forums.ps2dev.org

[illfoundedmind]

Gamepark GP2X,

Do you know what I'm talking about?
Okay it's bad but it's great. It comes with software to design apps for it. The way sony should have made the PSP (well minus the hardware)

http://www.realtechnews.com/posts/2387
Website: http://www.gp2x.com/

I'll keep hacking PSP for now...
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[ooPo]

Moved to off-topic...

I ordered a GP2X last week, so it should be arriving soon. I'm not expecting much from it - but I find targetting multiple platforms, especially crappy ones, tends to keep your code clean.

[illfoundedmind]

Nice, tell me how it is I was considering purchasing one just for he has. Now if PSP and that merged somehow (or Sony just laid back a little bit with the whole homebrewed thing) that would be the perfect handheld
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[J.F.]

It's funny how quickly 200MHz has become considered "crappy." :) The PS2 is only slightly less than 300MHz. I think the GP2X shows great promise. It might not have the powerhouse GPU that the PSP has, but the extra 200MHz ARM9 CPU should be able to give folks QUAKE level 3D without bogging down the main CPU. So it's like an older video card in that respect. Give the devs some time and you'll see even better 3D than that. After all, Quake was designed to run on slow Pentiums with no 3D accelerator at all.

[ooPo]

The only 'crappy' I'm worried about is the build quality on the gp2x.

I've heard the screen is like a first edition GBA SP, and the case flexes if pressed on too hard. Weird bugs in the firmware and all sorts of other problems.

[mrbrown]

It's a 200Mhz ARM machine running Linux with SDL as the primary SDK. It doesn't even have 2D hardware acceleration... you'd be better off making sure your code runs on any x86-based Linux platform, as it doesn't get much more portable than that :).

The USB 2.0 port (ports?) and NTSC TV out are pretty cool however.

[J.F.]

The SDL implementation doesn't have 2D acceleration yet, but the GP2X certainly has 2D acceleration in hardware, along with video acceleration. You can find the main chip in the GP2X here:

http://www.mesdigital.com/english/Products/product_mmsp2.asp

They have made a few updates to the BIOS to fix bugs and add features. There will be more as time goes along.

[ooPo]

Yeah, its based on a system-on-a-chip designed for wince machines. It does basic 2D acceleration.

I seem to remember reading that there's pins available on the chip for component video, jtag and other nifty stuff. Chances are it'll be crappy enough that I won't mind opening it and seeing what I can pull out of it.

[illfoundedmind]

I think what it really come down to is the density of the product. Sounds funny I guess but you can usually tell how "good" & "how much time was spent dev" of a new piece of hardware by its density. & it looks rather light wieght that is why I question it's quality.
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[J.F.]

I really want to get one, but I'm hanging on until the next big price drop. Stuff like this always has a significant drop after the initial sales rush. I rarely ever buy in the first wave. That also allows me to see if there are any major problems with the first units as well. :)

[illfoundedmind]

I general do extensive research for products like that, but when I do buy it makes it worth it.
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