YouTuber Otto Climan turned a GameBoy Color into an Apple TV remote. Yes, you read correctly. This incredibly cool project was posted about a month ago and shared earlier today by Gizmodo. It is a very good hack that takes advantage of the GameBoy Color’s infrared sensor and set of buttons.
Climan’s custom GameBoy is not just an Apple TV remote, it’s also a modern, super-charged custom laptop. This GameBoy has a new screen with a bright backlight instead of the original dark screen where I would play with a book light.
The custom GameBoy also has a beautiful white box with the classic six-color Apple logo and details that resemble the old Macs. Along with the shiny new screen, your hardware is in a whole new class, even if it looks like an original GameBoy Color. It is a completely different direction from our Apple TV remote control concept that we published a few weeks ago. But, frankly, this is much cooler.
To turn GameBoy Color into an Apple TV remote, Climan had to create a custom cartridge that could run different software. If you don’t already know, games / applications in products like a GameBoy are called ROMs. Climan has developed its own ROM that integrates with the infrared sensor so that it can be recognized by an Apple TV. It also includes software that maps the d-pad and auxiliary buttons to the Apple TV user interface.
Apple maintained support for IR remote controls in the latest versions of Apple TV, although Siri Remote uses Bluetooth for connectivity. I suggest taking a look at Climan’s video below. It’s a fantastic DIY project. What do you think of this Apple TV custom remote?
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