I like how Rich lets everyone finish their talk/thoughts on the topic at hand then gives his personal opinions...truly a father figure of Digital foundry.
If John has the time, I'd like to see a deeper dive. Nothing crazy, just a 10 minute video of him gushing over this and similar GBC hardware would be awesome.
Nothing beats a real 160x144 screen, so this piques my interest. The Analogue Pocket comes within spitting distance of course, but its filter/shader doesn’t replicate the sub-pixels as much as it should (or could).
If Nintendo made a game Boy Color in 2024, this is what it would be the chromatic. I don’t understand why everyone wants to compare this to the analog pocket.
People should be comparing it to the funny playing Game Boy Color since both are strictly focused on playing Gameboy and Gameboy Color games. The funny playing Game Boy Color is less than half the price and has arguably better features but it's going to be a cheaper build quality, the screen is more of a standard LCD, and the IR signaler does not function.
Ordered the Orange Chromatic and 2 games + Everdrive for the ultimate playing experience. Cant wait for the sublime nostalgia Christmas factor with Tetris. Uk is expensive for postage but its a lifetime investment for a retro gamers paradise. Easy purchase 👍🏻
I can totally see John doing more materials about these retro consoles. Last several years brought a lot good hardware. I am just getting into these retro handheld hobby, got RGB30 because of 1:1 ratio screen and as it was cheap enough. For money, it is okay, but I wish it would have better battery. I'll look for something more premium next year, but seeing that I don't have a physical games library and find 16bit and earlier systems to be perfect fit for gaming on the go, I'll go with emulation based device. Preferably working under ArkOS.
Just to let you guys know: the chromatic is available in stores at GameStop. That means no shipping costs. Automatically making it cheaper than the pocket by about $80 and you won't have to wait a year to receive yours.
@@AlexDiaz-gw5ov the original poster is referring to going toa GameStop store to avoid shipping costs , that implies being in the USA. You cant compare walking to a USA store to shipping a parcel internationally.
@@vickirin He could buy it while on Vacation on a travel to the USA. I could too. As the issue is it takes ages to ship on top of the high priced S&H. Even with a remailer, I can buy and get a Chromatic for $40 and have it in a month later. That is how crazy S&H from Analogue is. Oh and if you want the Dock to have Video out, it will be $400 when you include S&H. Vs $240 of the Chromatic.
@@AlexDiaz-gw5ov I’m not going to defend analogue, I’m just stating the facts, if you are in a position to buy the chromatic from a store, be it because you are visiting the USA or living there , then you can also buy the pocket and you will pay 28- 40 dollars for shipment not 80 dollars.
@@SuperCrunched come on man, taking the profits and business connections from weapons manufacturing and using them to create supplemental products for someone else's game is literally the seto kaiba backstory. cool things ahead.
Magnesium like the original NEXT Step cube. Also, interesting to see things go back to double AA's. I agree, internal batteries can be nice, but they can also really limit the life span of a device in the long run. It sounds like a really nice throwback to the original GameBoy and GBC. I guess the 1:1 screen also sounds nice. This is for a very niche market. But it sounds well made.
"Retro Dodo" tried running over their prototype with a car in their review ("Car VS Chromatic" chapter). I think the main shell can handle being run over, but the buttons/screen may not fare well. While it didn't get completely crushed the screen did break, the on/off button warped, and the battery pack was also bent. They mentioned that they used a very heavy vehicle too, though: Tesla Model Y which weighs over 2,000kg.
I did love my OG Game Boy so I have been eyeing this up. I have a couple of emulation clones but things like time to boot and, paradoxically, overwhelming choice of platforms and games take the edge off the experience. This could be what I am looking for.
@@linkhatchet Hey Link! Long time no see!! How's the husband doing? I heard he was a little ill recently and I saw you in town for a second about 2 weeks ago but didn't want to intrude, but hope you are both doing okay? Anyway, pass on my regards to Joseph and see you soon (double date dinner maybe?) Lots of love x
OK, the Analogue Pocket does more, but, for purely playing BG/GBC games, is the Chromatic the best choice overall? Edit: One thing you mentioned, and it's something I would have totally assumed was on both the Chromatic and original Game Boy Color, would be a setting to play original Game Boy games in the greenscale that the OG Game Boy is synonymous with. If that's not on the Chromatic now, I would 100% want them to add that as a display option, because it's actually a visual phenomenon that just four shades of gray [green] actually creates a superior impression of there being more shades and such than trying to use only 3-4 actual different colours per tile and sprite that aren't just shades of one colour.
The way is I see it is that the analogue does more at the cost of being pretty mediocre or at best just ok at most of it except for gb and gbc. Adaptors for other cartridge types is an automatic deal breaker because if I'm at home I can play those things on a TV anyway and if I'm not then why would I carry around a bulky adaptor? If I want to play roms there are plenty of other options that I'm sure most people looking at getting a pocket probably already have. I also really like the sapphire crystal on the display and the metal shell that I've heard doesn't actually feel cold to the touch like you would assume. Sure it won't actually survive getting run over as far as the screen goes but it definitely won't be scratching very easy which is I think would be the main concern over it getting run over anyway. All in all I think it's pretty cool and very well designed to do exactly what it set out to do without the compromises of trying to be a jack of all trades.
I preordered the Midnight and the Logan Paul coloways. I’m pretty confident my Analogue Pocket will remain my goto for the major my classic/retro game playing but I love having options so that’s the reason I preordered them
John, why are you promoting Palmer Luckey’s ModRetro? Are you familiar with his other venture, Anduril Industries? It’s a defense contractor creating AI based weapons, drones and surveillance equipment. He’s a war profiteer. Palmer is also closely associated with Peter Thiel of Palantir…this is very disappointing.
@@mattymatt2323 Ever hear of the Patriot Act? Palmer is not on “your side”. By buying his products, you are supporting totalitarianism. All of his tech will eventually be used against you.
The Funnyplaying Fpga Gameboy is $110-$120 with S/H. Analogue Pocket with the Dock + S/H is $350-$399. Chromatic is $220 with S/H and it has a one of a kind daylight readable/viewable screen, a magnesium case, video out, excellent audio, everdrive support and Bluetooth support for controllers. People comparing it to the Analogue or Funnyplaying Fpga Gameboy without pointing out the extreme differences are just uninformed.
I still haven't found a version that would make me retire my original GBC with IPS screen mod. Analogue is too expensive due to features that I don't even want and it has issues with Everdrive (Krikzz).
That is impossible. Would cost at least $100 and no one would buy it when something like the Funnyplaying Fpga Gameboy exists. Or anbernic and powkiddy have Gameboy styled consoles of good and quality for $35-$50.
@@MossySparksIt's the nonsensical reasoning behind it that's laughable. If this was made by someone who was a Biden booster or Zionist supporter these people dogging it wouldn't bat an eye. But because this Palmer fellow supports Trump and works in the MIC they hate on it. Just straight hypocrisy. It's people being selective for which shit heel they are willing to ignore. Don't like Palmer, cool cool. But don't sit on a high horse while gaming on your slave labor supply chain Chinese handheld and act like you have any moral standing.
I like using my unmodded gameboy too but the screen is definitely not one of its better points lol. A fully built from the ground up screen that is designed to mimic the original but making improving upon that base at the same time is definitely the better of the two.
Analogue Pocket is better than the Mister. It can play Mortal Kombat, Narc, and other games the Mister can’t. It’s easier to setup, and add content to it. It’s a perfect device. I did preorder the ModRetro also though.
Now, just check all the games you can run on a MISTer and not on a Pocket. The Pocket is great, but for a desktop use, MISTer is miles ahead. That's why I never bought the dock for the Pocket.
agreed if you’ve got the $$ and the know how. Out the gate and ease of use. Aka no need to buy extra ram or other items Pocket wins. If you go all out the Mister is a marvel!
@@robertpeacock894 man, MISTer is really easy to set up. Almost as easy as Pocket and just a bit trickier because you have to deal with external devices like the display or controllers that are already in the package with the Pocket. But that aside, setting the MISTer up is as straightforward as it is in the Pocket.
These bastard consoles are super dumb. I don’t understand why you would want to buy games but then not use the original hardware for it. At that point just use a console that’ll be cheaper and get the games for free.
@@ADistantImage that's not how oled works. the organic components degrade with use. it doesn't matter if you play 2000 hours straight or 1 hour a day for 2000 days, turning the screen off or keeping a non-still image won't prevent the degradation of the screen from whatever use it gets. the brighter each RGB diode is run at, the faster it will degrade. a still image, like the hud of a game, will cause them to degrade in a visible pattern. modern games and software usually use dark themes for their interfaces, which helps reduce that degradation. gameboy games usually use light themes, which will reduce the lifespan of the entire screen overall. trying to use the device in daylight will require you to run at high or max brightness, which speeds up the rate at which the screen degrades. on top of that, the different colors (RGB) tend to degrade at different rates, with the blue diode usually having the shortest lifespan. from how much white (white requires high output from all 3 color diodes) the screen will be forced to display, the overall color if the screen will shift yellow over time as it gets dimmer and dimmer in general.
John is the biggest kid at DF. Rich is like a dad trying hard to be interested, lol!
imagine what will happen when john starts showing an interest in girls
I like how Rich lets everyone finish their talk/thoughts on the topic at hand then gives his personal opinions...truly a father figure of Digital foundry.
If John has the time, I'd like to see a deeper dive. Nothing crazy, just a 10 minute video of him gushing over this and similar GBC hardware would be awesome.
Absolutely. Definitely want to see more on this.
John is the bear representation I didn't know I needed❤️ 🐻👍🏽
10/10 battery compartment experience confirmed. ❤ thanks John
Is it just me or is there a new “ultimate game boy” device coming out every year lol
It’s so cute seeing John talk about the Chromatic 😭❤️❤️❤️ love him
A Pokémon Crystal cart is more expensive these days than the Chromatic itself :(
really? i have two. dead batteries, but they still work otherwise.
@@nonormies If they are in good condition, you can easily get $100 for each even if standalone.
@AlexDiaz-gw5ov damn really? I'd still never sell but glad I still have my original in good condition.
Nothing beats a real 160x144 screen, so this piques my interest. The Analogue Pocket comes within spitting distance of course, but its filter/shader doesn’t replicate the sub-pixels as much as it should (or could).
Watching John geek out over this kind of stuff is the best content on the channel lol.
If Nintendo made a game Boy Color in 2024, this is what it would be the chromatic. I don’t understand why everyone wants to compare this to the analog pocket.
@@CasualPooper I love Nintendo, but they would never push anything out with these kind of materials, especially at a huge loss on each one sold.
People should be comparing it to the funny playing Game Boy Color since both are strictly focused on playing Gameboy and Gameboy Color games. The funny playing Game Boy Color is less than half the price and has arguably better features but it's going to be a cheaper build quality, the screen is more of a standard LCD, and the IR signaler does not function.
Doesn’t come with Tetris either
Ordered the Orange Chromatic and 2 games + Everdrive for the ultimate playing experience. Cant wait for the sublime nostalgia Christmas factor with Tetris. Uk is expensive for postage but its a lifetime investment for a retro gamers paradise. Easy purchase 👍🏻
Shipping to Australia decreased by £25 since my June pre-order. I wonder how they managed that.
I can totally see John doing more materials about these retro consoles. Last several years brought a lot good hardware. I am just getting into these retro handheld hobby, got RGB30 because of 1:1 ratio screen and as it was cheap enough. For money, it is okay, but I wish it would have better battery. I'll look for something more premium next year, but seeing that I don't have a physical games library and find 16bit and earlier systems to be perfect fit for gaming on the go, I'll go with emulation based device. Preferably working under ArkOS.
Ordered the Yellow and GameStop Grey edition
Just to let you guys know: the chromatic is available in stores at GameStop. That means no shipping costs. Automatically making it cheaper than the pocket by about $80 and you won't have to wait a year to receive yours.
The pocket has been in stock for quite some time time and shipping is at most 40 which is very high but it’s not 80
@@vickirinit is $80 internationally.
@@AlexDiaz-gw5ov the original poster is referring to going toa GameStop store to avoid shipping costs , that implies being in the USA. You cant compare walking to a USA store to shipping a parcel internationally.
@@vickirin He could buy it while on Vacation on a travel to the USA. I could too. As the issue is it takes ages to ship on top of the high priced S&H. Even with a remailer, I can buy and get a Chromatic for $40 and have it in a month later. That is how crazy S&H from Analogue is. Oh and if you want the Dock to have Video out, it will be $400 when you include S&H. Vs $240 of the Chromatic.
@@AlexDiaz-gw5ov I’m not going to defend analogue, I’m just stating the facts, if you are in a position to buy the chromatic from a store, be it because you are visiting the USA or living there , then you can also buy the pocket and you will pay 28- 40 dollars for shipment not 80 dollars.
This would be neat if Palmer Lucky wasn’t involved.
Cope
Yea the side of military industrial complex doesn’t go well.
@@SuperCrunchedSomebody has to make cool shit that goes boom. If they don’t you end up exactly like Ukraine.
@@SuperCrunched come on man, taking the profits and business connections from weapons manufacturing and using them to create supplemental products for someone else's game is literally the seto kaiba backstory. cool things ahead.
You are in the screeching minority of whiners.
you really should mention the fpgbc. i think its much better value
Well I just found out what I want for Christmas.
might be hard to get delivered on time unless you go to gamestop.
@@RogerEssigArtist Definitely hoping my local GameStop gets some in stock.
Magnesium like the original NEXT Step cube. Also, interesting to see things go back to double AA's. I agree, internal batteries can be nice, but they can also really limit the life span of a device in the long run. It sounds like a really nice throwback to the original GameBoy and GBC. I guess the 1:1 screen also sounds nice. This is for a very niche market. But it sounds well made.
very curious how well they'll sell and how many first editions will be made.
Me: Chromatic, Finchy: Pocket. Gareth: sometimes Pocket sometimes Steam Deck. Different handhelds for different...needs
"Retro Dodo" tried running over their prototype with a car in their review ("Car VS Chromatic" chapter). I think the main shell can handle being run over, but the buttons/screen may not fare well. While it didn't get completely crushed the screen did break, the on/off button warped, and the battery pack was also bent. They mentioned that they used a very heavy vehicle too, though: Tesla Model Y which weighs over 2,000kg.
I did love my OG Game Boy so I have been eyeing this up. I have a couple of emulation clones but things like time to boot and, paradoxically, overwhelming choice of platforms and games take the edge off the experience.
This could be what I am looking for.
Analogue pocket is still the one
I'm good with my Analogue Pocket.
I felt like it was a piece of art the first time I saw it, it’s amazing ❤
I advise people to do their research with who is funding this product. 🚩
Yeah, the guy's a bell end.
Who?
Cope
@@linkhatchet Hey Link! Long time no see!! How's the husband doing? I heard he was a little ill recently and I saw you in town for a second about 2 weeks ago but didn't want to intrude, but hope you are both doing okay? Anyway, pass on my regards to Joseph and see you soon (double date dinner maybe?) Lots of love x
Guy making weapons is bad. Administration sending weapons to colonizers to kill people with good.
OK, the Analogue Pocket does more, but, for purely playing BG/GBC games, is the Chromatic the best choice overall?
Edit: One thing you mentioned, and it's something I would have totally assumed was on both the Chromatic and original Game Boy Color, would be a setting to play original Game Boy games in the greenscale that the OG Game Boy is synonymous with. If that's not on the Chromatic now, I would 100% want them to add that as a display option, because it's actually a visual phenomenon that just four shades of gray [green] actually creates a superior impression of there being more shades and such than trying to use only 3-4 actual different colours per tile and sprite that aren't just shades of one colour.
Yes, hands down. No question. And it is not only is daylight readable/viewable and has video out. It also has bluetooth and wifi.
@@AlexDiaz-gw5ov Ah, cool cool.
The way is I see it is that the analogue does more at the cost of being pretty mediocre or at best just ok at most of it except for gb and gbc.
Adaptors for other cartridge types is an automatic deal breaker because if I'm at home I can play those things on a TV anyway and if I'm not then why would I carry around a bulky adaptor?
If I want to play roms there are plenty of other options that I'm sure most people looking at getting a pocket probably already have.
I also really like the sapphire crystal on the display and the metal shell that I've heard doesn't actually feel cold to the touch like you would assume. Sure it won't actually survive getting run over as far as the screen goes but it definitely won't be scratching very easy which is I think would be the main concern over it getting run over anyway.
All in all I think it's pretty cool and very well designed to do exactly what it set out to do without the compromises of trying to be a jack of all trades.
I think you could probably change one of the default colour palettes to match the DMG no?
Amazing video yet again! Thank you Digital Foundry.
I just ordered one because of this video. The yellow one looks so retro. And they come with Tetris. 😎
The build quality comes across on camera. I have no interest in this thing but it does look very cool.
In the video ua-cam.com/video/rhmyI3U5MWM/v-deo.html by RetroDodo, at timestamp 12:10, it’s shown that it can’t survive a car.
@@domagojloncar It doesn't need to be able to do that.
That's dope but the pocket is such a value compared to this. You guys nailed it on the head. It's extremely niche.
I preordered the Midnight and the Logan Paul coloways. I’m pretty confident my Analogue Pocket will remain my goto for the major my classic/retro game playing but I love having options so that’s the reason I preordered them
John, why are you promoting Palmer Luckey’s ModRetro? Are you familiar with his other venture, Anduril Industries? It’s a defense contractor creating AI based weapons, drones and surveillance equipment. He’s a war profiteer. Palmer is also closely associated with Peter Thiel of Palantir…this is very disappointing.
Can you picture a chubby sensitive guy like John fighting in a war? Luckeys AI stuff will hopefully mean he never needs to
Everything you mentioned sounds like you are promoting him except for the last 4 words. 🤣
Wait so you dont want to have the best Defence? What's wrong with you? You are so lucky Palmer is on your team dude
@@mattymatt2323 Ever hear of the Patriot Act? Palmer is not on “your side”. By buying his products, you are supporting totalitarianism. All of his tech will eventually be used against you.
Wondering if there is any newer device with a reflective lcd like the old gb or gb advanced? I want something so i can play outside in sun.
The chromatic is daylight readable as the screen is 1000nits too.
@AlexDiaz-gw5ov lol I should of added I want to avoid artificial light at the same time.
Ordered mine, cannot wait after hearing all the positive reception. What a treat for GB fans.
Ordered 2. green for me blue for my stepson looking good on the news can’t wait love Tetris
The Funnyplaying Fpga Gameboy is $110-$120 with S/H. Analogue Pocket with the Dock + S/H is $350-$399. Chromatic is $220 with S/H and it has a one of a kind daylight readable/viewable screen, a magnesium case, video out, excellent audio, everdrive support and Bluetooth support for controllers. People comparing it to the Analogue or Funnyplaying Fpga Gameboy without pointing out the extreme differences are just uninformed.
Or you can get a R36S for 40 bucks. Has great handheld filters in the system.
I still haven't found a version that would make me retire my original GBC with IPS screen mod. Analogue is too expensive due to features that I don't even want and it has issues with Everdrive (Krikzz).
Pretty sure the Everdrive issues have been fixed long ago
@steffenb.9214 that's good news than. Here's hoping for a price drop at some point.
Why isn't there a company that just makes an exact copy of the hardware for ten bucks?
Do FPGA's take advantage of some legal loophole?
Because that would be impossible to do at $10. All those old components would need reengineering, particularly the screen.
You do it and get back to us
That is impossible. Would cost at least $100 and no one would buy it when something like the Funnyplaying Fpga Gameboy exists. Or anbernic and powkiddy have Gameboy styled consoles of good and quality for $35-$50.
As long as it's funded by known weapons broker Palmer Lucky, fuck no
People get so hung up on Palmer. Do you want other hostile countries to have better weapons?
Cope
@MikeyisNinja I think it's how the US uses those weapons that's the concern.
@MikeyisNinja Now you might argue that's not Palmers concern, and you may have a point.
@@MossySparksIt's the nonsensical reasoning behind it that's laughable. If this was made by someone who was a Biden booster or Zionist supporter these people dogging it wouldn't bat an eye. But because this Palmer fellow supports Trump and works in the MIC they hate on it. Just straight hypocrisy.
It's people being selective for which shit heel they are willing to ignore. Don't like Palmer, cool cool. But don't sit on a high horse while gaming on your slave labor supply chain Chinese handheld and act like you have any moral standing.
The ultimate Gameboy will always be the Gameboy. Nothing compares to that blurry non-backlit screen, not even close.
I like using my unmodded gameboy too but the screen is definitely not one of its better points lol. A fully built from the ground up screen that is designed to mimic the original but making improving upon that base at the same time is definitely the better of the two.
With the fpga GBC out there for $80, $200 for that is just dumb in comparison.
Analogue Pocket is better than the Mister.
It can play Mortal Kombat, Narc, and other games the Mister can’t. It’s easier to setup, and add content to it. It’s a perfect device.
I did preorder the ModRetro also though.
Now, just check all the games you can run on a MISTer and not on a Pocket.
The Pocket is great, but for a desktop use, MISTer is miles ahead. That's why I never bought the dock for the Pocket.
Can it do PSX, Saturn, and N64? Can it output analogue and digital video at the same time? Is it SNAC compatible?
agreed if you’ve got the $$ and the know how. Out the gate and ease of use. Aka no need to buy extra ram or other items Pocket wins.
If you go all out the Mister is a marvel!
@@robertpeacock894 man, MISTer is really easy to set up. Almost as easy as Pocket and just a bit trickier because you have to deal with external devices like the display or controllers that are already in the package with the Pocket. But that aside, setting the MISTer up is as straightforward as it is in the Pocket.
Taki udon's Mister Pi is exciting given the price.
yo that thing has a really awful name
Now just don’t look into the main person behind this and you’ll be happy.
These bastard consoles are super dumb. I don’t understand why you would want to buy games but then not use the original hardware for it. At that point just use a console that’ll be cheaper and get the games for free.
What's there not to understand? It means I can keep my original gameboy stock and also have a better experience at the same time.
Lost me at LCD. If you aren't AMOLED at this point why even bother
Because AMOLED won’t last. The organic compounds tap out eventually, and after not so long either.
just want i want - a $200 gameboy with burn-in. it's not like gameboy games were designed with modern anti burn-in features.
@nonormies You plan on playing for 2000 hours straight huh?
@@ADistantImage that's not how oled works. the organic components degrade with use. it doesn't matter if you play 2000 hours straight or 1 hour a day for 2000 days, turning the screen off or keeping a non-still image won't prevent the degradation of the screen from whatever use it gets. the brighter each RGB diode is run at, the faster it will degrade. a still image, like the hud of a game, will cause them to degrade in a visible pattern. modern games and software usually use dark themes for their interfaces, which helps reduce that degradation. gameboy games usually use light themes, which will reduce the lifespan of the entire screen overall. trying to use the device in daylight will require you to run at high or max brightness, which speeds up the rate at which the screen degrades. on top of that, the different colors (RGB) tend to degrade at different rates, with the blue diode usually having the shortest lifespan. from how much white (white requires high output from all 3 color diodes) the screen will be forced to display, the overall color if the screen will shift yellow over time as it gets dimmer and dimmer in general.
PLAYS BEST ON PS5 PRO!!!!! MEGA L FOR XBOX FANQUEERS!!!!!
Ryan Miller attention seeking 😂
PLAYS BEST ON SUPERIOR PS5 PRO!!!! MEGA L FOR THE QUEERBOX SERIES X FANQUEERS!!!!
Ryan Miller still attention seeking 😆
How is Diddy able to access his phone in Jail???