Pandora Console Ready For Pre-Orders [Slashdot]

[DP ServBot]

Croakyvoice writes "Finally, months after the official announcement, 3,000 lucky people can now pre-order Pandora, possibly the world's fastest handheld console. It boasts a processor capable of up to 900 MHZ, PowerVR 3D graphics, a large 800x480 LCD touchscreen, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, USB, dual SD card slots, TV out, dual analogue and digital controls, a clamshell DS Lite-style shape, and a 43-button mini keyboard. The console already boasts an amazing amount of ready-for-release software such as Ubuntu and many full-speed emulators for systems such as Snes, Amiga, Megadrive, and many more that are not publicly announced yet. The console is as powerful as the original Xbox and on a par with the Nintendo Wii. Those interested should visit OpenPandora.Org. For the full history of Pandora from inception until the present, check out the Pandora Homebrew Site."http://games.slashdot.org/slashdot-it.pl?from=rss&op=image&style=h0&sid=08/10/01/0142211 (http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/10/01/0142211&from=rss)
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[Flack]

Pre-ordered mine yesterday.

[monkeychemist]

I really REALLY wish I could order one...it looks so freaking amazing, but it would be hard to justify to my pregnant wife...

[SegaAges]

Wait, so is this a mini linux box, or a video game system?

[Trebuken]

I'll wqait for the second batch or until I more software is ported/developed for it. Looks like the ultimate handheld as long as it sees enough community support...

[rbudrick]

Pregnant wives are over rated. ;)

I kid, I kid.




But seriously folks, they are.

-Rob

[Jorpho]

Wait, so is this a mini linux box, or a video game system?Whatever it is, I doubt it's a good idea to open the case. ;)

[s1lence]

Looks like a GP32 on roids. Sweet for homebrew gaming.

[otaku]

looks cool. Very powerful and features galore! Expensive? Likely to succeed?

[shivers]

i pre ordered from here (http://gbax.com/pandorax.html)
and getting my hands on my friends dev board tomorrow!! woohoo!

[jonjandran]

I'm in on the pre-order.

Hope it actually ships November 30th but I'm not getting my hopes up to high :)

[Ze_ro]

Wait, so is this a mini linux box, or a video game system?
It's both! Like the GP2X before it, it runs Linux all the time, and there's a whole Linux distribution available for it apparently, so it's entirely usable as a computer. I don't expect any commercial games will be released, but people have already ported several emulators to it (see videos below), and homebrew games will no doubt show up too.

Chances are, if you're looking for a portable computer, you're probably better off looking into an Eee or a full laptop (for a pretty wide variety of reasons). But I'm primarily interested in games. The keyboard should really help with emulating computers like the C64 and Amiga.

I've been looking forward to this machine for a long time... I put my preorder in this morning.


looks cool. Very powerful and features galore! Expensive? Likely to succeed?
Depends on your definition of "succeed". There's no way it's going to outsell the DS or PSP. You'll never see it for sale at Game Stop or Best Buy. EA isn't going to be porting Madden '09 to it. And you'll probably never see someone playing one on the bus. The GP32 sold somewhere around 30-35,000 units, while the GP2X sold somewhere around double that. My guess is that the Pandora will land somewhere in the middle. The creators have said that when the 3001st unit sells (ie, the first unit of the second production run), then the machine will have made profit. According to an email announcement they send out, they sold 2000 units in 6 hours, so I'm guessing it'll end up profiting. My guess is that it'll carve out a small niche for itself, which I think is all they planned for in the first place.

For what it's worth, here's an excerpt from that same email. The YouTube videos are quite impressive, and really show off what can be done with this thing in a short amount of time (pretty much all of these are quick ports done while actually designing the system) :

Latest Pandora news and videos:

We have now sent off the final MK2 PCB for production and we will have some photos
and videos of the first ones around the 12th of October.

As some of you already know we have posted a video with real Pandora sound:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDbLQI91510

And here is a video of Ubuntu running on the Pandora - we plan to continue development
of the Pandora Ubuntu port:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOPNurKei0I

Some classic videos we have posted in the past which you might want to watch:

Arcade Compilation:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbPQJUOsQBQ&feature=related

SNES (running too fast!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5XGMrv25G0

Jaguar:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pe_R787gREc

Amiga:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwuI6_zCjxY

Quake2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TGz52EIVN8s

Pandora prototype next to a DS Lite:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WOMFrOCti4

--Zero

[zemmix]

Wow this is cool beans. Never heard of it before I'm ashamed to say. I love the qwerty!

Have they shown Dosbox running on it at all? I'd love to play portable master of orion as well as other dos classics. I got Dosbox running on my Sprint Mogul (HTC PPC-6800) but it was just way too choppy to play.

[norkusa]

Emulation-wise, what can this do that the PSP can't? I see the Jaguar emulator and I assume the Amiga one runs much faster, but is there anything else?

[rbudrick]

I love how they clamshelled it to make room for the keyboard. 2 analog sticks AND a huge screen?

Man, stupid me, I just bought a house. Goddamn it. I want one of these!

-Rob

PS, yeah, I know, houses are over rated too.

[gepeto]

Are all the open gl games from the late 90's going to be playable on this?

[Ze_ro]

Have they shown Dosbox running on it at all?
I don't think so, though I'm pretty sure I heard someone was working on it. DOSbox is already available for the GP2X, so I think it's a safe bet it'll show up eventually.

Emulation-wise, what can this do that the PSP can't? I see the Jaguar emulator and I assume the Amiga one runs much faster, but is there anything else?
Well, I'm personally hoping that we'll see playable N64 emulation. The developers have shied away from saying it'll happen, but the system is powerful enough that I think it could be done. I'd also like to see 3DO. Should be possible if Jaguar emulation is as good as the videos make it look.

Aside from that, the system runs at about twice the speed of the PSP, so existing systems should be faster... and the keyboard opens up a lot of computer emulation possibilities that would be much more difficult on other handhelds. The two analog sticks should also work better for PlayStation emulators.

Are all the open gl games from the late 90's going to be playable on this?
Keep in mind that this system runs on an ARM processor, while normal laptops (like the Eee) use x86 processors. This means that software has to be compiled specifically for the ARM processor before it can run on the Pandora. Games like Quake have had their source code released, so those can be ported relatively easily... but commercial games with no source code released will have to rely on things like DOSbox (http://dosbox.sf.net) or Wine (http://www.winehq.org).

--Zero

[OldSchoolGamer]

You know I love tech in general and happy to see products like this but just like an iphone or Itouch or other multi use devices the problem I see with these items is they don't do one particular thing really well, at least not as well as a dedicated device and the other thing is price, I mean there comes a point where these things start approaching or equalling a mini or low end notebook in which case I will just choose the notebook.........

[zektor]

Emulation-wise, what can this do that the PSP can't? I see the Jaguar emulator and I assume the Amiga one runs much faster, but is there anything else?

Well, there will be more that this will be able to emulate down the road. I can see PS1 (even tho PSP can do this with Sony's emulator) and maybe Saturn emulation. The system has quite a bit more power than the PSP, so things should run smooth as butter I would assume. The keyboard is a plus for other things as well. The system should really explode when it comes to the homebrew scene...especially considering it was designed by people who were in the GP2X scene (and wanted to make it better) and it is a true open source console that doesn't need modification. Ohh...and N64 emulation should be possible as well (and a sight better than the current PSP emulator).

[norkusa]

Well, there will be more that this will be able to emulate down the road. I can see PS1 (even tho PSP can do this with Sony's emulator) and maybe Saturn emulation. The system has quite a bit more power than the PSP, so things should run smooth as butter I would assume. The keyboard is a plus for other things as well. The system should really explode when it comes to the homebrew scene...especially considering it was designed by people who were in the GP2X scene (and wanted to make it better) and it is a true open source console that doesn't need modification. Ohh...and N64 emulation should be possible as well (and a sight better than the current PSP emulator).

Is the Pandora community capable of making a full speed PS1 emulator though? I remember before the Sony released the PS1 emulator in the 3.0 firmware, the homebrew people were trying for almost 2 years to make a playable PS1 emulator. Best they could do was make one that ran at 5-10 fps.

This Pandora sound like a great system though. Looking forward to what homebrew apps are going to be released for it since homebrew development for the PSP looks like it hit a brick wall.

[boatofcar]

Double post, sorry.

[boatofcar]

USB Controller+TV out makes this the best emulation device I've ever seen outside of a real computer. As long as DP reviews from people like Flack are positive, I may get once of these just for running emulators on my TV.



You know I love tech in general and happy to see products like this but just like an iphone or Itouch or other multi use devices the problem I see with these items is they don't do one particular thing really well, at least not as well as a dedicated device and the other thing is price, I mean there comes a point where these things start approaching or equalling a mini or low end notebook in which case I will just choose the notebook.........

Can you put a notebook in your pocket? Size matters.


OT, but can the PSP SNES emulator run at full speed now?

[rbudrick]

Can you put a notebook in your pocket? Size matters.


Vaio VGN-U750P 6.6"X4.1"X1"

http://common.ziffdavisinternet.com/util_get_image/9/0,1425,i=96807,00.jpg

http://www.infosyncworld.net/2005/01/10/gfx/sony_vaio_ugn_750p_01.jpg


And also, there's all these:

http://www.handycomputerguide.com/mini_pcs/

-Rob

[boatofcar]

Sorry, that should have read "Can you put a $350 notebook in your pocket?" The thing that makes the Pandora and the EEE so appealing is that never before has a computer that functional and that small been available at such a low price. Mini PC's like that Vaio go for over a grand and, since we're talking about using it as a game device, would suck because of the lack of a D-Pad or stick.

[monkeychemist]

Sorry, that should have read "Can you put a $350 notebook in your pocket?" The thing that makes the Pandora and the EEE so appealing is that never before has a computer that functional and that small been available at such a low price. Mini PC's like that Vaio go for over a grand and, since we're talking about using it as a game device, would suck because of the lack of a D-Pad or stick.

that and windows sucks

[OldSchoolGamer]

@ boatofcar "Can you put a notebook in your pocket? Size matters."


Meh, I am a big guy and would rather just buy a notebook of any size and lug it around, OK so some say Windows sucks but seriously most EVERYTHING you would want this for as far as running things can be done better on and with a real laptop, even a low end one......

Don't get me wrong, I have a DS/PSP/GP2x/GP32 etc, I have nothing against them but I find I use my laptop more than all of them combined, just personal taste here..............

[Ze_ro]

maybe Saturn emulation.
I very much doubt we'll see Saturn emulation on the Pandora (least not in any playable state... 3 FPS doesn't count). I'd love to see it myself, but the Saturn hardware is just far too complicated and messy.

Is the Pandora community capable of making a full speed PS1 emulator though?
There already is one. Here's a video of Wipeout (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mkXLk0KrcY)... it's a very low quality video, and YouTube makes it even worse, but it sure looks fast to me. There are other videos on YouTube of Einhander, Final Fantasy 7, and others... they all look full speed as far as I can tell.

This (psx4pandora) is actually the same code base that they were using for the GP2X, so it's had a few years of ARM-centric optimizations under it's belt already. Now it's mostly a matter of raw hardware power... the GP2X couldn't really handle it, but the Pandora seems capable enough. Should also run pretty well on the Wiz.

Mini PC's like that Vaio go for over a grand and, since we're talking about using it as a game device, would suck because of the lack of a D-Pad or stick.
Yeah, the gaming controls makes a huge difference for me. A laptop can easily handle all these things, but if you have to use the keyboard, or plug in a USB gamepad, then your portability flies out the window. I want something that I can play while I'm lying in bed, or riding the bus, or sitting on the toilet.

I really like the Eee's, and I'll probably end up buying one when the power and price come to a level that works for me... but I don't think I'd use it for the same things as the Pandora.

--Zero

[boatofcar]

Looks like preorders are sold out. Can't wait to read some reviews on this thing!

[CosmicMonkey]

The Pandora team have decided to double the amount of memory on the system: 256MB of RAM, and 512MB of flash memory.

Apparently Ubuntu is now running a good 20% faster with this upgrade.

[boatofcar]

Anybody who preordered recieved theirs yet?


EDIT: Holy coincidence, Batman! Just saw this on Ars Techncia after posting.

http://static.arstechnica.com/assets/2009/01/pandorarenderfull-thumb-640xauto-777.jpg

Article Link (http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2009/01/pandora-open-source-handheld-console-inching-closer-to-debut.ars)


MIDs, or Mobile Internet Devices, have never been hotter, and there are two open-source handhelds slated to land this year that could very well win over quite a few consumers. GamePark's GP2X Wiz, which will be hitting stores soon, looks to be a capable gaming unit as well as an open source machine, but it's OpenPandora's Pandora handheld that has most gadget-lovers salivating. Though it once seemed to be potential vaporware, the Pandora team has let word slip that the product is edging closer to release.

Claiming that 2009 "will surely be the year of the Pandora," the design team behind the desirable open-source device has posted a new video of the now-fabricated and assembled unit. Though the current build is still missing its internal components, the team ensures those awaiting the device that the project is coming together and has posted an "unofficial estimated" launch date of April 7.

[skaar]

Man, I got all excited when this came up again - I want one :(

[rbudrick]

Aww, I totally forgot about this system since theis thread first popped up. That thing is the most aesthetically badass looking device I've seen since I first beheld the PSP. Can someone just buy me one of these and I'll trade you a crapload of my dupe games? lolz

-Rob

[Ze_ro]

Anybody who preordered recieved theirs yet?
They haven't shipped yet. In fact, a lot of people still haven't paid for their pre-orders yet due to the ridiculous banking problems they've been having. If you were looking to get one of these, but didn't make it into the pre-orders, you might be able to get one soon as people drop their pre-orders.

Also, that picture is a render. They don't have a finished system yet, though you can see the almost-finished one in a CNC case at the developer blog page (http://www.openpandora.org/blog.php). You might also want to keep an eye on there, as that's probably the first place they'll post a final-version pic when they get one.

--Zero

[c0ldb33r]

I missed this thread first time around.


Pregnant wives are over rated. ;)

I kid, I kid.

But seriously folks, they are.


PS, yeah, I know, houses are over rated too.

Heh, I seriously lol'd.

[skaar]

I just got an email from them - you can order again!

*bump*