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Analogue Pocket Hate Story

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Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#21

Post by friedman23 »

willis936 wrote: post #18
emodendroket wrote: post #10

It makes a certain kind of sense. The marketing for these products has always revolved around denigrating software emulators as total, inaccurate trash, which is completely unfair for a lot of reasons (byuu used to have a great blog post about it but I think it is gone). But of course, you've gotta convince people they "need" to spend hundreds of dollars on emulation when it's available for free otherwise. Turns out…

The Pocket is a unique product here. Analogue spent effort characterizing and reproducing the color and LCD response profile matrices of the target systems. Having 10x integer scaling allows for very detailed sub-pixel simulation. It's 2022 and we're getting sub-pixels in our sub-pixels. Big whoop, right? My 500 W PC with a 40" OLED panel can do that with ease. Well this can do it in a handheld with 7+ hours of batte…

> Analogue spent effort characterizing and reproducing the color and LCD response profile matrices of the target systems

Watch the linus tech tips video, the failed completely in this regard.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#22

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

klodolph wrote: post #16
izzydata wrote: post #2

I don't even understand the use-case for this device. Who saved all their cartridges, but not their Gameboy? You may as well get a cheaper and more versatile retro handheld. The idea that hardware emulation is somehow better than software emulation when the end results feel indistinguishable to the user seems like a pointless argument.

The device supports several different systems, not just the various Game Boy iterations. Compared to original hardware, the promise is that it will have a better screen, a sleep mode, let you play on TV, load ROMs from computer (if you're a developer), etc. Compared to software, the promise is the form factor.

There are a lot of software-emulation based consoles in this form factor that provide significantly more features than the Analogue Pocket. If authenticity is not your goal, I have to agree with parent that there is little reason to prefer FPGA in this space.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#23

Post by emodendroket »

klodolph wrote: post #16
izzydata wrote: post #2

I don't even understand the use-case for this device. Who saved all their cartridges, but not their Gameboy? You may as well get a cheaper and more versatile retro handheld. The idea that hardware emulation is somehow better than software emulation when the end results feel indistinguishable to the user seems like a pointless argument.

The device supports several different systems, not just the various Game Boy iterations. Compared to original hardware, the promise is that it will have a better screen, a sleep mode, let you play on TV, load ROMs from computer (if you're a developer), etc. Compared to software, the promise is the form factor.

You can easily buy an Anbernic device for less than one hundred dollars if you just want portable emulation, so it's not the form factor. It's specifically for people who are hung up on software emulation vs. FPGA-based emulation.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#24

Post by friedman23 »

zackbloom wrote: post #3

This reads like a case of 'all about me'-ism. It sounds like this person negotiated their salary, and then decided the company didn't value them _because_ the company agreed to raise it when asked. If your goal is to have people throw money at you which you don't ask for, you are going to have a tough time working. A company that's willing to double your salary when you point out the offer is low sounds pretty great…

>A company that's willing to double your salary when you point out the offer is low sounds pretty great to me.

Yeah, a $1 to $2 raise, how generous. What I got out of this article is that the author knows the value of their time. $20,000 for 4 to 6 months of work for a software engineer is an insult. They might as well ask him to work for free.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#25

Post by izzydata »

klodolph wrote: post #16
izzydata wrote: post #2

I don't even understand the use-case for this device. Who saved all their cartridges, but not their Gameboy? You may as well get a cheaper and more versatile retro handheld. The idea that hardware emulation is somehow better than software emulation when the end results feel indistinguishable to the user seems like a pointless argument.

The device supports several different systems, not just the various Game Boy iterations. Compared to original hardware, the promise is that it will have a better screen, a sleep mode, let you play on TV, load ROMs from computer (if you're a developer), etc. Compared to software, the promise is the form factor.

A Retroid Pocket or an Anerbnic seem like more all-purpose devices for cheaper with a better form factor. I'll wait to see how people feel about it after the hype goes away.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#26

Post by emodendroket »

willis936 wrote: post #18
emodendroket wrote: post #10

It makes a certain kind of sense. The marketing for these products has always revolved around denigrating software emulators as total, inaccurate trash, which is completely unfair for a lot of reasons (byuu used to have a great blog post about it but I think it is gone). But of course, you've gotta convince people they "need" to spend hundreds of dollars on emulation when it's available for free otherwise. Turns out…

The Pocket is a unique product here. Analogue spent effort characterizing and reproducing the color and LCD response profile matrices of the target systems. Having 10x integer scaling allows for very detailed sub-pixel simulation. It's 2022 and we're getting sub-pixels in our sub-pixels. Big whoop, right? My 500 W PC with a 40" OLED panel can do that with ease. Well this can do it in a handheld with 7+ hours of batte…

I find the Anbernic RG351P is excellent and it is not a 500W PC, nor does it have a bad battery life.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#27

Post by MerelyMortal »

Yesterday someone posted a review of the Analogue Pocket (only got 3 upvotes), and the review was very favorable.

I like the idea of updated hardware and features in that form-factor, but was put off by the negatives. I would definitely buy a revision if they make one though.

The author's treatment was not great though, so I hope the company does better in the future.

Edit: here is the review: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29541242

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#28

Post by engineer_22 »

emodendroket wrote: post #17
engineer_22 wrote: post #13

The author could improve their communication skills. Specifically, without more details, it seems like their negotiation was weak. Good negotiation get's you an amount you're happy with. If you aren't happy then you shouldn't take the work, full stop. The story should have ended there.

"Quit your job and do months of work for us for $10k" is not actually a position that anybody in their right mind would bother negotiating with.

I know.

So let's assume (as a good faith actor would) that the counter party doesn't know what this undertaking really entails. It's a lot of work - so a better response might be something like "the amount of work we are talking about would take a good engineer approximately 4 months. let's start the negotation there"

Maybe the author is new to business, but there's a lot to be desired in their communication. The screenshots of their communications only emphasize my take on it.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#29

Post by willis936 »

friedman23 wrote: post #21
willis936 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Pocket is a unique product here. Analogue spent effort characterizing and reproducing the color and LCD response profile matrices of the target systems. Having 10x integer scaling allows for very detailed sub-pixel simulation. It's 2022 and we're getting sub-pixels in our sub-pixels. Big whoop, right? My 500 W PC with a 40" OLED panel can do that with ease. Well this can do it in a handheld with 7+ hours of batte…

> Analogue spent effort characterizing and reproducing the color and LCD response profile matrices of the target systems Watch the linus tech tips video, the failed completely in this regard.

I watched the DF video. I don't watch LTT because, while the topics are often interesting and the resources and effort is usually there, the technical chops are not. Linus never developed a culture of putting heads down and making sure it's right with a thorough technical understanding. There are too many options for me to waste time on creators not creating well enough.

Re: Analogue Pocket Hate Story

#30

Post by willis936 »

emodendroket wrote: post #26
willis936 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Pocket is a unique product here. Analogue spent effort characterizing and reproducing the color and LCD response profile matrices of the target systems. Having 10x integer scaling allows for very detailed sub-pixel simulation. It's 2022 and we're getting sub-pixels in our sub-pixels. Big whoop, right? My 500 W PC with a 40" OLED panel can do that with ease. Well this can do it in a handheld with 7+ hours of batte…

I find the Anbernic RG351P is excellent and it is not a 500W PC, nor does it have a bad battery life.

That won't be running sub-pixel simulating shaders.
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