Sega Made the Switch Before the Switch - Meet the Genesis Nomad 

People don't understand that system was revolutionary for its time😊

Thank you Sega, for truly taking care of your consumers... even if it was short lived, we saw that. ❤

This is really amazing. Crazy that so few people are talking about this. I feel like this thing is very unknown despite being incredibly ahead of it's time.

You could say that sega made the switch before the switch made sega...

Consoles are cool, but HANDHELDS are super interesting. Because with consoles, you've gotta figure out which controller is best and which cables to use and you have to decide whether to preserve the original aesthetic and play using a CRT as the devs intended or -crap all over the way the game was designed to be played and viewed and then complain when it looks bad when you- use a modern LCD or LED display- ALL these different variables. But with a handheld, it's all-in-one. You don't have to worry about the intended experience because other than the usually minor hardware and firmware revisions, *what you see is what you get.* IMO the Nomad might be the best way to experience Mega Drive games on genuine, original hardware, because it's always consistent.

Nice video, nice console.

This is still Sega's most powerful handheld they've ever released. Game Gear was on par to the Master System.

As an elder millennial from the Nintendo side of the playground, these videos are fascinating.

Game Gear was marketed as a portable device, but you needed to play next to a wall outlet since the battery life was so terrible. I remember making fun of my sister for owning a Game Boy before taking a family trip. Within an hour my system was dead and I would peak over her shoulder to see what games she was playing. I eventually got a car adapter but even then, this was the 90’s. The sockets were typically located in the front. If my mom’s elbow moved an inch I would lose power and all my game progress. That picture you showed of the nomad with all the adapters and a huge cartridge sticking out is basically Sega in a nutshell. They had lots of ideas that felt rushed or just plain impractical at the time.

This thing devoured batteries, the cold cathode backlights failed often

Best handheld console ever made unfortunately it was either too expensive or people just didn't know the potential... The only downside was the batteries that became somewhat expensive that's probably what killed the system.

Just bought a modded restored recap and upgraded version of this console. It's so cool

Nomad was a cool device. Sega also released the CDX. Sega was way ahead of it's time. Trying to minimize their systems. Back in the day, I was lived near SOA in Foster City Ca. Got to see alot of cool stuff.

I am so glad I found this channel. Great work. I always wanted a Nomad. The Genesis was such a fantastic system and I don't blame Sega of America for trying to extend the life of it and games being produced.

This is one of those things I've always wanted, it's just so cool! And knowing what I know about the tech of the time, I'm also pretty darn impressed with what Sega's hardware team managed to pull off.

Not hating on Sega; I loved playing both the SMS & Genesis at my dad's house back in the day. Nomad was an awesome piece of equipment, but it was released in 1995 while NEC put the Turbografx-16 on handheld in the form of the Turbo Express all the way back in 1990. As a TG-16 owner, I used to see it in their catalogs & want it so bad, but I was 10 years old, and even for my 42-year old self today, it was too expensive.

I dreamed of buying a SEGA NOMAD as a child, but I bought it in 2016) I bought two pieces of NOMAD I bought one for $50, his screen is working but the yellow light (burn-in) is present, you can play on the screen. Second working screen for $100! All screens are original! There is an original battery charger and an original power supply I am very glad that I bought two pieces in 2016, considering today’s price of $400-500!

I went ahead and upgraded mine to a lcd screen. Looks so much better. I bought a sound amp for it because of the low volume but haven't installed it yet. Its a great portable, but I do wish it had the original model one Genesis sound chip (it uses model 2 sound chip).

Bought one last year with the battery pack. What a cool unique system. I like it's quirky thick design. And I got the battery pack so I can play frogger on the go whenever I please!

LCD swaps are common and inexpensive - a composite LCD is like $25 and blows away the original screen. RGB is even better. Also, you can make an adapter to run this off video camera batteries (lithium-ion). They’re lighter and smaller, while also lasting much much longer than 6 AA batteries ever could (the modern LCD helps too!)

I have one of these from when I was a kid. The battery life sucked and the AC adapter was temperamental (move too fast and it'll loose power and reboot) , but otherwise it was so far ahead of it's time it's wild.

2:00 I feel like every single meeting that ever took place at Sega Corp back then ended with the question; ‘yea ok, but is it rad?’ The answer was almost always YESSS!!!!1

Bought one from goodwill in 2001 still have it and works like new!

As a Born and Bred Sega and Sonic fan this is awesome, so many great memories of the Sega GG.. i had no clue about this and learnt something new today. Great video presentation as always! Ill keep my eyes peeled for one, and dig under my parents house in storage for a few genesis cartridges i have left. Sonic 2 and Sonic 3&K lol

Before the Nintendo Switch, in 1995, Sega made the Sega Genesis Nomad, a portable version of the Genesis. The release was five years into the market span of the Genesis, with an existing library of more than 500 Genesis games. However, no pack-in game was included.. While Sega Technical Institute's The Ooze was originally planned as a launch game, it was not included. According to former Sega of America research and development head Joe Miller, the Nomad was not intended to replace the Game Gear, and Sega had few plans for the new handheld. Sega was supporting five different consoles: Saturn, Genesis, Game Gear, Pico, and the Master System, as well as the Sega CD and 32X add-ons. In Japan, the Mega Drive had never been successful and the Saturn was more successful than Sony's PlayStation, so Sega Enterprises CEO Hayao Nakayama decided to focus on the Saturn, resulting in the end of support for the Genesis and Genesis-based products. Additionally, the Game Boy, Nintendo's handheld console that had been dominant in the market, became even more dominant with the release of Pokémon Red and Blue. This meant the Nomad was not successful. By 1999, the Nomad was being sold at less than a third of its original price. People might call it Sega’s answer to Nintendo’s Super Game Boy.

I love my Sega Nomad!

Turbo Express says hi. Honestly both are really cool. From Nomad or VMU to PSP Outrun 2096 PS2/PSP cross save. Sega did great hardware and software. Pocket PCs of the 2000s years before Steam Deck but oh big companies then overlooked ones, PSP (yes different game format but cable for movies/games yes please), Switch doing the dock and cable to a screen and fair hardware. Or same games/handheld games but console connection to a TV. Battery life may be what it is but the grips, screen and more vary for sure. For a 1994 late device for the US market is interesting to keep it alive due to the US being a good market for Sega at the time. The screen is understandable of the time for a handheld like the Game Gear/Lynx. It was ahead for sure of 16bit handhelds even when 8bit Neo Geo Pocket, Wonderswan and Gameboy Color. The others have good libraries and button layouts but still library/branding to most people sigh. N64 always was odd to me of C buttons and lacking X and Y buttons but 6 buttons of the Xbox OG Duke before moving them on the S to a different side.

Didn't the Turboexpress (portable Turbografx) come out first?

Wasn't the only one. PC Engine/TG16 had the same thing years before.

Yep, Switch and the PSP/Vita by extension aren't doing anything new that wasn't tried before in the 90s handheld race. The former devices merely benefited from the technologically advances to make "console gaming on the go"(which, that's what handheld gaming has always been, but I digress) a reality.

Not to brag. I am the original owner of a Nomad.All original packaging. And it still works. Low runtime hours. And my screen isn't as worn as yours. Your video is cool. Brings back memories.

I had one :) got it for Christmas 1995 and I really liked it! But it was too bulky and I always felt weird playing it.

Absolutely loved your video! The Sega game gear was my first ever console I owned, followed by the Sega nomad and absolutely loved that thing when I was a kid. I even hooked up the Terminator gun to it and played on the TV 😂

On the heat point. Home consoles in that era didn’t get hot either and so they didn’t need fans. They drew considerably less power, which is what causes the heat. The Genesis’ power consumption was 15W, the PS5’s 218W. Home consoles didn’t start getting fans until the Dreamcast and the PS2 era.

This would've blown my mind as a kid. Sega was ahead in the fields in innovation.

someone managed to slap a 32x onto that sucker and made it work, got the tft screen upgrade after i bought mine.

First video I’ve ever found of yours and I’m glad I did. Great job. I never owned a Nomad but it always was one of the most fascinating systems to me

Sega is the Nintendo we did not want but the one we needed, Sega never failed, we failed Sega

6:58 I love seeing this. It makes me wonder what sega would have done if the nomad was a success. Imagine if they made a version of the 32x for the nomad or heaven forbid a Sega CD attachment. Just take a second to imagine a nomad tower of power.

I’m glad I found this channel; these videos are awesome! I remember being interested in the Nomad back in the ‘90s, but I could only get so many games/systems back then, so it just wasn’t a high enough priority for me to ever get one. Nowadays, it’s such a collectors’ item that it sells for way more than I can justify spending for one, but I still think the Nomad is really cool for what it is, and I can definitely appreciate it.

Absolutely love this channel! Its always nice hear how others grew up in a time before I was born. Also your dog is cute she looks like my dog

you know im glad somebody at least got some real joy from this system 😊 so many people look back at this as an expensive thing they never had and always moan about it's flaws. I personally never got one because i didn't like mega drive (genesis) games, but i always thought it was just the coolest thing! i was so sad that i didn't like any of the games i tried, i really really wanted a nomad 😂

wasnt expecting a hardware episode... still it was equally entertaining 👍

Genesis games didn't come with a protective case? My games sure did. Nearly all my games did.

NEC did this 5 years earlier with the Turbo Express.

SEGA NOMAD COOL

I have one still, not as good condition as the one shown but still rare af

lol I remember thinking when I saw this in the store "This is cool, but why would I want to play these games here when it could be on a large TV" and I read it had terrible battery life, like way worse then the Game Gear. I already used my Game Gear attached to a wall 80% of the time because of this and I had the charge pack! But we didn't have genesis games (SNES) so no chance of getting one anyway lol Also to note, the TurboGrafx had the TurboExpress 5 years before this (That came with a TV tuner too! lol)

say no to the great reset

Want one.

Can you use a game genie on this?

Just bought it and waiting for it to come tho I paid like 340€

the turboo grafix was way better tho

I felt like Sega always did everything first and everyone copied them

I have one and posted a video I have the box and all accessories

Being first doesn't mean you necessarily did a good job.

Well pc engine gt exist....

Sega...................... whyyyyyyyyy. Sega was so ahead but again bad business practices. Smh.

Your title is what my argument for SEGA is. Ahead of the time and that’s not always good. The nomad was a full fledged Genesis in handheld form. The Switch is a weakest form of modern gaming. Totally weak from the start

Nomad was a cool device. Sega also released the CDX. Sega was way ahead of it's time. Trying to minimize their systems. Back in the day, I was lived near SOA in Foster City Ca. Got to see alot of cool stuff.