Handheld game console
From Sonic Retro
A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable, electronic device for playing video games. Unlike video game consoles, however, the controls, screen and speakers are all part of a single unit. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, several companies – including Coleco and Milton-Bradley – made lightweight table-top or handheld video game devices. Nowadays, these machines aren't considered strictly consoles, since they often would only play a single game. The first true handheld game console with interchangeable cartridges was the Milton Bradley Microvision in 1979. Nintendo has dominated the handheld market since the release of the Game Boy in 1989,and is often credited as popularizing the handheld console concept.
In response to the Game Boy's success, work began on several handhelds that aimed to capitalize on what was seen to be the Game Boy's main weakness: inadequate graphics. The Sega Game Gear was released in late 1990, and features a backlit color display. The Game Gear's internal architecture was very similar to the Sega Master System console, which allowed Sega to quickly release a large number of games that had originally been written for the older system. Unfortunately, the Game Gear had an extremely poor battery life of little more than 1 hour, and failed to impact the Game Boy's dominance.
In 2001, Nintendo revealed the Game Boy Advance, which added extra buttons, had a much larger screen, and far more computing power.
The Nintendo DS was released on November 21, 2004. Nintendo has often focused on impacting gameplay experience. The DS has two 3-inch LCD screens. The bottom screen is touch-sensitive, allowing the player to lead a game character or navigate menus more intuitively or even to draw on the screens. In fact, one of the best-received games at the E³ demonstration was one where the player had to draw clouds to catch a falling Mario baby. The DS is able to play Game Boy Advance games, and supports 802.11b for wireless multiplayer.
