Handheld systems: How many years did you get out of them?

[KitsuneSaria]

I was thinking while writing a previous post. I went back and tried to remember how many years each handheld game system of mine lived before being replaced by a newer one. I thought this might be interesting for people to share their timelines as well.

[EDIT] I got the GameBoy Color in June of '99, not Christmas of '98.

My Handheld Timeline
Christmas 1994 to June 1999: My dad got me my very own GameBoy (so I would quit whining to play my sister's). Mine looked so much cooler than her silly gray one.



June (Birthday) 1999 to June 2003: Dad got me a GameBoy Color; my color choice was inspired by my Pokemon obsession at the time.


June 2003 (Birthday) to Christmas 2004: Dad got me a Game Boy Advance SP, as I was in rebellion against the Game Boy Advance until this shiny new re-body was released (Rechargable batteries and lighted screens gave me reason to upgrade).


Christmas 2004 to Current: I got caught up in the hype and asked for a DS immediately after it came out. Looking back on it, I should have waited; there was a tiny game pool to select from and the DS Lite came out like a year and a half later. Not to say I don't love my old DS to pieces though, That thing's been with me longer than any other handheld, and it shows it. The poor thing really needs to be retired; I'm just waiting for a legitimate reason to upgrade again. However, seeing as another DS is in the works, I'll be holding off for a while to see what the new one offers. And because a general image doesn't do justice...



I still own every single one of these systems and they all still work (except the poor original GameBoy. It went through one hell of a childhood).  

[Sexy Yofu]

I'm currently rocking my electric blue DSphat from 2005.
GBASP had an early death in early 2005 when my screen got squished, forcing me to actually revert back to a friends vanilla GBA until I got my DS. Got the SP in mid 2003.
I traded in my GBC to get my SP, but sadly I cannot remember when I got that, and I was using my cousins old Gameboy before that.

I'm not sure if I'm going to get a DSi or wait it out for the DS2 that's been hinted at.

 

[Cabron the Swan]

I've had my DS Lite since 2007 (I think) with no complaints. Before that, my GBC got stolen. emo My sister's lasted me forever though; she never played it, so didn't really care.

 

[Paper Sonic]

I really have no idea. XD
Whenever the GBA first came out, I got it. Then, whenever the SP came out I got that. I still have my SP heart but I don't have my GBA because I had to give it away in order to get the Red Mario Kart DS. 3nodding
Originally I got the silver DS but obviously Red > Silver! Then when I went to Oregon someone thought it might be a good idea TO THROW IT ACROSS THE ROOM. It broke, but I still have it. sweatdrop
THEN... The DS lite came out, and for some reason, being just as color-crazed as before, I thought it might be a GREAT IDEA TO SPEND A ******** to get a light blue DS Lite from Japan! redface
THEN, I bought the DSi.
Other than THE ONE THROWN ACROSS THE ROOM, I haven't had any problems with ANY handhelds... =D
I guess I'm just kinda obsessed with upgrading!  

[D aron rockcrumbler]

I had all the upgrades since the gameboy color. Unfortunatly my ds died a while back though. My friend killed it by dropping it sad i got the teal one though so it was okay. That is actually the main reason i upgraded to the lite was because i had the teal fatbody. they all still work though. and i still play ninty percent (the ds doesn't count it is broken sad )  

[CherubiMaster]

Hmm... I got a GBC around the time Red and Blue came out.

Then I quickly uprgraded to GBA and kept it until the DS "Fat" came out I quickly upgraded again.

I'm still using it, regardless of one of the hinges being detached.  

[Meta_Fish]

I've never had one break, so long enough.  

[Sir Codin]

The last handheld I got was a Fat DS back in '05 I think. It still works very well for me, so I haven't felt the need to replace it for a DS Lite and certainly not a DSi.

My first handheld was a blue GBC back in 2000. First game I played on it was Pokemon Blue. The handheld still works and I still use it once in a blue moon.

I owned several GBA SP's, but they kept getting stolen.

In all, I've never had a handheld break...at least, not beyond repair. Just stolen.  

[TtheHero]

My GBC is still in working condition, although the connectors on the D Pad have worn out a bit. I popped it open to have a look-see.

GBA's in working order. I still have my old DS what with it's partially busted hinge.

And my DS Lite is in optimal condition.



...A memory I've tried to surpress was the time my mother had to be an absolute p***k and repeatedly throw my Game Boy Pocket against the wall until it broke.


...All because I was busy playing, and not letting the fat neighbor kid play. It was MY Game Boy, wasn't it? At least the Red Version I was playing survived and is still with me to this very day.  

[CYBERPUNK PANDA]

Obtained a GAME BOY when I was 5 or 6 years old. It lasted me til' I was 10 actually. It survived many drops from my friends and the occasional from from me, only to succumb to battery acid leakage.



A year before that I had got a purple see through GBC for my ninth birthday. I used it only as backup and gave my GB all the love til it died. Then after only a year of use, it got smashed and the cool but gloomy outer space look was forever on it.


Picked up a standard purple after that and it's still ticking well <33


At Thirteen years old, I Suffered from GBA envy. Until the SP rolled out ,and I still couldn't get one until they made the retro version. I had to get it, heart It lasted three glorious years of gaming, til' it suffered the same cracked screen fate as my first GBC. crying



I picked up a used GBA from a friend, and only had it for a week. I Sold it to another friend, for a large stack of yugi-oh cards plus a 1st edition shiny "7 tools of the bandit" lol

At Sixteen (three years later of not having the latest in GB technology) I ended up receiving a DS fat from the pawn shop. It's prong reader thing-ama-shiters are starting to crap out fours years now. So I need to pick up a another DS, or wait and spoil myself with that new-fangled DSI/DSIXL that's out.



(I need an opinion is the DSI worth getting? Is the XL just a bigger screen? xD)

edit: there's a game gear in there somewhere when I was eight or nine years old. Never really picked up any good games for it. I did want the silly tv adapter for it though xD  

[MaverickDrifter]

First handheld was a yellow GBC with SMB Deluxe and Pokemon Blue. After a while, I got a GBA from my friend as well as Silver and some other game. Then that got lost and I didn't own a handheld until a year ago when my other friend sold me his old white GBA, with which I bought Battle Network 5 and M&L: SS. Little sister lost that, but now I have a DS Lite that half belongs to my little sister, along with Platinum and Scribblenauts.  

[Zephyrkitty]

I had a purple GBC that lasted a year or so before it stopped working. I replaced it with a purple see through GBC that still works. Then Dad somehow fixed the first one, and I gave it to a friend.

My GBA and DS Lite both still work.  

[Vaettur]

I used my old grey Gameboy from around '90 untill '02, and the only reason that stopped me from playing it was because i bought a GBA.
I got a DS somewhere in '04 and last year i bought both a Gameboy Pocket and Color for 10 bucks.  

[Zephiur]

xX_Kyro_Freed_Xx

(I need an opinion is the DSI worth getting? Is the XL just a bigger screen? xD)

The DSi is worth getting if you don't mind sacrificing the GBA slot that the FatDS and DSLite had. I have the teal one, and it's working fine. The biggest draw for me was the internet browser capabilities (no Flash player though, so pooh). And yes, the DSi XL is just a fat version of the DSi. I've read about it in GameInformer, and the pictures they showed look like the DSi XL is about as big as the FatDS, maybe a bit smaller, and still no freakin' GBA slot.


As for my personal handheld history....

- Arctic purple see-thru GBA (1 year)
- Shiny red GBA SP (3-4 years)
- White DS Lite (5 years!!)
- Teal DSi (current)

I don't know the dates, so don't ask.
 

[Thanatoast Crunch]

Meta_Fish

I've never had one break, so long enough.

I thought your old DS's battery died because you played it so much?

Anyway, I've had a purple GBC, a white GBA, a blue GBASP and a white DS Lite. They all still work. I had a Game Gear at one point as well as an Atari Lynx, but I think I gave them away. They didn't stop working either, though.