IPS Ready Upgraded eXtremeRate Clear Atomic Purple Custom Replacement Housing Shell for Gameboy Advance SP GBA SP – Compatible with Both IPS & Standard LCD – Console & Screen NOT Included

ExtremeRate has done it again. Every single product I have purchased from them has been spot on in quality, value, and aesthetics and this one was no different. I cannot tell you how many different GBA SP shells I’ve tried from various sellers and they all felt cheap, light, and creaky. They never felt as good as the OEM shell and the pieces didn’t fit together perfectly. This feels as good if not better than the OEM shell and is drop dead gorgeous. It’s subtly transparent so you can see the internal PCB but the she’ll still has a durable matte finish that feels premium in the hand. This shell is rock solid. I personally recommend getting the Torx screws from Handheld Legend as they are better quality and won’t strip as easily as the ones in this kit but the included screwdrivers are good enough to not strip the default ones if you’re careful. Stunned at how premium this shell is given the price and cannot recommend this brand enough.

Ok so the shell itself looks and feels amazing, as good or better than OEM to me. Also bought a set of the aftermarket buttons which feel the same as well, no complaints in look or feel and i havent seen a blemish or crack yet. Took maybe an hour to get it all torn apart and put back together.Now for the annoyances. The drivers they send are cheap so if you have your own set of tri-wing/phillips mini drivers great or were looking for an excuse to buy a set, this is it.Screws - use the OEM ones if you can. As you disassemble your OEM shell, soak the OEM screws in 91% ISPA and if they need a good scrub add some coarse salt and shake vigorously. The OEM screws and the replacememts look pretty much exactly the same so it wont matter.Thread holes - NOT PRE-THREADED. So before you try to assemble the shell, watch a tutorial and as theyre putting it together use the right screws and SLOWLY pre-thread each hole about 3/4 of the way down. This will not only save you time and headache but will also help keep the holes from stripping or the shell from cracking. Once youve got all of the holes pre-threaded then you can go back and start putting parts in and assembling the SP.As you reassemble - DO NOT CRANK DOWN THESE SCREWS!!!!!!!!! FINGER TIGHT!!!!! Turn with 2 fingers until the screws stops and that should be plenty, if you over tighten these screws will strip the housing or worse crack it.The foam pad that comes with it to keep the back of the screen from touching the case is also slightly to thigh but theres nothing you can really do about that. Pre-thread the screw holes, then line up the screen and foam pad, put the to top halfs together but dont SQUEEZE them hard; then put in the screws in a star pattern to close the shell halves evenly and itll compress the foam pad enough and the shell will close nicely and eventually the very slight buldge from the foam will go down as it compresses.Over all its a great shell and im deff going to be buying one for my GBC also.

Nice shell looks great. Feels solid.Its a nice matte blue but has a slight gloss feel.Its not a bad feel but I prefer a more matte feel

Just as with any review I want to preface this by saying I use my own tools and I generally use all the original OEM screws where possible.I have been modding multiple systems over the past year and I greatly enjoyed the quality of the shells that ExtremeRate has to offer (just wish that they offered an olive/swamp clear green color for the Rayquaza shell inserts) for both the GBA SP and the NDSL (I have reviewed those housings on Amazon as well). They're without a doubt one of the first names a recommend for reviving old consoles such as these. They're not only mod friendly (IPS ready) but they're also engineered well. Id go as far as saying theyre better than OEM shells (manufacturers have come a long ways since the GBA SP days). They have good tolerances which allow for a snappy, fresh out of the factory feel. A lot of shells out there just don't feel as tactile as these ones. When it really boils down to it, I am not sure you can this high of quality for this low of a price.Now onto the three I have bought, the two transparent ones are by far my favorite. The ABS material and finish make these not only feel good to the touch but also make them very wear resistant. The color of these two shells was just about what you'd expect from the photos. The only thing I'd say they should change is the "Emerald Green" is much more a sea green color (which my wife loved). However if they did make a shell that was the same color as the Pokémon Emerald color, I'd throw my money at them without hesitation.Now onto the golden boy. I have to say, I loved it for about a month and then the fingerprint magnet finish began to bother me a bit. If you simply want this as a display piece, this is the shell for you. Otherwise you may want to keep a polishing cloth nearby (in my case with in the carrying container I stored it in). There is nothing wrong with the functionality of the shell in fact it was just as good performance wise as the other two.I know this could be a topic that some might be curious about so here's my thought on the buttons that came with these kits. They're possibly the best buttons I have ever installed on a gaming device in years. They're very durable and they also fit excellent. I even bought some for a cheap Rayquaza shell I bought on Amazon because the Rayquaza shell buttons where smaller than the OEM. I'd highly recommend the membranes and buttons that come with these kits.The only troubles I had with the kits were the quality of the screws. I'd love to pay a few more dollars just to have better screws. The Philips heads screws were not honestly bad but the tri-wing screws were abysmal. This is one of those moments I'd recommend using the OEM hardware or if ExtremeRate wants to improve these kits just simply including all Philips head screws with the correct length and pitch.