Specification Comparison
NES Comparison
This section is a feature by feature comparison with the NES. This is just for interesting context and for a friendly comparison with the system that inspired the creation of NerdConsole so many years later. This is not intended to be a competition with a system from over 35 years ago because, well, that would be silly.
This comparison is with the USA (NTSC) version of the Nintendo Entertainment System. The specs below for both systems are for the "base" system without using cartridges with special enhancement chips or other hardware expansions to extend the system's capabilities.
| Specification | NES | NerdConsole |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Chip | 6502 (RP2A03) | 6502 (65C02) |
| CPU Clock | 1.789773 Mhz | 6.00 Mhz |
| Main RAM Amount | 2 KB | 528 KB |
| PPU Chip | NES PPU (RP2C02) | Raspberry Pi (3A+) |
| PPU Clock | 5.369318 Mhz | 1.20 Ghz |
| Pixel Clock | 21.477272 Mhz | n/a |
| Pixel Output | Composite (NTSC) | HDMI |
| Pixel Real Resolution α | 256x256 | 1920x1080 |
| Pixel Scale Factor α | 1x1 | 4x4 |
| Screen Resolution | 256x240 | 256x256 |
| Screen Refresh Rate | 60 hz | 60 hz |
| Screen Size | 32x30 tiles | 32x32 tiles |
| Main Name Table Area | 2x1 or 1x2 screens | 2x2 screens |
| Main Name Table Tiles | 64x30 or 32x60 tiles | 64x64 tiles |
| Fixed Name Table Area | n/a | 1 screen |
| Fixed Name Table Tiles | n/a | 32x32 tiles |
| Attribute Table Size | 16x15 | 64x64 |
| Palette Colors Available β | 52 | 16,777,216 |
| Color Type β | Fixed Palette | 24-bit RGB888 |
| Max Colors on Screen β | 24 | 496 |
| Per Sub-Palette Colors β | 4 | 16 |
| Background Sub-Palettes β | 4 | 16 |
| Sprite Sub-Palettes β | 4 | 16 |
| Total Sub-Palettes β | 8 | 32 |
| Total Active Palette Colors | 32 | 512 |
| Background Max Tile Colors β | 4 | 16 |
| Sprite Max Tile Colors β | 3 | 15 |
| Background Tile Table Size β | 256 | 256 |
| Sprite Tile Table Size β | 256 | 256 |
| Background Tile Tables | 1 | 4 |
| Sprite Tile Tables | 1 | 4 |
| Tile Resolution | 8x8 or 8x16 pixels | 8x8 pixels |
| Tile Bit Depth (Layers) β | 2 | 4 |
| Tile Bytes β | 16 | 32 |
| Sprite Size | 8x8 or 8x16 pixels | 8x8 pixels |
| Max Sprites | 64 or 32 | 256 |
| Max Sprites per Scanline | 8 | 256 |
| Background Scrolling | 1 axis (Horz or Vert) | 2 axis (Horz and/or Vert) |
| Background Transparency | Yes | Yes |
| Background Tile Mirror | No | Yes |
| Background Tile Flip | No | Yes |
| Background Color Rotate | No | Yes |
| Sprite Transparency | Yes | Yes |
| Sprite Tile Mirror | Yes | Yes |
| Sprite Tile Flip | Yes | Yes |
| Sprite Color Rotate | No | Yes |
| Sprite Depth Layers | Over or Under Background | Over or Under Background |
| Cartridge Pins | 72 | 44 |
| Cartridge ROM Layout | PRG/CHR | Unified Storage |
| Cartridge Standard Size | Up to 40 KB | Up to 8,192 KB |
| Cartridge Program Space | Up to 32 KB | Up to 8,192 KB |
| Cartridge Graphics Space | Up to 8 KB | Up to 8,192 KB |
| Cartridge Save Support | Yes | Yes |
| Audio Chip | RP2A03 (in CPU) | YM-3812 (OPL2) |
| Audio Channels | Mono | Mono |
| Audio Simultaneous Notes | 5 | 9 |
| Audio PCM Support | Yes (1-bit) | No |
| Controller Ports | 2 | 2 |
| Controller Buttons | 8 | 12 |
| Expansion Port | Yes | No |
| Expansion System | CPU Integrated | n/a |
α Standard expected HDMI output resolution for NerdConsole is Full HD (1920x1080). Other display resolutions are supported and change these values.
β Value shown for NerdConsole is for the standard "High" graphics mode ($03). Several other graphics modes are available that change these values.
