What percentage of common classic consoles produced do you think are still operational?

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

This could actually be one of the following questions. Answer as many or as few as you have a guess about.

What percentage of _____'s made are still operational?

1. Pong Machine
2. Atari 2600
3. Intellivision
4. ColecoVision
5. NES
6. Master System
7. Turbo Grafx 16
8. Sega Genesis
9. SNES
10. PlayStation
11. Nintendo 64
12. Sega Dreamcast
13. PlayStation 2
14. Xbox
15. GameCube
16. Xbox 360
17. PS3
18. Wii
19. Any other consoles of note

[Aussie2B]

Averaged out across all systems, I'd guess the percentage is pretty high, like 80-90%. Obviously some systems are a lot more prone to failure than others. And there's the question of what constitutes "operational". How do we count, say, a finicky NES that won't start up a game properly often but will eventually after several attempts?

I'd say systems like SNES and N64 are probably extremely high, like 99%. Systems like PS1, PS2, PS3, 360, and Wii are gonna be lower than average, but it's hard to make a guess on the percentage because, as widely known for failure as they are, they were also manufactured in massive quantities (with more reliable models coming later too), so there is a huge amount that's still functional too. I'd be interested in the percentage for a system like ColecoVision, where time really takes its toll on its functionality. You can have one that works perfectly fine, put it away for a year, and then find it not working the next time you pull it out, just because the power switch is so poorly designed and the lubricant breaks down. I'd be curious to know not just the percentage of operational systems for that console but also what percentage of operational systems haven't seen any kind of repair.

[Gameguy]

I'm not going through each system individually at this point, and it would be speculation anyway so it wouldn't be accurate, but I would guess overall 30-50% of systems are still working. Some would be much less around 10-30% like the Colecovision. Even if consoles didn't break down there would be plenty of people who would just throw them out when they became old, just like getting rid of obsolete computers or other electronics. Plus if just a video cable or power adapter broke, or if the cart connectors were dirty and it wouldn't boot, or if just the controller wouldn't work anymore, plenty of people would throw out the whole console rather than look into repairs or replacement parts.

For all the years people sold old consoles with games for $10 at a yard sale or just dumped everything at a thrift store for free, how many people would just not bother and just throw them away instead?

[Aussie2B]

I wonder what percentage of systems have actually survived being thrown away and would still work if fished out of a landfill. Something like a N64 would probably still work unless it was totally crushed or rusted over. IIRC, some Atari carts were dug out of the infamous landfill and still worked just fine when popped into a 2600.

[gbpxl]

The SNES was built like a rock. I cant speak for the overhaul revision from 97 but the 91 model and its submodels seem to be very sturdy. though the term operational is subjective. my reset button doesnt work. i assume by operational you mean the game starts and there arent any glitches or garbled graphics.

Id guess 75-90% are still operational barring anything like intentional damage. i cant see many people just throwing them in the trash

[Gameguy]

The SNES was built like a rock.

Except for all the yellowing consoles. The shells started to become really fragile. I had one that was split on top and would crack worse if I held it too hard when picking it up. I swapped the case with another SNES that was physically good but the sound was distorted and it wouldn't boot all games for some reason.

Not everyone knows to clean cartridges or contacts, if they plug in everything and nothing happens when it powers on they'll assume it's broken. I had a friend in high school who told me his little brother put play doh in the cart connector of his Sega Genesis (or SNES, I can't remember for sure) so he threw it out along with all his games. He didn't bother bringing them to a pawn shop as they would just give peanuts for them and he wouldn't donate them as he wouldn't get anything out of it. Most old consoles were considered hand me downs and given to little kids to play with, they weren't always treated well by that point.

Now out of how many would still work if dug out of a landfill, that's a good question. I suppose it would depend on how the console was thrown out, just loose or in a box of some type. And where the landfill is located, a dry area or full of moisture. Those Atari carts were shipped directly to the landfill and all in the original boxes, it's a bit different than garbage picked up and crushed by a garbage truck full of rotting household waste. And more recently electronics are recycled rather than just thrown out in regular trash so less would end up in a landfill now.

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

I would imagine that, due to a longer period of attrition, the older consoles would average out to a lower percentage and the newer ones a higher percentage, but it would vary heavily based on system durability. Also remember that although it's a lot rarer than an old system dying, a dead system can be brought back to life. And by "works", I would say, can you be playing within 5 minutes of firing it up (to account for finicky but still working old cart systems like the NES). Also remember that it's hard for a console's survival percentage to get below a certain level. It probably takes longer for a console's survival rate to go from 10% to 1% than it does to go from new to 10%, because certain people will always maintain their systems well, and once a system becomes rare and desirable there's more incentive for the 8-Bit Guys of the world to restore them.

Also, my numbers are just guesses. They could be (way) off.

For instance, in the previous generation, I would bet that maybe 35% of early-production Xbox 360s are still running, just ~11-14 years after they were built. 30 years from now a used 360 probably won't be hard to find (much like the NES isn't hard to find now) but availability will be heavily biased toward the later 360s from about 2009 to the end of production. My launch '05 360 died in 3-4 years, my '09 replacement, I believe still runs to this day. Overall I'd guess about 70% of 360s made still run, because 80-90% from the last two-thirds of the production run probably still work.
The PS3 has survived better, I'd reckon that 80% of PS3's made still work. 85-90% for the Wii.

When we go back a generation, survival rates fall.
I'd say maybe 50% of PS2's made still work. Keep in mind, the "average" PS2 is about 15 years old, the vast majority being ~11-19 years old. I know my cousin's fat PS2 broke after about 3 years, mine is still working after 17. There was a crap load of PS2's produced, so they're not going rare anytime soon. Xbox maybe about that same 50%. Maybe 70% of GameCubes, I seem to remember them being more reliable than the Xbox or PS2. The Dreamcast? Maybe 25%, I know mine was a loud runner back in '06 at 6 years old. The Dreamcast was a fairly unreliable console IIRC.

The PS1 probably, again, only has about 25% in operation today. Their disk drives were known for wearing out. The Sega Saturn, probably 40%. The N64, maybe 75%, because of its high build quality.

The Genesis, maybe 50% and the SNES maybe 65%. Those cart-based systems were pretty tough, especially the SNES.

Sega and Nintendo flip-flop in the last generation, the Master System I'd say has about 50% in operation, the NES maybe 40%. Things like 72 pin connector replacements are keeping NESes alive, the Master System was built like a tank.

Pre-Crash stuff is hard. I know the Intellivision and ColecoVision had some issues, Intellivisions overheated for instance. Maybe as little as 15% survive of those two. Atari 2600's, maybe 35%. PONG machines are going to vary wildly, I'd say they'd range from 5% to 50%+ based on build quality and reliability. If I had to throw a number out, 25% average.

I know a lot of the early disc-based systems were less reliable than their cart based predecessors. It's odd to think that one day there will probably be more Atari 2600's in the world than PS1's. That's one thing I love about cartridges, they're usually reliable. The Nintendo 64 is probably the most reliable system that can be considered "classic". Nintendo stuff seems to usually be more reliable than competitors on average.

As for other stuff, Casio Loopy's probably aren't dying very much nowadays. The ones that have made their way to the Western world are usually boxed up and/or on display.

The Atari Jaguar probably has an okay survival rate - about on par with the Sega Genesis - but the Jaguar CD is probably below 5%. 20,000 were made, the surviving number is probably several hundred. I'm not sure if there's any console known for being as unreliable as the Jag CD. I've heard the Philips CD-i isn't doing very well either. The 3DO, not sure but it's probably mediocre, maybe on par with the PS1. I would say that almost all of the Memorex VIS systems have died off, but their survival rate is probably surprisingly high because they were pieces of shit and probably went to the closet within days of purchase, collecting dust for decades.

[gbpxl]

im still just amazed that there is someone out there more obsessed with statistics than I am.

its really hard to say what happened to a lot of these consoles but generally speaking the early CD based consoles probably dont work because of the disc trays, lasers, etc. I bet the Sega CD Model 1 has the lowest survival rate out of any console. if you have one that is working it is worth its weight in gold

[Aussie2B]

The Dreamcast is just an innately loud system, even when they were brand-new back in the day. I don't think the noise is any indication of wear.

[AdamAnt316]

Personally, I think there are numerous factors when it comes to console reliability. To me, they rank as follows:

1. Age. The older the console, the more likely that components like electrolytic capacitors have dried out, and their failure can cause adverse effects on a console. IC/ROM failure is also a possibility as time goes by, though not as common. Granted, I don't think any of my early consoles (even the original Magnavox Odyssey) have shown signs of obvious capacitor failure, though some of my portables like the Sega Game Gear have the typical leaky surface-mount 'lytics.

2. Media. Dedicated systems are usually based around a soldered-in chip, so no need to worry about connection. Cartridge-based systems do, though as long as the contacts are clean and making good connections, they should work fine. Disc-based systems, however, are another matter altogether, due to moving parts, which are the bane of any video game collector's existence, as far as I'm concerned. Optical drives generally suffer from various issues, and with regards to hard disk drives, the acronym MTBF comes into play.

3. Controllers. With early Pong systems, you have potentiometers which get dirty internally, but can be cleaned with DeOxit or the like. For later joystick controllers, it's dirty contacts, though like with Pong controls, there are ways to clean them. Joypads throw in those funky silicone resistive pads between the button and contact board, which can go bad, though again, not always a major problem.

These in mind, here are my percentages for the above listed systems, in 'as found' condition:

1. Pong Machine: 60-70%, with most repairs relatively easy
2. Atari 2600: 70-80%, possibly higher
3. Intellivision: 50-60%
4. ColecoVision: 40-50%, prone to video chip failure
5. NES: 30-40%, mostly due to the infamous 72-pin connector
6. Master System: 60-70%
7. Turbo Grafx 16: Unknown, since I have no experience, but probably similar to SMS
8. Sega Genesis: 70-80%
9. SNES: 70-80%
10. PlayStation: 40-50% or less, optical drive
11. Nintendo 64: 80-90%
12. Sega Dreamcast: Probably 50-60%, maybe a bit higher
13. PlayStation 2: 50-60%
14. Xbox: 40-50% or less, optical *and* hard drive
15. GameCube: 50-60%, very easy to throw optical drive out of alignment
16. Xbox 360: 30-40% or less, RROD
17. PS3: 50-60%
18. Wii: 60-70%
19. Any other console of note: Atari 5200, 0-10% due to the horrid controllers; Atari 7800: 60-70%; Game Boy: 60-70%; Game Gear 30-40% (capacitors)

These are just estimations, off the top of my head. As always, your mileage may vary, not available in all states, and do not taunt Happy Fun Ball™.
-Adam

[Steve W]

I would put Colecovisions much, much lower in percentage of operational units. I have six consoles, none of them work. I've also got an Intellivision ECS unit that overheats within seconds of turning it on, but my Intellivision still works fine.

I would say that the Astrocade (under all its names) would be iffy when it comes to being functional after all this time. If somebody set the console on carpet in front of their TV back in the day, the air vents would be blocked and they would overheat.

The weak points for the Atari 2600 were the power supply and the switches. Otherwise, pretty much indestructible. You could drop a Heavy Sixer out of high orbit, pull the console out of the mile-and-a-half crater it'd leave when it hit the Earth, plug it in, and it'd probably work. Meanwhile, you sneeze near an Xbox 360 and it dies.

[AdamAnt316]

I would put Colecovisions much, much lower in percentage of operational units. I have six consoles, none of them work. I've also got an Intellivision ECS unit that overheats within seconds of turning it on, but my Intellivision still works fine.

I would say that the Astrocade (under all its names) would be iffy when it comes to being functional after all this time. If somebody set the console on carpet in front of their TV back in the day, the air vents would be blocked and they would overheat.

The weak points for the Atari 2600 were the power supply and the switches. Otherwise, pretty much indestructible. You could drop a Heavy Sixer out of high orbit, pull the console out of the mile-and-a-half crater it'd leave when it hit the Earth, plug it in, and it'd probably work. Meanwhile, you sneeze near an Xbox 360 and it dies.

Somehow, I've managed to own at least two Colecovisions which work fine. The console part of my Coleco Adam also worked last time I used it, though the printer part is badly messed up. I traded one of my working Colecovisions to a fellow collector for a Virtual Boy, which has also bucked the trend by still working.

I have an Astrocade, though I haven't brought myself to test it. Another console I have from that era is the RCA Studio II, which I have tested, and it currently displays a blank screen. With regards to the Atari 2600, the vast majority of the ones I've owned do work, though my Heavy Sixer has an overheating issue which messes up the colors once it warms up.
-Adam

[buzz_n64]

19. Any other console of note: Atari 5200, 0-10% due to the horrid controllers
-Adam

I'll have you know that all 3 of my Atari 5200s work perfectly. There are many controller options for the Atari 5200. The original CX52 joysticks bundled with the system were faulty, but you can get newly rebuilt ones with new flex circuits from Best Electronics. There are several controller to choose from, the original CX52 Joystick, Maker Matrix controller, the Wico Command Controller, Competition Pro Joystick, the Trak-Ball controller, PC Gameport Adapter to use PC controllers, various modified controllers like the paddle controller...

Watch the controller portion of my Atari 5200 review from 4:26 - 6:32
https://youtu.be/TLw8PyVHF2I?t=266


New Maker Matrix controller review
https://youtu.be/N7PMmJ5W6zo

[Gameguy]

Maybe I misunderstood the original question but I thought it was asking the percentage of consoles that are still surviving and usable, not the overall failure rates of the consoles. Those are somewhat different things.

When I go to thrift stores I keep seeing lots of beat up or broken Wii, Xbox, PS2, and PS1 consoles. Even if they're working I'd rather not take a chance on them at the prices being asked and few other people would bother either, they mostly just end up scrapped or recycled when left unsold.

The Dreamcast is just an innately loud system, even when they were brand-new back in the day. I don't think the noise is any indication of wear.

The Dreamcast had a random reset issue due to how the power supply was designed, I personally repaired one console with this issue. I don't consider it to be that reliable of a console.

[AdamAnt316]

I'll have you know that all 3 of my Atari 5200s work perfectly. There are many controller options for the Atari 5200. The original CX52 joysticks bundled with the system were faulty, but you can get newly rebuilt ones with new flex circuits from Best Electronics. There are several controller to choose from, the original CX52 Joystick, Maker Matrix controller, the Wico Command Controller, Competition Pro Joystick, the Trak-Ball controller, PC Gameport Adapter to use PC controllers, various modified controllers like the paddle controller...

Watch the controller portion of my Atari 5200 review from 4:26 - 6:32
https://youtu.be/TLw8PyVHF2I?t=266


New Maker Matrix controller review
https://youtu.be/N7PMmJ5W6zo

Do note that I stated "as found" in my list. I'm not saying that they can't be fixed, just that they are unlikely to work when you find them without repairs. Both of my 5200s do work internally, and there's nothing overtly wrong with the hardware in general, but it's rather hard to play a game if none of the buttons on the controllers do anything. I was able to get at least one of my 5200 controllers working by opening it up and cleaning the contacts on the membrane pads with rubbing alcohol, though it was rather tedious, and I'm not sure that it'd work for all of the 5200 controllers out there.
-Adam