Redesigned DS to hit Japan March 2nd

[Doctor Oak]

Despite Nintendo actually stepping forward to shoot down the rumours of the redesign over the past fortnight rather than taking their normal "We do not comment on rumours or speculation" stance, they officially - but quietly - announced on Nintendo Japan's website that there will be a brand new DS hitting Japanese shores as early as March 2nd.

That's just a little over a month away!

There's only one mocked up image at the time but no doubt Nintendo will hi-jack some conference centre within the next week or two to formally show it off.

The new DS is, of course, a lot slimmer and lighter than the current one and really doesn't change that much else. The power button has been moved to the side and the mic has been moved to the hinge - which is certainly a blessing to those playing Wario Ware who almost have their retinas torn out whilst blowing into the mic AND looking up to the top screen to see the results. The Start and Select buttons have also been moved to below the A,B,X and Y buttons.

DS Lite, for that's what they're calling it, will come in at 133mm wide, 73.9mm high and 21.5mm deep, as compared to the proportions of the original DS which was 148.7mm wide, 84.7mm high and 28.9mm deep - which in real terms, means that it's 42 per cent smaller than the original DS. And on the weighty side of things it drops from 275g in the original model down to 215g in the new DS Lite, representing a cut of almost 21 per cent.

The DS Lite will also incorperate a screen-brightness feature ala the PSP - although I'd hardly consider it necessary, the DS has never given me any problems over the brightness of the screen.

Other changes that people are hoping for from the redesign is an update in the firmware on the DS. Firstly, it'd be awfully nice to be able to change settings without having to turn the thing on and off repeatedly. Secondly Pictochat is desperately wanted to be upgraded with online functionality. The only question that leaves is what happens to the old DS's if the firmware on this one is upgraded? Will they automatically upgrade themselves when connecting?

However one fear that appears to have been kept at bay (for now) is the dumping of the GBA slot. That is not to say that it is safe though. No official statement on it has been made and the images really don't give anything away. And you also have to wonder where the extra depth got cut from if not the GBA slot.

Either way, I'd say i'm sold on the idea thoroughly. It looks pretty and it sounds awfully nice to have a lighter DS. It'll launch at 16,800 Yen which is about 118 Euro and £81. Expect our prices to go up, however as Nintendo also admitted the DS would be slightly more expensive in it's Lite form.

 

[Linkachu]

*Picture Stole'd*

;D

I already said my piece about this in the news update comments. I'll definitely be buying one as soon as it hits NA shores (or, if I'm broke at the time, shortly after) ^^

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[Linkachu]

Bumpity bump.

The official Nintendo of Japan website has posted a nice amount of pics showing off the DS lite from all angles. You can check 'em out here: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/lite/gallery/image1.html


Going through them you're soon to notice that one pic makes it look like the GBA cart is sticking out of the bottom. Bad news, but that's exactly how the carts fit. It seems that while DS lite is keeping the GBA port the handheld itself is too small for the GBA games to fit in properly. Pretty damn annoying, but I'm not gonna make a big deal out of it. I still want one as much as before.

They've also revealed the three colors it'll launch with in Japan, most likely the same we'll see in NA, too:

Ice Blue
Enamel Navy
Crystal White

Out of those picks I'd be grabbing the enamel navy myself.

Heh... Looks like this IGN article has the exact same 8 pics as Nintendo of Japan. It also tells what DS lite is packaged with (icluding a cover for the GBA port when it's not in use), explains that the GBA carts stick out about 1 cm when plugged in, that the DS lite's stylus' are both slightly thicker and longer than the originals, and gives the rundown of DS lite's specs again (including a bit on its battery life, as quoted below).

For the DS, play time was listed as 6 to 10 hours depending on the software, with a full charge taking 4 hours. For the DS Lite, the play time depends on the brightness setting: lowest level (15 to 19 hours), low level (10 to 15 hours), high level (7 to 11 hours) and highest level (5 to 8 hours). A full charge for the DS Lite takes just three hours.

I haven't found any word yet on which of these brightness levels corresponds to the original DS brightness (which I was perfectly content with), so I'm hoping it's "high level". I wouldn't want an even worse battery than I have now.

 

[Doctor Oak]

I can't imagine many occasions where using the Lowest Brightness would actually be of any benefit to anyone but if you could see perfectly well at that setting and were using online functions - the battery life would be rather more substantial than what the current DS can do using WiFi extensively.

Certainly, if D/P are to carry on the Union Room theme, one could probably put the brightness down to the lowest, leave the DS on and connected to the WiFi and essentially host that room for.... about 12 hours or so without charge (Unless the 15 in the '15-19' figure is meant to indicate WiFi use). Which would be rather nice - even though I'd probably still rather leave it plugged into the mains for that anyways.

I would say High Level probably is where the DS currently stands. Seems to match up with the DS battery life.

 

[Linkachu]

Which would be rather nice - even though I'd probably still rather leave it plugged into the mains for that anyways.

Same. Nowadays whenever I'm using the WFC and there's an electric socket nearby I just hook up my DS to the charger. No real hassle, and it saves you from recharing at some other time (not to mention the risk of going into the red in the middle of a MKDS race, which has happened to me a few times now >.>).

 

[QuagsireQing]

Got my e-mail from Lik-Sang a couple days ago, and am all set for an Enamel Navy to be shipped on March 2nd. ;D Glad to hear the battery's a bit better: since the lowest brightness setting is still brighter than the original DS, it wouldn't hurt to use that for ultra-long gameplay. Then again, once I see the brightest setting, I know I won't be able to use anything else.

So many people are complaining about the GBA cartridges and Option Paks sticking out, but I don't see the huge deal. The GBA and GBA SP have the GB and GBC cartridges sticking out, and no one seems to mind. Not to mention I save my GBA games for my Special 20th Anniversary Edition Game Boy micro.

 

[Linkachu]

since the lowest brightness setting is still brighter than the original DS, it wouldn't hurt to use that for ultra-long gameplay.

Where'd you hear that from? Link plzkthx. I'm only skeptic because that'd be super awesome if it were true

So many people are complaining about the GBA cartridges and Option Paks sticking out, but I don't see the huge deal. The GBA and GBA SP have the GB and GBC cartridges sticking out, and no one seems to mind.

Actually... When I first saw the GBA cart sticking out like that, the way GB/GBC games do so on the GBA/SP is what immediately sprang to mind, and I do mind it. Quite a bit. I'd never keep a GB/GBC game in my SP when traveling because it's too problematic, and I find the way they stick out rather ugly. So yeah. Speak for yourself ;p

It's not a huge issue for me, tho, because I have my SP as back up. I'll probably just use Lite for DS games and play my GBA games on teh SP (as I do now verses actually playing 'em on DS), unless I'm transferring data from the GBA cart to the DS game. Although... after I see the sharpness of the DS lite's screen I may be singing a different tune ^^;

 

[Salamence-trainer221]

I may just trade in my old DS for the Lite....my hands get very uncomfortable while holding the DS for long periods of time.