Is that a working Atari joystick in your pocket...
by Kyle Orland 
{ Sep 12th 2006 at 12:55PM }
Tired of consoles that take up valuable entertainment center real estate? How about one that fits on your keychain instead? A new line of miniature Atari 2600 joysticks and paddles actually hook up to your TV to play built-in games. The mini-systems, which include two or three classic Atari games each, hook up to a TV through a six-foot RCA cord and external AAA battery pack.We wonder how playable these games are on such small controllers, but just the idea of a TV console that fits in your pocket intrigues us. Now if we could only get a pocket sized Intellivision, we'd really be in business.
[Via Random Good Stuff]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
crono141 @ Sep 12th 2006 1:03PM
You know, I thought all those people screaming old news were just asses.
But this is like the 4th post today on Joystiq I saw like last week on engadget.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not going to be like "fire the blogger" or "J0Yst!q is teh suxxor", but c'mon guys, don't you even READ engadget?
cringer8 @ Sep 12th 2006 1:02PM
How many posts before we have to hear about how "old" this "news" is?
As for the "keychain," if it doesn't fit in my pocket, it's not a keychain.
Psaakyrn @ Sep 12th 2006 1:15PM
Very playable I'd say, if the gameboy micro is any comparison.
Agent MOO @ Sep 12th 2006 1:31PM
"Is that a working Atari joystick in your pocket..."
"No, not really. It requires this seprate power source and cables, and if I keep carrying it on my keychain it will break."
laserboyjc @ Sep 12th 2006 2:11PM
I actually sent this in last week to joystiq after seeing them for sale at Thinkgeek.com Better late than never I guess, but no reference to my tip?
Zoë K. @ Sep 12th 2006 2:35PM
"...or are you just happy to see me?"
Had to. No, but seriously... none of this will matter to me until I can take Astrosmash, Armored Combat, and Las Vegas Blackjack & Poker with me where ever I go. Soon as I have a pocket Intellivision, I'm set.
Dr.Swiss @ Sep 12th 2006 2:57PM
I don't visit too many "electronic-based" sites, and believe it or not I actually get my daily fill from none other then Joystiq. This article could of been posted months ago and I wouldn't of known until it was posted here.
If I haven't seen it, it's new to me.
Ravuya @ Sep 12th 2006 3:03PM
There was a lot of static over this device; the original designer had implemented it with the far superior "Flashback 2" Atari emulation gear, but Atari rejected his design and opted for a much cheaper design using a "Nintendo on a chip" which lacks accurate emulation.
For a bit more, check out the AtariAge thread on this topic: http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=92582