6 ms·

This is definitely achievable! When I was a young, we'd take long road trips and my Gameboy (original) would run out of battery. I'd use a small solar panel (in

This is definitely achievable! When I was a young, we'd take long road trips and my Gameboy (original) would run out of battery. I'd use a small solar panel (in place of one of the batteries) from a science kit to keep going, propped up against the back window. The wires and panel were held in place with chewing gum (yes, kids can be gross). I did have the "frequent power failures". Props to the team on fixing this :)

8note 4y ago
I just had a wall plug in for my game boy colour. That worked quite well because the grid's always been pretty reliable
- boomboomsubban 4y ago
  Cars usually lacked wall plugs. You could get ones that plugged into the cigarette lighter, but my parents at least were unwilling to string a cable through the gear selector to the back seat.
  - IIAOPSW 4y ago
    The trick is negotiation. Start by trying to bum a cigarette off mom. Then settle for using the cigy lighter for your gameboy
    - vanderZwan 4y ago
      It looks like we're talking about parents who did not realize on their own that keeping the Game Boy powered up helps keep the kid in the back of the car quiet, so I don't know if they would have been open to negotiation.
      - schappim 4y ago
        They purchased it for a flight from Sydney to Frankfurt in the mid-1990s... They so knew what they were doing, even when I didn't!
      - boomboomsubban 4y ago
        The parents realized I'd still quietly read without the gameboy, plus I'd already been given rechargeable batteries.
        vanderZwan 4y ago
        Aha, so a clever ploy to get you to practice reading and learn about taking care of your own needs? My apologies to your parents, I clearly underestimated them! :)
        boomboomsubban 4y ago
        No, they just didn't want the wire snaking through the center console. Maybe not wanting to lose the lighter was a secondary goal, but I doubt there was any lesson behind their decision.
        vanderZwan 4y ago
        Well, I think most parents put a lot more conscious thought into these things than their children give them credit for, simply because as a child you're not aware of all the things they have to consider. I've noticed I've started re-evaluating childhood memories of my parents since my partner and I had a child. So I'll give your parents the benefit of doubt and suggest that there is a possibility you are the one underestimating them now ;)
        boomboomsubban 4y ago
        Yeah, I'm not. I already read a ton, and I'm the one who asked for the rechargeable batteries for the gameboy. Plus, they had tried the adapter in a different situation and definitely had issues with the cord. Some decisions had deep thoughts behind them, some were made because they spilled their drink while driving.
    - schappim 4y ago
      Our son does this when negotiating his Minecraft screen-time allowance; we call it "creeper commitment".
      - PebblesRox 4y ago
        "Mom, can I set fire to my bed mattress?" https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1985/12/10 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1985/12/10
  - sublinear 4y ago
    I recall some vehicles, such as minivans, station wagons, and various "land yacht" 4-doors, having cigarette lighters in the back seats. That's what I used.
- kalleboo 4y ago
  How long was your extension cord that you could use it in a car on a road trip?
- bee_rider 4y ago
  Seems region-specific. The sun is more reliable in some places. Harvesting from button pushes is almost completely reliable (may have some accessibility concerns, though, I guess?)
  - initramfs 4y ago
    I can power the same processor with a lightbulb https://hackaday.io/project/177716/gallery#96cfdbf5cc550d5208c3012856a1d253 https://hackaday.io/project/177716/gallery#96cfdbf5cc550d520...
    - bee_rider 4y ago
      That is pretty cool. Although, it seems like a fairly inefficient way of connecting to the grid.
      - initramfs 4y ago
        That wasn't the point of the prototype, but to develop a mobile device, which wouldn't need the grid. Like Back to the Future "Where we're going, we won't need roads" :)
pfannkuchen 4y ago
“When I was a young” sounds amusingly like you are an alien who learned about humans from alien nature documentaries about Earth, and you accidentally slipped up in this post. “The lion feeds its young”.
leokennis 4y ago
I used to play with one of these attached: https://rembo.me/unsorted/gameboy-mods-january/#lg=1&slide=16 https://rembo.me/unsorted/gameboy-mods-january/#lg=1&slide=1... It's why my forearm muscles are so toned ;-)

8note 4y ago

I just had a wall plug in for my game boy colour. That worked quite well because the grid's always been pretty reliable

boomboomsubban 4y ago
Cars usually lacked wall plugs. You could get ones that plugged into the cigarette lighter, but my parents at least were unwilling to string a cable through the gear selector to the back seat.
- IIAOPSW 4y ago
  The trick is negotiation. Start by trying to bum a cigarette off mom. Then settle for using the cigy lighter for your gameboy
  - vanderZwan 4y ago
    It looks like we're talking about parents who did not realize on their own that keeping the Game Boy powered up helps keep the kid in the back of the car quiet, so I don't know if they would have been open to negotiation.
    - schappim 4y ago
      They purchased it for a flight from Sydney to Frankfurt in the mid-1990s... They so knew what they were doing, even when I didn't!
    - boomboomsubban 4y ago
      The parents realized I'd still quietly read without the gameboy, plus I'd already been given rechargeable batteries.
      - vanderZwan 4y ago
        Aha, so a clever ploy to get you to practice reading and learn about taking care of your own needs? My apologies to your parents, I clearly underestimated them! :)
        boomboomsubban 4y ago
        No, they just didn't want the wire snaking through the center console. Maybe not wanting to lose the lighter was a secondary goal, but I doubt there was any lesson behind their decision.
        vanderZwan 4y ago
        Well, I think most parents put a lot more conscious thought into these things than their children give them credit for, simply because as a child you're not aware of all the things they have to consider. I've noticed I've started re-evaluating childhood memories of my parents since my partner and I had a child. So I'll give your parents the benefit of doubt and suggest that there is a possibility you are the one underestimating them now ;)
        boomboomsubban 4y ago
        Yeah, I'm not. I already read a ton, and I'm the one who asked for the rechargeable batteries for the gameboy. Plus, they had tried the adapter in a different situation and definitely had issues with the cord. Some decisions had deep thoughts behind them, some were made because they spilled their drink while driving.
  - schappim 4y ago
    Our son does this when negotiating his Minecraft screen-time allowance; we call it "creeper commitment".
    - PebblesRox 4y ago
      "Mom, can I set fire to my bed mattress?" https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1985/12/10 https://www.gocomics.com/calvinandhobbes/1985/12/10
- sublinear 4y ago
  I recall some vehicles, such as minivans, station wagons, and various "land yacht" 4-doors, having cigarette lighters in the back seats. That's what I used.
kalleboo 4y ago
How long was your extension cord that you could use it in a car on a road trip?
bee_rider 4y ago
Seems region-specific. The sun is more reliable in some places. Harvesting from button pushes is almost completely reliable (may have some accessibility concerns, though, I guess?)
- initramfs 4y ago
  I can power the same processor with a lightbulb https://hackaday.io/project/177716/gallery#96cfdbf5cc550d5208c3012856a1d253 https://hackaday.io/project/177716/gallery#96cfdbf5cc550d520...
  - bee_rider 4y ago
    That is pretty cool. Although, it seems like a fairly inefficient way of connecting to the grid.
    - initramfs 4y ago
      That wasn't the point of the prototype, but to develop a mobile device, which wouldn't need the grid. Like Back to the Future "Where we're going, we won't need roads" :)

pfannkuchen 4y ago

“When I was a young” sounds amusingly like you are an alien who learned about humans from alien nature documentaries about Earth, and you accidentally slipped up in this post. “The lion feeds its young”.

leokennis 4y ago

I used to play with one of these attached: https://rembo.me/unsorted/gameboy-mods-january/#lg=1&slide=16 https://rembo.me/unsorted/gameboy-mods-january/#lg=1&slide=1... It's why my forearm muscles are so toned ;-)