Nintendo Entertainment System (Model NES-101)
The NES-101 control deck alongside its similarly redesigned NES-039 game controller.
|
|
| Manufacturer | Nintendo |
|---|---|
| Type | Video game console |
| Generation | Third generation |
| Retail availability | October 15, 1993 - 1995 |
| Media | ROM cartridge ("Game Pak") |
| CPU | Ricoh 2A03 8-bit processor |
| Graphics | Ricoh 2C02 |
| Controller input | 2 controller ports |
| Predecessor | Nintendo Entertainment System NES-001 |
| Successor | SNES Mini |
The NES-101 model of the Nintendo Entertainment System (informally known as the NES 2, the top-loading model, or simply the Top Loader) is a compact, top-loading redesign of the original Nintendo Entertainment System video game console released by Nintendo in 1993.
Nintendo marketed the NES-101 model as the Nintendo Entertainment System Control Deck, exactly the same as the original NES-001 model, only with a "new design" logo on the packaging. It retailed in North America for $49.99 USD (equivalent to $83.39 in 2016). This was at a significantly lower price than the already released Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The NES-101 model is stylistically similar to the HVC-101 model of the Family Computer, which was released in Japan at roughly the same time, but differed in several ways. The NES-101 controller design is very similar to the Super NES controller. The major differences are that it has two face buttons instead of four, no L and R shoulder buttons, and is thinner in the middle. This controller, due to its shape, is often nicknamed the "dogbone" or "doggie" controller.
The external appearance of the NES was greatly overhauled and restyled to align its looks to the North American Super Nintendo Entertainment System and to address a number of commonly cited ergonomic problems of the original NES-001 model. The case design was by Lance Barr, who also designed the NES-001, the SNS-001 and the SNS-101. The power and reset buttons, while never a problem with the original design, now matched the curvature of the new look. The NES-101 does not have an LED power light to indicate the unit is on, as the original NES-001 and SNS-001 included.
The most obvious change in the redesign was the removal of the cartridge-loading system that caused trouble in maintenance and game-swapping when using the NES-001 model. In that system, the user had to first open the lid of the case, slide in the cartridge, then press it down. The large space inside allowed plenty of room for dust to settle and the contact heads were almost impossible to access and clean without disassembling the system or using the official cleaning kit. Wear and tear was another problem; with continued use, the precision of the mechanism deteriorated and the user would have to poke and nudge at the cartridge to move it to a position that would be read correctly. The NES-101 returned to the standard top-loading method, used by almost all cartridge systems before and since for its ease and reliability.
...
Wikipedia