Social
August
08-19 (Monday)
New flash: It's looking like we'll have our popular Game Boy Color backlit LCD in-stock this week or next, and the Game Boy Advance IPS backlit a bit further out in 2~4 weeks. We'll announce once we have them in stock and we'll have email notifications set up on the the new site design shortly!
• Game Boy Color: https://buff.ly/2P1K5UJ
• Game Boy Advance: https://buff.ly/31PjxYh
08-16 (Friday)
Kain is back! Continuing the Chiptune journey, Kain walks us through the hardware and mods behind the music. Even if you're not doing chiptunes, there are some great take-aways in here to get even better audio from your Game Boy DMG. Thank you, Kain! 🙏 https://buff.ly/2YUmTfv
08-14 (Wednesday)
@alejandrodeloach (Instagram) shared this hand-painted Game Boy Color system sporting our Game Boy Color backlit LCD kit (https://buff.ly/2YKBR7Z) ... looking really sharp, especially the custom art!
08-13 (Tuesday)
Quick tip: Having speaker failure and/or headphone noise issues? Sometimes the headphone jack can get stuck and stop the speaker from playing audio, or the jack can be dirty and cause static while using headphones. Here's a quick tip on how to address that... check it out. https://buff.ly/2KLlVIS
08-12 (Monday)
Lets refurb! We'll take a very dirty, grimy, Game Boy Advance and clean it up to nearly-new. Trimmed down to save time, we'll go from disassembly through to ultrasonic and manual cleaning and reassembly to see the final results. At 6m17 this is a brief watch so come take a look at how you can do this yourself too. https://buff.ly/2MTM5M1
08-09 (Friday)
Remember @linklooklisten (Matt G) from his Pocket article a bit ago? He’s back and shared these awesome DMG-styled Game Boy Advances... not only do they look sharp but he’s looking to get them into customer hands. Some of the parts of course came from us, and we’re thankful to be part of his builds. Thanks, Matt! 🙏Check our his post at https://buff.ly/33gl23c
08-06 (Tuesday)
Today we're going back to basics... a start-to-finish reshell of a dingy Game Boy Advance that's seen better days to a nice new shell and buttons. It's chock full of detail at each step and definitely made to reference and skip to where you need. Come take a look... https://buff.ly/2Kr6jdf
08-02 (Friday)
We've held off a bit to let people who signed up to get theirs, and just FYI that we still have a few Game Boy Color backlit LCDs available and at a new price: $59.99 (down from $74.99)! There are only a few left... please don't hesitate if you'd like one! https://buff.ly/2NYwCMK
08-02 (Friday)
It's Friday again... and Kain's back! Have you ever wondered what 'chiptunes' is? We have... and we're thankful to have Kain - a chiptune artist - come back by to drop some knowledge on what may be a little-known topic to most. This quick read is full of information and links to find more, plus hear some of tunes as well. https://buff.ly/319XBH0
08-01 (Thursday)
We're very excited to share we're soon to stock the @Modmatic PowerUp Advance - a rechargeable battery solution for the Game Boy Advance! We can't wait to get them in the next couple weeks. Head to our page and enter your email address to get notified as soon as we have them in stock: https://buff.ly/2LTNNNU
July
07-31 (Wednesday)
Console5 is the go-to authority for capacitor kits for nearly any console, and we've partnered up with them to carry common kits at Hand Held Legend! We're carrying them for: Game Boy DMG, Game Boy Pocket, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance. Couldn't be happier to have Console5 capacitor kits as part of our offerings! https://buff.ly/2SRAqhQ
07-29 (Monday): Spawn Wave details what it's like to order from us in a recent video (https://buff.ly/32XhJxE), near the end. He makes one of our own favorites, a 'faux' Game Boy Light using a Game Boy Pocket and teal backlight (https://buff.ly/32XeeYf). Most commonly a silver shell (https://buff.ly/2Yb5Cyh) is used. Thank you, Spawn Wave!
07-26 (Friday): Article Friday! Today sjm4306 (aka YouTuber Shawn Maxwell) drops some knowledge on us, looking out for those newer to modding, about Soldering Tools of the Trade. Looking for the next step in customizing your console? It's not as difficult as it seems. Thanks, Shawn! https://buff.ly/2YqEPgQ
07-25 (Thursday): Wow those went fast! Please head to the page for our Game Boy Color backlit LCD to enter your email address for notification when we get more in... they’re already on the way... http://bit.ly/HHL-GBCLCD
07-25 (Thursday): Does this photo look familiar? We have our Game Boy Color backlit LCDs in stock sooner than we thought! This is a no-shell-modification, no soldering, drop-in replacement for the stock display and has an integrated touch-based brightness control. These are hot, so come take a look soon! http://bit.ly/HHL-GBCLCD
07-18 (Thursday): Many people seek to simply refurbish consoles, which we of course cater to as well... here, Devo takes and gets a Game Boy Pocket back in top shape with a glow in the dark shell to match his Nintendo N64 controller. Check out this and other shells at http://bit.ly/30BZuvR
07-17: A backlit display for the Game Boy Color?! Yup... you may have heard a lot about these and we have them coming... they'll be here in just a couple weeks. Sign up for notifications on the page to find out when they arrive. http://bit.ly/2XHj4tw
07-14: Which backlight is closest to a stock Game Boy DMG? We get this question a lot... and feel it's our 'washed yellow' backlight (https://buff.ly/2leOQvv) as shown here by Taylor Keck (https://buff.ly/32BwEh4)... take a look for yourselves. Thanks, Taylor! Note: The 'stripes' are just an effect of taking the photo of the backlit LCD and not how it actually looks.
07-13: Tom Storm (https://buff.ly/32pjOSJ) shared his Nintendo Switch Light 'Game Boy DMG' concept in The Retro Future Community (https://buff.ly/2JvD5cw) and, wow, we'd buy this in a heartbeat. 😍
07-12: We had a lot of comments on the backlit TI-84 Plus we posted a bit ago... and the creator, Kain De Rivera, created a much-requested step-by-step guide on how to perform the mod! It's an involved process, and Kain makes it easier. http://bit.ly/2LXRQrJ
07-11: Looking to start or expand your modding skills... or even to help others? Our friend Elliot (The Retro Future on YouTube) hosts a Facebook group with a community feel and mindset - a great place to ask questions, get ideas, and even just check out what others are doing. https://buff.ly/2JvD5cw
07-10: Ryan Jamerson (https://buff.ly/2G5uzQN) created this low-fi vaporwave-aesthetic art, and we’re loving it. Right on.
07-09: Today we'd like to share a great modding resource that you may find handy. The Game Boy hardware database is the definitive source of all models and revisions of the Game Boy family... and a bit on cartridges too. Check it out: https://buff.ly/2SauHU0
07-08: Great news... you've been asking, and we have them on the way... we'll have a fresh re-stock of RGB backlights! You'll want to also check out Shawn Maxwell's (sjm4306 on YouTube) touch-based RGB controller, too: https://buff.ly/2L860qq
07-04: All hail the PAM8302A. Today we welcome Natalie Marie (Rainbow Repair) to talk about the PAM8302A, the little 2.5-watt audio amplifier that packs a punch to boost the volume of any handheld. She talks about the board, guide to installation, and I (Dustin) follow-up with some additional guidance. Check it out. https://buff.ly/2Jd1CEB
07-02: We saw Tanaka-san's (@tanaka_tatsuya on Instagram) "Motor Famicom" photo posted in a Facebook group and knew we needed to share it with you... it's such a great series with this one our favorite. The series is his "Miniature Life Exhibition" that is currently touring Japan - see his Instagram for details if you're located in Japan. Source: https://buff.ly/2XsxON3
June
06-28 (Friday): Take a dive today into the importance of replacing capacitors in retro consoles and electronics today with Shawn Maxwell (https://www.youtube.com/user/sjm4306) and us! As an electrical engineer and retro enthusiast, we're excited to announce this first in a series of monthly tech articles to come from Shawn.
• Article: https://buff.ly/2FDUbnE
• Shawn's Profile: https://buff.ly/2ZVnrOw
06-26 (Wednesday): Our friend Shawn Maxwell (sjm4306 on YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/user/sjm4306) is an electrical engineer by trade and has been working on a capacitor article we'll be posting this Friday. This piece is specifically about capacitors ("caps") in retro electronics, and is a welcomed piece coming from a fellow enthusiast. More to come this Friday! In general we're lining up Fridays to mostly be articles, covering as much of the many requests that come as we're able. Sends us a DM if you have a question you'd like answered, too, and we just may do a feature on it!
06-21 (Friday): Game Boy Pocket 5v step-up (aka boost) install in today's article as we welcome @linklooklisten (Instagram, Matt G) to the Legendary League! A few days ago we did a write-up, and now you can see @linklooklisten 's guide and before-and-after video comparison. Check it out!
06-20: Shells are back in stock for Game Boy DMG, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Pocket!
06-17: Ahh new ideas enabled... we now have red, blue, and pink *glass* Game Boy DMG lenses! Glass lenses are far more scratch resistant than their glass counterparts, and usually a bit tougher to find, but we have more options available starting now.
06-13: We heard you loud and clear and today cover what is one of the most asked about topics: disappointment with backlighting Game Boy Pockets. A conventional backlight and bivert approach leads to a dim backlight at the least and an unstable console at worst. It doesn't have to be that way - let us introduce you to 5v step-up (aka boost) regulators and how relatively easy they are to install.
https://handheldlegend.com/blogs/news/game-boy-pocket-backlighting-and-5v-step-up-regulators
06-11: An overview of wiring options, and space options, for mods - also covering [unregulated] voltage pin, and the importance of a 5v buck/boost (aka 5v step-up/step-down) regulator in the DMG.
Thank you to Preston (@preston.smith1111) and Taylor (@taylorjkeck) on Instagram for asking the main question here about wiring and space, with Roarke Murdock and Shawn Maxwell for technical information.
Roarke runs Roarke's Retro Corner (www.roarkesretrocorner.com) and Shawn Maxwell can be found on YouTube as sjm4306 (www.youtube.com/user/sjm4306).
Please keep the modding questions coming via YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.
06-06: Today we have a good read to share with you from good ole Kotaku, which many of you may already be familiar with. It's a great write-up about modding: "Thousands of modders are re-inventing the Game Boy" on Kotaku Thousands of modders are re-inventing the Game Boy
May
05-30: Midwest Embedded GBC LCD Test by Jellybelly Customs
05-24: Freckle Shack vs McWill by Jellybelly Customs
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