New FPGA Handheld May Have Just Made the Analogue Pocket Obsolete

Overview

The video reviews and showcases GameBub, an open-source FPGA handheld presented as a potential replacement for the Analogue Pocket (and other FPGA handhelds like the Chromatic and FPGBC). The creator claims it’s “more exciting” for two main reasons:

• Higher hardware capability
• Support for physical cartridge playback plus SD-card ROM loading

Highlighted Product/Technical Features

Open-Source FPGA Handheld

• The project is described as fully/open-source, encouraging community development and core support.
• The host connects expected community momentum to similar success seen in MiSTer / Mr. FPGA ecosystems.

Plays Original Physical Cartridges

• Supports inserting Game Boy / Game Boy Color / Game Boy Advance cartridges.
• The cartridge slot design is compared to the Analogue Pocket style.
• This is emphasized as a major differentiator vs many software/emulation handhelds that rely primarily on SD/ROMs.

More Capable FPGA Than Analogue Pocket

• Uses an Xilinx / Digilent-style “XyLink Arctic 7 FPGA” (named in subtitles), with ~100,000 logic cells.
• Comparison provided:
  • GameBub: ~100,000 logic cells
  • Analogue Pocket: ~50,000 logic elements (Cyclone-based)
• The host concludes this is roughly ~2× more FPGA resources, potentially allowing more complex cores than current Pocket-style limits.
• The host also speculates future support for larger systems—e.g.:
  • Genesis / SNES
  • Possibly PS1 / N64 / Saturn, depending on community effort.

Display and Scaling

• Screen: 720×480 IPS panel.
• GBA: supports perfect 2× integer scaling to fill the screen.
• Game Boy / GBC: uses 2× integer scaling as well.
  • Game Boy: includes cropping due to aspect ratio differences.
• Brightness adjustment:
  • Holding the menu button and using up/down controls.

Controls and UX

• Button feel described as clicky (similar to an SP style), unlike membrane-style controls on some comparable devices.
• Includes an in-game menu for settings adjustments.

Audio and Vibration

• Dual stereo speakers
  • Contrasted with Chromatic’s single speaker.
• Includes vibrating motor / rumble feedback for supported games (enabled after turning on, shown via a clear screen reference).

Connectivity and Storage

• MicroSD slot for ROM loading.
• USB-C for charging and possibly firmware/maintenance.
• A tool option: “mount SD card over USB” to transfer files without removing the SD card.

Additional Hardware: Built-in Accelerometer

• Presented as a standout feature compared to other FPGA handhelds.
• The host tests Kirby Tilt & Tumble (described as a Game Boy Color title) and confirms accelerometer functionality in principle.
• Glare is mentioned as interfering with visuals during testing.

Firmware/Software Settings Reviewed

In the boot menu/settings, the host demonstrates:

• Dark mode toggle (appears to not visibly change the menu in the demo)
• Date/time
• Rumble strength toggle (set off initially)
• DMG mode
  • Forces classic Game Boy (monochrome palette) behavior instead of Game Boy Color palette behavior.
  • Palette/template customization is limited on the tested firmware:
    • DMG template appears grayscale-only
    • Later firmware is implied to expand palette/template control
• Options to skip boot animation for certain systems (Nintendo logo-related)
• Game Boy Player option (not fully explained; said to be checked later)
• Tools
  • Mount SD over USB
  • Debug battery info
• “About” shows Eli Lipits (project source)

Gameplay Tests Performed (What “Works”)

• Game Boy (DMG) via cartridge
  • Quick load
  • 2× integer scaling
  • Menu supports reset and DMG palette switching
• Game Boy Color (CGB) via cartridge
  • Host disables DMG mode, then runs cartridge
  • Behavior matches expected GBC operation
• Game Boy Advance via cartridge
  • Example: Metroid: Zero Mission
  • Runs with perfect 2× integer scaling
• MicroSD ROM loading
  • Loads example ROMs (mostly GBA)
  • Notes fast loading
• Accelerometer-dependent game
  • Tests Kirby Tilt & Tumble
  • Observes accelerometer input working (glare mentioned as interfering)

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Strong form factor: vertical design feels thin and comfortable; host prefers it over Analogue Pocket.
• FPGA hardware potential: higher logic resource count suggests room for future cores.
• Open-source community potential for expanding system support.
• Plays physical cartridges, a big advantage over many alternatives.
• Extra features: accelerometer and rumble.

Cons

• Building the vertical/open-source version is described as complex and not beginner-friendly:
  • Claim of 300+ components, extremely small parts, and BGA soldering
• Core support is limited at the time of the demo to:
  • Game Boy / Game Boy Color / Game Boy Advance
• Price/build accessibility
  • Crowd-funding price mentioned around $270 (not cheap)
  • Analogue Pocket is stated as somewhat cheaper (~$200+)

Main Speakers / Sources

• Tito (host; “Macho Nacho Productions”)
• Eli Lipsits / Eli Lipits (project creator/source)
• Ken (“What’s Ken Making?”) (shows building an example from scratch)