What do you think about the DSi?

I have it in the box waiting for my $3 Korean hard case to get here in two weeks. The case I want (built-in battery that extends the battery life almost 3 times more and charges both the case and DSi through USB) gets released on June 1st.

 

I'm not interested in it really. Looks cool and all but I sure won't be getting one.

I'm sure you and your bro will enjoy the DSi

 

I think Nintendo is trying too hard for the DS to be an iPod touch-esque platform. Nintendo should just stick to creating good games people want to buy, and stay away from anything else besides gaming.

 

I love my DSi. I haven't played anything but emulators on my iPod since I got it on launch day.

 

I would honestly consider getting one weren't for the fact that I'm blowing enough money on my iPod as it is, and I haven't even been using my 4 month old Xbox and 6 games, lately.

I kinda wish Nintendo would release a totally new Nintendo DS, though. I mean not like the Lite or the DSi where it was a few new features and a revamped design. Stop adding the tiny features and rev up the core of the machine. Get RAM, graphics, and processing power up instead of just redecorating three year old hardware. That would make the DSi much tougher to resist.

 

It does do that. It has 4x the RAM, and slightly improved on the rest.

 

I picked up two DS lites and two R4 cards so me and my girlfriend can game together, and I couldn't be happier. All for $150. I think the ds and it's games blow the iPod out of the water. I would have said the opposite a few weeks ago, but I haven't even touched my iPod in two weeks except to browse the web.

 

Eh... It is basically the same, just with a few extra features to compete with the iPhone (camera, downloadable games, etc.).

It is a nice upgrade though. I might buy one if my DS Lite dies on me.

 

Virtual Console? What is that?

 

http://www.geek.com/articles/games/nintendo-dsi-to-get-virtual-console-20090324/
"a Virtual Console for the Nintendo DS, and to start with, Nintendo will be offering Gameboy, Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advance games.?

 

Look 4 anyone who thinks the DSi is for kids u r dead wrong, im 15 and i am proud to say i will get one, free downloadable games via wifi and a CAMERA, come on, i would get it just for the camera....... >:l

 

4x the RAM, sure, but according to the CNET review, there's no noticeable difference while playing. It's mostly for the camera and non-game related apps that require a lot of memory. And yeah, slight improvements. Come on, Nintendo. You can infuse up-to-date tech with fun.



*sigh* It's starting to depress me. I can't look at my touch the same.

 

I have noticed significant smoothing in Pokemon Platinum, which is basically "Made for DSi", it never played right on my DS Lite.

 

Have you tried out any of the other functions? Camera, game downloads, music editing, how're they working?

I probably won't get one, but damn, I kinda want one now I hope they don't announce that they're going to start porting SNES games onto the VC.

 

Camera is a .3 MP one, it is acceptable, but nothing special. I don't have an SD card, since I threw all mine out when I got my iPod. , and the download have a nifty little SNES flashback animation of Mario and friends filling the download bar thingy.

Ok, I looked up VC, but there aren't any good games on there yet? I'm waiting for Mario ROMs to come. And, perhaps this could allow software updates of games. It hasn't been announced or anything, but adding content to games, or even more localized features, such as reutilizing the Pokemon import thing to Diamond/Pearl/Platinum from Fire Red/Leaf Green/Ruby/Sapphire/Emerald, to allow read from system memory should Pokemon end up on VC. I dunno, but it seems that if they used something other than ROM, maybe partition the cartridge into ROM and updated. Dunno, but OTA firmware updates open up tons of options.

 

DSi is still about gaming.

Look, the entire point of DSi isn't about music or photos or whatnot...it's about games, specifically the digital distribution of games.

If there is one that Nintendo has taken from the mobile gaming market (which, again I say, is NOT the market in which Nintendo nor Sony are themselves with DS and PSP, as those are in the portable game system market, which is separate) and taken from Apple as well (although Apple themselves took it from earlier concepts pushed by earlier companies) is the idea of a digital distribution model for games being viable.

That's what DSi is all about. It's about Nintendo slowly but surely going dd all the way. They've been testing the waters for some time now, but now that Apple has shown that not only is it viable, but damned successful, Nintendo wants in on it too...but in their own way. DSi, for now, will be Nintendo testing the waters deeper in the portable market, with downloadable content, and a virtual console for emulated releases of older games, and maybe a sprinkling here and there of new releases solely through dd. The portable market and mobile markets are the two markets most viable for digital distribution, due to lower game sizes and proliferation of WiFi hotspots.

Nintendo LOVES these incremental changes. They get to raise price while not substantially raising manufacturing costs (the SD socket, 0.3 MP camera, and extra RAM, and improved screen, etc. don't add much to costs). They make more money this way.

Hell, pretty much every company loves this type of stuff. I mean...look at Apple. They do the same thing. Incremental changes until the 5 or 6 year mark hits. But Nintendo...Nintendo is extending the time line for incremental changes in internal hardware (*points at DSi, points at Wii), and thus increasing their bottom line. Gotta hand it to them...they've got some strong business minds over there.

Unlike our perpetual company of sorrows, Sega.



Man I miss Sega game hardware....

 

Does the R4 work with the DSi? I'm sure I read somewhere that it doesn't which is the only thing holding me back from upgrading!

EDIT: Never mind, just did a quick Google and turns out it doesn't. Ah well! Will definately get one if Snes games are added to the VC

Kris

 

I'll probably be buying it, since the 'inevitable third DS' was the whole reason that I never got a DS Lite after buying the DS Phat