Pres Sales Questions

[lealoc]

Hi,

This is my first post, so I hope it's in the correct forum.

I heard about the GP2X a few months ago and have got to the point where I'd really like to order one, but there are a few issues I can't easily find answers to in the reviews I've read. Would you mind helping me make a more informed choice about the purchase please by answering my questions?

1. Is there an external volume control?

2. Is the unit black or white? It's pictured white on the official site front page and the order page. I really don't want a white one and there doesn't seem to be any way of choosing.

3. How big can you go with SD cards? I'm thinking of 1Gb to begin with, but would probably buy a bigger one later.

4. If you brick the unit after a failed firmware update, is there anything you can do? Do you have to throw it in the nearest bin or can you send it back for repair? Is there a cost implication to this (I'm in the UK)? I've read a few comments about being careful to update properly with fresh batteries, but there also seems to be an issue with incorrectly formatted SD cards causing it to die. This worries me and is probably the main reason I haven't taken the plunge and bought one before.

5. What is the after sales support from the manufacturer/retailer like generally? Good, bad or indifferent?

6. How can you play games which require a keyboard? I'm thinking of interactive fiction mostly and can't quite figure out how you'd do it. Can you connect a keyboard via USB or is it a virtual one onscreen or something else?

7. Which SD cards are compatible? I know Sandisk are supposed to be excellent, but I already have DaneElec and Corsair cards for my Palm, which would save me having to buy one immediately.

8. Do I need a card reader? I've read two different stories on this one and am confused. I read somewhere that you shouldn't use Windows to format the card in the unit because the partitioning scheme is problematic and that a card reader is necessary. Then I read elsewhere that it's fine to connect the unit directly to the PC. Which is it?

I do have a few more questions, but don't want to spam the forum with my first post :rolleyes:

Thanks,
Lealoc.

 

[(naw)mcx]

1. Yes
2. Black only for now
3. 4GB i think
4.You can send it somewhere P)
5.Good from Gp2x.co.uk
6.With the Break out box you can (i think)
7.Not sure
8. Good to have one. Just get one incase

 

[Alvin]

1. Is there an external volume control?

2. Is the unit black or white? It's pictured white on the official site front page and the order page. I really don't want a white one and there doesn't seem to be any way of choosing.

All white ones are fictional, unless someone spray-painted one.

3. How big can you go with SD cards? I'm thinking of 1Gb to begin with, but would probably buy a bigger one later.

If you want loads of media, you want a 4GB card (be careful which you buy, a lot are unsupported!), if it's just emulation (not PS1), then 1GB will do you, I have a 1GB SanDisk.

4. If you brick the unit after a failed firmware update, is there anything you can do? Do you have to throw it in the nearest bin or can you send it back for repair? Is there a cost implication to this (I'm in the UK)? I've read a few comments about being careful to update properly with fresh batteries, but there also seems to be an issue with incorrectly formatted SD cards causing it to die. This worries me and is probably the main reason I haven't taken the plunge and bought one before.

There's two common brickages, fully bricked (your bootloader [uboot] is corrupt)--white lines, or semi-bricked--you get a black screen at the start (uboot is intact) and possibly a green screen.
You don't always need to send it back, if it's full, you'll need a JTAG and Breakout box or you can send it back (EvilDragon usually fixes for free).

5. What is the after sales support from the manufacturer/retailer like generally? Good, bad or indifferent?

In my experience, not very good. That's with a strange dealer though. Craig offers good support. There's a 1 year warranty which covers hardware failure (like if firmware upgrading fails due to a hardware fault), but some dealers ignore it (like mine). Craig doesn't as far as I know.

6. How can you play games which require a keyboard? I'm thinking of interactive fiction mostly and can't quite figure out how you'd do it. Can you connect a keyboard via USB or is it a virtual one onscreen or something else?

Depends. Some emulators have built in keyboards. From what I've heard from Orkie, if you plug in a keyboard it works, but gives wrong input (wrong ASCII or whatever). (that might just be with GP2X11)

7. Which SD cards are compatible? I know Sandisk are supposed to be excellent, but I already have DaneElec and Corsair cards for my Palm, which would save me having to buy one immediately.

http://wiki.gp2x.org/wiki/SD_card_compatibility is probably the best list there is. It may be somewhat out of date.

8. Do I need a card reader? I've read two different stories on this one and am confused. I read somewhere that you shouldn't use Windows to format the card in the unit because the partitioning scheme is problematic and that a card reader is necessary. Then I read elsewhere that it's fine to connect the unit directly to the PC. Which is it?

It depends. FW 2.0.0 is said to actually work with the '2X to USB cable, but not always (I don't know exactly why). I for a long time used my mother's PDA to put stuff on my GP2X, but when it came to formatting, I had to get a card reader. Don't worry though, you can get a card reader for about £5 from eBay.

I do have a few more questions, but don't want to spam the forum with my first post :rolleyes:

Ask away?

 

[Jarska333]

One post isn't spamming. 51 is. You're doing good.

 

[lintsniffer]

In my experience, not very good. That's with a strange dealer though. Craig offers good support. There's a 1 year warranty which covers hardware failure (like if firmware upgrading fails due to a hardware fault), but some dealers ignore it (like mine). Craig doesn't as far as I know.

With that being said, almost every problem you'll have (wether under warranty or not, if it's reasonable) will get you a replacement.

 

[kidcapricorn]

8. Do I need a card reader? I've read two different stories on this one and am confused. I read somewhere that you shouldn't use Windows to format the card in the unit because the partitioning scheme is problematic and that a card reader is necessary. Then I read elsewhere that it's fine to connect the unit directly to the PC. Which is it?
It depends. FW 2.0.0 is said to actually work with the '2X to USB cable, but not always (I don't know exactly why). I for a long time used my mother's PDA to put stuff on my GP2X, but when it came to formatting, I had to get a card reader. Don't worry though, you can get a card reader for about £5 from eBay.

Got mine for $3 shipped (that's £1.60 today!) from here: http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/com/CA2018.htm

Ships from Hong Kong & took just over a week to get here.

Saves "wasting" GP2X battery while faffing around transferring/editing stuff too...

That's my 2p.

 

[lealoc]

Thank you for the replies, they were very helpful!

I'm still a bit worried about the firmware update as it seems to be fairly arbitrary in some cases as to whether your SD card will work or just bomb out. But, I guess nothing is perfect.

My last lot of questions (for now hehe!) are as follows:

9. Does it use standard file formats for emulator ROMs? What I mean is, do the the ROM files I use on my Windows based emulators (C64, SNES, Genesis etc) work on the GP2X without any kind of conversion needed?

10. I read a lot of text files on my Palm, which are mostly ebooks. Again, can I just upload the plain text file to the GP2X or, like the Palm, do they need converting to something else first?

11. Can the software read anything other than text files? HTML, odt (Open Office), doc, rtf etc?

12. Is it easy to fit the screen without getting dust trapped under it or is this inevitable?

13. Is it possible to control the brightness of the screen to conserve power when you don't need it?

14. Last but NOT least, can I play Sensible Soccer in any of the emulators? I'm showing my age now

Thank you once again for your help, it's much appreciated. I'm just about sold on this amazing machine now and think I'll be placing an order next week all being well.

Lealoc

 

[skarmachild]

9. Does it use standard file formats for emulator ROMs? What I mean is, do the the ROM files I use on my Windows based emulators (C64, SNES, Genesis etc) work on the GP2X without any kind of conversion needed?

Yes.

10. I read a lot of text files on my Palm, which are mostly ebooks. Again, can I just upload the plain text file to the GP2X or, like the Palm, do they need converting to something else first?

Just upload normal files.

11. Can the software read anything other than text files? HTML, odt (Open Office), doc, rtf etc?

Just .txt I think.

12. Is it easy to fit the screen without getting dust trapped under it or is this inevitable?

Fit the screen? All I did was take off the cover and it was fine, unless your buying an older version - you don't need to fit the screen in.

13. Is it possible to control the brightness of the screen to conserve power when you don't need it?

I've heard there are certain utilities about to do this.

14. Last but NOT least, can I play Sensible Soccer in any of the emulators? I'm showing my age now

Yeh, Mega Drive I think.

 

[Alvin]

9. Does it use standard file formats for emulator ROMs? What I mean is, do the the ROM files I use on my Windows based emulators (C64, SNES, Genesis etc) work on the GP2X without any kind of conversion needed?

Same formats (common ones anyway, like .gbc). Not all emulators support zipped ROMs (the wiki will tell you if they do or don't).

10. I read a lot of text files on my Palm, which are mostly ebooks. Again, can I just upload the plain text file to the GP2X or, like the Palm, do they need converting to something else first?

No conversion is needed (video formats will have to ve DivX/XviD or MPEG4). The default music player plays only MP3 and OGG, but OldPlay (better than the other one) plays loads of formats, more than you can name.

11. Can the software read anything other than text files? HTML, odt (Open Office), doc, rtf etc?

Only .txt for the basic eBook reader, but I'm sure someone will make readers for other formats like HTML or RTF. (The Links2x browser can read HTML)

12. Is it easy to fit the screen without getting dust trapped under it or is this inevitable?

New GP2Xs come with it pre-fitted, so you don't have to worry.

13. Is it possible to control the brightness of the screen to conserve power when you don't need it?

Some emus support underclocking and such, but at the moment I know of no utility to modify the strength of the screen light.

14. Last but NOT least, can I play Sensible Soccer in any of the emulators? I'm showing my age now

I've never heard of the platform, but if the emulation looks good on this page for the system, you can bet it probably plays it: http://wiki.gp2x.org/wiki/Emulation