Don't Risk Buying a Philips CD-I
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 5 ก.ย. 2024
- With countless issues surrounding its hardware in modern day, I can with confidence that the CD-I is a pain in the butt. Find a pre-modded system, else you're better off passing on it.
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Outro Music: Launch Base Rearranged - Savaged Regime
Background Music:
Zelda: Wand of Gamelon OST
Link: Faces of Evil OST
Hotel Mario OST
#zeldacdi #facesofevil #wandofgamelon
The AVGN episodes were made within the lifespan of the battery.
oof
Now I feel old. Thanks
AVGN isn’t even the oldest internet video game series. The oldest I know is Classic Game Room, which debuted in 1999.
He also said in one of his videos (the Hotel Mario review) that he had to bought three units until one of them finally worked!
@@DoswarePictures At least AVGN is still running.
@@DankRedditMemes he even joked about it in his latest episode about how shows like The Simpsons shouldn’t run for too long, then said it was time for AVGN episode 180 something.
'Don't risk buying a Phillip's CDi' was actually the slogan when it originally launched.
Knew that CD media consoles were not going to be a success when Commodore also brought out the CDTV. That was during the period towards the end of the company due to their terrible management.
On product promo book to sell it software it Slogan was Acually 'I want one' yes really.
"Fancy VCR"
@@luiszuniga2859 Actually 'Fancy CD player!'
I think it was the UK marketing for the CD-i that had that as a slogan, complete with a TV commercial witha background chorus chanting “I want one!”
I can’t imagine Sega and Nintendo were quaking in their boots because of Philips…
of course namco museum is on the CD-I, i'm pretty sure they made namco museum for heart monitors.
People constantly ask if it can play doom.
I say "sure, but can it play namco museum?"
Hell if someone got Doom to run on a pregnancy test im sure namco museum can run on heart monitors.
@Orwellian Future Is Now he's not kidding either. We've gotten Doom to run on that, a calculator, a calculator being powered up by a potato, and I'm pretty sure you could probably run doom on a dishwasher.
@@ItsRetroPlanet If you mod it for video out I'd say so in all seriousness
Now when can I use Super Mario Land to get sedated?
Oh wait.....
How could you forget to get the best game on the CD-i...
The Flowers of Robert Mapplethorpe?
Oh go check out James review of that game. AVGN covered it beautifully.
I would rather play Lester the unlikely.
I once went to a Robert Maplethorpe exhibition, and there were no flowers, only naked men
The thing is the CDI was never meant to have videogames.
The Flowers of Robert Mapplethorpe is actualyl the sort of thing it was made for.
Its just a vcd player thats supposed to have some interactivity
controllers
Nintendo: box then box with rounded corners
Sega genesis: comfy controller that also works with the 2600
Phillips CDI: *SPOON*
Sure you can have a spoon, but can you name one console that has a stick on top of a d-pad
??
Truly the top of culture.
@@ItsRetroPlanet Other than the generic PC 4 button controllers, no.
Sounds like a controller only The Tick could love
@@FatMarioHeads SPOOOOOOON!
Tommy Wiseau is a big CDi fan :) But seriously, those controllers were just supposed to be like handheld mice. Not for the games. This is another reason why it failed, it couldn't workout what it was. Games will never do well if you have to buy a controller as well.
CD-i owner here. You don't actually have to Dremel away the Timekeeper Chip. You can desolder the chip, solder in a socket, and buy a brand new replacement chip. I tried the Dremel trick and fricked it up, and I found a guy who sold me a replacement board for my model, one that he already socketed. If you need any extra help with your CD-i, let me know.
how do I do it
Some help needed here too. I'm about to buy both Zelda games as a collectors item. I do not expect to be able to play them though. Do you think I can buy a bumped up CD-i for an acceptable price anywhere these days?
@@LevelUp_ErikJ I've just picked up a 450 and it thinks it's 1989, so will need to do the battery fix. Not looking forward to it 😕
"You know what they say...
ALL TOASTERS TOAST TOAST!!!"
“If you pinch toast, you gotta f*** bowser!”
Ive seen too many youtube poops
@@nicks4802 "WE GOTTA F*** BOWSER!!!"
"AND YOOOOU'VE, GOTTA F*** SPAGHETTI"
"SPAGHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"
Someone sure got burned on this one. 😉
"Remember, where there's toast...
...there's SPAGHETTI!"
fun fact: this console is the first console to have a home screen, the year for this was 1991 when it launched.
That's probably because it needed to have one. Previous consoles used cartridges which could not be inserted with the power on, so having a home screen made no sense there. It was once machines could be booted up without media that they needed to show something on the screen.
Wouldn't the Famicom Disc System count? 1986
well the philips cdi had the first interactive one
@@TeaMal_FX The Commodore CDTV came out in March 1991, nine months before the CD-i. It had a home screen too. (CDTV was the first out of the gate of the failed "multimedia appliance" systems, of which CD-i and Tandy/Memorex VIS were the other representatives.)
@@NozomuYume well its a computer tho
Honestly though, the fact that you're going to all this trouble regardless is a testament to your dedication to the idea, and you'll honestly be the first person I've heard of on TH-cam to take an unbiased approach to the Nintendo titles, seems everyone else covers them just for how comedically bad they are, and that's fine, but looking at them from an actual design perspective is also going to be a refreshing look.
I owned two Phillips CD-i VCR style systems. I still have one in storage. I actually got them for free, plus a ton of demo games and movies. I used to work for Blockbuster Games. Our big deal was try any game before buying it, so we had all the current consoles in game stations. We were one of three test stores, but it only lasted two years before we closed up shop, and liquidated our assets. Our game station consoles and the CD-i demo discs weren't on inventory, so I kept the CD-i machine, discs, and I found a second demo console in the back, so I took that too. I gave the second one to my friend. I mainly got it for Dragon's Lair, Space Ace, and Dragon's Lair 2, as they had best quality video with the mpeg chip add on.
Im gonna say it again....
“Yeah, framerater!”
Oh yeah boi
I actually found a CD-I 220 during my sophomore year of high school back in 2012 where me and our robotics club were in charge of clearing out one of the school’s storage rooms for a then-upcoming garage sale. Mistaking it for just a regular CD player they planned on selling it for only 5 dollars, but as I was the only member of the club to recognize what the machine actually was, I expressed my great interest in acquiring it, and I actually ended up getting the CD-i for FREE when no one ended up buying it at the sale.
Though the disc tray needs a new belt and the front port tray accidentally broke off not too long after acquiring the unit, the actual hardware still worked upon powering on, and could play backups perfectly fine. Doing research into the unit I learned about the Timekeeper battery at a young age, and I only ever had it plugged in when I was actually using it, helped by the fact that there was no evidence of saved data prior to my aquisition.
I am still in possession of the CD-i to this day, though I almost never use it except for occasional shits and giggles. Last time I turned it on would have been sometime in 2017 or 2018, but last I checked it seemed to be working perfectly fine. Even if it does end up failing in my lifetime, at least I can rest easy knowing I didn’t have to spend hard-earned money on a CD-i of all consoles [the unit at least. Acquiring the VCD card and an adequate controller did set me back a bit, but it was worth it to play the CD-I’s surprisingly decent port of Dragon’s Lair]
"This is, without a doubt, the worst controller I've ever held."
Quite a statement coming from someone who's used an Atari 5200 lol.
TBF it was never meant as a game controller but basically a handheld cursor and PowerPoint controller
"Sorry FrameRater, I don't do repairs. Why don't you mmmm do it yourself."
-Morshu 2021
When the guy who played the Atari 5200 tells you have a terrible controller, then you know you fricked up
I find it bizarre that despite the CDI being literally past its expiry date, there still isn't a reliable emulator for the thing to my knowlege.
Closest in my experience is MAME but AFAIK it only really plays Hotel Mario and it crashed when I got to the final Ludwig level :(
I mean. Who would want to do that amount of work.. to play cdi games?
I'm glad I found this video before hunting down the CDi myself. Nothing like having a ticking timebomb sitting in a drawer just waiting to brick itself. I have two of the three Zelda's. Just a piece of gaming history and nothing more. I actually remember having a CDI in the classroom - having CD tech back then was so groundbreaking.
the CDI has no copyprotection like the 3do. You can just burn the game iso's on a blank cd and they should run fine.
Also I hope you give Atlantis: The last resort a go. Its the cdi's second released FPS title and the only standalone CDI fps title.
Doesn't it require a digital video module?
@@ZykovEddy Yeah, I think so.
I had one of those too I thought it was neat at first then I found a way to find games to make my own cds I tryed out a lot of different games on it did you know you could go online with that too
sega cd also didn't have copy protection, for those wondering.
Illegal
"when designing their console phillips had to find out a way to store things like game data..."
Oh GOD I SEE WHERE THIS IS GOING AAAAAA VOLATILE RAMMMMMM
"When you turn it on, it screams" I nearly shed a tear
Great take on the CDi, Adventures of Framerater : Faces of Debt.
You should see if the person you bought the modded system from would be interested in buying your first console. You might take a loss on the system, but you could recoup some of your losses and know that the system was going to someone who knows what they are doing.
I would recommend checking out Angry Video Game Nerd's CD-1 videos. Despite his videos being made before the 20 year mark, he mentions during the third Zelda game that he can't save, which would suggest that the model he's using (one of the VCR looking ones) will still boot the games if the battery is dead.
Not to mention it was his third CD-I, as the first two had issues.
I own a couple of CD-i's. All batteries are dead but they all boot the games except for one of which the battery died recently. I guess I'll have to wait a few weeks and try again when the battery is totally dead.
most of the CD-Is (like the 450 in this video) have no problems to boot with a dead NVRAM, other models such as the smaller 470 and the early 200 series have issues at booting.
A similar thing was an anti piracy inside some capcom arcade machines. (It’s called a suicide battery, where if it dies the motherboard dies forcing you to buy another arcade board.)
The most irritating thing about the timekeeper chip is that since it's literally just a cel battery, it'd be easily replacable if it wasn't soldered on and required drilling into it to get to the battery.
I'll be honest, I would enjoy stories on the pitfalls and things to know when buying specific retro consoles. What might need replacement or maintenance. For example, pointing out the OG Xbox clock capacitor issue, or the battery issue here.
I enjoyed this video, and look forward to seeing you 'enjoy' 2 of the CD-I Zelda games.
At least the clock capacitor is much easier to fix.
@matt fahringer what do you mean? Well you can replace it, but to some (such as me) having to reset the time every time the system is unplugged is a sacrifice worth making to prevent the system from being damaged, so one could just remove it.
I'm proud to have hunted down a 3DO and I still play it from time to time but I sure as Hell won't go out of my way to track down a CD-i unless it's at Goodwill for cheap (sometimes depending on the model they might mistake them for being old CD/DVD players).
3DO is so underrated. It's like the CD-I but done right... even then there was room for improvement but just in retrospect, it's easy to look at 3DO as a victor in comparison to this thing.
@@FrameRater For sure. The 3DO was an honest attempt at a bleeding-edge console that was just too far ahead of its time in a lot of ways, whereas the CD-i was just a glorified CD player that was woefully-incapable of playing decent games despite how they tried to market it as time went on.
The 3DO was just too early to market by about a year or two. The main reason it didn't really catch on was that it was just too expensive, costing $600 at launch when other consoles, which were still at their peak, were less than $200. Part of that was because the actual console manufacturers (Panasonic, LG, Sanyo) weren't game publishers themselves nor did they get third-party licensing fees (which went to The 3DO Company), so they couldn't sell the consoles as a loss leader and make up the difference in software profits like the other console makers. But also because the manufacturing cost for the units was high because of the level of tech. A couple of years later the costs had come down enough to make such a system more practical for the market, which was by that point looking for the next generation. Those are the reasons why the PlayStation was able to catch on but the 3DO didn't. The 3DO was too early, too expensive, and had a economic model that didn't work.
I admire the commitment and honest on display here and am looking forward to some CD-i stuff out of morbid curiosity. Also I guess I'm lucky in that all the retro consoles I've gotten have worked. The NES needed that damn NES10 pin broken and the Xbox disk drive doesn't open, requiring a paper clip, but I've encountered nothing like what you have. Good luck with this CD-i Adventure!
*FrameRater buys a CD-I
FrameRater: "I"m never going to financially recover from this."
Hovering over this video and immediately seeing our Merchant Deity fills me with reverence
When you turn it on it screams. I kind of want one now.
This one of the only channels that cover weird shit like this and still keeps the kinda of personal connection I love. You really need more recognition
My parents almost bought me one of these as a kid for Christmas, I ended up with a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis. I'm so glad they got me one of those instead
This is a great way to begin the year, with a broken CD-I
Protip: the CDi can play burned CD-Rs
Framerater has had horrible luck burning his own CDs. Check his 3DO and mistakes made video for details.
For me I think his mistake is not trying to burn his discs in slow and fast speeds, as some discs burn better on faster speeds. I find this strange, but I have had first-hand experiences where burning a disc slowly caused more problems that burning it quickly.
@@thepuzzlemaster64 Someone told me that DiscJuggler can force drives to write slower even if they're not listed as compatible to do so. May have to look more into this...
@@FrameRater Imgburn or Nero at 10x (minimum supported) using just whatever CD-Rs I had in the drawer with a laptop CD writer worked fine. My CD-i (same model as yours) doesn't sound like that during boot.
Use good quality CDRs. I imagine it also helps to have a label on the top to make the disc less "see through". Most CDRs can be held up to the light making them see through.
@@FrameRater In my experience buring cds for the cd-i can be pretty hit or miss. some discs I burn work flawlessly, well others I have to pop in and out repeatedly to read. I recommend hp cd-rs as I got the best results from those
Soooo, there's another thing you need to take into consideration when purchasing a CDi. There's also the video pack, a memory expansion pack that expands the system's memory capabilities. This pack is required to play certain FMV heavy games (such as Thunder in Paradise). This is built into some models and optional on others and different models require different model video packs. As I recall, this model shown was sold both ways under two different model numbers. (On this model, the pack goes under the left side of the console.)
The one plus of the system is that, like the 3DO, all software is region free.
I ordered a modded CDi system from the same seller Patrick (sellingmycollection78) on eBay back in late November. The only difference is that I'll most likely receive the spoon controller and not the superior one. Either I'll have to ask Patrick if he sells those separately or mod a device to use a SNES controller to the system. I'm still waiting on the system due to the pandemic and I did ask him about the item location issue and last time we heard about it, the package was transferred from the NL Post to the USPS and that was on December 11. A couple of days ago, Patrick requested an international inquiry with his post office in the Netherlands to get to the bottom of this. So he is really generous when it comes to locating the system, especially in times like these.
Update: I received it in the mail yesterday. The only thing is that you'll need to buy a EU to US plug adapter since Patrick doesn't include them with any of the modded systems he sells.
This is one of the few times where you are completely justified in burning these games. The titles are of poor quality, not worth owning just to be that guy who plays the CD-i, and are most certainly abandonware by this point. Philips-Magnavox or whoever owns the shell of a company that once produced the specifications for this hardware aren't going to litigate because it would cost them more in court fees than they would ever get back, not to mention the licensing hell that would probably have many companies from Nintendo to Tetris Holdings on their ass on top of that.
Also please don't tell me you aren't aware of the best Tetris game ever made being exclusively for the Philips CD-i. If not, you need to pull up a soundtrack video right now.
Not even ironic, the **best Tetris game** ever is for the Philips CD-i.
Philips is still a company with 82.000 employees that from time to time still goes to court over video game patents. I think they sued Nintendo over WiiU and Wii patents or something
One thing people don’t know about copyright law in the US is an unofficial test that’s routinely referenced in cases.
Part of this test involves showing an evidentiary harm that was caused by an alleged violation of their copyright. While I’m not a lawyer, I’d wager it’d be pretty hard to convince a court that thousands, if not millions of dollars, of damages were inflicted on Philips due to piracy of an old computer game that’s been out of print for decades on a system that’s been discontinued ages ago. Even if they try obtaining money for punitive damages and legal costs, it’s just not worth the risk over something that has caused no harm to them at this point.
imo, There’s nothing ethically wrong with pirating software that isn’t available to buy anywhere for a system that isn’t being sold. I can see it being more of a concern if someone is pirating old Nintendo games that are still being provided via the Switch Online subscription, but if the copyright holder hasn’t provided any method to acquire their product from them directly anymore, then what harm is being done if I obtain their product elsewhere? After all, whether I buy it used at that point or pirate it doesn’t impact the copyright holder in any way, so I can’t see them establishing any sort of monetary loss.
Could you link the premodded one in the description?
it's sold by "sellingmycollection78" on ebay.
you see, inside the console there is a tiny little gnome who rides a little bicycle to power the console, when you flick the switch and turn it on, the gnome receives a tiny shock to convince him to move his fucking legs. that scream is merely a cry of joy
Im glad you have that opinion because i actually think i may have had the only decent experience with a CDi. I personally love the console. My first experience was not actually a game, it was a movie i'd picked up and being a fan of odd movie formats i really wanted to check it out. I got my console from the Netherlands for a good price and with heaps of games and accessories. The first unit did not work which i now realise would be the battery but the guy sent me a second unit free and it worked flawlessly...ish. The movie playback quality surprised me. it was not quite DVD but far superior to VHS and could even rival laserdisc. it had some decent games like Myst and some other mouse ones. the controller was fine if you had the game pad, and putting aside the gameplay the game graphics were actually good. somewhere between a SNES and a 3do so on paper back then it should have worked. If they had some killer games we would be up to CDi5 by now
Ooh, the forbidden season!
You can desolder the Timekeeper and install a socket, and it can still be bought cheaply and some still have battery in them. If not, you can do all those modifications on the chip outside of the console, which is much less painful. I have a CD-i 490 that has integrated Digital Video Cartridge (you should cover that also) and doesn't use timekeeper, you can add a battery to two exposed pins.
I also have an adapter that lets you plug megadrive (genesis) controllers into CD-i minidin plugs, there is a schematic available for doing these.
Lastly, the CD-i doesn't have any copy protection, you can burn images without having to buy repros. Here in Europe it is very easy (at least some years ago) to find them very, very cheap but I understand that is expensive for US based people.
Also just want to say I appreciate the honest warnings. I've seen so many people, charmed into getting some piece of retrotech and its just totally busted with no hope of fixing it.
Not that I was planning on getting a CD-i
I appreciate you taking the time to help document things a little bit more in video form. That's the interesting thing about a lot of these consoles: with so little adoption, they are scarce. Hence they often tend to have rather rudimentary emulation compared to more successful systems. And even stuff from newer generations that have become retro, like the PS2, have only become more complicated due to massive technological advances, more complex design associated with it, and reverse engineer. Nevermind reimplementing that in software, or even hardware, that stuff to run that software on devices they were never originally designed for. Certainly not impossible, but challenging nonetheless. While something like the NES has been reverse engineered, documented, and so well understood to the point that people are making FPGA-based systems like the mister, where its core for the NES is basically 100% accurate to the real hardware, others aren't. They do get closer every day, but it's very challenging with these systems that didn't see much commercial success.
The CDi is super interesting from a historical perspective. It's like seeing what consoles, and even personal computers, would become. Very ambitious, but too early and, ultimately, poorly designed regarding the gaming aspect (at least the controllers). In a time where CDs were brand-spanking new and very expensive (disc and disc reader, nevermind a burner), it must have been ground-breaking and very ambitious for its time. Now fully-fledged multimedia devices are cheap, normal, and everywhere in a multitude of forms.
The battery chip thing for the CDi reminds me of what people would see on some classic macintosh systems. A lot of them function just fine without the pram battery, but there are some systems that straight-up don't boot without one.
Never understood this "limitation" with hiding a goddamn flat battery INSIDE a chip just nobody could replace it if it went bad as how most of this things usually do, specially with tech related stuff, changing the CMOS battery on a PC is relatively easy if you know what you are doing and anybody can do it if they had changed a battery like this before in a toy or a flashlight.
It could had been far more easier if they did the exact same setup for that thing in particular than a regular Mobo for a PC has, specially knowing that this was a console that was mass produced by different companies, so not giving the chance for the customer to fix, change or even preserve its own device they brought is far beyond my comprehension, specially with silly stuff like a battery for managing saves and stuff more when its something that you can go to a warehouse store and buy a couple of those for very cheap.
But no, big brain time "put that inside a chip so it goes bad and bricks the entire thing, then the suckers will have to go with us to fix it for a very high price or just buy a new one! genius!"
Probably one of the designers saw this part on the catalog and thought it would save some space on the board and figured the customer would've probably upgraded out of it by the time the battery died anyway. Still, wish they would've at least socketed the chip or something since it's not surface mount anyway and it looks like you can still get hold if this chip if you just wanted to desolder it, put in a socket, and swap like for like with an eye toward maybe a replacement thing with some tiny surface mount ram and a proper battery holder that someone whips up some day maybe.
The cd-i feels too much like an old VCR/CD player with a bonus game support which did not have been made with love or care
I just bought a complete in box CDi 370 for 150 euros. Works like a charm and it has an EEPROM memory instead of Dallas battery-based. And it has got a decent LCD screen and controller built-in. Portable CDi for the win!
Can't wait for that "Flowers of Robert Mapplethorpe" review, which I hope will bring an elegance and verve to my day.
I always found the idea of these consoles holding a ticking time bomb inside them waiting to cause problems decades later to be very fascinating.
Well there’s also the Original Xbox and the clock capacitor, which is used to store time for a few hours after it’s unplugged. However eventually it would leak fluid that could potentially damage the motherboard. Fortunately it’s way easier to replace (or even just remove entirely, which is what I did).
The Varta batteries in some 486 motherboards that spew corrosive compounds and destroy PCBs are much much worse than this, that only requires you to change one chip
@@nathanielcody6769 what’s that?
@@nathanielcody6769 oh, that one.
You might be interested in looking up the CP3 (2?) suicide chip that will eventually render every unmodded Street Fighter 3 cabinet unusable. Even better, the solution involves sacrificing a Sega Saturn.
I’m pretty sure the spoon shaped controller wasn’t meant for games. The CD-I was supposed to have a lot of functions beyond gaming, like in schools and businesses. It was supposed to be more like a computer than a dedicated game system. The spoon controller was actually meant for presentations, like slide shows or videos in a business meeting or a classroom. It wasn’t really meant for games.
The Philips CDI. You'll make it scream. WITH JOY!
I hate to be one of those people leaving a ridiculously long comment but here we are. I'm kind of known for being a CD-I fan and bit of a historian on it. Not how I expected my life to go lol.
I hope this doesn't come off rude but bidding on the cheapest CD-I possible on ebay, or most other electronics, isn't exactly the best idea. I've got a 200 series with a dead battery for years, literally since I've owned it, and aside from it not saving games it plays all games just fine. It had the same embedded battery in a chip but it doesn't need to be replaced. The issues with certain CD-I models (due to time) is pretty well documented. I believe some of the sites you credit throughout the video have details on it. The 3 button Genesis style game of us good if you get one in decent shape. I use a snes to cdi controller adapter and the CD-I mouse cause some games really play best with the mouse.
Did you get the video cartridge for your CD-I? Without it some games can't play or will play with reduced quality. There's some genuinely good games on the CD-I like Thunder in Paradise, Chaos Control, or the beat em up Mutant Rampage Body Slam. There's even a FPS game on the system. Ok the FPS game isn't great but that's more due to bad art direction and kennel design. It actually runs very smoothly. There's also ports of Myst, 7th guest, dragon's lair, several American laser games, I could go on. Also, you can burn any game for the CDI. Archive org site has almost every game available for download.
I'm sorry your CD-I journey got off to be a bad start but a lot of the "pitfalls" that come with a first CD-I purchase are avoidable. I'm on Twitter if you need any help with the CD-I under WrestlesGaming.
amen.
@@nathanielcody6769 There are two versions of the digital video cartridge. The first one has a larger casing and is a 100 pin cartridge that won't fit in the 450. There's a second one made for the smaller second generation of CD-I consoles that's 120 pins and does work on the 450. 22ER9956 is the model of the DVC needed for a 450 CD-I.
@@nathanielcody6769
what adapter?
there is a slot under the left top cover for the smaller model DVC.
@@einherrjar I think he's under the impression that the DVC doesn't work on the 450 at all. My guess is he or someone he knows tried using the wrong version of the DVC in one. I think he's just using "adapter" as the part of the DVC's name.
The CDi bootup problem related to the battery is fixed the moment you replace the battery. You only make a gamble if you can't use a soldering iron
Looks like a really fun mod to do ngl, but if you don't have the tools or experience I can understand.
I am one of the people who avoided trying to get a CD-i because of these kind of fragilities. Hopefully these can be addressed.
I bought a CD-i because I found the opportunity to get one with games and accessories for super cheap at a pawn shop.
But, I did have to modify the timekeeper chip, adding a CR-2032 coin cell holder and, of course, the battery.
And I've done that to two CD-i units. A bit of a pain to do, but it is definitely doable if you are handy with electronics repair. Otherwise...
Now, normally, if the timekeeper fails, you order a new timekeeper chip and do some circuit board level soldering to remove the dead chip and install the new one, preferably with an IC socket so you could change the timekeeper chip more easily should the need ever arise to replace it again. Needless to say, this isn't something that was intended to be done by the end user; Philips would have expected you to turn the unit in for service, preferably at a shop factory certified by Philips to repair these things. At least the timekeeper isn't proprietary, but it's still not as convenient as, say, changing a dead CR-2032 lithium coin cell in a Sega Saturn.
And, yes, a CD-i system does require a properly functioning timekeeper to work like it's supposed to. A dead timekeeper will cause all kinds of weird issues that can get in the way of using the system. I experienced such issues myself, which was why I had to replace the timekeeper battery in my CD-i system.
Now, do I use it? I kind of want to, yet not really. I only have a couple of games where I have any interest of playing: "The 7th Guest" and "Secret Mission." But, I'm more interested in playing "Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past" on my SNES.
EDIT: A friend of mine got a broken CD-i for free when he did volunteer work at a thrift store. It worked, but of course the timekeeper was dead. I replaced the battery, but in the process of doing so, I accidentally destroyed the chip's 32.768 kHz quartz crystal oscillator on the other half side of the chip. Whoops! Fortunately I was able to replace it with a new oscillator and now the timekeeper works again. It's kind of like replacing the battery as the other end of the chip has two leads for the oscillator. Polarity isn't important: just solder in the oscillator.
The oscillator is important for the timekeeper as that is what helps the chip to run its internal clock to keep the time and date. Without the oscillator, the RAM will save the time, date, and data, but the clock will not run when the system is turned off. Example: if you turn the system power off at 12:30 PM, the clock will stay at 12:30 PM until you turn the system back on, whereupon the clock will run off of the system's own oscillator instead of the timekeeper's oscillator.
This may not seem like a big deal, but there is a possibility the system won't run properly without a fully working timekeeper.
As I was watching this, I found a seller on eBay who's not screwing around with this issue and is offering a modified CD-i. I'm not planning on buying it since, among other reasons, it goes for quite a bit, but I added the listing and even the seller to my watchlist. Even so, I have Jeopardy! for the CD-i and preordered the upcoming system Polymega. Although Polymega won't support the CD-i upon launch and I can't say for sure whether or not it ever will, I wouldn't be surprised if it does so later on.
we're gonna have a party in the mediterranean sea
I’ll tell you I, at least, am looking forward to it. Had a CD-i growing up as a kid, and while I also had a Genesis at the time, I never had that many games for it, so I ended up playing quite a bit on the CD-i as well. It was my first exposure to Zelda, actually.
Regardless of the quality of the games, I have a lot of nostalgia for the thing. Especially since it’s the only gaming machine we ever owned that my parents managed to pry out of my hands long enough to get rid of.
Ouch dude. Came here on a whim because after watching the wand of Gamilon on AGDQ I get recommended things about CD-i Zelda things and this was one video down the rabbit hole.
I'm going to sub to you dude, best of luck!
It's funny how infamous these consoles are, but no one knows a thing about them. All we know is pretty much the same things James Rolfe put up in his AVGN video.
I have the same CD-i as you (the console looking CD-i that was released around 1994). While the time keeper chip does NOT work, the console still works 100% after all of these years. In regards to CD-i's that do NOT work when the time keeper chip stops working, those are SOME of the OLDER CD-i models (SOME, not all, but some of the ones that look like a VCR released around 1991). Just wanted to mention this information. Also, that wand controller is NOT meant for video games, it's meant for the multi-media software. The CD-i that looks like a console (the one you and I have) came with the Sega Genesis looking CD-i controller since that version of the CD-i, released around 1994, was marketed towards gamers, NOT like the older VCR CD-i's that were marketed as multi-media devices. That seller throwing in that wand controller with that console looking CD-i is very shady since he should have thrown in the Sega Genesis looking CD-i controller instead since that's the controller that came with the console looking CD-i. Most likely that seller decided to sell the Genesis looking controller separately since they sell for good money and stuck you with the horrible wand controller (meant for multi-media purposes and software, NOT for video games) since no one wants it.
Probably 999 out of 1000 people never even saw footage of the Zelda CDi games until they become infamous on the internet, much less those who actually owned and played them. Like one or 2 kids at school had ever even played a CDi. Lots more people knew OF the CDi and these strange Nintendo games, but before widespread video sharing on the internet you might have only seen a few screenshots. And to that one guy who actually owned these games when they were new? I salute you.
Ed: And for what it's worth, you already had my sub but you got my like and notification bell because I feel your pain.
Being a photographer I used the Kodak Photo CD player which is part of the CD-i system. In the mid to late 90s I had many photos archived to Kodak Photo CD. If I'm right my Kodak photo CD demo disc that came with my player would work in these Consoles. I put my Kodak Photo CD demo on my Zhou Tube page for all to see. Mine is the Kodak Portable CD player model# M50.
If you're willing to buy repro CDs, I hope you'll also look into what you'd need to be able run your own burned CDs or otherwise play games you don't own.
(I'm expecting that most people still have an old computer with a CD or DVD burner. Throw in an USB adapter for usually around $10, and you can use them with modern no-optical-drive computers.
Bashing on a “console” 30 years old with “only” a 20 year lifespans … games where an afterthought it was primarily designed for instance for a digital encyclopedia on hand on tv and enhanced cd experience…
Happy New year and great video!
I've been laughing about how bad the CD-i is since 2007, glad in 2021 it's still relevant
I enjoy your channel so much...please don't stop
I’d just take it to my local game store and say “change the battery”
TL;DR:All toasters toast toast, and some CDIs toast games.
I just wanna know what possessed the engineer that designed the thing to decide that putting the battery INSIDE the chip was a good idea to begin with
They are pretty standard chips that were used in PCs and Sun Workstations (that also need them working to boot), if you ever had to repair battery damage from corrosion on a PCB, with this solution at least you only have to change the chip, not do trace level repair jobs.
@@ivandiazalvarez How long do you need to leave a PC unattended for corrosion from the battery to become a problem? You're gonna need to replace it anyway as soon as it stops working, and failing that you need to open the damn thing at least once every year to clean all the dust.
And in the case of a CD player thingy like this you can probably just mount it somewhere where it won't cause so much damage. It still feels like they "solved" a problem by making it more complicated.
@@axelprino I was talking about batteries in old 486 and Pentium machines, that are exactly from the same period as the CD-i, later ones are cr2032 that are much less likely to cause problems. And the batteries in Macs well into the G4 era did ocassionally explode and wipe out the PCB, Timekeepers are no problem in comparison.
@@axelprino some can keep working but start leaking after just a year or 2. So putting it in a chip made sense. Granted modern Bios batteries only very rarely leak, however batteries in the 90's and before LOVED to leak. And lots of motherboards died because of them. It's also why a lot of early 386 to pentium motherboards had battery headers to install a battery pack and cut out the soldered battery as they made the system less likely to kill itself at the cost of cost and longevity of the bios battery.
Timekeepers aren't an issue, it's like complaining a solution to a problem at that point in time (early 90's) should have used current (as in 2021) technology to solve it. Timekeepers kept the board from being destroyed and are really easy to fix, as you can very easily replace them. Any person that can solder half decently can replace them and the average consumer isn't exactly going to muck about in the internals of a, at the time, expensive machine.
i purchased my cdi around 5 months ago, got a 210 model, controller and wires with dvc cartridge installed for stupid cheap. the seller specifically said theyd only ever played cds on it. knowing all that i went for it and it works perfectly. the idea that if its never played game software on it previously makes the dead battery not brick the system is probably the correct one. However i agree that the issues present with it are really not publicized and honestly its worrying that there is hardly anything out there on them. i may have gotten lucky, but it was exactly that: lucky.
My next door neighbor had one when it came out. We as kids weren't allowed to touch it. I never knew what it could do, I just watched it sitting there under his tv. I always wanted one for myself, my parents were too poor. Afterwards I forgot about the system
You can also buy replacement timekeeper chips for the CD-i. Which will require a lot of soldering. Looking at one of the pictures in the video it does look like some CD-is have a socketed timekeeper chip. I actually have a LG GDI-700M and it does not use a timekeeper chip. It uses a coin cell battery (forget which one) It isn't in a holder though, it is soldered on. It also has the Digital Video Cartridge hardware built in so there's no need to go hunting for one of those if you have the GDI-700M.
I remember renting a CD-I when it was new, and I can honestly say the flashback port was pretty decent, i think the system was very similar to the sega cd, just they focused too much on fmv....
ethernet DC is probably due to phillips using a serial RS485 interface to power its power supply unit, quite archaic and more in line with commercial PDAs
IIRC these batteries are typical Dallas (the company) ones, which are still produced, so you can buy new ones to replace the old with. Given that, it would seem more appealing to me to desolder the old battery, solder in a socket, and place the new battery in the socket.
I mean, "more appealing" in the same way that having a bad cold is more appealing than contracting COVID-19, but y'know, I feel a *bit* more comfortable with a soldering iron and some wick than a saw.
7:35 The vengabus is coming, and everybody's jumping 👁️👄👁️
I own 3 (210, 450, 470) and did all maintenance etc. timekeepers chips and everything works as should. It sits proudly next to my cd32 and 3do 😵💫
Good luck on your future CD-I endeavors. This is the stuff I subscribed for.
I luckily picked up the gold star model for $5 or so at a Goodwill several years ago. I did play some audio cd’s in it, but I have never bothered getting any games for it. Good video, and good info for potential collectors!
Video: Dont risk buying a phillips CDi
Me (prior to watching this video): Never planned on it anyways
The first thing that came to mind when i saw this video on my TH-cam feed was that you were considering doing a console library video for the CDI, but then i realized how painful of a task that would be.
A buddy of mine found one in the trash, with all Zelda and Mario games, and a golf and *Pron* game too. At first it didn't work, but after decharging it from build up electricity, it finally worked. (Held down power for 30 sec. without the power cord plugged in.
I've got a Philips CD-i and I've only played it once to try out the lost "Super Mario's Wacky Worlds" game. Playing a "console" with a controller that feels like you're navigating through a DVD menu doesn't work properly.
not liking the title of this video as it seems like telling someone what to do rather than the risks of buying a cdi console
the internet don't need more dads telling adults what to do with their money
Level 42?! haha mark king's the man
...and as for the CD-I Video CD cartridge (some consoles have the Video CD built in) and the Video CD movies for the CD-I... Well, we usually stick with DVD and Blu-ray...
Played the golf game at Sears every time I went to the mall back when it came out. Enjoyed it.
Hard to believe that if the Nerd waited too many years he would never have been able to do his timeless CD-I reviews.
Hey Framerater relating to that thing you said about not being able to keep save games on the cdi there is a option for that by using some cables and adapters from retro stuff going into detail about a software called Philips cd interlink which allows you to transfer and store cdi save games from your cdi to your computer with some cables and adapters from retro stuff's website.
Dancing outro Shantae still does unspeakable things to me
While that may be the only console with that chip problem, there are some vintage computer systems from the late 80s/very early 90s with that same issue. I have a Tandy system that has an "all-in-one" Dallas DS1287 Real Time Clock Chip and the solution is the same as here, dremel out half the thing, and install one of those CMOS battery holders.
I had a CD-I , only game I remember playing was Space Ace , I had more fun with my Jaguar . What a garbage system
From Don Bluth, who also made Dragon's Lair. Great to look at, but absolutely awful to play. Also required the rather expensive optional Video Cartridge to be installed.
Damn you had a CD-I and a Jaguar?
@@eliotisconfusedaboutyourpa8105 i was thinking the same
I got my CD-i from a old teacher of mine.. he just gave it to me , with a controller
I don't know if you should be happy or mad about the gift...
@@Game_Hero makes a good cd player 😁
Not to mention that most cdi models didn't come with the dvc (digital video cartridge) installed. Even if you tracked down a dvc it may or may not even fit your model.
So which version by which manufacturer is considered the best CDI?
I once bought a CD-i by accident because the B&O Beocenter AV5 has one built in. I just wanted the TV and didn't know about all of it's features.
The Philips CDi problems aren’t problems for me. My modding friend is conveniently located in the United States and he modded the timekeeper battery to be accessible so I can change it whenever needed. It’s no longer an issue. Also he modded the system for RGB and it’s never looked so amazing.
I have a cd-i and the battery is dead...I can't longer save. It is an issue for two games mostly: Hotel Mario and Burn Cycle and ohh 7th guest.
However, some of my top game require a password such as
Inca
FLashback
Lemmings
L'ange et le Demon
Chaos Control is short so I might get it (same for arcade classics and The Apprentice)
I might get a few cd-i movies
0:49 ah yes i remember playing Thriller on the CDi.