The 2001 Game Boy Advance is the only Game Boy generation with no external power port at all — it runs strictly on two AA batteries and Nintendo never shipped a first-party AC adapter for it. A new GBA-specific link cable port replaces the smaller Pocket/Color port and is physically and electrically incompatible with both earlier link cables. A 3.5mm stereo headphone jack on the bottom is famously the last GBA-line handheld to include one — the GBA SP drops it. The single cartridge slot accepts both GBA cartridges and (via legacy mode) every original Game Boy and Game Boy Color cart.
2001 Game Boy Advance with the new GBA link cable port, 3.5mm stereo headphones, and a dual-format cartridge slot for GBA + GB/GBC carts.
Device Information
- Manufacturer
- Nintendo
- Release Year
- 2001
- Model Number
- AGB-001
- Category
- Gaming Handheld
Available Ports
| Connector | Quantity | Label | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nintendo Game Boy Advance Link Cable Port | 1 | EXT (top) | New GBA-specific link cable port (AGB-005 cable). Physically incompatible with both the DMG and MGB/CGB link cables. |
| 3.5mm TRS (Stereo Audio) | 1 | PHONES (bottom) | Stereo headphone output. The GBA is the last Game Boy line handheld with a standard 3.5mm jack — Game Boy Advance SP requires an adapter dongle. |
Notes & Compatibility
Battery: 2× AA (~15 hours). No external power port — the original GBA is the only handheld in the Game Boy line that requires batteries. The GBA link cable port (AGB-005 cable) is a different physical connector from both the DMG and MGB/CGB link ports; legacy link cables do not fit. Cartridge slot is dual-mode: GBA games run natively in 32-bit mode, GB/GBC carts run in 8-bit legacy mode. Uses a proprietary cartridge slot not yet in the database — placeholder name for the post-batch connector-creation pass.
