Retro Duo Portable - RDP 2 in 1 Portable System

[kedawa]

I really hope it's the same, since it's going to be substantially cheaper.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Good to know. I really wish there was more information at the moment. I'm currently a bit messed up right now regarding my access to video games so I'd be pretty interested in preordering this thing. But I don't want to commit nearly 100 bones to something without knowing a lot more about it, especially when there's some discrepancy over what the internals are.

I'm with you on that, but I think I'm going to chance it anyway. If you don't want to, the safest bet you can do is to import a PokeFami DX itself. They sell for $140 plus shipping but at least that way you know you're getting the best SNES clone on the market currently. However, there are many questions I don't know the answers to regarding the PokeFami DX, namely if the cartridge port is large enough to fit the larger square SNES cartridges. The system is designed for the curved and streamlined Super Famicom carts. It may very well be that the PokeFami DX can't run SNES games.

Well, and it [RDP] obviously doesn't support the VRC6/VRC7 chip, but then again, only the Famicom did. In that review, he didn't exactly push the system. I wanted to see if Kirby Super Star, Starfox, Castlevania III/IV, or Super Mario RPG would work. What is the estimated date of arrival on this? I may wait for some reviews from other people in this thread.

Well hold on a minute. Where are you getting that information from? It's entirely possible the RDP's NOAC can handle the Konami VRC series just fine. The question is if it can output expansion audio, which is unlikely but not impossible. Based on the RetroDuo console, I'd say it'll be able to play Castlevania III MMC5 no problem, and I'd be very very surprised if it had any issue with Super Caslevania IV or StarFox. Super Castlevania IV is purely based on the hardware of the SNES and StarFox will run on any clone. The FX chip that does the primitive polygon environments is internal to the cartridge. Kirby Super Star and Mario RPG are bos SA-1 games that have anti-piracy detection on anything but the original hardware, so they wont play on the RetroDuo Portable anymore than they will on any existing Super Famiclone.

the ETA for the RDP is Mid February 2012.

I really hope it's the same, since it's going to be substantially cheaper.

This is what makes me worry that the RDP is not the same as the PokeFamiDX. The systems sure sound similar and even look similar, but the over $30 price difference has me concerned. What we really need is confirmation and definitive proof that the PokeFamiDX are or are not the same.

[TKO]

Well , Superboy is being sold for a higher price in Japan as well. I think it's around 8000 Yens. So I still keeps my hope up.

[Cryog]

You can play US SNES cartridges with the pokeFAMI DX. The price in Japan is ￥ 7,300 ($94.00 USD) for the pokeFAMI DX , ￥ 2,480 ($29.00 USD) for the GAMEJOY Megadrive converter and ￥ 2,180 ($28.00 USD) for the GAMEJOY Famicom converter.The $30.00 difference is the profit of the reseller.

http://www.amazon.co.jp/GAMEJOY-JAPA.../dp/B005ZENZFI

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Ah That makes sense. Thanks for clearing that up. Also GAMEJOY is the best name for anything ever.

[zin0099]

is there a way to get the famicom to snes converter? not a big deal to me since i have a famicom to nes converter adapter anyway, but for anyone who would like to by famicom games the adapter would be nice to have!

[Tupin]

Satoshi, I was referring to this video where Konami-enhanced audio is not supported by the PokeFamiDX, at the ten minute mark:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Xz66T_I0Lk

Listen to Lagrange Point, especially. Not a big deal, I guess.

One thing I don't get is why can the NES adapter that comes with the RDP be used only with the RDP?

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Yes I know what you're referring to, but you said the PokeFamiDX adapter doesn't support the VRC6/VRC7. If that were the case then the games wouldn't boot at all. The problem is the NOAC sends the expansion audio signals to ground or are incorrectly wired. That's a different problem than say, NOACs refusing to boot MMC5 games like Castlevania 3 or Uncharted Waters at all.

As for why the adapter that's going to come with the RDP won't work on other Super Famiclones or the real hardware, the answer should be pretty obvious - It must just be an NES 72 to SNES 64 pin adapter that doesn't do anything but allow NES games to fit into the cartridge port. The NOAC is inside the RDP itself, and that's what runs the NES games. Since what comes with the RDP is only a pin adapter without any insturction set and NOAC, it will do absolutely nothing when fitted into other consoles, even the RetroDuo as that system has a unique board for NES games.

[Cryog]

I think Retrobits was made easier to create a converter from 72 to 60 pin (NES to Famicom) and then 60 to 64 pin (Famicom to Super NES/Super Famicom). For that reason is the large size of the converter. And I think the NOAC is inside the converter, not the RDP.

[shoeshot]

I think the Nes adapter that comes with the Retro Duo Portable won't work properly on a SNES or other clone consoles is probably because maybe it lacks the little a/v out port (seen in the PokeFami DX videos) on the side of the adapter itself, so there would be no way to display the image or sound.

[Cryog]

I think you are right. I liked your answer.

[Satoshi_Matrix]

Ahh yes that's certainly true. I should've remembered that since I own a Super 8/Tri Star which does much the same thing.

[TKO]

You know , there is a way to mod the Retro Duo's power switch so that it is compatible with SA-1 games right?

I wonder if the same mod can be done to RDP....

[TonyTheTiger]

Are there any more answers forthcoming before this thing launches? Seems like once the video was posted that was the end of the Q&A session.

[MarioMania]

Will anyone do a review of the Genesis Adapter for the RDP??

[zin0099]

You know , there is a way to mod the Retro Duo's power switch so that it is compatible with SA-1 games right?

I wonder if the same mod can be done to RDP....

what do u mean? retroduo already does the sa-1 games like star ocean i can confirm this cuss i own the starocean game and a retroduo 2.0 system and it works

[Ace]

See, this is where a lot of people get caught up with Nintendo SA-1 games. Some WILL NOT WORK on any Super NES clone or even an original Super NES with a disabled lockout chip as those games check for the presence of a lockout chip. If a Nintendo SA-1 game works on a Super NES clone, it's because it doesn't check for the presence of a lockout chip. ALWAYS take Nintendo SA-1 compatibility with a grain of salt as people(and Famiclone manufacturers) make it seem like if one SA-1 game works, all the others will too. The only way around this would be to get into legal trouble with Nintendo and clone their lockout chip(the code in it is copyrighted) or somehow find a way around this and trick the games into thinking there's a lockout chip in the Super NES clone when there really isn't one.

[zin0099]

ok didn't know that, thanx for the info

[Satoshi_Matrix]

You know , there is a way to mod the Retro Duo's power switch so that it is compatible with SA-1 games right?

I wonder if the same mod can be done to RDP....

Do you mean the trick of flipping to the NES side, waiting about 5 seconds and then flipping to the SNES side or some sort of hardware mod? If you mean a hardware mod, please link it. This is something I'd like to take a look at.

Are there any more answers forthcoming before this thing launches? Seems like once the video was posted that was the end of the Q&A session.

As much as it sucks, I kinda doubt it. The only person in this thread who can answer the questions raised about the RetroDuo Portable such as compatibility concerns etc is oldskoolfool, and I have a strong suspension he won't be saying a word on the subject, because saying anything can only harm sales of the unit. He's basically the sales rep for dasgames, an online retailer. It isn't in his own best interest to say anything beyond the bare minimum. It's understandable, but it's still horrible for the consumer.

We won't know the system in depth until I or someone else here gets one and throws it through the gauntlet. That being said, assuming the RDP has capabilities similar to the exiting RetroDuo, that means:

-It will support Castlevania III, Uncharted Waters, Gem Fighter and other MMC5 NES games
-It will NOT work with Tengen's Rolling Thunder or the licensed Paperboy.
-It will NOT output Famicom expansion audio
-It will NOT play SA-1 games versions 1.1 or higher

Of course, this doesn't speak to several important other questions like

-If it IS different from the PokeFamiDX, how is it different?

then general questions:

-The quality of the LCD
-The quality of composite video output
-The audio of the audio output, both on the NES and SNES boards
-Will this be a NOAC that supports Retrozone's NES Powerpak?
-What kind of video is being sent to the LCD for SNES games? Is it composite like the FC-16 Go or is it S-video like the Supaboy? or is it actual true RGB?
-Build quality concerns
-Are the new production controllers awesome or terrible?
-standalone adapters
-other concerns

Will anyone do a review of the Genesis Adapter for the RDP??

Of course, but its far too early for any such review. I'd expect to see reviews cropping up in a month or two. I predict that there will be some minor audio differences (to people other than Ace) and the composite video output may be shit based on what we've seen in existing clones and even real Genesis hardware. I wouldn't expect Virtua racing to work or the thing to have much in the way of Master System Base Converter support either. Alos, who knows how they've mapped the Genesis controls to the SNES controller. It might be great, might be shit. Only time will tell

[TonyTheTiger]

As much as it sucks, I kinda doubt it. The only person in this thread who can answer the questions raised about the RetroDuo Portable such as compatibility concerns etc is oldskoolfool, and I have a strong suspension he won't be saying a word on the subject, because saying anything can only harm sales of the unit.

I guess I'm not ordering then. Not taking the chance if there's the possibility something is off, especially since I'm a rookie with clones. I'll be watching to see what people have to say when they get it in their hands.