Should i post some teardown photos of the new bittboy?