The Sega Nomad was first released in October of 1995 and for fans of the Sega Genesis, it was a wonderful albeit flawed handheld that let you play your entire collection on the go. Although the system would only survive for four years and was discontinued in 1999, it was well ahead of its time, emulating the same combination of home console performance and handheld portability of modern systems like the Nintendo Switch. Due to its overwhelming power and fantastic concept, the Sega Nomad has always been a prime candidate for post-market modification. Today, we’re taking a look at the best Sega Nomad mod to ever exist and breaking down everything it adds to this amazing handheld!
"Either way, once you have the mod installed, your Sega Nomad will have a flurry of new and exciting features."
The Best Sega Nomad Mod Breakdown
When it comes to all-in-one hardware mods for the Sega Nomad, Japanese creator EndoOleg has arguably created the best of the bunch. The kit offers everything you need to upgrade your Sega Nomad to the next level, offering better image quality, faster performance, and much more. Admittedly, the mod takes a bit of skill to install, so if you plan on performing this mod on your system, be sure to check out our full video on the best Sega Nomad mod ever. The video also contains a performance analysis from Bob at RetroRGB, so you can see how the Sega Nomad performs both before and after the mod is applied.
Either way, once you have the mod installed, your Sega Nomad will have a flurry of new and exciting features. For starters, several aspects of the hardware have been modified, including the power switch which now allows you to perform a soft console reset. Also, the internal battery has been replaced with a shiny new 3200MAH lithium battery, which can be recharged via USB. The console’s audio has also gotten a boost, sounding clearer and less fuzzy than before. Further audio options are available thanks to a new rocker switch, which allows you to easily adjust or mute the in-game audio at any time.
The biggest advantage of EndoOleg’s Sega Nomad mod can be found through the brightness rocker switch, which when pressed in, opens an on-screen display with access to a slew of additional mods. On this screen, you can switch between NTSC and PAL video outputs, enable video filters, change the in-game language, and more. Best of all, you can now overclock the internal processor from 7MHz to 10MHz, making the Sega Nomad even more powerful. You can even enable a feature that displays various Sega quotes at the bottom of the screen during boot-up. Thanks to the built-in software update feature, any future improvements to the mod can be added with ease.
Pros and Cons of the EndoOleg Sega Nomad Mod
Simply put, EndoOleg’s Sega Nomad mod is an absolutely fantastic way to enhance your handheld, but it’s not completely flawless. Before we get into the negatives though, let’s recap what makes the mod so great. The brand new LCD screen taps directly into the RGB signal and displays crisp visuals with very little static, making it one of the best screen mods available. The internal battery offers up to four hours of playtime, and with the ability to recharge via USB, it’s much easier than using a bulky backup battery. Combined with the upgraded audio and slew of small touches, these features make EndoOleg’s Sega Nomad kit a titan of after-market mods.
That said, there are still a few downsides to the mod. If you want to install all the optional features included in the kit, the process is pretty difficult and will require experience with soldering. Additionally, the mod is pretty expensive, running around $200 for the entire kit. Even if you just want to use it as a drop-in IPS solution, you’ll have to buy the whole bundle. Finally, while you can play Sega Megadrive games using additional mods, Sega CD games are not supported as of yet.
Despite these small issues, EndoOleg’s Sega Nomad mod is easily the most robust and satisfying mod we’ve seen for Sega’s beastly handheld. It takes a two-decade-old console and turns it into a nostalgic dream for fans of the 16-bit era. With plenty of promised updates coming in the future, we’re confident that this mod will only become more worthwhile as improvements are made. Overall, if you are still holding onto your Sega Nomad and want to unlock its true potential, you should consider installing this amazing mod.
