The Gem Boy Zero Is a Tiny, Raspberry Pi-Powered Handheld Console — and Saves Sega's VMUs
Designed for the Circuit Gem project, this Game Boy-inspired housing is offered as an alternative to sacrificing Sega Dreamcast VMUs.
Pseudonymous maker "wermy" has show off a Game Boy-inspired build which shrinks the handheld console considerably, building off an earlier project to convert Sega Dreamcast Visual Memory Units (VMUs) to Game Boys to create the "Gem Boy Zero."
"If you've seen some of my other projects you might remember this little guy from a couple of years ago," wermy explains during the video introducing the new project "It was similar to the Game Boy Zero project but in a Sega Dreamcast VMU. I made this one from scratch and then just like with the Game Boy Zero [fellow maker] Kite came in and improved just about everything in that project with an all-in-one board that you can drop into a shell and make it way easier and cleaner, and he called that board the Circuit Gem."
The Circuit Gem proved popular with those looking to put retro gaming in their pocket, but less so with collectors of Sega hardware: People were buying the long-out-of-production VMUs to rip out the insides and convert to Circuit Gems. The Gem Boy Zero, by contrast, uses a 3D-printed housing — meaning no vintage electronics are harmed in its production.
"Originally i was just gonna make a printable VMU shell so people could stop chopping up all the mint condition ones out there," wermy explains, "but I realized I didn't have to make it look like a VMU."
The result is what looks for all the world like a shrunken Nintendo Game Boy that's grown additional buttons. The display is just 1.44" on the diagonal, with laser-cut acrylic for protection and a vinyl bezel. A micro-USB port at the top charges the internal battery, while a Raspberry Pi Zero W runs emulators for classic games - "you can play games from the Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Super NES, Genesis, really any console from around that era," wermy says, "as well as some arcade games, some PlayStation games actually run pretty well on it too — but you can pretty much count out N64 or anything beyond that."
Wermy has pledged to put the shell parts up for sale in the near future and release 3D-printable STL files for his Patreon backers, along with a detailed build guide. For now, the only way to get your hands on one is to enter this competition to win the one seen in the video.