Which Battery Life is Worse? 3DS vs Game Gear! [Vidoc #1]
A lot of people complain about the battery life on the 3DS but there was another portable in the days of yore infamous for it’s terrible battery life: The Game Gear. Which portable drops first in this endurance test that taxes the dedication of the GB Staff?
All chiptune music (even intro diddy) provided by Alex Mauer and are from his album System of a Master. Go to his site to check out his other albums which are fantastic.
16 Responses to “Which Battery Life is Worse? 3DS vs Game Gear! [Vidoc #1]”
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August 27th, 2011
WOW NO WAY!!!! I can’t even fathom the Game Gear’s life battery even coming close to the 3DS’s. That’s fucking terrible. The Game Gear sucked ass when it came to battery life. I was lucky to even make it to hour 3 let alone 4 as a kid getting my ass kicked in those Sonic games. That’s pathetic. By the way Daniel, “You can’t believe everything you read on the Internet. That’s how World War 1 got started.” — Kevin Butler
August 27th, 2011
I am really scared shitless for the PS Vita,.. I really hope it is at least PSP,.. But how in the world are they going to pull that off,.. ( I know it is oled,..but that is quite a week argument,..Did you people see what that thing spits out,..?) God, I hope Sony knows what the fuck they are doing,..
August 29th, 2011
I think you over estimate the power of the rechargeable battery. Duracell prides it self on better longevity and being on the edge of battery technology. Running a similar test (leaving the system on, not actually playing it as I got bored) I didn’t even get to the 2.5 hour mark. Granted it is a used battery, but it was purchased earlier this year on ebay claimed “new.” Even when I played it in the 90s my OEM rechargeable battery would barely outlive a long movie if even that. It was still a fun watch.
GigaDan Reply:
August 30th, 2011 at 5:19 am
Well what it turns out (as best as I can tell) is that the model (2110g (or whatever)) is a 2nd or later revision which is more battery efficient. In retrospect, I got the Game Gear pretty late into it’s life so the more battery efficient model was the one I got for xmas. This definitely was not supposed to turn out this way and I didn’t expect it either. I haven’t used batteries in the Game Gear since the 1st time I played it in 1995.
Glad you enjoyed it though. We’re not too hot on views on this piece but I’m glad that people are enjoying it a lot.
August 30th, 2011
Great job, guys..
You did it for science.. for mankind.. for a better world.
I’m so proud.. =’ )
GigaDan Reply:
August 30th, 2011 at 1:01 pm
A winner is us!
September 1st, 2011
XD
That was hilarious. I love you guys <3
Just another reason to wait to get a 3DS until they come out with a more efficient model.
October 15th, 2011
I always think I want a 3ds but then I remember, its got not games worth anything and now I know It has no battery life either. So much for the next holy grail in gaming.
This is the "Retro way"... voor alle off-topic gezever (episode one) - Pagina 23 - 9lives - Games Forum
October 16th, 2011
[…] […]
October 16th, 2011
Early Game Gears have various estimates out there for their battery life — I’ve heard 3–4 hours or 4–6 hours — but yeah, they improved it later on. The final model, Majesco’s GG from 2000, says in its manual that you should expect 7 hours battery life. I imagine yours is similar to that model’s battery life. (In comparison, the original, large Game Boy’s manual says to expect 35 hours on 4 AAs. The Virtual Boy’s manual says 7 hours on 6 AAs. The GBC and GBA are both in the 10–15 hour range.)
As for the worst battery life, I think the Sega Nomad (2–3 hours), TurboExpress (3 hours), and model I Atari Lynx (~4 hours), all on 6 AAs, are the worst, along with the 3DS, PSP, and Vita. But yeah, it is worse for the older ones when you needed to buy new batteries in order to recharge it, instead of just plugging it in.
GigaDan Reply:
October 17th, 2011 at 7:59 am
I really wanted to see one of the Majesco Game Gears. The screens are allegedly better in them (no surprise) and my screen (as you saw in the video) is absolutely garbage. Yea, I always went around with a charger pack on the GG but I could see how switching batteries would make it horrid. Never tried the last 3 retro portables you mentioned but I hope to one day.
November 6th, 2011
i wonder if modern batteries are just more efficient or higher capacity than batteries were back then. they say a wonderswan color should last around 20 hours but on a normal rechargeable AA, mine lasted around 32.
Interview With The Guys From Gigaboots.com! | Today In Geek News!
November 19th, 2011
[…] nice triple CMOS 1080p60 camera for our unboxing video and the 3DS vs Game Gear Battery Test Vidoc (http://gigaboots.com/?p=1248). It’s very nice. Wish we used it more often. The Panasonic HDC-HS700. It’s not the […]
Last Missing Licenced Sega Game Gear ROM Found « Jump'n Shoot 9000
August 5th, 2012
[…] bought a Game Gear, you would no longer be so disappointed with its battery life – Gigaboots did a roadtest of the battery life of both the 3DS and the GG, finding that, with just regular shop-bought […]
September 12th, 2012
As far as I remember the Game Gear it wouldn’t live pass through 4 hours, if not less…
Anyway, I noticed you calculated that the 6 batteries fed the GG around 11 K-14000 K mAh whereas the 3ds 1,3 K mAh, fact is, technicalities aside, AA batteries cant provide more that 3000 mAh, so in fact, here it roughly 2½ times the power, and yeah, new gen hand helds suck ass! Is like they are always stuck in the 3–4 hours mark! WHY!!!
I guess they dont make higher capacity Li-On batteries because if they explode, which they do, it can be way worse when surpasses the 2200 mAh limit…
Anyway guys, your review rocks!
GigaDan Reply:
September 15th, 2012 at 9:19 am
Thanks for the info! Glad you enjoyed it.