NES Micro by Ben Heckendorn
by Vladimir Cole 
{ Oct 14th 2005 at 12:15PM }
Hardware hacker extraordinaire Ben Heckendorm has shoved a working NES it into a tiny little container measuring just 5.25" x 2.625" x 1.63". You thought your PSP got you looks on the subway? Whip out this bad boy, pop in an NES cartridge (blow on the cartridge first, for dramatic flair), and them other brothers can't deny that you'll be the envy of the morning commute. Hot.
[Thanks, Princess Zelda]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Meathead @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Now that's a sweet machine.
mat @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
This is freaking awesome!
delerious @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
I love his stuff. I wish I could buy his PS2 Portable off of him, blows the PSP away.
GlitchCog @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
"blow on the cartridge first, for dramatic flair"
Ha! I love it.
I just wish they had made the GBA screen the same proportions as a television so Pocket NES would work perfectly without any cropping or distortion.
paralipsis @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
I love it! Very damn cool.
Innovate Me @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
NOW THAT'S WHAT I LIKE TO CALL INNOVATIVE! BEN HECKENDORM SHOULD TEAM UP WITH NINTENDO TO MAKE THE ULTIMATE CONSOLE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tell you friends that a Revolution is coming. You can change people's minds to make them switch to Revolution if they haven't already. Or just get the person to get the Revo with the console they plan on geting(if it's not a Revolution).
JT Mill @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
I would buy a SNES version of this. If some company could get a licence from Nintendo to remake their older consoles for all the retro gamers out there I'm sure the idea would catch on.
Jago @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Give that guy a medal...a gold star...a cookie...something...
Mark 2000 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Why do people bother with this anymore? The GBA, NDS, and PSP emulate the NES perfectly. Snoooore! Go buy a flash cart.
PickyPants @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Dude Mark2000, why don't you eat my wang.
This is an accomplishment. This guy made his own system. Saying "Go buy a flash cart (sic)"
is like saying "Why bother trying anything new."
Jeffler @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Mark, the real deal is better then emulation.
JTmill, this uses an NOAC (Nes on a Chip). There isn't a SNOAC yet, so it would be nearly impossible to make something that small using an original SNES motherboard.
Mark 2000 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
PickyPant, take your wang and shove it in a meat grinder.
How is any of this new? There have been NES portables for years. He's even using a chip from another system. And even though emulation isn't quite as good as the real thing, I doubt this offers any better an experience. No LCD can give the same experience as an interlaced CRT. Double SNOOOOOORE!
just this guy @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Wouldn't it be interesting to build a similar system with a hinged LCD cover that would accept SNES carts flush into the case, while NES carts stuck out a bit in a GBASP echo?
Hellishly complex to accomplish, but a poetic thought I suppose.
Mark2000, make something better or sit down.
The avalanche has already begun. It's too late for the pebbles to vote.
nst101 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Mark 2000, How many portable game units have you made?
I have been to Ben's website before and was blown away with what he has made. I really wish I had even a tenth of his electronic ability.
funkonaut @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
I'd like to use this opportunity to inform everyone that I bought a GBA Micro today and I'm returning it.
I have had a GBASP for about a year and a half and love it. Then 3 months ago I bought a DS. I've played the DS every day since I got it. It's that good.
So why did I get a Micro? Well, I thought that it would be nice to stick it in my pocket for those shopping days with the woman instead of taking my courier bag with my DS in it.
But after playing with the Micro for about 3 hours today I can't recommend it. The screen is too small to really get into the game. And its light weight results in the unit slowly tilting in a direction until you realize that you're holding it away from you and at about a 10 degree angle, further taking you out of the game.
I fell for all of the glowing reviews of the Micro. It totally appeals to people who are gadget addicts. Sure, it's well made, but its usability is completely impractical. Resist the urge to get the Micro. Stick with the DS. The latter provides a richer gaming experience with GBA games.
Mark 2000 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
You guy take this stuff too seriously. nst101, I haven't made any because I can buy them at the store. See, it would be really impressive if I could build my own telephone, but what would be the point?
GTgamer @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
"See, it would be really impressive if I could build my own telephone, but what would be the point?"
...because it could be fun and interesting? Yes, I'm an engineering nerd.
Jago @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Mark 2000...shut up. Can you do what this guy does? If so...then prove us wrong...but other wise quit whinning.
Mark 2000 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:07PM
Whether I can make something or not is a complete nonsequiter. I doubt most of you can write music, film a TV show, or create a video game and yet you probably vocally criticize songs, shows, and games you don't like regularly. In other words, skill has never been a criteria for judging that something is worthless. No one took a shot at the guy above who didn't like the GB Micro. I doubt he can make one.
Perhaps I shouldn't vote because I can't criticize or choose a president if I haven't been one. You guys are total loons.