Fans of the Game Boy Advance who want to play their favorite games from Nintendo’s classic handheld on a TV, without finding a Game Boy Player peripheral for the GameCube, can now do just that. This is thanks to a simple modification kit that’s available online, and now there’s a comprehensive video breaking down exactly how to install it.
The Retro Future, a British YouTuber who makes videos about handheld video game consoles, released a video demonstrating the installation of an In-Plane Switching kit for the Game Boy Advance. Not only does this kit replace the Game Boy Advance's archaic screen with a bright and crisp-looking LCD, but it also gives the handheld a Nintendo Switch-like quality by turning the handheld’s link cable port into an AV output. This allows its games to be displayed on a TV, provided it’s old enough to have those little red, white, and yellow inputs.
The parts included in the kit are a foam pad, as well as some plastic pieces and film stickers for insulation; the LCD screen; two ribbon cables; a printed circuit board; and wires to connect everything. The Retro Future begins by removing the GBA's outer shell and taking out its inner electronics. He then solders each of the wires to the PCB that came with the kit. A clever trick The Retro Future uses while soldering, which may help beginners, is adding the solder to the pad before making each of the connections.
After getting the PCB ready for attachment, he attaches one of the insulating film stickers onto the back of the LCD screen, and connects it to the PCB before doing some trimming of the plastic GBA shell in order to make room for the two. He puts the remaining sticker on the PCB and uses one of the ribbon cables as well as the other ends of the wires to make all the necessary connections between the PCB and the motherboard. Once everything is connected, he finally reassembles the GBA and turns on that beautiful LCD screen. It's relatively simple among GBA mods, all things considered.
The last thing this particular IPS kit includes is a cable that is a link cable on one side, and AV plugs on the other, allowing the handheld to be connected to a TV. A custom-cut GBA shell big enough to fit the IPC electronics is required for this build and, sadly, neither the video nor the online description of the kit indicates whether a link cable can still be used. This means anyone who still wants to trade Pokemon on FireRed and LeafGreen should exercise caution, but fans of the GBA with basic knowledge of soldering can use this easy mod to significantly upgrade their experience with the classic handheld.