Introduction
We're all just kids at heart, so when we found out Nintendo was relaunching the NES as a nostalgia emulator, only cuter, we were pretty stoked. What will the insides of a 2016 refresh of a 1985 Nintendo Entertainment System look like? After a bit of gaming... we're tearing down to find out!
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What you need
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More than 30 years after the release of the original NES console, Nintendo delights us with a fun-sized version of this classic.
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This little emulator box comes along with:
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30 pre-installed games
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HDMI output
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USB port for power support
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1 game controller
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Just for fun we compared a classic cartridge to this Classic Edition—they're roughly the same size. How far computers have come!
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It's playtime! We ignore the warnings about extended gaming and start opening this treasure up.
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We peel off some rubber feet and find standard, simple Phillips screws.
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Lifting off the lower case, we take a look into the lid and find—nothing.
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Turns out everything is secured in the lower case, and "everything" isn't all that much.
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We immediately start punching through cables.
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You heard that right, Mario may look like he's head bopping those blocks, but it's actually his fist!
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A grand total of three connectors (button board, controller 1, and 2) later: Level 1 complete!
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The motherboard is secured under a nice metal shield, likely for heat dissipation and probably structural support.
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De-shielded we see the mighty fields of... wait these look like chips we've seen before.
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Allwinner R16 quad core Cortex A7 processor with a Mali-400MP2
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512 MB of Macronix MX30LF4G18AC-TI 4Gbit NAND Flash memory (as opposed to the Spansion branded memory found in the SNES)
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256 MB of SKhynix 2Gbit DDR3 SDRAM
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AXP223 PMU
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While the console only comes with one controller, you've got the classic Player 2 option available. At least until we remove these ports!
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As you may have guessed, these ports are updated from the controller ports of the original NES and Famicom units.
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We know the standard "blow on it" fix doesn't always work, so we're happy to see modularity here. Unfortunately, the USB and HDMI ports were both soldered to the motherboard.
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The final countdown brings us to: the button assembly!
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This self-proclaimed daughterboard contains the (nicely labeled) power and reset button, as well as a status LED.
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And now for the bonus level: controller teardown!
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The screws on this controller are readily visible, no rubber plugs here. Inside we find: a bare board with a single connector.
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The cable is nicely threaded inside to allow some slack, to relieve stress on the connector.
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The front side of the board is almost as bare. A single chip, some passive components, and some contact patches for the buttons.
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That's all there is! While there aren't many components, there are definitely more than 8 bits.
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Okay, we admit, that was a pretty dumb joke.
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- Only standard Phillips screws are used.
- No breakable plastic clips or strong adhesive is used.
- Many components are modular including the button board and controller ports.
- The NES Classic ships with solid state games, this reduces the wear on the device, but means upgrades are probably not an option.
- The HDMI and USB ports are soldered to the mainboard which makes for a more complicated repair.
Final Thoughts
Repairability Score
(10 is easiest to repair)