Our Nintendo DSi coverage continues

With the Nintendo DSi’s Japanese launch due November 1st — and with the influx of media and information Nintendo has put out to promote the release — we’ve published a lot of posts about the system lately.

Our goal isn’t to convince you to buy one; we just like to write about the things that interest us, and right now, one of those things is the DSi. Here’s our recent coverage of the portable, for those of you who share that interest:

• Close-up images of the Nintendo DSi’s SD slot
• Five new Nintendo DSi details that may or may not blow your mind
• The Nintendo DSi is not a ‘minor update’
• Five audio-related things that you might not know about the Nintendo DSi
• Iwata on the Nintendo DSi’s WPA WiFi encryption

Lots of Nintendo DSi videos:

• Nintendo DSi music visualizers in motion
• Three new DSi Sound demonstration videos
• Two new DSi camera demonstration videos
• Nintendo DSi camera’s kitten-face technology
• Extended Japanese Nintendo DSi trailer

Preorder a Nintendo DSi and DSi accessories:

• DSi preorders available at Play Asia
• DSi preorders available at YesAsia
• Preorder accessories for your theoretical DSi

That’s all of our recent Nintendo DSi posts! For our older DSi posts, which includes obscure details about the system and its potential as a QR code scanner, refer to this previous roundup post.

[Image via Nikkei Trendy]

tags / dsi / import / upgrade / ec

The Nintendo DSi is not a ‘minor update’

GamePro noted yesterday that Japanese consumers aren’t showing much enthusiasm for the Nintendo DSi’s forthcoming release, as indicated by gray market sales for reservation tickets (or preorder guarantees).

Bids on Yahoo Auctions for DSi tickets are hovering around ¥3,000 ($30), compared to PlayStation 3 tickets that went for ¥20,000 ($203) when the console launched.

This lack of Japanese anticipation doesn’t bother me, as it means there will be more systems available to import after launching, but this statement in GamePro’s article caught my attention:

“It’s perhaps this minor update on features that appears to have dulled the excitement.”

Is the DSi a minor update? Do you consider the DS Lite a minor update? Most wouldn’t. But aside from its smaller, lighter, and more aestheticaly pleasing frame, the DS Lite’s biggest innovation is its brighter screen settings.

The DSi, for comparison, adds SD storage, music playing capabilities, and two cameras among other new features. The built-in browser and online shop alone seem enough to classify the new hardware as a “major update,” whether or not you believe the DSi to be a “good update.”

What do you think?

Expected DSi launch dates around the world:

• Japan: November 1st, 2008
• North America: After April 2009
• Europe: Spring 2009
• Australia: Fall 2009

See more: Our previous Nintendo DSi coverage

tags / dsi / upgrade / gray market / import / ec

5 questions posed by the DSi region-lock statement

According to, uh, somebody, “DSi is region locked because DSi embeds net communication functionality within itself and we are intending to provide net services specifically tailored for each region.”

So some portion of DSi software is region-locked. Okay. But that doesn’t really tell us in any concrete way what is region-locked. And, in fact, it leaves me confused about some more things.

• Does the DSi use a different style of networking?

If the net services for the DSi are specifically tailored for each region, then it would follow that they are somehow different from the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection we currently have. Hopeful fanboys would assume here that Xbox Live-style friend lists and the cessation of friend codes will be part of the new service. But I would never go that far.

I’m just thinking that there may be some new net functionality outside of the DS Shop. Certainly the parental control that is supposedly the reason for the region lock suggests expanded online features. Unless…

• Does this refer to DSWare only or to DSi retail games as well?

I’d expect DSWare to be region-locked— all console download services are, if not locked, designed to discourage region-swapping. But retail games? No Nintendo handheld has ever been region-locked. Of course, that leads to the question:

• Will there even be DSi-specific cartridges?

Cammie Dunaway said there wouldn’t be in an interview with Wired, but didn’t sound as if she had been specifically informed. Certainly some developers will want to make use of the camera and onboard storage for their retail games, and Nintendo doesn’t seem to mind splitting the market in such a way, making some software unusable on some hardware. Just ask Activision.

CVG indicates that Nintendo did specificallly refer to future DSi-only cartridges, but of course Nintendo has yet to show any such cartridges, and they certainly would have done so last week. I’ll wait for a firsthand, clear statement before I call anything “confirmed.”

• Will it be possible to buy games on a DSi from outside that region?

Buying Japanese VC/WiiWare games from anywhere in the world is as “simple” as buying a Japanese Wii and a prepaid Wii Points card. Will it be the same for the DSi or will the lockout be more stringent, due to an increased emphasis on saving the children?

• Do I want to buy one?

This question has much less far-reaching impact than the others, but it’s still important to me. I initially wanted to get a Japanese system not just because it would be out several months sooner, but because I want access to the Japanese DSWare games. But if I wouldn’t be able to play US-region cartridges on the thing later on, I would be a bit annoyed.

See also: 20 questions posed by Nintendo’s DSi, 8 things you might not know about the DSi

tags / 20 questions / dsi / upgrade / jc

8 things you might not know about the DSi

By now, most of you know about the major improvements behind Nintendo’s DSi hardware — bigger screens, slightly longer stylus, an SD slot, two cameras, digital audio capabilities, improved speakers, a built-in browser, and a content download shop. There are obvious flaws, too, such as the missing GBA slot and lack of MP3 support.

But you already know all about those, so we’ve picked out some of the new system’s obscure details that you might not be aware of yet!

1. The volume slider is now a rocker switch, like the GBA Micro, and has been moved to the left side.
2. Two Brain Age titles will debut with the online shop — a “literature edition” and a “science edition.”
3. Unlike previous models, the DSi will feature WPA/WPA2 support. It will also have “improved security features” for WEP.

4. “Moving Notebook” software allows you to scrawl out memos and create small animations. You can even use the mic to record some audio for the clip.
5. The DSi uses a unique AC adapter incompatible with the DS Lite’s adapter or other portables adapters.
6. DSi Sound, the system’s music playing feature, has different visualizers (e.g. Excitebike, chicks hatching from eggs) to accompany your songs.

7. The DSi has five brightness settings compared to the DS Lite’s four brightness settings.
8. While the DS Lite takes 3 hours to charge its battery, the DSi takes only 2.5 hours. Unfortunately, the DSi also has a shorter battery life by an hour.

And a bonus! If you look at the DSi’s two speaker holes and its hinge camera, you’ll totally see a “face in a place.”

See also: 20 questions posed by Nintendo’s DSi

tags / dsi / update / upgrade / excitebike / visualizer / adapter / camera / moving notebook / brain age / volume / wireless / ec

DSi not coming to U.S. until “well into 2009”

Nintendo of America won’t bring its new DSi hardware stateside until “well into 2009” due to current high demand for the current DS Lite model. Our enthusiasm for the system has cursed us! It’s a good thing I was planning to import one anyway.

At least we’re getting our own Club Nintendo program, though I doubt it’ll be as great as Japan’s, so don’t expect Game & Watch DS collections or Super Famicom-styled Classic Controllers anytime soon!

Oh, and here’s a video of the DSi Camera in action:

tags / dsi / update / upgrade / club nintendo / camera

20 questions posed by Nintendo’s DSi

Nintendo released a ton of details today on its new DSi — a smaller sysem with two cameras, an SD slot, digital audio player capabilities, a content download shop, and no GBA slot. But with new hardware, comes new questions, 20 of which we’ve posed below.

• Can we access the DSi Camera or DSi Sound features while playing a game?

There are separate options on the DSi startup menu for accessing these features, but it would be nice to also be able to suspend a game, take photos and listen to music, then return to the suspended game.

• What DSi Camera games can we expect?

Bring on some sort of Eye of Judgment-styled game!

• Can we transfer photos wirelessly to our computers?

Nintendo will limit DS-to-PC image transfers via SD card only, whereas DS-to-DS image transfers work wirelessly. Hopefully, a firmware upgrade will make this less clunky in the future, but it’s doubtful. Wireless music transfers also would have been nice!

• Why no MP3 support?

Like the Wii Photo Channel, the DSi’s new music capabilities only support AAC audio files, not MP3. This is likely due to cheaper licensing costs.

• Will we able to listen to music with the DS closed?

Homebrew media player Moonshell allows users to do this, utilizing the shoulder buttons for basic playback functions. Having to leave your DS lid open would be very inelegant for a digital audio portable.

• Why didn’t Nintendo go all the way with the system’s media features, adding in video support?

Moonshell has already proven that video works well on the DS, and it would be great to take advantage of that fact with the DSi’s bigger 3.25” screens (compared to the old 3” screens). Perhaps Nintendo didn’t want to compete with its newly launched DSVision.

• Will DS Lite/Phat systems be able to access the new DSi Shop content store?

It seems unlkely that Nintendo will release a firmware upgrade for the older systems, but you never know.

• Will the DSi Shop allow us to play games from old home consoles, similar to the Wii’s Virtual console?

We already know that the DS can play Neo Geo games — why not let the portable’s new downloadable software channel sell NES, Genesis, SNES, TG16, etc. games?

• What will we do with our old styli?

Now that the DSi houses longer styli, I wonder if an old stylus will still be able to fit in the old slot? I’d hate to say goodbye to the Brain Age 2 stylus set and the Slime Slime stylus. Accessory manufacturers are likely frothing over the opportunity to sell new styli, cases, and other contraptions for the new design.

• No Guitar Hero: On Tour with the DSi?

Though it’s a new series for the portable, it’s a big franchise for Nintendo and Activision — not to mention for gamers. With the GBA slot now gone, there will also be no more Guitar Grip attachment for the system. This also means the end for the Pedometer, Paddle Controller (vader_nooooooo.gif), and Slide Controller, and …

• Rumble Pak?

Here’s a partial list of Nintendo DS games that use rumble. Furthermore, DS games can no longer unlock content based on related games left in the GBA slot. The DSi will also be no country for Slot-2 flashcarts (EZ 3-in-1).

• Will Slot-1 flashcarts (piracy/homebrew) be affected?

Has Nintendo come up with a way to block unauthorized code from running on the DS? How long will it take “the scene” and cart manufacturers to develop a workaround? Will Nintendo be more aggressive with guarding the system, employing frequent firmware updates?

• Will SD cards become the new flashcarts?

It would be nice to not bother with buying new flashcart hardware whenever a new and fancier ones comes out. Instead, you can just download new updates from several software options (that will hopefully be free).

• Why is Pictochat still not online?

This chat application is near useless unless you’re at a of gamer convention. Nintendo must not feel that the feature is worth exposing children to the vulgarities of the world. Which just goes to show you that children ruin everything.

• Will we get a better directional pad?

The current D-pad isn’t so great with diagonals.

• Why is the battery life worse?

While the DS Lite upgrade brought improved battery life 15-19 hours on the lowest brightness setting, the DSi will have 14-15 hours on the same setting. Then again, that battery will need to power significantly larger screens.

• Why are the LED status indicators on to the left?

Perhaps, with the smaller space and the SD slot now on the left, internal geegaws were moved around, and the LEDs were repositioned.

• Will the DS Lite see a price cut?

Considering the DSi will be more expensive ($180 vs $160 in Japan), it would be nice if the DS Lite was a little cheaper. Also, can we expect a $150 tag for the DSi in North America, $20 more expensive than the DS Lite?

• Why no glossy shell?

Perhaps this is a cheaper solution for Nintendo. I, for one, will be happy to see the glossy shell replaced with the matte look/feel. I was never a fan of smudges all over my DS.

• When will the DSi launch in the States?

We may hear about this along with answers to several of our questions with Nintendo of America’s press meeting later today. Things aren’t looking so good for Europe, though, what with a release planned for spring 2009. UPDATE: DS not coming to U.S. until “well into 2009.”

That all said, this will definitely be a day-one Play-Asia preorder for me, once that’s available.

Any additional thoughts/questions that you’d like to share?

tags / 20 questions / dsi / upgrade / update / camera / ec