As every Game Boy prior to the Game Boy Light (and up to the GBA SP outside of Japan) had no backlight, the batteries didn’t have to power an illuminated screen which as you can imagine, sucks a lot of power. In 2025, we have many backlit options available for old Game Boys. This can mean that our batteries don’t last as long as they used to when combined with these screen kits. For this reason, various companies, including RetroSix, have released battery packs for old Game Boys that can aid with powering energy sucking IPS displays. The original Game Boy is one of the systems that has new IPS kits available for it, and in turn, companies have produced modern, rechargeable battery packs for the system. Read on for a short review of the RetroSix CleanJuice Game Boy DMG Battery Pack.
Installation
The battery kit itself consists of a black battery unit, a PCB (where the magic happens), and a DMG battery cover with a small hole for the USB-C port to insert. In terms of installation, no soldering is required, and it is a very simple and easy install. What you do is push the battery into the unit, plug it into the PCB, then push the PCB into the unit so that the metal contacts meet the metal contacts of the Game Boy. Then put the battery cover on so that the USB-C lines up with the hole on the cover. To charge, simply insert a USB-C cable into the hole. It is as simple as that. It can be quite a tight squeeze, but it is an easy process. Some battery kits do require soldering, but I always find the non-solder options are far easier and you miss out on nothing.
Performance
I find that the Game Boy DMG has quite a good battery life even when using an IPS screen and no battery mod (as opposed to the Game Boy Pocket, which has a poor battery life). I was finding that I’d get around ten hours of life using 4 batteries and an IPS display. The CleanJuice battery pack is convenient in that you won’t need to be messing about with AA batteries, and to charge, you simply use a USB-C charger that you may have lying around. I find that with the battery kit, I’m getting approaching 20 hours of life from a single charge. I’m using an Everdrive (which is known to sap a lot of power), and I’m still getting almost double the battery life as opposed to using 4 AA batteries.
Conclusion
Overall, the original Game Boy DMG can be made so much nicer with a screen mod, however, it will then sap a lot of battery energy. The CleanJuice Battery Mod by RetroSix can be installed to double your battery life. Even when used in combination with an IPS kit and flash cart, you will get almost 20 hours of battery life from this mod. RetroSix has decided to make this mod solderless, and this feature makes the kit so easy to install. Even a beginner modder can install it. The DMG isn’t the console that most needs a battery mod (I’d say that honor belongs to the Game Boy Pocket), but you won’t be left disappointed with this mod from RetroSix.
BongoBongo123 is an avid Zelda fan who also likes the odd game of Smash. His interests in gaming are broad but he loves a good Metroidvania or action RPGs.