One cart for many systems.
What is it?
The BackBit Pro is a universal SD-card-based cartridge capable of interfacing with over 40 different consoles and vintage computers via inexpensive adapters. The existence of this cart may come as a surprise to many, as it seems to have flown under the radar of most people in the community — hence why I am writing this blog post to give it a much-deserved spotlight.
The range of systems covers many platforms, including Atari 8-bit through 7800, Sega Master System and SG-1000, many Commodore systems, Intellivision, ColecoVision, and many vintage PCs. Many of these systems never had a true flashcart or easy way to load programs and games, making this truly a remarkable platform.
For each console, there is an adapter board that plugs into the main unit to adapt the pins and also allow the cartridge to automatically detect what platform it’s plugged into. From bootup, it will show a splash screen and then dump you at the top-level folder of the SD card for you to navigate down your folder structure to select a game and launch it. There is no console-specific setup needed, it works out-of-the-box and just relies on you choosing a ROM that your system supports. In the image below, you can see that I made a folder for each of the adapters I bought, so that when the cartridge boots up, I just select the system I am using and choose the game I want.
Diagnostic Menu
The following systems support a Diagnostic Menu when booting the console while holding the button on the BackBit Pro until the LED begins flashing. It may take 10+ seconds to reach this state. Generally, this menu is the official one, but may be a community one.
- Commodore: C64, C128, V20, +4
- Atari: 8-Bit, 2600, 5200, 7800 (for 5200, press button again to access v2.3 diagnostics)
- TI-99
- CoCo
- Coleco
- Amstrad
- Spectrum
- MSX
- Intellivision
- Bally
- Sega Master System
The Pros
- SD-based ROM loading for a ton of systems
- Value savings versus buying single flash carts for each system
- Built-in troubleshooting tools at the press of a button
- Real-Time Clock (RTC) on-board
- Many Commodore-specific features
- Other built-in features (Atari 7800 POKEY emulation, Odyssey² voice emulation, PC-6001 RAM expansion, etc)
- Some systems have a “DIY” version that comes disassembled, allowing you to solder it yourself and save a few bucks
- BackButton — a button that plugs into the BackBit cartridge to allow you to return to the main menu
The Cons
- The IDE connector grips very tightly. While this is great for the currently-used console, I worry about the longevity of the solder joints due to having to yank it off. Perhaps the connector might loosen up over time though.
- No shells for the console-specific adapters. I hope this may change with either the creator or the community stepping in to create shells, not only for aesthetic reasons, but also so that you don’t have to worry about the cart slot door catching on the unit when removing it.