The "Thundervolt" reference in that post is a project where they cut up a Wii PCB to leave just the DRAM and the processors on the PCB, and then they slap an external DCDC board on top of that cut up PCB to provide power to it, while also undervolting it since you reduce the IR losses.<p><a href="https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/thundervolt.6293/" rel="nofollow">https://bitbuilt.net/forums/index.php?threads/thundervolt.62...</a><p>That is pretty insane.
In case the scale renderings weren't illustrative, this is just how small the GC Nano is <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Gamecube/comments/13u8km5/worlds_smallest_gamecube_gc_nano/" rel="nofollow">https://www.reddit.com/r/Gamecube/comments/13u8km5/worlds_sm...</a>
So is this project (a) taking the real Wii parts and putting them on a smaller PCB, (b) a different design with a more efficient same-architecture CPU, or (c) an entirely new design that is emulating the Wii hardware? Can the device run the real Wii OS or is it running a replacement OS capable of launching Wii games?
This is very impressive but I think Short-Stack [1] is a more impressive project because it is a fully fonctionnal Wii (as in, it works on its own as you would expect from a regular Wii) compared to this one where it needs other accessories to be able to play.<p>[1]: <a href="https://github.com/loopj/short-stack">https://github.com/loopj/short-stack</a> previously discussed 3 months ago here: <a href="https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40071826">https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40071826</a>
For reference, 60mm is less than the width of even a compact smartphone, and 16mm is 1.5 to 2 times as thick. This thing is tiny.<p>Hell, it has about the same footprint as a gamecube <i>disc</i>.
Making video games fun does not require anywhere near as much hardware as we typically use in modern systems. I look forward to an eventual return to fun video games.
I'm looking for recommendations for a 30~50 run anodized aluminum case, in a similar size as the Kawaii. Does anyone have any recommendations? The quotes I'm getting are closer to $95/pc and that seems quite high.