So I just bought a Nomad and have some questions.

[famicommander]

I got in a bidding war on eBay over a Turbografx-16 and lost. So I was about to hang myself when I stumbled across a mint condition Nomad with a handful of games, an AC adapter, and an extra controller. I own over 100 Genesis games so I'm set there. I've wanted one for quite some time, and I only payed a total of 58 dollars (including shipping) for everything.

So anyway, I had a few questions.

1) I know that battery life was never a strong suit of SEGA's handhelds. I was just wondering what kind of battery life I can expect with a brand new set of NiMH rechargeable batteries. I know it gets 4-6 hours on two alkalines. Can I expect an increase, a decrease, or about the same on the NiMH?

2) How well do games translate, screen-wise? Is the resolution drop off huge? Are any parts of the screen cut off?

Thanks guys.

 

[SSS]

Screen output is the same as a stand alone genesis. Neat system to have, but for portability PicoDrive and a PSP is a much better solution.

 

[famicommander]

I'm not into emulation. As a collector I prefer hard copies, and as a gamer I don't approve of piracy.

 

[Black IcE]

I had a nomad for a while and had a lot of fun with it. You will get a shorter charge with rechargeables in comparison to fresh non-rechargeable AA batteries. A fresh AA battery can provide at decent 1.5 volts per battery where as a rechargeable AA will provide only about 1.2 volts max IIRC. I also dig the nomad because it has A/V output and a controller port for a second player. I believe it uses the same a/v cable as the model 2 genesis. Good price by the way.

 

[famicommander]

I think the maH has more to due with it than the voltage.

In any case, I decided to test out NiMH vs. alkaline with my Game Gear. So far my Game Gear has been running for about three hours on the alkalines. I'm testing it with the volume on full blast with Sonic Triple trouble and the contrast the same.

I'll post the results of the NiMH batteries tomorrow.

 

[GohanX]

Newer rechargeables are much better than older ones. I have some 2500 mah digital camera rechargeables that I use with a Nomad and a Turboexpress and they last a tad longer than regular alkalines. They actually made those old systems usable again.

The only games that have issues on the Nomad screen are some shooters. Tiny bullets can be hard to see on a blurry small screen. Most games play great on it, however. RPGs are even good on it, I have played Phantasy Star 2 and Beggar Prince on it with no issues. Many games will actually look better, especially if you've only used a Genesis with a composite connection. Virtua Racing is awesome on the thing.

 

[famicommander]

Here are my test results with my Game Gear.
Duracell Alkaline batteries: 5 hours, 36 minutes
NiMH: 7 hours, 44 minutes

That's a pretty clear difference right there.

 

[BIG]

here are a few things i remember:
battery life sucked ass (less than three hours on six AAs or was it four?).
decent resolution, but the ghosting was something awful.
the thing was huge...and heavy.

 

[Black IcE]

Here are my test results with my Game Gear.
Duracell Alkaline batteries: 5 hours, 36 minutes
NiMH: 7 hours, 44 minutes

That's a pretty clear difference right there.

Looks like I stand corrected. Thanks for sharing your findings.

 

[Weevus]

Way ahead of its time with the AV out. Damn good system.