Updated GP2X handheld, MKII, shipping now

by Christopher Grant { May 22nd 2006 at 11:30PM }

Back in February, we referenced the release of a rather mysterious "second edition" of the eminently hackable GP2X handheld while professing a lack of knowledge of just what had been improved. Play Asia are now stocking the GP2X MKII and, so as not to confuse it with the second edition, Wikipedia reveals the MKII is in fact the "seventh edition" of the console. Really, we're totally confused. Where's versions three through six?

Regardless, the MKII upgrades include:

Preattached screen cover
Larger (more grippy) joystick cap
Firmware v2.0 (features)
Comes with 2 game demos (Vektar & Payback)

Already have a GP2X? You can get some of that MKII flava by adding the game demos and upgrading to the new firmware; otherwise, $170 nets you the updated version.

[Thanks craig; via DCEmu]

Tags: Emulation, GamePark, GamePark Holdings, GameparkHoldings, GP2X, GP2X MKII, Gp2xMkii

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Justron @ May 22nd 2006 11:42PM

I've got one of these little guys. It apes everything people like about the PSP (video, music, homebrew, emulators) and leaves out the bad (UMD, zero tolerance homebrew policy). You don't have to convert you video into some arcane format either. I rather like it.

Some Cons:
- The jostick on the old units are unarguably terrible. Good thing they improved it
- You need to buy an SD card to really get full use, adds to the cost
- You need good AA's to get full use. As in 2500+ mAh. Not your average generic brand. I get about 5 hours of battery life out of my 2500mAh batteries, though some people report as low as one hour with generic brands

All things considered, cheaper than a PSP, does about the same thing. Despite the fact that the PSP looks considerably different, I've had people on the street say "Oh Cool! A PSP!"...

Nmaster @ May 23rd 2006 12:06AM

Wait, wait. I'm confused...so does it play Mortal Kombat II or not?

Ken Edwards @ May 23rd 2006 1:36AM

It plays Mortal Kombat 2, and 3, and ...

I love my GP2X. I have 30+ emulators on it right now. My biggest complaint was the joystick. It is horrible to use. You cannot play Capcom or SNK fighters at all with it! I bought another joystick and holy cow it makes such a difference -- night and day.

The New Revelation @ May 23rd 2006 2:10AM

I had an old GP32. It ruled. I'd love to get another one these newer models but I already have a PSP and I think that I can make good use of that still.

ChrisR @ May 23rd 2006 2:35AM

Wow, engadget made the same mistake that joystiq have made here and missed out the main 2 reason why this is considered a new revision.
The mk2 has the joystick rotated to fix a roblem where the doagonals were too easy to hit.
A new screen is being used that doesn't suffer from scanlines like the old screen.

Jaguarandine @ May 23rd 2006 3:02AM

Is it worth getting if you alreay own a PSP?

Justron @ May 23rd 2006 3:11AM

Jaguarandine; it's not worth getting if you've already got a PSP.

Kwipper @ May 23rd 2006 4:03AM

I will have to buy that. However which has better emulators and homebrew developers? The ones for the Sony PSP or the MKII GP2X?

greg @ May 23rd 2006 5:18AM

what exactly are these? do the manufacturers make proper retail games or is it just 'heres a device with buttons and a screen, do with it what you will' ie, make emulators? and how much do they cost?

cheers

Rey @ May 23rd 2006 5:23AM

Does the Snes,Genesis and NeoGeo emulator run at full speed??

Gareth @ May 23rd 2006 6:03AM

In my experience, most of the software that runs on these things is either running at half speed, incomplete or buggy. I wish homebrew developers took more pride in their work and focussed more on quality control and design, instead of just 'quick get it out the door before someone else does so we can say we were the first ones!'.

Or maybe I've just been unlucky, and someone else here can tell me where to find full-speed, fully-featured software that does everything that it's supposed to and doesn't break?

James @ May 23rd 2006 8:01AM

Gareth- you obviously have been trying the wrong software.

Try DrMD, the NeoGeo emulator and the Atari ST emu- then come back and say they arent polished.

You wont

Danny Lewis @ May 23rd 2006 9:40AM

Now if they threw in a HD and recharable batteries, I'd be all over this thing.

Tony @ May 23rd 2006 9:56AM

In terms of emulators, I've been watching the thing for a while. The main bitching points -- the joystick and screen issues -- are finally fixed. My interest has gone up.

Also, I would never recommend importing this from Play-Asia. For things like this from dinky companies their support for the warranty is pretty awful according to anyone I've spoken to. There's other solutions to buy from.