My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Show off your completed Game Boy Zero, or post your build logs here!
User avatar
gnarlynick
Posts: 69
Joined: Sat May 21, 2016 7:33 pm
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 21 times
Contact:

My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by gnarlynick » Mon Feb 26, 2018 9:04 am

Here are my completed builds of two Gameboy projects both featuring a Raspberry Pi Compute Model 3:

Kite's Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero:
InternalsShow
2018-02-26 10.28.38.jpg
2018-02-26 10.28.38.jpg (9.01 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
Battery bayShow
2018-02-26 10.33.32.jpg
2018-02-26 10.33.32.jpg (2.01 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
RearShow
2018-02-26 10.33.52.jpg
2018-02-26 10.33.52.jpg (2.06 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
Left sideShow
2018-02-26 10.34.14.jpg
2018-02-26 10.34.14.jpg (6.96 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
Right sideShow
2018-02-26 10.34.26.jpg
2018-02-26 10.34.26.jpg (6.96 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
TopShow
2018-02-26 10.34.40.jpg
2018-02-26 10.34.40.jpg (6.9 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
Splash screenShow
2018-02-26 10.34.49.jpg
2018-02-26 10.34.49.jpg (1.5 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
RetropieShow
2018-02-26 10.35.01.jpg
2018-02-26 10.35.01.jpg (1.7 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
Super Mario Land 2Show
2018-02-26 10.35.56.jpg
2018-02-26 10.35.56.jpg (1.73 MiB) Viewed 10506 times
Upgrades:
PSP Joystick+rubber grip upgradeShow
20180330_225344.jpg
20180330_225344.jpg (6.65 MiB) Viewed 9337 times
L2/R2 upgradeShow
20180330_225356.jpg
20180330_225356.jpg (6.58 MiB) Viewed 9337 times
  • I got the board and screen from Kite in the Sudomod marketplace.
Last edited by gnarlynick on Fri Mar 30, 2018 9:11 pm, edited 5 times in total.

User avatar
gnarlynick
Posts: 69
Joined: Sat May 21, 2016 7:33 pm
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 21 times
Contact:

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by gnarlynick » Mon Feb 26, 2018 9:11 am

FreeplayTech Freeplay CM3:
InternalsShow
2018-02-26 10.17.56.jpg
2018-02-26 10.17.56.jpg (9.18 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
Battery bayShow
2018-02-26 10.21.24.jpg
2018-02-26 10.21.24.jpg (8.75 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
RearShow
2018-02-26 11.44.11.jpg
2018-02-26 11.44.11.jpg (8.65 MiB) Viewed 10492 times
Left sideShow
2018-02-26 10.22.02.jpg
2018-02-26 10.22.02.jpg (7.18 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
Right sideShow
2018-02-26 10.22.12.jpg
2018-02-26 10.22.12.jpg (7.12 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
TopShow
2018-02-26 10.22.35.jpg
2018-02-26 10.22.35.jpg (1.31 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
Splash screenShow
2018-02-26 11.46.40.jpg
2018-02-26 11.46.40.jpg (7.24 MiB) Viewed 10490 times
RetropieShow
2018-02-26 11.47.00.jpg
2018-02-26 11.47.00.jpg (7.17 MiB) Viewed 10490 times
Advance WarsShow
2018-02-26 10.27.02.jpg
2018-02-26 10.27.02.jpg (7.75 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
  • I got the sapphire Gameboy Advance shell, buttons, glass lense, 2 batteries, screen and board all from www.retromodding.com
Last edited by gnarlynick on Mon Feb 26, 2018 9:55 am, edited 5 times in total.

User avatar
gnarlynick
Posts: 69
Joined: Sat May 21, 2016 7:33 pm
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 21 times
Contact:

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by gnarlynick » Mon Feb 26, 2018 9:11 am

Side-by-sideShow
2018-02-26 10.38.45.jpg
2018-02-26 10.38.45.jpg (7.96 MiB) Viewed 10501 times
2018-02-26 12.33.14.jpg
2018-02-26 12.33.14.jpg (7.8 MiB) Viewed 10470 times
Last edited by gnarlynick on Tue Feb 27, 2018 2:00 pm, edited 2 times in total.

User avatar
Juanje
Posts: 35
Joined: Tue Oct 24, 2017 5:47 pm
Location: Spain
Has thanked: 17 times
Been thanked: 12 times
Contact:

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by Juanje » Mon Feb 26, 2018 10:13 am

gnarlynick wrote:
Mon Feb 26, 2018 9:11 am
Side-by-side
2018-02-26 10.38.45.jpg
Beautiful pair!
Nice job!

User avatar
silentjames
Posts: 98
Joined: Fri Jan 27, 2017 9:02 am
Location: Russia
Has thanked: 35 times
Been thanked: 32 times

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by silentjames » Tue Feb 27, 2018 11:52 am

I like gameboy's color scheme, it looks unusual :)
Could you please show how do silicone buttons look like? I've ordered a couple of them from kitsch-bend, but was sure they must have same color for A/B because they are connected to each other.

User avatar
gnarlynick
Posts: 69
Joined: Sat May 21, 2016 7:33 pm
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 21 times
Contact:

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by gnarlynick » Tue Feb 27, 2018 1:23 pm

silentjames wrote:
Tue Feb 27, 2018 11:52 am
I like gameboy's color scheme, it looks unusual :)
Could you please show how do silicone buttons look like? I've ordered a couple of them from kitsch-bend, but was sure they must have same color for A/B because they are connected to each other.
The A/B buttons from Kitsch-bent come connected in a pair. I ordered various colors and cut each of the buttons individually to get the multi-colored A/B/X/Y buttons on my build. I was trying to go for the Super Famicom color scheme but they do not have yellow silicone buttons, hence the one black button.
Button InternalShow
2018-02-27 15.33.31.jpg
2018-02-27 15.33.31.jpg (1.44 MiB) Viewed 10351 times

djascher
Posts: 134
Joined: Sat Jan 27, 2018 9:21 pm
Location: Toronto
Has thanked: 47 times
Been thanked: 19 times

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by djascher » Wed Feb 28, 2018 2:28 pm

How did you do the status LEDs at the top of the gameboy? What size LEDs are they?

User avatar
gnarlynick
Posts: 69
Joined: Sat May 21, 2016 7:33 pm
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 21 times
Contact:

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by gnarlynick » Thu Mar 08, 2018 1:34 pm

djascher wrote:
Wed Feb 28, 2018 2:28 pm
How did you do the status LEDs at the top of the gameboy? What size LEDs are they?
The LEDs are surface mounted onto the Circuit Sword AIO board. Per Kite's case mod instructions, those are 2mm holes backfilled with hot glue to serve as light pipes for the LEDs on the board. The Circuit Sword board comes with a template to drill the holes so that they are straight. I can't really take much credit here.

The instructions can be found in Kite's Wiki, this specific part is under the "(Optional) LED status holes" section.

There is also an in-depth overview of the board and the components which come populated onto it, also in the Wiki towards the bottom of the page.

Hope this helps!

Fish17
Posts: 28
Joined: Thu Oct 26, 2017 1:46 pm
Been thanked: 5 times

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by Fish17 » Fri Mar 09, 2018 11:14 am

I was considering making one but I love my gameboy cm3.

Comparing Kites sword CM3 to freeplay’s CM3 I see some disadvantages:
- smaller screen (3.2” vs 3.5”). Correct me
If I’m wrong but with the 3.2” Is not fully utilized, not sure what that makes the actual display size.
- X&Y buttons are switches
- battery capacity limited to 2000 mah
- no built in WiFi
- no fan capability, the pi3 can get hot

What are your thoughts?

User avatar
gnarlynick
Posts: 69
Joined: Sat May 21, 2016 7:33 pm
Has thanked: 21 times
Been thanked: 21 times
Contact:

Re: My Circuit Sword Gameboy Zero + Freeplay CM3 (Gameboy Advance)

Post by gnarlynick » Fri Mar 09, 2018 12:24 pm

Fish17 wrote:
Fri Mar 09, 2018 11:14 am
I was considering making one but I love my gameboy cm3.

Comparing Kites sword CM3 to freeplay’s CM3 I see some disadvantages:
- smaller screen (3.2” vs 3.5”). Correct me
If I’m wrong but with the 3.2” Is not fully utilized, not sure what that makes the actual display size.
- X&Y buttons are switches
- battery capacity limited to 2000 mah
- no built in WiFi
- no fan capability, the pi3 can get hot

What are your thoughts?
You are correct with each point. Also, the Freeplay does not have any way to currently adjust screen brightness so it is always at its brightest setting. The only advantage I see that it has is the GBA form factor, which I prefer over the DMG both for portability and nostalgia; I never had a DMG (I had a Gameboy Pocket) but I remember in my early teenage years saving up enough money for a GBA and really enjoying it. I am 1 of 6 kids so having a game system all to myself was a rarity which is why I was always found mobile platforms more compelling.

Regarding heat, I have not had an overheat with either CM3 system (so far). A few weeks ago, I got curious about the system in regards to overheating and loaded Mario Kart 64 onto the system and let it loop the start screen demo for an hour. I loaded a terminal every so often and remotely accessed the CM3 to check the temperature. The hottest it got was 152-156 degrees F. The back shell was somewhat warm but never hot and the video/audio never stuttered and the system never powered off.
Heat TestShow
DXEhUYHUMAA1sdZ.jpg
DXEhUYHUMAA1sdZ.jpg (102.06 KiB) Viewed 9905 times
DXEjFDIUMAALrx1.jpg
DXEjFDIUMAALrx1.jpg (86.4 KiB) Viewed 9905 times
That said, I have been regularly playing numerous titles from GBA, SNES, Turbo Grafx 16 and PSX on the Freeplay CM3 and have experienced no issues regarding heat. It appears the heatsink is quite sufficient without an active cooling addition.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest