Nintendo · 1991

Used SNES consoles and games

Nintendo launched the Super NES in North America in late summer 1991, a limited run from August 23 and the nationwide release on September 9. Lance Barr at Nintendo of America gave the US model its own boxy case with purple sliding switches, and the very light plastic is why so many have yellowed. About 49.1 million sold worldwide, 23.35 million of them in the Americas, so there are plenty to pick from. The real differences are inside. Every original-size console puts out RGB with the right cable, and the 1CHIP boards from 1995 give the sharpest picture. The 1997 SNS-101 shrank the case but cut the video to composite. US carts have a squared-off shape that keeps Japanese and European games out, and plenty of them save to a coin-cell battery inside the cart.

6 models we cover.