by Chris Kantack
(Last updated January 30, 2012)
Have you ever wanted to play a quick game of chess while waiting for your plane at the airport? Perhaps you are a daily bus or rail commuter who would love to play a game en route to or from work. Do you ever find yourself torn between playing a game of chess or going outside and enjoying the sunshine and fresh air of a beautiful day? Handheld chess computers, chess programs for smartphones, portable gaming systems, and tablets make it easy to start or resume a game of chess almost anywhere at anytime. While dedicated handheld chess computers are on the wane, they still can be purchased if you do a bit of searching on the internet. For the new generation of smart phones, gaming units, and tablet computers, there are many good chess programs to choose from. Portable chess can be a lot of fun. Best of all, there are no pieces to lose!
I've owned an iPad for 18 months now and have found it to be a fantastic platform for "chess on the go". Dozens of excellent programs for learning and playing chess are available for both the iPhone and iPad. Currently I have 3 chess programs installed on my own iPad.
Late last year, I installed "Stockfish". Stockfish allows you to set the computer's playing strength from an Elo of 500 to 2500! In my own testing, against other chess computers and programs, Stockfish has proven to be a formidable opponent even against desktop computer programs rated at 2500 and higher! Stockfish can also be used like a regular chess board (you move both sides), and as an analysis tool. Stockfish is optimized to take full advantage of both the iPhone and iPad platforms and Stockfish is completely free! It's one of my favorite iPad chess programs and it gets a lot of playing time in my home. If you own an iPhone or iPad and love chess, you've got nothing to lose by downloading and giving Stockfish a try.
Another chess app I frequently use is Chess.com. This app has several functions available. For example, you can play chess online against other opponents, play against the computer, work on tactics exercises, analyze games, or watch a number of different chess videos prepared by various FIDE, International, and Grandmasters. How much you can do with Chess.com depends on your Chess.com membership level. The free membership level is actually pretty good in that you can play against the computer and do 3 tactical exercises per day. Here's a quick trick though that will give you unlimited tactical exercises. If you turn off your internet access before launching Chess.com, you'll be able to do an unlimited number of tactical exercises. (But you must turn off your internet access before you hit your limit of 3 exercises for the day.)
Chess.com's paid membership options range from "Gold" membership at $5 per month to "Diamond" which costs $14 per month. You can save money if you pay by the year with Gold costing $29/year and Diamond at $99 per year. There's also a "Platinum" level membership at $49 per year, but only Diamond level gives you access to the training videos. I find the free option to be adequate for my needs but I have had an opportunity to sample a number of the training videos (that come with the Diamond membership level) and they are pretty good.
The board graphics in Chess.com are great and the computer opponent comes with a number of options and should be more than adequate for many players. Strong club players, (those rated over 1600), may need to look elsewhere as the computer opponent in Chess.com is not as strong as what you'll find in many other programs. .
"Chess" for the iPhone became available earlier this year. Developed by Christophe Theron, this is a first rate program that serious chess enthusiasts with an Apple iOS device should consider. Though designed specifically with the iPhone in mind, it looks and works well on the iPad too. I especially like "Chess" for two reasons. First, it contains additional features and help screens for players new to the game. It also is one of the best chess programs for "stepping thru" a previously played chess game and/or working on studying variations or "different lines of play". As with Stockfish, "Chess" contains a very wide selection of strength settings. So whether you're an absolute beginner or expert player, you'll find a setting that is right for you. The only downside to this program is its price. At $19.95 this is undoubtedly one of the most expensive chess apps you'll find for the iOS platform. Fortunately there is a lower-cost option "Chess Lite" at $3.99 which (while having a weaker engine) offers a number of the same features as the more expensive version.
If you visit the app store on your iPhone or iPad, you'll find dozens of chess programs available. What I discuss above is just the tip of the iceberg. Feel free to check out a number of programs and send me an email if you find a program that you really like that is not discussed here.
Chess for Android!
If you own an Android phone or tablet, you too have opportunities for playing "chess on the go"! Two excellent chess programs, ChessGenius and Stockfish are now available for Android devices. A very popular website/chess app, "Chess.com" can also be loaded onto Android phones.
Are you a member of the Internet Chess Club (ICC)? If so, check out their Android app.
Don't forget to check out the Android Market for chess apps such as "Chess Free".
Much of the rest of the material on this page was written 5 to 10 years ago. It covers some of the dedicated chess handheld computers that were available then. In general, the dedicated chess units tend to have screens that work well outdoors or in other brightly lit environments, but provide poor visibility indoors in comparison to a modern smartphone or tablet. You can still find several of the models mentioned below for sale at various retailers on the internet. Be careful when shopping for older chess computers handheld or otherwise. Prices for the same model can vary dramatically from one place to the next. For some hard-to-find models you may end up purchasing your dedicated chess computer from smaller (less well-known) retailers or individuals.
Probably the first widely available handheld LCD chess program was the ChessMaster cartridge for the original Nintendo GameBoy. It was quite successful and when the Color GameBoy was introduced, a newer version of GameBoy ChessMaster soon followed. As for program strength, I’d give the color cartridge a rating of around 1700 to 1800 Elo when played at classical tournament time controls (40 moves in 2 hours). Unfortunately, the GameBoy suffers from a too small and murky display for many people to comfortably use for long periods of time. Also, it is extremely difficult to save a game for future play. (Saving and retrieval of a previously saved game requires the entry of a ridiculously long and cryptic password!) Additionally, the GameBoy suffers from very short battery life. Long games are best done with an AC adapter attached. This defeats the portability aspect of the unit. Finally, because the original GameBoy ChessMaster cartridges are no longer being manufactured, they are becoming extremely hard to find. Your best bet for locating a cartridge is at an internet auction site such as Ebay. You can learn a lot more about GameBoy ChessMaster on a web page where I’ve compared it with the Excalibur LCD handheld unit. Just click on this link: LCD Chess versus GameBoy ChessMaster
With the debut of the GameBoy Advance in 2001, Ubisoft released a version of ChessMaster for the GBA (Game Boy Advance) . Around the same time a company called Titus released Virtual Kasparov for the GBA. I have no experience with either program but did receive a letter from Eric Fauman that summarizes the characteristics of these two programs:
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I'm not a very strong chess player (completely guessing, I'm
around 1200-1300), but I've recently returned to chess study as my 6 year old
has taken in interest in the game. In addition to the above titles, I also have
Fritz 7 for my 900 MHz PC. My 6 year old is a respectable player for his age (he's beaten
me twice!) and VK seems perfect for him. With 31 characters of smoothly varying
skills, he's quickly found opponents at his level. The "story mode" encourages
the user to challenge players they have not yet defeated. As you may know, in
story mode there are 5 geographic areas, with 4 regular players, 1 master and 1
grand master. By defeating the regular players you "unlock" the masters; defeat
the masters and you can take on the grandmasters. Defeat them and you take on
Kasparov. (I can defeat Kasparov, but not on a regular basis). Because story
mode keeps track of A nice feature of CM is that moves are recorded in algebraic
notation to the side of the board. In contrast, VK doesn't list the moves.
You can turn on an "indicators" option in VK so you can see what piece the
computer moved if you missed it though. However, this means that at the end of
a game in CM you can review all the moves, but you can't in VK. This is
especially an issue when I want to review my son's games to see how he played. |
While PocketChess has provided plenty of challenge for us mere mortal chess players, it wasn’t until Richard Lang's introduction of ChessGenius did the Palm platform see its first "seriously strong" chess program. Finally, here was a combination of hardware and software that offered some serious play for chess Masters and GrandMasters alike. ChessGenius has been extremely popular among serious chess hobbyists due to its strong engine. ChessGenius also became available for the PocketPC platform. ChessGenius takes up very little room and runs on some of the oldest Palm handhelds as well as on the newest units. Richard Lang has a great site that tells all about ChessGenius. ChessGenius has recently been improved as well to take advantage of the recent changes in the chip architecture now used in the newest Palm units. Check out my review by clicking on: ChessGenius on the Palm
In July of 2001 Christophe Theron brought his exceptionally powerful and feature-rich Chess Tiger program to the Palm platform. Chess Tiger is as strong as ChessGenius and is arguably the most feature-rich chess program for Palm compatibles. Its strength rating is roughly 2200 Elo. (Strength will vary depending on the speed of your Palm unit.) Note that the Palm-based version of Chess Tiger is essentially the same as the PC version! The only feature missing from the Palm version (versus the PC program) is support for endgame databases. Christophe Theron provides a great web site (www.chesstiger.com), which offers several screen shots and FAQ’s that discuss this product in depth. You can also read my own review of Chess Tiger by clicking on: Chess Tiger for the Palm Chess Tiger on the Palm is now a free program!
In 1996 PocketChess was released for the PalmPilot handheld units. PocketChess has since evolved into PocketChess Deluxe. It is one of the most "feature rich" handheld LCD chess programs available for the Palm. Though PocketChess may not have the playing strength of some of the more recent entries into the Palm market, it continues to be a very popular addition to the world of handheld chess programs. The original PocketChess site no longer exists, but you can still buy their software at selected sites. Just do a Google search for PocketChess if you would like more info.
One drawback of Palm or PocketPC chess programs is that they, of course, require you to have the necessary Palm or PocketPC unit. Palm PDAs and PocketPCs are getting hard to find and can be more expensive than a dedicated chess handheld unit. If you don't need a super strong chess program, there are low cost handheld chess alternatives. (Though these units too are becoming harder to find.) Your best "bang for the buck", in my opinion, comes from the Excalibur units.
In June of 2000, Excalibur Electronics made a big splash with the introduction of their "LCD Computer Chess" handheld unit. This 6 ounce handheld originally came out with a suggested retail price of only $29.95. Later major retailers dropped the price down to $19.95 or less. (Nowadays you really have to dig thru internet sites to find it with the price being quite variable.) This unit offers plenty of features, fairly strong play (around 1350 to 1450 Elo), a large and bright screen, and exceptional battery life. I had my unit for 18 months before I had to replace its first set of batteries. If you're on a budget and don’t require a super strong chess computer opponent, LCD Chess may be the one to purchase! Click here to read my LCD Computer Chess vs. Gameboy ChessMaster comparison.
If there is a downside to Excalibur’s LCD Computer Chess device, it is that it can get a bit "keystroke intensive" at times. As if to answer the ease of use challenge that the Palm PDA platform offers, Excalibur Electronics came out with their own PDA chess unit in July of 2001. Touch Chess, as it’s called, originally sold for around $40 and uses a stylus and touch sensitive screen for piece movement and function selection. This unit is only 1/2 inch deep and includes a refined version of the same program used in Excalibur’s original LCD chess handheld. (I estimate Touch Chess’s strength at around 1550 to 1650 Elo.) Touch Chess is exceptionally easy to use. Its only drawback, is a darker screen due to the addition of the touch sensitive layer required for the screen face. Outdoors and in brightly lit rooms is where Touch Chess really shines. For a detailed review of Touch Chess visit: my Touch Chess Review
Chess Station is another unique product that came from Excalibur. It offered both the ability of tabletop chess computing and portable handheld use. It did this thru a sleek new handheld unit that could plug into a "dockable" chessboard. Though it is hard to find Chess Station, the successor to the handheld portion of this product "Pocket LCD Chess" can still be readily found on the internet at bargain prices! You can learn more about Chess Station and Pocket LCD Chess by clicking on my Chess Station review link.
One of the best handheld bargains, at the turn of the century, was Talking LCD Chess. With a listed retail price of only $5 dollars more than the original LCD Chess unit, it was a real bargain. Talking LCD Chess of course, talks and is stronger than the original LCD Chess unit. The strength levels use more traditional (chess like) time controls too. Frequently Talking LCD Chess sold for around $25 when it was released. Read all about one of my favorite handhelds by visiting my Talking LCD Chess review.
If, after reading thru these pages, you have further questions or comments relating to any of the material I've presented, drop me a note! My email address is: chessinfo@kantack.com or click on the envelope icon below.
