The BittBoy FC Mini Handheld is a 300 game Famicom/NES system. While the case design is reminiscent of an original GameBoy, it’s in a considerably more compact form factor.

The BittBoy is available in Black, Blue, Red, White, or Yellow. I’m reviewing the White.

Here are the BitBoy’s Key features:

• 300 built-in Famicom/NES games
• 2.2″ IPS display
• TV out (cable included)
• Removable 3.7V 700mAh rechargeable battery (rated at ~3 hours per charge, Game Boy Advance SP compatible)
• microUSB charging port

 

The main menu is simple enough to navigate with the d-pad, although it’s not presented in alphabetical order. It’s the expected mix of original games and hacks of original games you would typically find on your average x-in-1 Famicom/NES multicart. The display does cut off some of the longer names at the end of the menu. Similarly, the screen tends to show the overscan area of games, so you sometimes see screen elements or programming tricks that are hidden when playing the original system on a CRT.

The overall quality of the screen is excellent, with good brightness and clarity. Unfortunately, my unit had a dead pixel in the lower left quadrant of the screen. There was also uneven backlighting or some other issue starting in the upper right of my screen and extending all the way down. It’s like a light stripe and some dark areas. I doubt this issue is present in the entire production run, so I’ll just chalk this up to a faulty unit, but it’s nevertheless something to keep in mind.

Sound-wise, it sounds close, but not quite perfect versus the original system. There’s also no headphone jack – a curious omission for a handheld – so you’re limited to the onboard speaker, which gets reasonably loud. At the highest volume level, there is a persistent hiss, which is really only noticeable when there’s no sound.

The onboard controls work well, with a nice, oversized d-pad, and good action buttons. There is the expected Select, Start, and A and B buttons, as well as turbo buttons for A and B. The R button returns you to the main menu.

Although not every game runs perfectly, they’re close enough. I had a blast playing games like Super Mario Bros. and Raid on Bungeling Bay, despite the somewhat cramped distance between the d-pad and action buttons my adult hands had to endure (the span of the handheld’s controls is only about 2.5 inches). It of course warmed my classic gamer heart to see a lot of my favorite arcade and computer Famicom/NES ports on there as well.

Here’s a few video snippets via the BittBoy’s TV out:

Super Mario Bros.

 

Lode Runner

 

Full Menu

 

The BittBoy is fairly inexpensive at $39.99, and includes a TV out cable. And, as long as it lasts, there’s a Christmas Promotion for 20% off using coupon code xmas20.

Pluses:

•  Compact
• Inexpensive
• TV out cable is included
• Has several prominent games
• microUSB charging port
• Replaceable rechargeable battery (Game Boy Advance SP compatible)
• Good selection of games with lots of action classics

 

Minuses:

• Screen is a bit on the small side
• My screen had a dead pixel and some type of anomaly on the right
• Speaker buzzes at all times at maximum volume
• No headphone jack
• Game order on menu is random with no customization options
• Mediocre battery life
• Filler and duplicate games with minor variations
• TV out cable is easy to bump, temporarily losing your display
• Can’t seem to charge while using the TV out (buttons are unreliable)
• TV output is mediocre
• Unauthorized
• Mock microSD card slot

 

Summary:
In spite of its negatives, the BittBoy FC Mini represents a decent value worth investigating for portable Famicom/NES fun.

Thanks to BittBoy for the review unit.