Got the non-working, as-is, won't power on GameBoy DMG-01 systems today in the mail and they power on, however, the screens need repair and new battery terminals.

Video about the systems: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slkqWzfVSDc

Well, the 3 non-working DMG-01 systems had bad screens (vertical, horizontal, or both). I attempted to fix them, but, the flex cable on the one that had the vertical line issues broke off, the horizontal screen one got melted by me accidentally, and the other one that had both got the vertical fixed, but, the horizontal one was still unsuccessful and the cable got broken. Time to look for new ones or the motherboard that has the screens on them and replace them.

With these broken screens you could experience yourself at peeling off the reflective background so when you'll do your first DMG for real, you'll be sure that nothing will go wrong

BennVenn makes replacement LCD displays with a new PCB and backlight, however, the screen is a bit bigger than the original screen and case mods aren't my thing. Wish I can get my hands on 3 boards that have fully functional screens or new screens themselves. The one GameBoy had a crackling speaker, so I need to purchase a new one as well.

Actually, Retromodding.com sells new shells and BennVenn's replacement LCD displays and PCB board, however, the displays are actually out of stock at this time and they can modify the new cases to allow the new 3" screens to work with it so I don't need to mod the cases myself.

Added 3 new budget shells, DIY screen covers, and speakers. I need to buy new battery terminals from Handheld Legend as the ones on Retromodding.com are sold out.

Forgot to update this thread. I bidded on another one with the 4 player adapter, GameLight, and magnifying glass that powered on without issues, however, it had the missing vertical lines. After I fixed the vertical lines, I also cleaned the one terminal that suffered corrosion and the GameLight accessory had heavy acid and battery corrosion on the terminals and after cleaning that, the GameLight lives again. I still need to repair the other ones and if Handheld Legend sells new video logic boards and a backlit screen without doing any case modifications, I will buy them and get replacement shells and screen covers (glass).

Man, someone needs to pony up the capital to get a proper backlit replacement screen manufactured for these. Tired of mods that change the color of the screen, or require demolishing the guts of a vintage console. But that OG LCD was terrible when new and hasn't aged well since. For now, I'm keeping my childhood DMG stock. (Well, OK, I replaced the screen cover since it fell off long ago.)

I normally use a stock Pocket since it looks a little nicer than the DMG screen, but it's still hard to see without good light. I'd like to see a good replacement for those, too. I replaced the screen on an Advance with one of the new AGS-101 clone screens and it's just a completely different system now -- in the best way. That's how it should be done. 😀 Looks totally factory, until you turn it on. (... sigh, OK... it would look factory if I hadn't replaced a beat-up used shell with a cool translucent purple one that wasn't ever an official color.)

The ags101 isn't a clone, it's a late revision of the GBA SP. They will be eventually gone someday 🙁

Deksor wrote:

The ags101 isn't a clone, it's a late revision of the GBA SP. They will be eventually gone someday 🙁

why are ags-101 GBA SPs dwindling away? are people recycling them, cannibalizing them for AGB gameboys, why? I guess if there are no GBAs left, i'll just stick to emulating a GBA.

AFAIU, the AGS-101 screen was cloned and is now available new without having to cannibalize an AGS-101. Which, yes, cannibalization combined with the desirability of the backlit model, makes AGS-101 systems relatively rare and expensive. Also, I think they were released fairly late in the life of the SP. I don't remember when, exactly, but I was not first on my block to get an SP -- ended up getting the LE(?) one that looks like the classic NES controller when it was still available through retail. It was front-lit.

The one DMG-01 I won off of shopgoodwill.com a few weeks ago needed repairs again after I did a shell swap with a good one that only needs scrubbing. Used my soldering iron to fix the screen and it started to work again. I also took the liberty of using double sided tape for the stripping on the vertical ribbon cable.

how are the BennVenn DMG backlit screens?

I hear they are pretty good, however, shell mods are required and not sold in the US, sadly. Only Canada, Australia, and other countries have them. I'm never been fond of doing shell mods and I only did the one for my GameBoy Color for the frontlight mod I did a long time ago.