Best console purely from a hardware standpoint?

[gbpxl]

It is hard to give a subjective opinion without regarding a console's library but if you can, please rank your favorite consoles simply on merits of...

- reliability
- ease of use
- features
- ease of repair
- ergonomics
- aesthetic appeal
- controllers

I just replaced the clock battery on my Gamecube. It is a launch system meaning my mom bought it in November 2001. The clock just couldnt keep up. It was very easy to replace it. And it got me thinking. The system has worked perfectly beyond just the battery. The laser hasn't needed replacing, buttons all work, etc. And all in all it is a sturdy and well built system. I remember when it came out people criticized the color and the handle but it does make moving it around easier.

The controllers hold up really well even though my Wavebirds arent working properly. But I cant knock any points for that.

This was really the last system they made before console breakdowns became the norm. Im not sure if they had outlawed lead components at this point and thats the reason or what.

The only other systems that I feel have aged just as gracefully and were just all around perfect for gaming are the GBA SP, and the slim PS2. The opening top door on the console meant it was less prone to failure, the system was quiet, and just all around was sturdy. The same cant be said for the Xbox which sounds like a jet engine taking off and whose capacitors have been known to leak and cause motherboard damage (havent heard of this being an issue with other consoles yet as of this typing.)

Sega never really made a truly good system that can stand the test of time but Id say the Genesis model 2 has fared pretty well. I havent player a Saturn.

[IMJ]

Based on the criteria you've mentioned then it has to be any given cartridge machine. 20 - 35 years later and you pull one of those out of the closet and they still just load a game immediately. The end. The only variation then becomes what's your preference of aesthetic? The streamlined design of the NES, or the race-car Genesis to the Porsche looking TG16.

[gbpxl]

well with the NES I feel I spend more time trying to get the game to work than actually playing. and it the console is bumped slightly it seems like its game over at that point. even if you leave it paused too long the system locks up

The TG16 seems to hold up really well as does the Master System

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

For all of these factors (except ease of repair, I'm too much of a pussy to open up my consoles), I'd say the Nintendo 64 would be one of the best. It's quite reliable, it looks good, and the analog controllers are quite well done.

[IMJ]

You guys might think I'm nuts but for ease of repair I'd go with the original PSOne. I used to solder chips onto that board - very easy to work with, but the real truth is that most failure comes from the disc drive, which you can replace. If a cartridge based system fails you, normally the entire board is gone.

[Gameguy]

well with the NES I feel I spend more time trying to get the game to work than actually playing. and it the console is bumped slightly it seems like its game over at that point. even if you leave it paused too long the system locks up

The TG16 seems to hold up really well as does the Master System

The NES isn't bad as long as the pin connector is cleaned properly, I have a good quality 3rd party cleaning kit that works great. I did have a system that had a graphics encoder chip die on me, at least all the graphics got screwed up no matter what game I played and no matter how much I cleaned the system the problem wouldn't go away. Everything booted right away without flashing but just looked messed up.

Funny you should mention the Master System as I think you've reminded me that one of the systems I had needed to have the cart connector resoldered to the board as it couldn't boot cartridge games. Assuming my memory is accurate and it actually happened. It was a repairable fault though. I found a TG16 with a broken RF output once, and a defective copy of Keith Courage with messed up graphics.

The slim PS2 has a laptop quality disc drive, it's not exactly that durable with heavy usage. As for the GBA SP, I've come across various systems with dead backlights/frontlights, dead shoulder buttons, bloated batteries, a mostly dead system board that only worked if you applied pressure a certain way, horribly scratched up screens, etc.

Really I can't think of a console that's completely durable as I've always come across defective ones at some point, but the Atari 2600 comes to mind in terms of top reliability. Most just work fine and considering the age of most consoles it says something.

[ncman071]

as far as cartridge based systems.....i've never had a problem with my super nintendo or my toploading NES model 2...disc based systems....ps2 phat still runs like a champ although the disc drive is a little noisy when opening/closing.....

[mailman187666]

From a randomly buying cheap consoles at the flea market and seeing if it will just plug and play standpoint, I've seemed to have had the least amount of trouble with sega genesis systems. If just speaking of Sega; the Sega CD and 32X is a different story. I've done minor DIY repairs to those. Saturns are usually fine sans the dead memory battery. Dreamcast I've just recently been noticing controller drift and other controller issues lately.

[Niku-Sama]

i'd probably have to give it to the PSX...

I dont think i've come across any major problems with the dozens that i own except for one, the first one i got.
The disc drive was knocked out of alignment but it wasnt the consoles fault, something unexpectedly large and heavy fell off the shelf i had my tv on and landed squarely on the disc door while i was playing a game, console was on the floor. it didnt like that.
it got sent back to sony for fixing, this was a while ago, i was in middle school still (i think)

[Niku-Sama]

something hiccuped and it posted the same thing twice

[Tron 2.0]

Base turbografx 16/pc-engine is of course very reliable but it's cd-add on are not.Gears in the cd player are prone to breaking down given how fragile they are.Beside the all in one duo models are iffy the original often need to be recapped,due to leaky capacitors.Unless you have a duo-r or rx which are a better build of course.

[Ryudo]

N64 and Gamecube. Gamecube is one of the best-designed consoles when it came to power. Efficiency and durability. N64 is just a tank in general. You can abuse the shit out of both and they will still work.

[NEOFREAK9189]

yep the N64 is just a tank I still have my launch day n64 also my PlayStation 1 and ps2 my gamecube

[YoshiM]

To follow the criteria above, has to be the NES. Provided you keep the cartridges clean, it should work for you for years. Controllers are easy to clean, the aesthetic is styled after a TV component that hides the cartridge, the controller ports are in front for easy connectivity. The only niggling bit in regards to aesthetics is the AV ports should be in back and not the side.

The handheld award should probably go to the GBA (not SP). Confortable grip, decent size buttons, sips power (even if you mod it with a front or back light!), takes a beating and still plays and has a regular headphone jack. Only downfall is the lack of light on the screen. If you play it in decent light, it's a beautiful thing.

I had a hammered GBA-still played with no problems. GBA SP-no audio (the tab that connects the speaker to the mobo uses pressure-the tab pulled away from the board) and it would die even with a new battery. I used the two to make my front lit GBA.

[jammajup]

Sega Megadrive model one with the volume control and earphone jack,I have repaired consoles from time to time but never a Megadrive and own several of my own boxed and unboxed.
I cannot believe people are even considering mentioning the NES, flash,glitch...flash..flash...flash

[WelcomeToTheNextLevel]

A bit off subject, but I'd say the best console purely for having the right technical specs for its time was the PS1. It was affordable and did really well with 3D for the time, which was the next big thing. The N64 was more powerful, but cartridges, as much as I love them, hindered it.

Purely from what was in the OP's post, I'd go with the N64.

If I had to combine the two (balancing the best technical specs for the time and the factors in the OP's post) it would have to be the SNES. I love Sega and actually slightly prefer the Genesis game library to the SNES library overall (although I love both libraries and both consoles) but the SNES was a beast in the 16-bit era. DKC? You really couldn't do that on Sega (without an expensive add-on). I know people bicker about enhancement chips, but they didn't make cartridges all that much more expensive and the SNES was designed to put enhancement chips to use. That, and they're generally a reliable, easy to use console with well-designed controllers.

The reason I put the N64 ahead for the criteria in the OP's post is because it's just as reliable and easy to use, had a bigger innovation in controllers (the analog stick), and it looks a lot better than the SNES aesthetically. Especially if the SNES is yellowed. The guts of the SNES are top-notch but the look leaves something to be desired with that odd gray and purple color scheme. The N64 has good guts and good looks.

[kupomogli]

It is hard to give a subjective opinion without regarding a console's library but if you can, please rank your favorite consoles simply on merits of...

- reliability
- ease of use
- features
- ease of repair
- ergonomics
- aesthetic appeal
- controllers

I'm going to give an answer for both consoles and portables

For consoles it's the 60GB PS3. Sadly this thing is hot, but it plays everything the top two consoles of all time and also plays PS3 games on top of that. That alone earns the place in the top spot.

For handheld, it's the 3DS XL or the New 3DS XL. Now the 3DS XL has better ergonomics, however the New 3DS XL still has good ergonomics while having a better screen, more power to run specific games better, and head tracking so you don't have to sit perfectly to get the 3D effect, an effect that I absolutely love. Not only that, but it plays the entire DS library. Now as long as you get the better IPS screen, the washed out color on the original 3DS is more vibrant for all games and the lower reslution DS games blown up look look excellent on the top screen, they're identical to their past selves on the bottom screen since it's the exact same as the bottom screen on the DS.

The DS can play DS and GBA games, but while it can play both, the topic was also about the hardware, and I think the ability to play DS and 3DS games, even though combined are worse than the former, the better ergonomics and the ability to play games in 3D put it above. If going by games though, I'd definitely say the DS Phat is better than the New 3DS XL as GBA has so many amazing games.

[Hep038]

NES has to be the worst cartage system simply because of the reliability issues. I do not know anyone who had a NES who did not have issue with the contacts going bad.