High Tech Battery Life In Gamegear,Lynx Question

[alec006]

I have a Sega Gamegear and i just ordered a original Atari Lynx. Usally i use the power adapter for the gamegear due to in about 2 Hours the 6AA's Ran out real quick on me. Since the Lynx is alittle larger and im guessing has a little bit bigger screen it will suck the life out of original Alchaline AA's. Ive been looking at the Entergizer website and they have these Hi-Power Rechargeable,Titanium and Litium Batterys. Buy what the site says these high tech batterys last longer in high tech devices like digital cameras and mp3 players. So my question is has anyone tested these batterys in there Lynx or Gamegear and how long did they last?

[Sweater Fish Deluxe]

If anything, lithium batteries should die quicker since they're intended for things like digital cameras that need a shot of power every once in a while, but usually only need the slightest trickle of power. For that kind of use, they can supposedly provide longer life (though I haven't found it to be the case anyway), but for something like a video games system that requires a constant stream of full power, you're just wasting money if you buy lithiums.

I would highly recommend getting some high capacity NiHM rechargeables, though. I've seen AA NiHMs with up to 2800mAH of capacity, which probably still won't last longer than normal alkalines, but at least you won't have to throw away a mountain of batteries every few hours. The best way to conserve battery life on those old portables is to use headphones or turn the sound off altogether. I always got ~6 hours on my Game Gear that way. I didn't run mine off batteries very often, but I think the Lynx might actually be a little more friendly to batteries. It was designed as a portable, at least, unlike the Game Gear which was just a Master System in handheld clothing, so it had no real energy saving measures. Now, the Nomad, that thing never gets more than 3 hours even with the sound off.


...word is bondage...

[Ed Oscuro]

It was designed as a portable, at least, unlike the Game Gear which was just a Master System in handheld clothing
I'm gonna have to see a reference on that, chief ;)

The Lynx uses a 6502 processor, the GG, a Z-80. This was long before the age of energy-saving processors. Both systems were tooled to fit their handheld format (the Game Gear is not quite just a SMS), but both have the same processors that were common in home consoles of the time.

Additionally, Wikipedia (oh boy) states that the Lynx got a 4 hour lifespan, whereas the Game Gear is given a 5 hour life span.

Naturally, this isn't meant as "proof" your stance is wrong, but rather just some additional information to help reexamine this stance.


Now, the Nomad, that thing never gets more than 3 hours even with the sound off.
As far as I'm aware, you can't turn off the sound on a Nomad, but rather fade it to near-silence (the TV jack will always carry the sound signal). I don't even know how to reliably switch the system's screen off, though it's happened sometimes with games.

[davidleeroth]

The real power hog in the GG is that damn cathode tube backlight. There is a guide somewhere how to replace it with LEDs if you're willing to experiment.

I've been using the said NiHM rechargeables (2700mAh) on GG and I've been happy with the performance. That said, I can't say how long they'll last exactly as I never use the GG more than ½ an hour anyways.
I'd be interested if someone has experience with the Sega Power Pack, and how it fares today, opposed to the 10 hours of playtime which it promised back in the day.

[Pantechnicon]

The real power hog in the GG is that damn cathode tube backlight.

...and this is the exact same issue in the Lynx. The nice thing about the Lynx, though, is that is has a switch to turn off the backlight. It should become 2nd nature for any Lynx owner to get in the habit of shutting off the backlight immediately after pausing a game in case one is walking away from the unit for any longer than a few minutes.

Beyond that, the 4-hour battery life figure quoted above for the Lynx is pretty accurate. That's about the most life I've ever been able to get out of one using decent quality alkaline batteries like Energizers. Lynx does have alternatives, including an AC adapter and a larger battery pack that uses 6 - count `em - six D cells. Both are available from the usual sources.


I'd be interested if someone has experience with the Sega Power Pack, and how it fares today, opposed to the 10 hours of playtime which it promised back in the day.

I assume you're talking about the "Power Back"? If so, I've got one of those used and I was never able to get more than an hour of life out of it. I recently opened it up and found what looks like a fairly universal NiMH battery pack inside. One of these days I'll get over to an electronics surplus shop and see if I can find a suitable replacement.

I also have one of those external Game Gear battery packs that's shaped like a pickle with a belt clip. It's not as cool-looking as the Power Back but that one had held up recharging very well and I can get up to six hours of life out of it as well as use it to power my Nomad 8-)