Nintendo Game Boy vs Nintendo Game Boy Advance SP

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Game Boy compared with Game Boy Advance SP

	NintendoGame Boy	NintendoGame Boy Advance SP
Overview
Released
Released	September 1990	March 2003
Performance
Type
Type	Handheld	Handheld
CPU
CPU	Sharp SM83 (8-bit), 4.19 MHz	32-bit ARM with embedded memory
GPU
GPU	Nintendo DMG-CPU (built-in picture processing)	–
Memory
Memory	16 KB	384 KB (better)
Disc drive
Disc drive	No	No
CPU
CPU	Sharp SM83 (8-bit) at 4.194304 MHz in the Nintendo DMG-CPU (mGBA documentation)	32-bit ARM with embedded memory (Nintendo)
GPU
GPU	Picture processing built into the DMG-CPU; 40 sprites, up to 10 per line (mGBA documentation)	–
Memory detail
Memory detail	8 KB work RAM and 8 KB video RAM; compatible cartridges can add up to 128 KB RAM (Nintendo programming manual)	32 KB internal memory, 96 KB video RAM and 256 KB external work RAM (Nintendo)
Storage detail
Storage detail	Game Boy Game Paks (cartridges); saves on the cartridge	Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Game Paks; saves on the cartridge
Display and video
Built-in screen
Built-in screen	2.5″ LCD, 160 × 144	2.9″ LCD, 240 × 160
Built-in screen
Built-in screen	2.5-inch monochrome LCD, no backlight; 160 × 144; four shades; about 59.7 Hz (Nintendo and mGBA documentation)	2.9-inch reflective TFT LCD with switchable front light; 240 × 160 pixels and 32,768 possible colours (Nintendo's original model)
Audio
Audio	Four channels (2 pulse wave, 1 wave, 1 noise); mono speaker and stereo headphone jack (Nintendo and mGBA documentation)	Mono built-in speaker; stereo headphones require an adapter for the EXT 2 connector
Design and power
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 30 hours	Up to 10 hours
Weight
Weight	220 g	143 g (better)
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	4 × AA batteries, up to 30 hours (Nintendo)	Rechargeable lithium-ion battery; up to 10 hours with the screen light on or 18 hours with it off, with about 3 hours to recharge (Nintendo)
Size
Size	–	82 × 84.6 × 24.3 mm (width × height × depth), closed
Colours
Colours	–	Silver, blue and pink among the European finishes; special editions also sold
Power use
Power use	About 0.7 W from the external 6 V DC input (Nintendo US manual)	–
Connections
Ports
Ports	Game Link Cable port, Game Pak slot, headphone jack, 6 V DC input (Nintendo)	Game Pak slot, EXT 1 link connector and EXT 2 power/headphone-adapter connector
Controller
Controller	Built-in D-pad, A, B, Start and Select buttons; volume and contrast dials	Built-in D-pad, A, B, L, R, Start and Select buttons, plus a screen-light switch
Backward compatibility
Backward compatibility	–	Game Boy Advance games and almost all Game Boy and Game Boy Color games; some older cartridges may have display or sound issues