Milton Bradley

The Microvision (also known as the Milton Bradley Microvision or MB Microvision) is the first handheld game console that used interchangeable cartridges and in this sense is reprogrammable. It was released by the Milton Bradley Company in November 1979 for a retail price of $49.99.

The Microvision was designed by Jay Smith, the engineer who would later design the Vectrex video game console. The Microvision's combination of portability and cartridge-based system (it uses a Texas Instruments CHIP TMS1100 aka MP xxxxx) led to moderate success, with Smith Engineering grossing $15 million in the system's first year of release. However, very few cartridges, a small screen, and a lack of support from established home video game companies led to its demise in 1981. According to Satoru Okada, Nintendo's former head of R&D1, the Microvision gave birth to the Game Boy , the sequel to Game & Watch, after Nintendo designed with the Microvision's limitations in mind.