Nintendo DSi comes to U.S. on April 5th
Source: Tom's Guide US | Keywords: Nintendo, DSi, Console | Themes: Digital Entertainment
Three months a 1.5 million units later, the DSi is coming to America.
The DSi, Nintendo's third generation DS hand-held gaming console, has been on sale in Japan since November 1st. Initial reports put a U.S. release date in the summertime of 2009. After several months of strong sales in Japan (now numbering over 1.6 million), that time frame changed. Nintendo has now set a hard release date for the DSi of April 5th, with a retail price of $169.99.
The unit will lack a Game Boy Advance cartridge slot, giving it a smaller profile. However, this newest portable offering does have a plethora of new features. Similar to the Wii, the DSi will offer a Secure Digital (SD) slot. The SD cards will be used in tandem with the DSi's Camera, Sound, and Shop features. The unit has two cameras, one for taking pictures while closed and one on the inside for use with specific DSi titles. DSi Sound focuses more on multimedia, allowing for owners to listen to music loaded onto an SD card, even when the console is closed. Users can also record and share audio via the DSi microphone.
DSiWare builds on the popular WiiWare function on the Wii. DSi users can now download extra content for cartridge titles as well as entire games and other applications via WiFi. Such software can be purchased using points, available via purchase through the Internet or by purchasing point cards at retailers. All games and applications will start at 200 points (USD $2). While more information will be released when launch day nears, one DSi title, Rhythm Heaven, is expected for the U.S. launch. The title has seen sales of 1.6 million in Japan since the release of the DSi. As for launch colors, the DSi will initially be available in Black as well as Blue.
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Im not too sure if this is a good idea if Nintendo is trying to reach new consumers in this market. Yeah, you have the current customers that will have a decent portion that will go out and try this out, but in this economy, even that portion will be nothing compared to the current customers.
Nevertheless, this should be pretty friggin cool.
PSP
I think this is what the DS should have orginally been. Then they wouldn't have had to create the R4, just the homebrew software for it.
I still prefer my PSP. Its more capable hardware and more mature selection of games is more suited for my taste. I also use it to watch movies, but I prefer using my phone to listen to music, so these new features of the DSi don't appeal a lot to me.
By the way, even the PSP 1000 played music, movies and had a memory stick. I whish my PSP had a camera, though. It would be amazing to preview the picture on 480x272.
The PSP had memory stick and played music (and movies!) from it since the first version. I wish it had a camera, though. It would be amazing to preview a picture in 480x272.
Though I'm no fanboy, am actually considering buying a DS as a second portable. But the much bigger library every owner bragged about because of the GBA compatibility... Well, I guess I'll have to settle for a DS Lite.
What's so great about a 0.3 megapixel camera? This is just a move by Nintendo to try out a new money-making platform without releasing substantially new hardware to risk it on. It can't play video, the wi-fi is barely functional (Doesn't even support G, let alone offer provisional N support and how will not being able to use a memory expansion for improved web-surfing in the slot-2 slot affect wwwing?) and you lose backward support for alot of great GBA games.
Try again Nintendo, I'm not buying it.
Bring out the DS's successor and/or start releasing more 1st party popular titles for the DS! i.e. Metroid, Zelda, F-Zero, Star Fox, etc. How many years has it been and there's only 1 Metroid and 1 Zelda title on the DS! BAH!
0.3 megapixel! I hadn't noticed... And two of them? The only use for a camera is taking pictures, no more gimmicks in games please (the stylus and mic are ehough). A lower price tag would be better.
I wonder if the missing Game Boy Advance cartridge slot means that a good portion of the popular GBA games will be downloadable.