Analogue Pocket

KeRbDoG

From reading eariler, doesn't look like they pre-pay customs.

Non-glow versoin, out of stock but shipped it would be around $299.98 ($219.99+$79.99 shipping) = €275.73

From earlier on in this thread, delivery via Fedex and a eventual import invoice of €‎70 so €345ish?

Retr0gamer

Got an email that all pocket accessories are now back in stock. There was also a note that the adapter set will be available end of 2023 so looks like it's being delayed into Q4 at the earliest.

o1s1n

I'd love to know how this glow in the dark model came about. It's bizarre. Especially given the regular version is unavailable.

Was it planned or did they for some reason just have access to the type of plastic and decided to go this route to get more consoles out?

super_furry

Would absolutely love a clear plastic/purple clear plastic model in line with the Gameboy Colour, but with the glow in the dark version the only one available right now, I think I’m going to at least try to get one.

deadl0ck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121044777#Comment_121044777

Nope - I had to pay UPS 80.76 import tax / fees on Monday.

I got it yesterday but haven't opened it as I'm not sure now if I even want it anymore.....

CiDeRmAn

Nope, won't be paying that kind of insane money.

Thanks for the sums though

KeRbDoG

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121049689#Comment_121049689

If you have someone going to the US, it might make sense - but with shipping & import charges to Ireland, no so much

McDermotX

TBH.....they really need an EU distributor, as while I think the Pocket (and all their products) are very good, it's always a bitter pill to swallow. More so these days with the extortionate shipping charges. Only announced recently that they are changing the US based shipping, but that does no good for us this side of the water.

Think it was only ever with one of the Mega SG limited editions, the Hyperdub IIRC, that they were able to provide some EU-based shipments that avoided tariffs. Might have even been shipped from the UK.

Retr0gamer

Yeah I mean 8-bitdo have it sorted for us, no reason they couldn't do it either.

Also for all you playdate regretters, Lucas Pope has a new game out on it so might be worth a try, Mars after Midnight.

deadl0ck

Lads I'm considering selling mine - it's still unopened but I don't want to screw anyone so if anyone is interested let me know. If nobody interested I'll probably put it on adverts.

I'd be thinking around 300 so about 50 cheaper than buying and shipping

Edit: Actually I'll put it in the marketplace in case a boardsie not on this thread wants it

super_furry

Any idea how often they open up sales? Decided I absolutely need one now and missed out on the glow in the dark one because I couldn't complete a captcha quick enough.

o1s1n

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121078330#Comment_121078330

After deadl0ck stuck that great deal up over in the sales forum my want for one has started growing again.

McDermotX

Best to just sign up for notification - although they tend to only get out to the majority a day or two after they are re-activated on the site, so I wouldn't be relying on them solely. Twitter or X or whatever you call it is generally the first place word tends to be announced, but I wouldn't be putting my own money down betting when that will be.

Last word was was that all Pocket orders made between July and end of August either are shipped or in the process of being shipped - certainly you could still pre-order them a month back, so if they claim to be on top of those orders, then the next production run would suggest a quick turnaround for anyone ordering when they open back up.

Can never tell with this lot though. They can sell what they make no doubt and the Pocket is a money spinner, but probably constrained in what they can choose to make/component allocation. Still need to get the Duos out before end of year.

Colonel Panic

General thoughts on this after a few decent evening stints with OpenFPGA and the build in cart support.

After updating to the latest firmware to enable the OpenFPGA stuff, sleep and wake it plain flakey on my legit Zelda LTTP cart and people on Reddit seem to have similar issues. Some people have zero issues, some have mixed success.

It's a little annoying as it's a feature I'd really make use of given how I tend to play games.

Memories, the GBA/GB save state feature I'm also paranoid about. I've used it so far as a belt and bracers approach to flakey resumes from sleep, it it states that applying a memory overwrites a cart's saves, which I am NOT crazy about given my experience with the software.

OpenFPGA is pretty cool. Battle Garegga is unplayable as a 3:4 game on a tiny screen. CPS1 games tend to work well.

The SNES core is nice, wherever it was ported from. Having a blast playing couch Super Aleste and doing a spin through Super Mario Allstars.

Not sure if it's the DPad or general ergonomics of the machine, but I'm a worse player on it. I mean dying on Super Mario Bros...

So I think it's good, but trying to decide if this fits in my life or not. I was all set to buy the dock, but my Mister and other consoles make that a redundant purchase!

super_furry

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121090621#Comment_121090621

If you’re looking to get rid of it, give me a shout, would take it off your hands.

Retr0gamer

More analogue pocket variants out:

https://twitter.com/analogue/status/1706322795158741344?t=u7jIN8Kjc_TBofwuAAwgaQ&s=19

Where's me neo geo pocket adapter!

o1s1n

Liking the Gameboy Color vibes these are giving off!

super_furry

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121046528#Comment_121046528

Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in.

Question is now do I go for the one I really want - the clear purple one - or one that might be a bit less popular?

McDermotX

No matter which one you go for (wouldn't be mad about a transparent one to begin with but the blue looks striking), just make sure you don't leave it sitting in your basket while perusing accessories.

Know what you want and if after accessories in the same shipment, immediately add them and get to the checkout. If not bothered with extras, just checkout as quick as possible.

Scalpers won't be far behind, but at least it's showing Analogue have a clearer line of production. You'd still want to be ready to go minutes beforehand.

super_furry

Well that seemed to go a lot smoother than the glow in the dark variant.

Managed to get a blue one with smoke and purple sold out and there were still red and orange ones about 10 minutes after the sale opened. Now to pray to the gods of import tax avoidance.

McDermotX

Nice. Aye....was casually looking at it and the least popular red and oranges were still up for grabs 10mins after the hour, so more variants (even limited amounts) did disperse buyers a wee bit. Granted if someone was set on one type only, they'd probably miss out, but certainly seems that they are finally getting on top of production........in their own constrained way anyway :)

McDermotX

Latest guff from Analogue

Colour could suggest a return to Neo Geo for them, not to mention the ties with 8bitdo's recent controller release (excellent pads BTW), with other suggestions like N64 a little more left-field IMO.

Of course, they could be trolling everyone with yet another limited edition Pocket......this time with a gold accent 🤣

https://twitter.com/analogue/status/1711785370499616966?t=n40NzLKfKQr3leWWVOGssQ&s=19

o1s1n

Yeah I'm definitely getting 'NEO GEO PRO GEAR SPEC' vibes from those colours alright.

New Neo system with Neo CD support? Might be a tad niche though..

Inviere

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121224087#Comment_121224087

Another machine that's basically a mister under the hood but takes original media? I've always had trouble reconciling those two concepts... I'm still at the stage of "it's one or the other, not both!"

McDermotX

Be unusual for them to be flogging stuff on a Monday, but who knows. Immediately think Neo Geo, but then this lot had a date for a press release about Analogue OS before.

I'd be happy if it was a confirmed release day for a firmware enabling the remaining cores, coinciding with the shipment of the Pocket Adapters. Then again. If they already have their adapters and Duos in manufacture/shipping by end of year, they're probably looking at their next cash cow.......Neo Geo for the niche, Analogue OS multisystem with cart adapters, gold-plated Pocket ?

McDermotX

Gone a bit left-field although given the strides the MiSTer core has made, it's the N64 this time around.

https://www.analogue.co/3d

A reimagining of the N64.4K resolution.Original Display Modes.

Reference quality recreations of specific model CRT’s and PVM’s.The first and only aftermarket solution supporting 100% compatility in every region. USA, EU & JP. Coming in 2024.

Doesn't support OpenFPGA though. Like the Duo

Not exactly everyone's favourite Nintendo box. Enjoyed the classics obviously, but it's a marmite experience these days in some ways.

Retr0gamer

It's one of my least favourite Nintendo consoles but in terms of nostalgia for it it's riding an all time high. It's goi g to be very popular.

super_furry

I mean maybe if there were PlayStation and Saturn cores then there’d be something worth playing other than the five decent N64 games, but at that stage, just get a Mister.

McDermotX

Oh aye. Lot of cartridges out there needing to be plugged in. Far bigger potential retro market than the likes of the Duo or a Neo Geo recreation would tap into.

Plus it's certainly possible, given what we've seen over the last few months on the open source FPGA dev scene. Think it was Hyperkin in the past who were pimping development of a clone - as in a proper clone, not a ROM dumper, but that seemed to disappear a while back.

Can be an awkward system to get the best visuals from, and some of the recent HDMI mods have prohibitive costs to say the least. One thing I loved about the N64 was that PSU module. Fierce handy to hook an import machine up.

It'll do well assuming a reasonable price level, not Pocket well, but there will certainly be a demand. Just a shame they didn't go down another CD-based option like the Saturn, but I'd be holding the disappointment until they can prove that level by getting the Duo out the door.

Inviere

It wouldn't be Analogue without obnoxious marketing...."The first and only aftermarket solution supporting 100% compatility in every region. USA, EU & JP. Coming in 2024."

They've literally no competitor, there's no fpga device that currently dumps original carts to ram to play them, so I don't get the whole used car salesman schtick.

The Mister core, at the rate it's developing, will likely make the above claim nonsense anyway. At least they left out "NO EMULATION" this time.

It'll be a lovely product, with Analogue's usual high quality feel to it, but it's not for me whatsoever.