Re: [stella] Ruminations

Subject: Re: [stella] Ruminations
From: "Garon Grainger" <garon@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 16 Apr 2000 18:58:06 -0400
The PAL system from Brazil is the Dynacom Megaboy I believe.
There was a handheld NTSC system as well, the TV Boy. There's no screen
or cartridge slot but it is portable.  It has 127 games built in. It has a
joypad
but also has DIN ports for external controllers.  You hook an RCA cable to
the
TV to play but you can go remote by adding an antenna.

I happened to stumble across on an old disk with a few pictures of it.
I grabbed them off a website years back. The site's long gone I believe.
I just dumped them into a directory online if you'd like to see what one
looks like:

http://www.neonghost.com/vg/tvboy

The following text is from the Atari 2600/5200/7800 FAQ. I'm reposting it
here for convenience sake.
http://www.cs.colostate.edu/~dzubera/2600faq.txt
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Q: What is a TV Boy and where can I get one?

A: The TV Boy is a handheld-sized Atari 2600 (made by SystemA) with 127
built-in games that connects to your tv (it does not have its own screen).
While it features a built-in Gameboy-like joypad and external 9-pin ports so
one can connect one's favorite controller, it does not, alas, have a
cartridge slot. Inside the TV Boy is a jumper marked "NTSC/PAL," so it
appears that it will work on either type of TV.

There is also a TV Boy II which does not have external 9-pin ports. Thus,
there is no way to play two-player (simultaneous) games (only the built-in
directional pad is left) with two players; In two-player games the pad
controls both players at the same time. For example, in Traffic (nee
Freeway), the pad controls both chickens.

For PAL preferers there is the MegaBoy which is nearly identical to the TV
Boy, although it has only 126 predominately PAL games.

If things weren't confusing enough, Ian Pleasance (tspigp@xxxxxxxxxxx) adds
the following:

"...there are also PAL versions of the TV Boy I and TV Boy II. The TVB1
is exactly the same physically as the US version, whereas the TVB2 had
a design change and is shorter, it also adds a 127th game (pirated
MegaMania), and had the second joystick port removed (on games with a
two-player option the second joystick is rerouted to the Joypad). Both
the TVB1 and TVB2 were sold in the UK by SystemA.

"SystemA also recently launched the "Super TV Boy", renamed the TVB2
to "TV Boy" and dropped the TVB1.

The Super TV Boy is the same internally as the TVB2, however the
casing has changed drastically, and the internal joypad is now
"removable" in that it clips on to the main unit case and is attached
by a wire, so you can unclip it and play it at a distance. The Super
TV Boy looks in some ways like a mini-NES except that half of the casing
is bright pink (!).

More information on the TV Boy can be found courtesy of JerryG, who
maintains the TV Boy page
(http://www.atari2600.com/catalog/Specials/GamTVBoys.html).

The MegaBoy is not available from anywhere we know of. NTSC TV Boys
($199.95), PAL TV Boy II's ($89.95) and PAL Super TV Boys ($99.95) are
available from JerryG. Argos, a UK mailorder company, has TV Boys for 24.95
pounds, but they do not take orders from outside Great Britain or Northern
Ireland. (Argos Customer Service: 01908 600 161; Direct Home Delivery: 0345
427 467; the TV Boy catalog number is 364/4834). Gultronics in Tottenham
Court Road, London, England as well as Index, a UK-wide catalogue shop both
sell the TV Boy and Super TV Boy. Finally, one can also purchase TV Boys
direct from SystemA (SystemA (UK) LTD, 12 Albury Close, Loverock Road,
Reading, Berkshire, RG30 1BB) for approximately $50.00 + shipping and
handling.

JerryG, in an email message, mentions a completely different MegaBoy (from
South America) that does not include built-in games, but rather has a
cartridge slot (!).

Finally, The Maverick (themaverick@xxxxxxxxxxx) mentions that a 7800
controller plugged into the left joystick port (but not the right port) of
the TV Boy will keep it from operating. Corroboration anyone?

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Current Thread
  • [stella] queue, (continued)
    • Rob - Sat, 15 Apr 2000 22:21:14 -0400 (EDT)
    • Pete Holland - Sun, 16 Apr 2000 14:34:10 -0400 (EDT)
      • Rob - Sun, 16 Apr 2000 18:11:58 -0400 (EDT)
    • Garon Grainger - Sun, 16 Apr 2000 19:03:25 -0400 (EDT) <=