Gamepak 32

Way before the introduction of the Nintendo DS and all the homebrew and emulation that came along with it was the Korean made Gamepak 32.  Below is an excerpt from the Retrotized recomended book "Game Console Hacking" by Joe Grand. Gamepark was founded in 1996, and the GP32 has been available in Korea since 2000. It has since made its way into other countries through such online retailers as Lik Sang (www.lik-sang.com)
and GBAX.com.The GP32 orginally retailed for approximately US$169, and it is estimated that
150,000 units have been sold. A number of commercial games exist for the system, though the quality
and game play have had mixed reviews. Outside Korea, the GP32 has more of a cult following, which
is part of the appeal for hacking it.  The system is arguably more powerful than the Nintendo Game Boy Advance and is loved by a niche community for its capabilities in emulating other video game systems.The handheld GP32 features a 3.5-inch, 320-by-240 pixel reflective Thin-Film Transistor (TFT) color LCD screen that can display up to 65,536 synchronous colors.The system is built around a 133 MHz, 32-bit ARM CPU, 512 KB of ROM, and 8 MB of RAM.The GP32 has decent audio capabilities for a portable platform, consisting of 16-bit PCM, four-channel stereo sound, and native support of MP3 decoding. For its input interface, the GP32 sports an eight-direction joystick  plus six buttons.  Games, applications, and data are stored on removable SmartMedia (SMC) memory cards. Two AA batteries provide approximately 12 hours of operating time, and a DC adapter can be used to power the unit from a wall outlet, removing the need for batteries. Through its external expansion port (labeled EXT on the side of the device), an optional 900 MHz RF adapter provides wireless, multiplayer, head-to-head support for certain games.The link cable to interface the GP32 to the PC connects via a mini-USB port.

In late 2003 and again in March 2004, the European release of the GP32 was cancelled, supposedly
related to Gamepark’s unstable financial situation.A U.S. release of the system was also planned,
but as this book goes to press, the current status is unknown. On a positive note, the Gamepark GP32
BLU (Backlight Unit) has recently been released and has sold unexpectedly well in Korea, giving the
GP32 a new lease on life.The BLU version of the GP32 has a slightly different physical design and comes with a factory-installed backlit LCD, as opposed to the nonbacklit or modified Frontlight Unit (FLU).The FLU version seems to have problems with dust building up underneath the plastic protective LCD cover.This is most likely due to the fact that the FLU was added to the GP32 after the fact by a third-party and the modification was performed in an unclean environment. Most of the GP32’s homebrew development community seems to be focused on creating emulators for the system, so if you’re a gamer hoping to have a portable emulation console, you’re in luck. videogame emulators exist for arcade games (using MAME, the Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) and just about every game system, including the Atari 2600, Atari 5200, NES, Super NES, Nintendo Game Boy and Game Boy Advance, Sega Genesis, NEC TurboGrafx-16, NEC PC Engine, Commodore C64, Atari ST, and Sinclair ZX Spectrum (to name a few). More information can be found in the “Homebrew Game Development” section at the end of this chapter.  All in all, the GP32 is a powerful and exciting system. Getting started might not be the easiest thing (see the following “Out of the Box: Configuring Your GP32” section), but once you’re up and running, the game console rivals the more popular handhelds and is much more flexible. Consider the GP32 a fledgling game system with decent hardware and a huge underground game development community, open to all. If you’re a tinkerer or ever wanted to make your own game, this is one
system that won’t let you down.
-kaokensho