• HomeBoards
  • RulesRules
  • HelpHelp
  • WikiWiki
  • Donate

Author Topic: Review - The Dingoo A330  (Read 109888 times)

omgmog (OP)

  • * Administrator
  • Doesn't sleep.
  • Posts: 787
    • omgmog.net
Review - The Dingoo A330
« on: May 09, 2010, 12:05:08 am »
Note: this is a review of a SAMPLE version of the A330, and any hardware or software configurations presented in this SAMPLE A330 might change in the final model.

If you?re frequently visiting Dingoonity, no-doubt you?ve already got yourself a Dingoo A320.



Dingoo Digital Technology Ltd has released a new revision of their Dingoo A320, called the Dingoo A330.
I won?t be doing much of a software review for the Dingoo A330, as it?s pretty identical to the Dingoo A320 with respect to the native OS and the available homebrew and emulators.

Packaging
The Dingoo A330 came in a similar-sized box to the Dingoo A320. The box contains the following:

  • Dingoo A330 console
  • USB Data/Charge cable
  • A/V Cable
  • USB/Plug adapter
  • Earphones
  • Instruction manual

The various cables came packaged in individual tear-to-open packets - this is much higher quality than the clear plastic wrapping the cables from the A320 came in.

Specification
For the most part the Dingoo A330 specs are identical to the Dingoo A320. The main differences in this new model are the amount of RAM, and the addition of a 2.4ghz wireless controller receiver. The specs follow:

  • CPU: 400MHz Jz4740 Revised Processor and Motherboard
  • RAM: 64MB
  • Storage Capacity: 4GB
  • Display: TFT 2.8" QVGA LCD, 320x240
  • Battery: 1700MAh Lithium ion battery
  • Dimensions: 132?57?15 (length x width x height, in mm)
  • Weight: 120g
  • Internal 2.4GHz Receiver Module, supports 2.4GHz wireless controller

The LCD screen seems more colourful, and is definitely an improvement over the one found in the Dingoo A320. The Dingoo A330 is using the same IL9331 LCD Controller as found in newer versions of the Dingoo A320.
The Dingoo A330 has a near identical IO/button layout to the Dingoo A320, with some nice differences. These can mostly be seen as enhancements:

  • Speakers moved to back of unit
  • Shoulder buttons easier to press, more like psp triggers than buttons
  • Buttons on unit are now clear plastic with labels on underside
  • Features a wrist-strap loop, which is something the a320 missed
  • The usb port is now a standard mini-usb connection, so the usb cable fits better than with the a320

Along with these improvements come a host of problems however:

  • The new location of the speakers means that they get blocked by hands when holding the unit
  • The reset button still requires a pin or something to press it
  • The buttons are quite sticky to press, and often feel like they might get stuck
  • D-pad/buttons aren?t very springy
  • Still no dedicated volume switch, instead relying on volume control via software as with the A320

The Dingoo A330 is pretty much the same size as the Dingoo A320. The left/right edges are now curved so that they fit more ergonomically into your hands, and the back side of each end is slightly thicker, again adding to the ergonomics.
Unlike the Dingoo A320, the plastic ?nubs? covering the screw holes on the back of the unit seem quite firmly secured















Look wise, as noted by many people, the Dingoo A330 resembles a PSP in its aesthetics, but that?s where the similarities between the Dingoo A330 and a PSP end. It would be foolish to consider this a PSP clone.
Below you can see some photos comparing the size of the Dingoo A330 against other handheld devices:










The Wireless Controller
The most notable difference between the Dingoo A320 and the Dingoo A330 is that the Dingoo A330 now has support for a wireless controller.  This controller improves the playability of the Dingoo A330 when connected to a TV via the TV-out mode.



The controller is about the same size as an Xbox 360 controller, and about the same weight as a PS3 controller. It requires 2xAAA batteries.
The controller features:

  • D-pad
  • A, B, X, Y buttons
  • Start/Select buttons
  • L1/L2, R1/R2 buttons
  • Start/select/connect buttons
  • Clickable left/right analogue sticks
  • Wireless connection button
  • On/off switch on the base of the controller

Testing of the controller has revealed that currently the additional controls found on the controller are mapped to existing controls.

The left analogue stick handles d-pad directions, and the right analogue stick handles a/b/x/y buttons. The L1/L2 buttons both function as the left trigger on the Dingoo A330, and the same for the R1/R2 buttons as the right trigger.

Currently the clickable buttons on the analogue sticks do nothing.

On the front of the controller there is a red LED which flashes to indicate that it isn?t connected, and stays on when it is connected.

Connecting the wireless controller to the A330 is as simple as turning the controller on, and pressing the wireless connection button twice.

More photos of the wireless controller follow:










Native OS
The Dingoo A330 features the same native OS 1.2 as the Dingoo A320, with subtle differences including a new menu theme, and a new animated bootscreen. These small changes give the Dingoo A330 more polish out of the box than the Dingoo A320 had.





Dingux
Because the Dingoo A330 features the same IL9331 LCD Controller as the Dingoo A320, and the hardware isn?t majorly different, installing Dingux is no problem.

You can follow the guides for installing on the Dingoo A320, but make sure you pick the IL9331 LCD controller.

I've successfully got the Dingoo A330 running a localpack put together by z_man3007, and all apps/games/emulators seem to run just fine.


Update:

I've opened up the Dingoo A330 now, and the F-16 wireless controller, and carried out some memory/cpu/control tests with help from Harteex, Flatmush and Zear.

Internal pictures of the Dingoo A330 and the F-16 Wireless Controller can be found here - http://a330.dingoonity.org/photos/guts/

The CPU - This is still a JZ4740 like in the Dingoo A320, but it seems to be capable of clocking up to 460mhz under Dingux.

The RAM - There are physically 64MB of RAM in the Dingoo A330, but it's not all being utilised right now. The native firmware is only using 32MB.

The wireless controller - The wireless controller is just an additional wireless daughterboard attached to the mainboard in the Dingoo A330, with a corresponding daughterboard inside the control. There is nothing spectacular about the controller, it might just be a rebranded third-party PS2 controller.

The TV chip - This is the same as in the Dingoo A320, so any improvements made to the TV-out capabilities will be purely done in software. As this firmware is the same as the Dingoo A320, I doubt these improvements have been made yet.

We're actively discussing this in the #Dingoonity channel on Freenode, if you want to join us - http://webchat.freenode.net/?channels=dingoonity
« Last Edit: May 09, 2010, 06:44:34 pm by omgmog »

X-kunio

  • Posts: 56
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #1 on: May 09, 2010, 01:43:53 am »
woo,dingoo a330,it looks like psp,and I wonder when it will be selled :)

jkd

  • Posts: 23
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #2 on: May 09, 2010, 01:50:58 am »
The TV-OUT has better resolution?

tiagao_extremo

  • Posts: 756
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #3 on: May 09, 2010, 01:59:07 am »
Nice topic and nice pics. So is there any difference of performance with the 64mb ram? dingux runs fine? especially for mame and psx4all.

DannyBoyTheDude

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #4 on: May 09, 2010, 02:08:27 am »
So, would you recommend this over a Dingoo A320? Why or why not?

omgmog (OP)

  • * Administrator
  • Doesn't sleep.
  • Posts: 787
    • omgmog.net
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #5 on: May 09, 2010, 02:12:36 am »
@X-Kunio - you can preorder the Dingoo A330 from Dingoo-Digital-USA right now - http://dingoo-digital-usa.com/category.sc?categoryId=8

@jkd - unfortunately the tv-out seems to be the same as with the A320

@tiagao_extremo - Dingux runs fine, and dingux apps run fine. Won't see any improvement for apps until the Dingux kernel supports the additional ram. Currently can gain roughly 30mhz more than normal via overclocks though.

@DannyBoyTheDude - if you've already got an A320, stay with that. If you're looking to buy one, buy the A330 -- I can see it being the better option in the long run. It picks up on some of the problems found in the A320 such as the tiny amount of RAM.

jkd

  • Posts: 23
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #6 on: May 09, 2010, 02:37:22 am »
I see disappointed people...  :'(

The World's most expensive 32MB of RAM.
« Last Edit: May 09, 2010, 03:25:44 am by jkd »

RodrigoCard

  • Posts: 314
    • Mac Joystick Apps
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #7 on: May 09, 2010, 03:32:32 am »
TOO BAD there is no wireless transmiter, only a receiver...

Obviously lots of people would buy TWO instead of one if it could have multiplayer

ddragoonss

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #8 on: May 09, 2010, 03:48:46 am »
The World's most expensive 32MB of RAM.


I know most people don't like to open your gadgets but OMGMOG, can you open both(A320, A330) or just the A330 and take some comparison photos?
« Last Edit: May 09, 2010, 03:54:55 am by ddragoonss »

Stephanie

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #9 on: May 09, 2010, 03:51:05 am »
I'm still looking forward to pictures of the insides; I want to see what the new board looks like.

Disappointed though that it's still a jz4740 cpu... my optomism is starting to wane.

kswildside

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #10 on: May 09, 2010, 04:16:45 am »
Actually the 4750 and 4755 both have alot of issues thats why QI-Hardware chose the 4732 for the Ben NanoNote because of the issues that 4750 and 4755 had. So Dingoo-Tech chose to work with what was best and revise the board and processor for better performance.

When your limited with selection and want to stay with the same class x-burst processor so your OS and apps will work your limited to the options you have.

I will be adding a video review to this some time tomorrow during the day....

hi-ban

  • Posts: 889
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #11 on: May 09, 2010, 06:16:52 am »
the Jz4740 is the same processor of the 'HK' a320s, probably a china-only version of the Jz4732 processor of the 'export' a320s (the specs in the manufacturer's site are the same for both processors).

The usb port of the a320 is also a standard mini-usb connector, so no improvement there (there is no need to improve that anyway)...

I also want to see photos of the motherboard, just curious to see if i could fit an a330 inside the case of the a320 (i hate the psp design). The placement of everything seems to be the same of the a320, including reset button, usb/earphone plugs, etc...

Orion4874

  • Posts: 229
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #12 on: May 09, 2010, 06:35:32 am »
Didn't change the reset button and didn't add a dedicated volume control? Too bad, two things I really wanted to see rectified!

rekmk1

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #13 on: May 09, 2010, 06:42:05 am »
i will stick with my a320 the a330 does not do anything vastly different for me to warrant a purchase  :(
so its get a330 if not got a320
great review by the way  ;D
« Last Edit: May 09, 2010, 06:45:34 am by rekmk1 »

kswildside

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #14 on: May 09, 2010, 06:47:36 am »
Hi-Ban 4732 is a standard processor that started in the A320 from November 2008 till about March 2009 at that point it moved to the 4740. As for what the exact difference between the 4732 and 4740 the spec sheets don't say what the difference is...

Better crispier LCD screen

Wirless controller (They are working to get two player working so you can play two player games with two controllers)

Another 32MB ram
« Last Edit: May 09, 2010, 06:55:37 am by dingoo-digital-usa »

thismeinteil

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #15 on: May 09, 2010, 07:22:37 am »
I will most likely be getting this in a few months when I get my summer bonus.  Especially can't wait to see what the devs can do with the revised chip/board and extra Ram.  The only thing I have a REAL problem about is the location of the speakers.  Does it hurt the ability to hear the games greatly?  Also, do the native emulators for SNES and/or Genesis run any better?

10basetom

  • Posts: 288
    • tohodo.com
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #16 on: May 09, 2010, 07:29:18 am »
We need to pick a set of games that are known to play poorly on the A320 (e.g., SNES/Genesis games) and play the same games on the A330 to see if they perform any better. Only then can we get an idea if the changes they made to the motherboard/circuitry actually paid off in REAL WORLD testing.

mrkingoo

  • Posts: 258
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #17 on: May 09, 2010, 08:20:51 am »
Thanks for the nice review omgmog. Concise and informative :)

I m a lil bit disappointed specs are so similar to the A320. But on the other hand it seems to be pretty much 100% backwards compatible with applications and games made for A320? If so much less hassle for developers and you get the full A320 library available from the get go :)


santino

  • Guest
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #18 on: May 09, 2010, 08:52:04 am »
I would definitely buy the LCD. Are there exchange ones? :D

zear

  • * Moderator
  • Posts: 2381
Re: Review - The Dingoo A330
« Reply #19 on: May 09, 2010, 09:36:50 am »
Wirless controller (They are working to get two player working so you can play two player games with two controllers)
I hope they really are.
From tests omgmog did yesterday the wireless gamepad works in dingux, so that would mean the wireless is handled entirely by the hardware, and the OS has no access to it.
The L2/R2 on dingux are still mapped to the same actions as L1/R1, and buttons under the analogs do nothing.

Basing on that facts I would say, that:
* the gamepad cannot be remapped, and is "hardcoded" to run as the first player controller
* we can forget about pairing twoo A330s together, or remap the gamepad to work as a second player controller

If it's entirely driven by the hardware, can Dingoo Tech really add a support for a second player controller in a firmware upgrade?
« Last Edit: May 09, 2010, 09:39:51 am by zear »

 

Post a new topic