Those were the shiznit for eons. People would still be playing them if Nintendo hadn't decided to finally upgrade them. What always amazed me about the gameboy and gameboy color was that they weren't even close to being the best handheld you could get from a tech perspective. They were pretty clunky tech even when they were new. BUT Ninendo had the games and a cheap price point. People didn't care whether or not the graphics were 3d as long as they were having fun.
Nintendo really has proven time and time again that superior tech isn't what wins people. I kinda wish Sony and Microsoft would understand that aspect a little more. Although lately it seems that Sony has focused on content more than Microsoft has. Microsoft is just gonna buy every game publisher out there until they own everything. That FTC case going on right now revealed Microsoft said they could afford to absorb a hit of BILLIONS in the short term to eventually own all the good publishers and win out. They don't expect to win via their console. It's an insane strategy but when you're that much richer than all of your competition combined I guess you can do insane stuff.