In Progress Guides

Game Boy Color Teardown

Identification and Background

The Game Boy Color is a handheld gaming device created by Nintendo as a successor to their Game Boy and Game Boy Pocket devices. It was released in North America in November 1998, and is backwards-compatible with original Game Boy games. This was the first iteration of the Game Boy line to feature color graphics.

The Game Boy Color was originally released with 6 colors: Berry, Grape, Kiwi, Dandelion, Teal, and Atomic Purple. Throughout its retail lifespan, additional colors were released as both limited and standard editions.

It was replaced in 2001 by the Game Boy Advance, yet was available in stores until 2004.

Troubleshooting

For help resolving common issues with your Game Boy Color take a look at the Game Boy Color Troubleshooting Page.

Technical Specs

  • Processor: 8-Bit Zilog Z80
  • Processor speed: 4 or 8 MHz (two processor modes)
  • Resolution: 160 x 144 pixels
  • Palette colors available: 32,768 (15-bit)
  • Colors on screen: Supports 10, 32 or 56
  • Maximum sprites: 40 total, 10 per line, 4 colors per sprite (one of which being transparent)
  • Sprite size: 8x8 or 8x16
  • Tiles on screen: 512 (360~399 visible, the rest are drawn off screen as a scrolling buffer)
  • Audio: 2 square wave channels, 1 wave channel, 1 noise channel, mono speaker, stereo headphone jack
  • ROM: 8 MB maximum
  • RAM: 32 kB
  • VRAM: 16 kB
  • Cartridge RAM: 128 kB
  • Power:
    • internal: 2 AA batteries
    • external: 3V DC 0.6W
    • indicator: Red LED
  • Inputs:
    • 8-way D-Pad
    • 4 buttons (A, B, Start, Select)
    • Volume potentiometer
    • Power switch
    • Serial I/O ("Link cable"): 512 kbit/s with up to 4 connections in serial
    • Infra-red I/O: Less than 2 m distance at 45°
    • Cartridge I/O
  • Dimensions:
    • Metric: 75 mm x 27 mm x 133 mm
    • Imperial: 2.95 in x 1.06 in x 5.24 in

Additional Information