# Best handheld you liked or owned?



## Skyhigh_ (Jul 2, 2015)

I owned many systems throughout the years though i never really developed a liking to an extent for some older retro systems like some others have.

However i always loved my gameboy color/gameboy advance its probably the 2 main systems that i gathered play time more than any other console or handheld i ever owned.

When the gameboy advance launches and even some years after it i still found myself playing it often even though i had things like an n64, ps2, gamecube etc..


When the gameboy advance sp launched i though it was a fantastic device considering i always had to play a gba in daylight or with that worm light to see properly. However i never really liked the gba sp because of its size the regular gba was just more comfortable to hold and play for me.

When the psp came out it was also a big hit for me specially when the option to play older retro games and gba was possible as well.

What handheld system has been your favorite/most liked?


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## Flame (Jul 2, 2015)

we dont have much of a choice... its GBA, DS, 3DS, PSP & Vita really.


ill go with DS too. so much choice in the games tho.


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## WiiCube_2013 (Jul 2, 2015)

I'd say PSP. Games were fantastic (felt like home console type) and you could hack the handheld to play tons of other consoles.

Although, since I don't like small screens I never really enjoyed PSP to the fullest.


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## hundshamer (Jul 2, 2015)

Flame said:


> we dont have much of a choice... its GBA, DS, 3DS, PSP & Vita really.


 What about the Sega Game Gear, Sega Nomad, NEC Turbo Express, Atari Lynx, Wonderswan, Neo Geo Pocket, NGage, and a few lesser known consoles. 

I loved the Nomad (hand held Sega Genesis), but it had a horrible battery life, and rechargeable batteries have come a long way since. I played my DS the most because of the R4.


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## Flame (Jul 2, 2015)

hundshamer said:


> What about the Sega Game Gear, Sega Nomad, NEC Turbo Express, Atari Lynx, Wonderswan, Neo Geo Pocket, NGage, and a few lesser known consoles.
> 
> I loved the Nomad (hand held Sega Genesis), but it had a horrible battery life, and rechargeable batteries have come a long way since. I played my DS the most because of the R4.



they were okay but kinda shit to be fair. you missed out on gameboy. even that was kinda shit.


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## WiiCube_2013 (Jul 2, 2015)

Flame said:


> they were okay but kinda shit to be fair. you missed out on gameboy. even that was kinda shit.


The screen of Game Boy was at times hard to see and to top it off, it only had two colours. Green and black.


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## hundshamer (Jul 2, 2015)

Flame said:


> they were okay but kinda shit to be fair. you missed out on gameboy. even that was kinda shit.


I would agree with most, but the Game Gear, the Nomad and the Turbo Express were ahead of their time. The GG and Nomad were plagued by battery consumption. The TG-E was the first 16-bit handheld (Nintendo was still pushing OG Gameboy variations). The Nomad was a handheld Sega Genesis, and it predated the GBA.


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## migles (Jul 2, 2015)

Flame said:


> we dont have much of a choice... its GBA, DS, 3DS, PSP & Vita really.
> 
> 
> ill go with DS too. so much choice in the games tho.





hundshamer said:


> What about the Sega Game Gear, Sega Nomad, NEC Turbo Express, Atari Lynx, Wonderswan, Neo Geo Pocket, NGage, and a few lesser known consoles.
> 
> I loved the Nomad (hand held Sega Genesis), but it had a horrible battery life, and rechargeable batteries have come a long way since. I played my DS the most because of the R4.



poor virtual boy, gets no love


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## hundshamer (Jul 2, 2015)

migles said:


> poor virtual boy, gets no love


I'm not sure I would consider the VB a handheld console.


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## cracker (Jul 2, 2015)

The PSP has a _small screen? 
_
It's a hard choice for me because of all of the good games on each and homebrew thrown in. I have a GBC, GBA SP, DSL, PSP x 2, 3DS XL, N3DS XL and carts/CFW for each. I have really enjoyed the 3DS but still go play (or want to play) GBA for Metroid, Zelda, Golden Sun, Mario, etc. The PSP is great for console quality games and POPS. If I get rid of any system it will probably be my GBC because I only ever emulate it but I love my Mr. Flash 64M and GBC on GBA SP tends to cause problems if you accidentally hit the cart.


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## Flame (Jul 2, 2015)

hundshamer said:


> I would agree with most, but the Game Gear, the Nomad and the Turbo Express were ahead of their time. The GG and Nomad were plagued by battery consumption. The TG-E was the first 16-bit handheld (Nintendo was still pushing OG Gameboy variations). The Nomad was a handheld Sega Genesis, and it predated the GBA.



not really portable if the console dies, cause you can play only three minutes due to battery consumption. im thinking of the Nomad by the way.


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## migles (Jul 2, 2015)

hundshamer said:


> I'm not sure I would consider the VB a handheld console.


nintendo sold it as a portable, it was kinda designed as a portable...
it uses 6 AA batteries, has it is own screen, cartridges are not giant...

you can take it to a coffee shop and use its ability only available at public places to make you look ridicolous and weird


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## cracker (Jul 2, 2015)

hundshamer said:


> I'm not sure I would consider the VB a handheld console.



Faceheld(TM).


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## hundshamer (Jul 2, 2015)

Flame said:


> not really portable if the console dies, cause you can play only three minutes due to battery consumption. im thinking of the Nomad by the way.


I did say that... I also stated ahead of it's time as there are batteries that can handle the power needed.



migles said:


> nintendo sold it as a portable, it was kinda designed as a portable...
> it uses 6 AA batteries, has it is own screen, cartridges are not giant...
> 
> you can take it to a coffee shop and use its ability only available at public places to make you look ridicolous and weird


*HAND*held. Not to be confused with portable system. There are PSX revisions that are considered portable.



cracker said:


> Faceheld(TM).


Exactly.


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## Depravo (Jul 2, 2015)

Gameboy Micro. Small, but perfectly formed.


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## DinohScene (Jul 2, 2015)

GBA or PSP...
For nostalgia, I pick GBA.
Even tho I loved the Colour.


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## BORTZ (Jul 2, 2015)

Even though  I have probably played my DS more, I would probably have to go with my GBA. Since the GBC lifespan was relatively short, I was still able to enjoy a few games that I missed, mainly, Pokemon Silver. I loved all the Super Nintendo games that got ported over. All the Marios, Zelda, Yoshi's Island... You know, the good stuff.


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## Tom Bombadildo (Jul 2, 2015)

Probably the PSP for me. Had a huge library, plus basically the entire PS1 library when hacked and it made an excellent portable emulator machine.


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## mashers (Jul 2, 2015)

I love my GP2X. Had the original model and stupidly sold it a few years ago. More recently I bought an F200 and it's fantastic. I've also had a DS Lite which I sold at the same time as the GP2X, and now have a N3DS which I love.


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## WiiCube_2013 (Jul 2, 2015)

cracker said:


> The PSP has a _small screen?
> _
> It's a hard choice for me because of all of the good games on each and homebrew thrown in. I have a GBC, GBA SP, DSL, PSP x 2, 3DS XL, N3DS XL and carts/CFW for each. I have really enjoyed the 3DS but still go play (or want to play) GBA for Metroid, Zelda, Golden Sun, Mario, etc. The PSP is great for console quality games and POPS. If I get rid of any system it will probably be my GBC because I only ever emulate it but I love my Mr. Flash 64M and GBC on GBA SP tends to cause problems if you accidentally hit the cart.


For someone that's used to play on the TV, it is.


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## TeamScriptKiddies (Jul 2, 2015)

My Open Pandora Handheld hands down, as it plays all my classic games flawlessly (for the most part), not to mention literally ANYBODY can develop for it and that full desktop environment .


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## Megaben99 (Jul 2, 2015)

GBA SP....After playing with a little light strapped on the top of my GBA the SP having a back light plus clamshell was the best.

Loved my PSP, but I got one much much later than release, after CFW was long available. Love my N3DS, but didn't have the same magic that getting that first GBA SP did.


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## sarkwalvein (Jul 2, 2015)

*Regarding original games and content, the DS is what I liked most.
Regarding how did it feel in my hands... I really liked my PSP-3000.*
Probably the PS Vita is as good or better, but I haven't owned one so I don't know.
I hated the original GBA because of fuck you display that requires to play under the sun on a desert in summer to see anything. Also, my GBA got stolen one or two months after I bought it so I hate it even more (bad memories).


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## Prior22 (Jul 2, 2015)

I like the Nvidia Shield for emulation purposes (since I couldn't care less about android titles).  For the second shield portable I'd love for the left analog stick to be in the xbox position and for the a/b/x/y buttons to feel like an xbox controller (as the shield buttons feel too clicky, if that makes sense).  Those two aspects being changed, along with making the unit lighter, would make the shield portable perfect.


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## BORTZ (Jul 2, 2015)

sarkwalvein said:


> Probably the PS Vita is as good or better, but I haven't owned one so I don't know.
> I hated the original GBA because of fuck you display that requires to play under the sun on a desert in summer to see anything.


The Vita is great, but it gets a lot of hate for a few key reasons (as a vita owner, its hard to disagree with some of them too). 
I had an OGBA too. The Glacial Purple color. Served me a good many years, at least until I got my hands on my DS. But I agree the screen was quite the pain. I did get a a "solution" eventually. Now mind you I was in like 7th grade and the best thing I found was one of these innovation halo lights from Gamestop. It wasnt perfect by any means. But it did allow me to play in the dark and other poorly lit areas. But if you tired to use it somewhere there was a decent amount of light (not a playable amount mind you lol) the screen turned into a giant glare.


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## HaloEffect17 (Jul 2, 2015)

GBA SP was the first handheld I owned; many great memories.


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## The Real Jdbye (Jul 2, 2015)

Probably the DS Lite. But I love my n3DS too, I just think the DS had a better library of games than what the 3DS does. That could change though.


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## TecXero (Jul 2, 2015)

GBA for its games and PSP for the handheld itself. I enjoy the 3DS, I think it's well built, just I'm still not big on having two screen draining away at battery life and the 3D gimmick seems costly and needless.


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## hippy dave (Jul 2, 2015)

Hm, I owned most of the Nintendo handhelds.

At the time, the original GB was probably my favourite, because it was so amazing to play those games handheld, even if the screen was kinda shonky - but more importantly, because a load of my mates had one too and we'd play linkup on the bus to school etc. GB had the right timing for that, for me (old man), and I haven't had that experience again with the later consoles. I've never been able to care as much about online multiplayer as I did about multiplayer in person, whether on handhelds or in front of the tv.

Now, my favourite is my new3ds, because it plays the games from all the others, and has great screens and battery life.


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## osirisjem (Jul 5, 2015)

Hit and Missle


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## sion_zaphod (Jul 5, 2015)

Purely for homebrew playing ability I would say Gameboy Advance, Nintendo DS/3ds,  and PSP.


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## cvskid (Jul 5, 2015)

Toss up between sega gamegear, neo geo pocket color, and psp for me.


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## handlolo (Apr 17, 2020)

Nintendo Ds, has the best library of games.


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## Alexander1970 (Apr 17, 2020)

Hello.

Best All In One - New 3DS XL
Best Screen - GameBoy Advance SP AGS-101
Best Handling - Sony PSP
Best Durability - GameBoy
Best Battery - ..........
Best Sound - probably I am deaf - Sony PSP
Easiest Hacking/Modding Solution - Nintendo GBA/DS/DS Lite/3DS because they all have Flashcard Solutions.
Best Emulator Support: New 3DS XL/Sony PSP
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Choice is between Sony PSP and the New 3DS XL.
So......I choose the New 3DS XL.

Thank you.


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## smacks (Apr 19, 2020)

I like the Nintendo DS a lot; I'm still playing to this day.

I do like the original Game Boy, as well. Too many hours wasted on that thing as a kid. Those sure were good times.


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## Darkshadow1997 (Apr 19, 2020)

For Me? My Main Favourite systems are N3DSXL, PSP and Switch.
For 3DS: I had a huge Library Of Games Because Of DS games and 3DS games. Once the Console was hacked then I was able to enjoy Gameboy games.
For PSP: A Good Library of games and Once hacked then able to play PS1 games.
For Switch: I enjoy the new models battery life and Its selection of games. I did not like at Launch but now it has my favourite games.
As a child what I enjoyed most was a Gameboy Advance with a toolkit that included a magnify glass that made the screen huge. Those were the good days.


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## Calyptor (Apr 19, 2020)

Though i owned gameboys as a youn wipper snapper mt first "love" feeling was with my Psp then...
Psvita (still lobe it today)..
3ds


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## micp (Apr 21, 2020)

It has to be the DMG Gameboy. 
I spent many hours playing that thing and trying to find a light to play under on a dark evening.


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## onibaku (Apr 21, 2020)

I've always preferred handheld consoles and sadly, it seems they becoming less and less popular. Mobile gaming is just not the same.. I was hoping Sony would continue in the handheld market. Despite that I am truly happy with the Switch. My favourites have been, GBA--->PSP--->3DS--->Switch. I really liked the Vita but I think I preferred the 3DS at the time. But yes Switch is currently the best handheld in my opinion


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## TVL (Apr 21, 2020)

My favorite handheld is the 3DS. Still have an insane backlog to go through and it's where I emulate everything 2D. True handheld gaming suits me, where it's pick up and play, always on, sessions of 5 minutes or 3 hours etc.

GBC is the only Nintendo handheld I never owned, but I've gone through the entire library of games and there's some great games there. I also don't count the VB as a handheld, would've loved to have seen those as VC titles on the 3DS along with all the 3D games for Famicom and Master System... hopefully somebody dedicated enough makes an emulator that makes those games playable.


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## Wii_Shaker (Apr 24, 2020)

Gameboy SP was my favorite. Moreso than the GB brick, GBC and DS.

It just felt right in your hand. Backlighting obviously was the way of the future and the GBA/ GB library was amazing.

Even though my current favorite handheld is my New 3DSxl, it hurts my hands to play something so big and clunky. I never had that problem with my SP. My homie had the Micro with the NES faceplate and I was so jealous, lol. Good times


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## FamicomHeero (Jun 4, 2020)

I loved my clamshell GBA SP.  You could put that bad boy in your pocket and not hardly notice it.


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## zergoven (Jun 4, 2020)

3DS. So many awesome games. I'm still taking it with me whenever I go somewhere. The OG model is just, perfect.


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## hippy dave (Jun 5, 2020)

hippy dave said:


> Hm, I owned most of the Nintendo handhelds.
> 
> At the time, the original GB was probably my favourite, because it was so amazing to play those games handheld, even if the screen was kinda shonky - but more importantly, because a load of my mates had one too and we'd play linkup on the bus to school etc. GB had the right timing for that, for me (old man), and I haven't had that experience again with the later consoles. I've never been able to care as much about online multiplayer as I did about multiplayer in person, whether on handhelds or in front of the tv.
> 
> Now, my favourite is my new3ds, because it plays the games from all the others, and has great screens and battery life.


Wow I posted this 5 years ago. Still got the N3DS tho mostly moved on from it. I now have Nintendo's largest handheld, the Switch, which gets a lot of play time, plus I've just recently got their smallest handheld, Game Boy Micro, which is ridiculously portable/pocketable, and I'm having a lot of fun with so far.


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## Blood Fetish (Jun 5, 2020)

Game Gear! It even had a TV tuner. It was amazing.

Oh, this is a huge necro. My bad for replying.


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