In 2001, Nintendo released an updated version of the Game Boy Colour, giving it a larger screen, two shoulder buttons and more computing power. The Game Boy Advance was updated again two years later, when Game Boy Advance SP, a more compact version, was released. This version could be opened and closed in a clamshell design and also featured a rechargeable battery and a front-lit colour display. Notable games on the system included Castlevania, Mario vs Donkey Kong and the Pokemon series. Like all Game Boys, the Game Boy Advance SP was backward compatible with previous models, allowing older games to be played on the system.

However, in 2005, Nintendo released the Game Boy Micro, which sacrificed screen size and backwards compatibility for a dramatic reduction in total size and a brighter backlit screen. By the end of 2006, the GBA, GBA SP and the Game Boy Micro have sold over 77 million units worldwide.

Multifunction Consoles

A number of multifunction consoles were also released in 2003/4; the first being the Nokia N-Gage, a combination mobile phone, mp3 player, PDA, radio and gaming device. Its design received a fair amount of criticism, including the requirement of having to remove the battery to change game cartridges and its vertically oriented screen. It was redesigned and re-released to address the design flaws of the original (the N-Gage QD); however, a number of important features such as MP3 playback, USB connectivity and FM radio reception were removed.

The Tapwave Zodiac was PDA-handheld game console hybrid that supported documents, photos, music, Internet and movies and was compatible with Palm OS 5 hardware. However, the company went bankrupt in 2005 and the model was discontinued.

Seventh Generation Consoles

In 2004, Nintendo released the first of the seventh generation handheld consoles, the Nintendo DS. It featured two screens (one of which was a touch screen), wireless connectivity and a microphone. Like the Game Boy SP, the DS featured a clam shell design, with each of the two screens aligned on either side of the hinge. The lower touch screen was designed to be activated using a stylus, the player's finger or a small plastic pad that could be attached to the thumb to imitate an analogue stick. Unlike the Game Boy Micro, the DS was designed to be backward compatible with Game Boy Advance titles, albeit to a limited extent. A newer version of the console was released in 2006 called the DS Lite, featuring a cleaner design and a brighter quality display. The DS Lite was also 21% lighter and 42% smaller that the original Nintendo DS. By the end of 2006, the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite had sold over 27 million units in total worldwide. Popular games for the systems include Mario Kart DS (racing game), Advance Wars: Dual Strike (turn-based strategy game), Nintendogs (a vitual life game in which the player must take care of and train a puppy using the touch screen and microphone) and Brain Age (a series of mental brain-training challenges).

The Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) was released in Japan in 2004 and in Europe and North America in 2005. The console was designed to combine a number of functions, including music and video playback in addition to gaming. Music and movies could be played from the systems UMD disks or from a Memory Stick Duo memory card. A number of games could also be downloaded directly to the console using the wireless Internet connection. With over 17 million units shipped worldwide, the PSP is currently the most successful handheld console to date not made by Nintendo. Notable games for the PSP include Tekken: Dark Resurrection (3D fighting), Metal Gear Solid (action adventure), Daxter (3D platformer) and Sega Genesis Collection (a compilation of adapted games from the Sega consoles of the 80s and 90s).

Other consoles released during this period include the Tiger Gizmondo, which played music, movies and games, and was also able to take and store photos, and the GP2X which used the Linux operating system and was designed to support videos, music, photos and games in an open architecture allowing any user to develop software for the device.

For more information about sixth and seventh generation handheld consoles and multifunction consoles released during this period, select an item from the list below.