| Red Jade | |
| Developer: | Red Jade |
| Manufacturer: | Ericsson |
| Type: | Handheld game console |
| Generation: | Sixth generation of video game consoles |
| Release Date: | ~2002 (Planned) |
| Lifespan: | Cancelled |
| Price: | Between $100 and $300 |
| Discontinued: | April 2001 |
| Media: | Digital distribution |
| Power: | Integrated rechargeable battery. |
| Cpu: | 32-bit or 64-bit MIPS architecture processor |
| Display: | Reflective TFT (Non backlit) |
| Graphics: | Custom chipset |
| Sound: | Stereo |
| Connectivity: | Bluetooth 900 MHz or 2.4 GHz wireless Cellular (optional) |
The Red Jade was Ericsson's unreleased handheld console, intended to compete with the Game Boy Advance.
Fredrik Liljegren founded Red Jade as a startup company[1] in February 2000. The startup included other notable developers such as RJ Mical.[2] [3] Originally the developing team for the Red Jade approached Sony and Sega as potential partners but both declined.[4] Ericsson decided to invest US$10 million in the Red Jade,[4] It was to be released by Christmas season 2002[1] and would have retailed for $150.
When overall sales plummeted, Ericsson cancelled the Red Jade before production in April 2001 and cut 22,000 employees to help minimize losses.[4] The collapse of the Dot-com bubble left the startup in a position where it was unable to find other investors to continue development.[1] The number of existing prototype units is unclear along with possibility of games made for them. Quake III Arena was said to have received a port.[5] Ericsson's mobile phone division later divested into joint venture with Sony and rebranded as Sony Ericsson, until Sony acquired Ericsson's share and became Sony Mobile Communications. In 2006 Red Jade as a company would be restarted by Liliegreen to operate as a game development studio.[1] [6]
The Red Jade which was supposed to have PDA functions, wireless connectability, DivX movies, cell phone capabilities, a GPS server, MP3 audio playback, a web browser, the ability to download games from the website, game sharing utilizing Bluetooth technology, and graphics equivalent to the PlayStation or Nintendo 64.
The system used a 32-bit or 64-bit MIPS architecture processor[7] 3D polygon graphics[4] were said to possibly be handled by an NVIDIA chipset.[5] Graphics were displayed on a TFT LCD that supported 65536 colors. The system used multi-channel PCM audio. Bluetooth technology enabled wireless communication between 2 or more machines[4] The system was powered by a Lithium-ion battery