Sega Nomad

Console Information

The Sega Nomad is a handheld Sega Genesis, released in October 1995 (for US$180) in NTSC format only (however, there is rumour of a PAL prototype). The idea was really good because of the already huge library of Genesis games that could be played on the console. But it was fairly bulky with a short battery life (6 AA batteries last 3-5 hours) and its high price meant that it wouldn't sell well. Being released so late also meant that people wouldn't buy it because of the new 32-bit consoles of that time.

The Nomad comes with a colour screen, AV output jacks so it can be connected to a television via AV cables, a jack for an AC adaptor, and a controller port for a second controller. No games were made specifically for the Nomad, all were just Genesis games. For any game information, please see the Mega Drive/Genesis sections.

Sega Nomad Technical Specifications

• CPU: 16-bit Motorola 68000 running at 7.61 MHz
• Co-processor: Zilog Z80 running at 4 MHz, controls PSG (Programmable Sound Generator) & FM Chips
• RAM: 64 Kbytes
• ROM: 1 Mbytes (8-Mbit)
• VRAM: 64 Kbytes (Video Ram)
• Graphics: VDP (Video Display Processor) dedicated video display processor for playfield and sprite control, 3 Planes, 2 scrolling playfields, 1 sprite plane
• Colours Available: 512
• Max. Colours on screen: 64
• CRAM: 64 x 9-kbit (Colour RAM)
• Pixel Resolution: 320 x 224, 40 x 28 text display mode
• Sound: Texas Instruments PSG (Programmable Sound Generator) TI 76489 chip, Yamaha YM 2612 FM chip
• Signal/Noise Ratio: 14dB
• Sound Channels: 6 stereo sound channels
• Sound RAM: 8 Kbytes
• 1 cartridge port
• Extra controller port
• AV port