Nintendo is releasing their third iteration of their popular hand-held console this week. The Nintendo DSi features a few improvements over the previous model (Nintendo DS Lite), while also lacking a pretty significant hardware feature the previous two DS units had.
First, the DSi has two cameras, one mounted on the front of the device, and another on the inside of the consoles hinge, pointed at the player. To accompany these cameras, the DSi comes with some light photo editing software. Maybe you’ve seen the ad featuring this software. The DSi also has slightly larger screens than the previous iteration as well as software side features that enhance usability and the fun you can have before even putting a cartridge in the unit.
The DSi also has some internal memory (as well as an SD card slot for further memory expansion) so that programs can be downloaded and saved to the system. The hope is that users will download games from the same Wii Ware service that hosts classic titles and smaller games that can be downloaded from Nintendo’s online service.
The major drawback that has a lot of hardcore gamers questioning the release of this new release of the DS is that it lacks the Gameboy Advance slot its predecessors have, effectively ending the backwards compatibility with all of your old Game Boy games.
Honestly, I was very skeptical about the DSi when I heard it was missing that key feature. I know I still have a lot of old games and without that backwards compatibility, I feel like I’m missing out on something. Plus, I’ve already gone from the original DS (coined “DS Phat”) to the DS Lite.
So how is it that I find myself wanting one, two days before its release? I’ve already bought 2 forms of the Nintendo DS, and I’m being lured back in for another go around. I’m almost disgusted with myself. I must be some kind of Nintendo fanboy, or they’re using mind control and subversive psychotherapy in their commercials.
It is so tempting! My brother is the most regular user of my DS Lite, so I find myself mulling it over in my mind, could I get a DSi to play with him?
When I first read about the DSi, I thought that it would never sell. In Japan, almost everyone who can possibly afford one owns a DS Lite, and the sales of the system there are lagging. The release of the DSi saw a sudden spike in sales all over again. 2 million DSi units have been sold since release! How is this possible? With the economy in the state it is (Japan’s is no different) how can the DSi be selling to all of these people, some of which have already bought DS units? I suppose I would be a good case-study for this question.
Well? Will anyone out there be getting themselves a DSi unit? The release is on Sunday and so far, Gamestop has reported that preorders for the unit are off the charts. It’s stunning really, a testament to Nintendo’s ability to market to the masses. I just can’t believe that they’ll have done it three times over.
You can read more of Daniel’s writing on Video Games at playreadwrite.blogspot.com.
I have to get this for my son’s eighteenth birthday in July – he’s a pretty harsh critic, so when he has it in hand and starts hollering about whatever frustrations he has (and he always has them) I’ll be sure to share his list.