Is the Game Boy the Toughest Product Ever Made?

Is the Game Boy the Toughest Product Ever Made? 547

Posted by kdawson on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:02PM from the electronic-cockroaches dept.

An anonymous reader writes "CNET is running an article about tough technology, which aptly includes the Nintendo Game Boy, a device so tough that mine still works after many years. 'There's no two ways about it: the original Game Boy is one of the hardest gadgets ever conceived. Rumor has it this beige behemoth isn't made of plastic, but from the skulls of fallen Gurkhas. If you ever saw one that was broken, it's because it lost a boxing match with a nuclear bomb — on points.' So do you agree that the Game Boy is the toughest consumer electronics device ever made?"

Is the Game Boy the Toughest Product Ever Made?

This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.

Search 547 Comments Log In/Create an Account

Comments Filter:

Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

by rthille ( 8526 ) writes: <web-slashdot@@@rangat...org> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:03PM (#22310208) Homepage Journal

I still have my pet rock, 30+ years later...

The more important question is... (Score:5, Funny)

by lanthar ( 962279 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:05PM (#22310250)

Will it blend?

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

by show me altoids ( 1183399 ) * writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:07PM (#22310290)

Game Boy covers Pet Rock. You lose!

Re:Phones (back when the phone company owned them) (Score:4, Funny)

by jbeaupre ( 752124 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:10PM (#22310358)

And their armored cousin, the public pay phone, was no slouch either.

Re:HP 1x Calculators (Score:3, Funny)

by Yetihehe ( 971185 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:16PM (#22310492)

You mean those nuclear or perpetuum-volt ones?

Nintendo Wii Controller (Score:5, Funny)

by pembo13 ( 770295 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:17PM (#22310508) Homepage

Apparently, more weapon than controller it is capable of withstanding high speed impact with stationary objects, LCD/plasma TVs, dry wall, idiots, etc.

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:0, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:19PM (#22310536)

I read somewhere that the Nintendo Game Boy wasn't made by Nintendo but instead summoned by Chuck Norris..

I read it on a blog so it must be true...

Durability stopped with the origional GB. (Score:3, Funny)

by Lumpy ( 12016 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:21PM (#22310570) Homepage

The DS screens break (top one specifically) if you fart too close to it. I still haven't broken my DSlite... yet..., but I went through 4 DS's with them in my laptop bag when they were damaged.

I also broke several GB advances, I think it's the flip open design, it stresses the screens somehow.

Toughest device? (Score:5, Funny)

by Punk CPA ( 1075871 ) writes: <mitchtownsend AT hotmail DOT com> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:30PM (#22310730)

I would have to nominate my flash drive. I left it in my pants one time, and it survived a trip through the washer and dryer. I should really have hand-washed it, though: it shrank from 1 gb to 512 mb.

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:1, Funny)

by Oktober Sunset ( 838224 ) writes: <sdpage103NO@SPAMyahoo.co.uk> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:30PM (#22310744)

Not true, no one knows where Game Boys come from, however they are in fact tougher than Chuck Norris who once broke both his thumbs playing one.

Xbox 360 (Score:5, Funny)

by kellyb9 ( 954229 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:32PM (#22310784)

Man, I wish 360's were that durable. Mine just about red rings every time I use my microwave, and dammit, i love my ramen noodles!

Re:You never owned a Game Boy (Score:5, Funny)

by GoodbyeBlueSky1 ( 176887 ) writes: <joeXbanks&hotmail,com> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:33PM (#22310800)

Anyone who did knows that they're not beige ;)
Anyone who played one for a while knows the color of the case changed over time from white to beige to yellow to brown to ewwimnottouchingthatanymore.

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

by TyrainDreams ( 982007 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:33PM (#22310810)

That or your head is just that dense...i mean clearly you smashed things into your head...its probably pretty tough...

Re:Phones (back when the phone company owned them) (Score:5, Funny)

by HTH NE1 ( 675604 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:34PM (#22310820)

And their armored cousin, the public pay phone, was no slouch either.
Trust me, you don't want to lose one of those in the toilet.

Not so much (Score:5, Funny)

by boowax ( 229348 ) writes: <boowax@NoSpAM.yahoo.com> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:38PM (#22310868) Homepage

My brother's forehead Christmas Day 1990 1
Gameboy 0

What, no IBM keyboards?! (Score:5, Funny)

by Rearden82 ( 923468 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:43PM (#22310968)

I nominate the IBM Model M keyboard [wikipedia.org] and its brethren as being among the most bulletproof gadgets ever made. They weigh 5 pounds, mostly because the keys are mounted on a solid steel plate. And not only are they indestructible, but they're delightful to type on.

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

by Volante3192 ( 953645 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:45PM (#22311012)

The Gameboy's still showing games fine. You actually broke your eyesight, np.

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

by SnprBoB86 ( 576143 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:55PM (#22311178) Homepage

So you are a Gurkha who has not yet fallen?

Re:The more important question is... (Score:5, Funny)

by HomerJ ( 11142 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @03:56PM (#22311190)

Dodongos dislike smoke

Re:I dunno about that (Score:2, Funny)

by gzerphey ( 1006177 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:03PM (#22311320)

NO! BAD! Turn in your geek, nerd, and/or Slashdot card RIGHT NOW! An electronics budget can never, I repeat NEVER, be to big.

Kids these days.*

* Yes, I realize my UID is higher then the parent's.

Re:You never owned a Game Boy (Score:5, Funny)

by ProppaT ( 557551 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:04PM (#22311332) Homepage

And anyone with the common sense to wash their hands after eating Cheetos never had this issue...

That doesn't prove anything! (Score:3, Funny)

by Socguy ( 933973 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:07PM (#22311388)

That just proves that, no matter how tough the Gameboy may be, your head is harder!

(Come to think of it, We shouldn't be surprised at the density of your noggin, being that you chose to use your head as a hammer as opposed to the wall or some other, non-organic instrument of destruction ;) .

Still, made for a funny anecdote...

preach it, brother! (Score:5, Funny)

by mikeee ( 137160 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:09PM (#22311428)

It's not a real keyboard if you can't beat a man to death with it.

Um, hypothetically, I mean.

Snap-on? (Score:3, Funny)

by Kabuthunk ( 972557 ) writes: <<moc.liamtoh> <ta> <knuhtubak>> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:18PM (#22311560) Homepage

I don't know about Technology (although the Wii remote would be pretty high up on that list... or generally anything designed by Nintendo... which I swear must have a contract with the makers of LEGO), but the strongest thing I've ever known is Snap-On tools.

I swear... that company must be sacrificing souls to some demon in order to make them that damn-near-physics-defyingly strong :P.

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

by Hoi Polloi ( 522990 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:19PM (#22311586) Journal

I still have my pet dog after 30+ years too. He's right up there on the mantle.

Re:Um, what? (Score:5, Funny)

by Captain Original ( 922169 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:27PM (#22311720)

If you take out Tetris, it will work fine!

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

by capnchicken ( 664317 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:33PM (#22311826)
I read somewhere that Chuck Norris jokes weren't funny anymore, except for these ones:
- Chuck Norris doesn't have a chin underneath his beard; just a giant pussy.
- Before the boogeyman goes to sleep, he checks his closet to make sure Chuck Norris folded all of the clothes correctly.
- Chuck Norris won't suck your dick for money; he will gladly do it for free.
- Chuck Norris doesn't doo push-ups; he's too old.
- Chuck Norris ruins every party he goes to because he is a born again christian fundie.
- When Chuck Norris endorses a presidential candidate, it's Mike Huckabee
I'll get Karma burn for not posting as AC, but I'd rather have that then someone calling me out for being afraid of Chuck Norris and posting as AC.
Re:Not so much (Score:2, Funny)

by ClamIAm ( 926466 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:54PM (#22312170)

Holy crap, my brother did this too!

This was during a period where we were playing Ultra Golf[1] almost nonstop. After a few weeks, he decided that every time he sliced a shot (or whatever), it would be a really good idea to smash the Gameboy against his head. Repeatedly. I (and my parents) kept telling him "you're going to break it", and he did. Cracked the LCD right open. It still "worked", but the screen was useless, so it was pretty much unusable.

On the other hand, this did end up netting us a Gameboy Color...

[1] Ultra was a Konami shell company during Nintendo's days of "thou shalt not make more than two games per year".

Re:Not That Tough (Score:3, Funny)

by provigilman ( 1044114 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:58PM (#22312224) Homepage Journal

So basically your point is that you have a hard head? That's not usually something to brag about. Now, if you broke it on your abs, that would be something!

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:4, Funny)

by G-funk ( 22712 ) writes: <josh@gfunk007.com> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @04:58PM (#22312230) Homepage Journal

-1, Creepy

Re:Phones (back when the phone company owned them) (Score:5, Funny)

by G-funk ( 22712 ) writes: <josh@gfunk007.com> on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @05:05PM (#22312342) Homepage Journal

It wasn't broken at all, was it?

Re:I dunno about that (Score:4, Funny)

by Rorschach1 ( 174480 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @05:05PM (#22312366) Homepage

From the little time I've spent hanging out in Second Life, I've found that this sort of problem is apparently more prevalent than you might think.

Turns out the combination of fur and latex fetishes generates an ungodly amount of static electricity...

ahem! (Score:1, Funny)

by Anonymous Coward writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @05:26PM (#22312680)

Rumor has it this beige behemoth isn't made of plastic, but from the skulls of fallen Gurkhas.
I am a Gurkha, you insensitive clod!

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:4, Funny)

by elrous0 ( 869638 ) * writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @06:00PM (#22313250)

"born against christian"

They prefer the term "Muslim," you insensitive clod!

Re:Creative Media (Score:2, Funny)

by Tangerinux ( 1133055 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @06:51PM (#22314134)

It's a shame i can't say the same on the zen neeon.

One night i spilled beer on it and the display died but the color lights and the music playback were fine.

After a month or two of blind use i dropped it and it hit the floor with one corner. The display came back to life but the hard drive died :(

I still have it here hoping that someday if i recharge the battery it will magically work again.

Re:Not That Tough (Score:2, Funny)

by gripped ( 830310 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @07:04PM (#22314348) Homepage

....except it broke the ground on impact.

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:4, Funny)

by edwardpickman ( 965122 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @10:00PM (#22316222)

The really creepy part is the dog is still alive he's just too old to jump down.

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:2, Funny)

by 80's Greg ( 457939 ) writes: on Tuesday February 05, 2008 @11:30PM (#22316854) Homepage

Death once had a near-Game-Boy experience.

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

by TheLink ( 130905 ) writes: on Wednesday February 06, 2008 @01:16AM (#22317534) Journal

"my wife has a sewing machine where the computer control for advanced functions is a GBC"

That's cool! What happens if you press "Up Down Up Down Left Right Left Right AB AB" on the GBC (not your wife :) ).

There may be more comments in this discussion. Without JavaScript enabled, you might want to turn on Classic Discussion System in your preferences instead.

Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

The more important question is... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Phones (back when the phone company owned them) (Score:4, Funny)

Re:HP 1x Calculators (Score:3, Funny)

Nintendo Wii Controller (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:0, Funny)

Durability stopped with the origional GB. (Score:3, Funny)

Toughest device? (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:1, Funny)

Xbox 360 (Score:5, Funny)

Re:You never owned a Game Boy (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Phones (back when the phone company owned them) (Score:5, Funny)

Not so much (Score:5, Funny)

What, no IBM keyboards?! (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

Re:The more important question is... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:I dunno about that (Score:2, Funny)

Re:You never owned a Game Boy (Score:5, Funny)

That doesn't prove anything! (Score:3, Funny)

preach it, brother! (Score:5, Funny)

Snap-on? (Score:3, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Um, what? (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:5, Funny)

Re:Not so much (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Not That Tough (Score:3, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Phones (back when the phone company owned them) (Score:5, Funny)

Re:I dunno about that (Score:4, Funny)

ahem! (Score:1, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Creative Media (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Not That Tough (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:4, Funny)

Re:Pet Rock... (Score:2, Funny)

Re:Not That Tough (Score:5, Funny)

Related Links Top of the: day, week, month.

Slashdot Top Deals