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Handheld game console
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<p>A handheld game console, or simply handheld console, is a small, portable self-contained <a href="/facts/Video_game_console/K72D1NSS">video game console</a> with a built-in screen, game controls and speakers. Handheld game consoles are smaller than <a href="/facts/Home_video_game_console/zP1RTC84">home video game consoles</a> and contain the console, screen, speakers, and controls in one unit, allowing players to carry them and play them at any time or place. </p><p>In 1976, <a href="/facts/Mattel/WM3blRN4">Mattel</a> introduced the first <a href="/facts/Handheld_electronic_game/LTnxWIhf">handheld electronic game</a> with the release of <i><a href="/facts/Mattel_Auto_Race/j6s1bdsG">Auto Race</a></i>. Later, several companies—including <a href="/facts/Coleco/e0PekMbB">Coleco</a> and <a href="/facts/Milton_Bradley_Company/ws51eMfQ">Milton Bradley</a>—made their own single-game, lightweight table-top or handheld electronic game devices. The first commercially successful handheld console was <a href="/facts/Merlin_(console)/1pqzA3rQ">Merlin</a> from 1978, which sold more than 5 million units. The first handheld game console with interchangeable <a href="/facts/ROM_cartridge/mWLcNez7">cartridges</a> is the Milton Bradley <a href="/facts/Microvision/lgSwre4D">Microvision</a> in 1979. </p><p><a href="/facts/Nintendo/dMrLpaHu">Nintendo</a> is credited with popularizing the handheld console concept with the release of the <a href="/facts/Game_Boy/GlyN6e2W">Game Boy</a> in 1989 and continues to dominate the handheld console market. The first <a href="/facts/Internet/Xw1rVvJU">internet</a>-enabled handheld console and the first with a <a href="/facts/Touchscreen/zpSKDFpe">touchscreen</a> was the <a href="/facts/Game.com/1n3udwFx">Game.com</a> released by <a href="/facts/Tiger_Electronics/b6WWbfvs">Tiger Electronics</a> in 1997. The <a href="/facts/Nintendo_DS/4uVHPrnp">Nintendo DS</a>, released in 2004, introduced touchscreen controls and <a href="/facts/Wireless/GfDoFwfo">wireless</a> <a href="/facts/Online_game/UH6ItLnW">online gaming</a> to a wider audience, becoming the <a href="/facts/List_of_best-selling_game_consoles/kuTLMx42">best-selling handheld console</a> with over 150 million units sold worldwide. </p>