======================================================================
= Nintendo_DS =
======================================================================
Introduction
======================================================================
The is a foldable handheld game console produced by Nintendo,
released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for
"Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new
features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tandem (the
bottom of which is a touchscreen), a built-in microphone, and support
for wireless connectivity. Both screens are encompassed within a
clamshell design similar to the Game Boy Advance SP. The Nintendo DS
also features the ability for multiple DS consoles to directly
interact with each other over Wi-Fi within a short range without the
need to connect to an existing wireless network. Alternatively, they
could interact online using the now-defunct Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
service. Its main competitor was Sony's PlayStation Portable during
the seventh generation of video game consoles.
Prior to its release, the Nintendo DS was marketed as an experimental
"third pillar" in Nintendo's console lineup, meant to complement the
Game Boy Advance family and GameCube. However, backward compatibility
with Game Boy Advance titles and strong sales ultimately established
it as the successor to the Game Boy series. On March 2, 2006, Nintendo
launched the Nintendo DS Lite, a slimmer and lighter redesign of the
original Nintendo DS with brighter screens and a longer lasting
battery. On November 1, 2008, Nintendo released the Nintendo DSi,
another redesign with several hardware improvements and new features,
although it lost backward compatibility for Game Boy Advance titles
and a few DS games that used the GBA slot. On November 21, 2009,
Nintendo released the Nintendo DSi XL, a larger version of the DSi.
All Nintendo DS models combined have sold 154.02 million units, making
it the best-selling Nintendo system, the best-selling handheld game
console, and the second best-selling video game console of all time.
The DS Lite model makes up a majority (61 percent) of the total number
of Nintendo DS units shipped. The Nintendo DS was succeeded by the
Nintendo 3DS in February 2011.
Development
=============
Development on the Nintendo DS began around mid-2002, following an
original idea from former Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi about a
dual-screened console. On November 13, 2003, Nintendo announced that
it would be releasing a new game product in 2004. The company did not
provide many details, but stated it would not succeed the Game Boy
Advance or GameCube. On January 20, 2004, the console was announced
under the codename "Nintendo DS". Nintendo released only a few details
at that time, saying that the console would have two separate, 3-inch
TFT LCD display panels, separate processors, and up to 1 gigabit (128
MB) of semiconductor memory. Current Nintendo president at the time,
Satoru Iwata, said, "We have developed Nintendo DS based upon a
completely different concept from existing game devices in order to
provide players with a unique entertainment experience for the 21st
century." He also expressed optimism that the DS would help put
Nintendo back at the forefront of innovation and move away from the
conservative image that had been used to describe the company in years
past. In March 2004, a document containing most of the console's
technical specifications was leaked, also revealing its internal
development name, "Nitro". In May 2004, the console was shown in
prototype form at E3 2004, still under the name "Nintendo DS", which
Reggie Fils-Aimé announced would change for launch. On July 28, 2004,
Nintendo revealed a new design that was described as "sleeker and more
elegant" than the one shown at E3 and announced Nintendo DS as the
device's official name. Following lukewarm GameCube sales, Hiroshi
Yamauchi stressed the importance of its success to the company's
future, making a statement which can be translated from Japanese as,
"If the DS succeeds, we will rise to heaven, but if it fails we will
sink to hell."
Launch
========
President Iwata referred to Nintendo DS as "Nintendo's first hardware
launch in support of the basic strategy 'Gaming Population Expansion
because the touch-based device "allows users to play intuitively". On
September 20, 2004, Nintendo announced that the Nintendo DS would be
released in North America on November 21, 2004, for US$149.99. It was
set to release on December 2, 2004, in Japan for JP¥15,000; on
February 24, 2005, in Australia for A$199.95; and on March 11, 2005,
in Europe for €149.99 (£99.99 in the United Kingdom). The console was
released in North America with a midnight launch event at Universal
CityWalk EB Games in Los Angeles, California. The console was launched
quietly in Japan compared to the North America launch; one source
cited the cold weather as the reason.
North America and Japan
=========================
The Nintendo DS was launched in North America for US$149.99 on
November 21, 2004; in Japan for JP¥15,000 on December 2 in the color
"Titanium". Well over three million preorders were taken in North
America and Japan; preorders at online stores were launched on
November 3 and ended the same day as merchants had already sold their
allotment. Initially, Nintendo planned to deliver one million units
combined at the North American and Japanese launches; when it saw the
preorder numbers, it brought another factory online to ramp up
production. Nintendo originally slated 300,000 units for the U.S.
debut; 550,000 were shipped, and just over 500,000 of those sold
through in the first week. Later in 2005, the manufacturer suggested
retail price for the Nintendo DS was dropped to US$129.99.
Both launches proved to be successful, but Nintendo chose to release
the DS in North America prior to Japan, a first for a hardware launch
from the Kyoto-based company. This choice was made to get the DS out
for the largest shopping day of the year in the U.S. (the day after
Thanksgiving, also known as "Black Friday"). Perhaps partly due to the
release date, the DS met unexpectedly high demand in the United
States, selling 1 million units by December 21, 2004. By the end of
December, the total number shipped worldwide was 2.8 million, about
800,000 more than Nintendo's original forecast. At least 1.2 million
of them were sold in the U.S. Some industry reporters referred to it
as "the Tickle Me Elmo of 2004". In June 2005, Nintendo informed the
press that a total of 6.65 million units had been sold worldwide.
As is normal for electronics, some were reported as having problems
with stuck pixels in either of the two screens. Although return
policies for LCD displays vary between manufacturers and regions, in
North America, Nintendo chose to replace a system with faulty pixels
only if the owner claimed that it interfered with their gaming
experience. There were two exchange programs in place for North
America. In the first, the owner of the defective DS in question would
provide a valid credit card number and, afterward, Nintendo would ship
a new DS system to the owner with shipping supplies to return the
defective system. In the second, the owner of the defective DS in
question would have shipped their system to Nintendo for inspection.
After inspection, Nintendo technicians would have either shipped a
replacement system or fixed the defective system. The first option
allowed the owner to have a new DS in 3-5 business days.
Multiple games were released alongside the DS during its North
American launch on November 21, 2004. At launch there was one pack-in
demo, in addition to the built-in PictoChat program: 'Metroid Prime
Hunters: First Hunt' (published by Nintendo and is a demo for 'Metroid
Prime Hunters', a game released in March 2006). At the time of the
"Electric Blue" DS launch in June 2005, Nintendo bundled the system
with 'Super Mario 64 DS'.
In Japan, the games were released at the same time as the system's
first release (December 2, 2004). In the launch period, 'The Prince of
Tennis 2005 -Crystal Drive-' (Konami) and 'Puyo Puyo Fever' (Sega)
were released.
Europe
========
The DS was released in Europe on March 11, 2005, for €149. A small
supply of units was available prior to this in a package with a
promotional "VIP" T-shirt, 'Metroid Prime Hunters - First Hunt', a
'WarioWare: Touched!' demo and a pre-release version of 'Super Mario
64 DS', through the Nintendo Stars Catalogue; the bundle was priced at
£129.99 for the UK and €189.99 for the rest of Europe, plus 1,000 of
Nintendo's "star" loyalty points (to cover postage). By June 28, 2005,
1 million DS units had been sold in Europe, setting a sales record for
a handheld console.
The European release of the DS, like the U.S., was originally packaged
with a 'Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt' demo. The European game
cases are additionally about 1/4 in thicker than their North American
counterparts and transparent rather than solid black. Inside the case,
there is room for one Game Boy Advance game pack and a DS card with
the instructions on the left side of the case.
Australia and New Zealand
===========================
The DS launched in Australia and New Zealand on February 24, 2005. It
retailed in Australia for AU$199 and in New Zealand for NZ$249. Like
the North American launch, it includes the 'Metroid Prime Hunters -
First Hunt' demo. The first week of sales for the system broke
Australian launch sales records for a console, with 19,191 units sold
by the 27th.
China
=======
"iQue DS", the official name of the Chinese Nintendo DS, was released
in China on June 15, 2005. The price of the iQue DS was 980 RMB
(roughly US$130) as of April 2006. This version of the DS includes
updated firmware to block out the use of the PassMe device, along with
the new Red DS. Chinese launch games were 'Zhi Gan Yi Bi' ('Polarium')
(Nintendo/iQue) and 'Momo Waliou Zhizao' ('WarioWare: Touched!')
(Nintendo/iQue). The iQue name was first used for a device that was
based on Nintendo 64 hardware in 2003, after China banned sales of
home video games in that region years prior.
Games available on launch
===========================
Title Publisher NA JP EU AU & NZ CN
'Asphalt: Urban GT' Gameloft
'Daigasso! Band Brothers' Nintendo
'Feel the Magic: XY/XX' ( 'Project Rub') Sega
'Kensyūi Dokuta Tendo' (literally "Resident Doctor Tendo") Spike
Chunsoft
'Madden NFL 2005' Electronic Arts
'Mahjong Taikai' Koei
'Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt' Nintendo
'Mr. Driller Drill Spirits' Namco
'Ping Pals' THQ
'Pokémon Dash' Nintendo
'Polarium' Nintendo
'Rayman DS' Ubisoft
'Retro Atari Classics' Atari
'Robots' VU Games
'Spider-Man 2' Activision
'Sprung' Ubisoft
'Super Mario 64 DS' Nintendo
'Tiger Woods PGA Tour' Electronic Arts
'The Urbz: Sims in the City' Electronic Arts
'WarioWare: Touched!' Nintendo
'Zoo Keeper' Success
'Zunō ni Asekaku Game Series Vol.1: Cool104 Joker & Setline'
Aruze
Promotion
===========
The system's promotional slogans revolve around the word "Touch" in
almost all countries, with the North American slogan being "Touching
is good."
The Nintendo DS was seen by many analysts to be in the same market as
Sony's PlayStation Portable, although representatives from both
companies stated that each system targeted a different audience.
'Time' magazine awarded the DS a Gadget of the Week award.
At the time of its release in the United States, the Nintendo DS
retailed for . The price dropped to on August 21, 2005, one day
before the releases of 'Nintendogs' and 'Advance Wars: Dual Strike'.
Nine official colors of the Nintendo DS were available through
standard retailers. Titanium-colored units were available worldwide,
Electric Blue was exclusive to North and Latin America. There was also
a red version which was bundled with the game 'Mario Kart DS'.
Graphite Black, Pure White, Turquoise Blue, and Candy Pink were
available in Japan. Mystic Pink and Cosmic Blue were available in
Australia and New Zealand. Japan's Candy Pink and Australia's Cosmic
Blue were also available in Europe and North America through a
'Nintendogs' bundle, although the colors are just referred to as pink
and blue; however, these colors were available only for the original
style Nintendo DS; a different and more-limited set of colors were
used for the Nintendo DS Lite.
DS Lite
=========
The Nintendo DS Lite was announced on January 26, 2006, and was later
showcased at E3 2006 in May at the Los Angeles Convention Center. In
Japan, the Nintendo DS Lite was released on March 2, 2006. Numerous
colors and limited editions were released throughout its lifetime,
such as pink casing. Due to lack of supply and excessive demand
following the launch, many electronics distributors raised the retail
price of the redesigned handheld console. Even though Nintendo managed
to release 550,000 units in March 2006 (which was above their initial
projections), the DS Lite was sold out soon after its launch. The
shortage was supposed to be eased after Nintendo released 700,000
Nintendo DS Lites during April 2006; however, retailers in Tokyo sold
out yet again by late May 2006. This shortage would last for most of
2006 and 2007 with retailers all around the country having permanent
signage apologizing for the shortage but stating that the arrival time
of new stock was unknown. When new product arrived, it would sell out
within days. Since restocking was erratic, looking for the product
often involved several visits to different retailers, and most of the
time without finding the product. This was still the case in Japan as
of April 25, 2007, with stores turning away potential customers every
day and selling out quickly.
A larger model of the DS Lite was an unreleased alternative to the DS
Lite.
The Nintendo DS Lite was released in Australia on June 1, 2006, and
came with a demo for 'Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training: How Old Is Your
Brain?'. The Nintendo DS Lite was released in North America on June
11, 2006. There had been various reports of North American Target,
Wal-Mart, Kmart, and Meijer stores having sold Nintendo DS Lite units
as early as May 30, 2006, breaking the official launch date. On June
12, 2006, 'GameSpot' reported that the Nintendo DS Lites had sold out
at major online retailers, as well as several brick-and-mortar stores
in North America. On June 13, 2006, Nintendo announced that 136,500
units were sold in two days since the DS Lite went on sale in North
America, and seemed to be on pace to the 500,000 sold by the original
Nintendo DS in its first ten days. Shortly after its launch, the DS
Lite was sold out at major US retailers; however, it did not have the
same ongoing shortages in the US as it did in Japan through 2006 and
2007.
The Nintendo DS Lite was released in Europe on June 23, 2006. In
Finland and Sweden, the DS Lite was released on June 22, 2006, due to
Midsummer. In just 10 days, Nintendo announced it had sold 200,000
Nintendo DS Lites in Europe. On June 12, 2006, Chinese media
organization Sina.com reported that a container intended for shipment
to Europe was stolen, which contained 18 million (2.32 million) worth
of goods, including black Nintendo DS Lite consoles and games. Later,
'GamesIndustry.biz' reported that Nintendo had confirmed that "A
number of White DS Lite made for the UK market were stolen in Hong
Kong."
Nintendo opened its subsidiary, Nintendo of Korea, on July 20, 2006.
The DS Lite was the first console to be released in South Korea by the
subsidiary, being released on January 18, 2007. Popular Korean actors
Jang Dong-gun and Ahn Sung-ki were enlisted to help promote the
console. Nintendo of Korea stated they had sold more than one million
units in the first year of sale with around 1.4 million sold as of
April 2008.
The DS Lite was reportedly discontinued in April 2011.
Sales
=======
As of March 31, 2016, all Nintendo DS models combined have sold 154.02
million units. The majority of these were made up of the first
revision model, the DS Lite, according to Nintendo.
Legacy
========
The success of the Nintendo DS introduced touchscreen controls and
wireless online gaming to a wide audience. According to Damien
McFerran of 'Nintendo Life', the "DS was the first encounter many
people had with touch-based tech, and it left an indelible
impression."
The DS established a large casual gaming market, attracting large
non-gamer audiences and establishing touchscreens as the standard
controls for future portable gaming devices. According to Jeremy
Parish, writing for 'Polygon', the Nintendo DS laid the foundations
for touchscreen mobile gaming on smartphones. He stated that the DS
"had basically primed the entire world for" the iPhone, released in
January 2007, and that the DS paved the way for iPhone gaming mobile
apps. However, the success of the iPhone "effectively caused the DS
market to implode" by the early 2010s, according to Parish.
The DS also enlarged the market for female gamers. According to
Nintendo in 2006, 44% of DS owners were female, with the majority of
'Nintendogs' owners being female.
The success of the DS paved the way for its successor, the Nintendo
3DS, a handheld gaming console with a similar dual-screen setup that
can display images on the top screen in stereoscopic 3D.
On January 29, 2014, Nintendo announced that Nintendo DS games would
be added to the Wii U's Virtual Console, with the first game, 'Brain
Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!', being released in Japan on
June 3, 2014.
Hardware
======================================================================
The Nintendo DS design resembles that of the multi-screen games from
the Game & Watch line, such as 'Donkey Kong' and 'Zelda', which
was also made by Nintendo.
The lower display of the Nintendo DS is overlaid with a resistive
touchscreen designed to accept input from the included stylus, the
user's fingers, or a curved plastic tab attached to the optional wrist
strap. The touchscreen lets users interact with in-game elements more
directly than by pressing buttons; for example, in the included
chatting software, PictoChat, the stylus is used to write messages or
draw.
The handheld features four lettered buttons (X, Y, A, B), a
directional pad, and Start, Select, and Power buttons. On the top of
the device are two shoulder buttons, a game card slot, a stylus holder
and a power cable input. The bottom features the Game Boy Advance game
card slot. The overall button layout resembles that of the Super
Nintendo Entertainment System controller. When using backward
compatibility mode on the DS, buttons X and Y and the touchscreen are
not used as the Game Boy Advance line of systems do not feature these
controls.
It also has stereo speakers providing virtual surround sound
(depending on the software) located on either side of the upper
display screen. This was a first for a Nintendo handheld, as the Game
Boy line of systems had only supported stereo sound through the use of
headphones or external speakers. A built-in microphone is located
below the left side of the bottom screen. It has been used for a
variety of purposes, including speech recognition, chatting online
between and during gameplay sessions, and minigames that require the
player to blow or shout into it.
Technical specifications
==========================
Mass 275 g
Dimensions When closed: 148.7 x (width × height × depth)
Display Two TFT LCD screens: 62 x, 77 mm diagonal, 0.24 mm dot pitch,
18-bit depth (262,144 colors), 21 mm gap between screens (≈92 lines)
Resolution 256 × 192 pixels (4:3 aspect ratio) for each screen
Audio Stereo with 16 PCM/ADPCM channels
CPU Two ARM processors: * 32 bit ARM946E-S main CPU; 67 MHz clock
speed. Processes gameplay mechanisms and video rendering * 32 bit
ARM7TDMI coprocessor; 33 MHz clock speed. Processes sound output,
Wi-Fi support and takes on second-processor duties in Game Boy Advance
mode
RAM 4 MB PSRAM (expandable via the Game Boy Advance slot, only
officially used by the Nintendo DS Browser)
Input * Power button * Volume slider * Eight digital buttons (A, B,
X, Y, L, R, Start, Select) * D-pad * Resistive touchscreen (lower
screen only) * Microphone
Voltage 1.65 v
Battery Rechargeable 850 mAh lithium-ion battery
Storage 256 KB of serial flash memory
Wireless connectivity Built-in 802.11b wireless network connection
(WEP encryption support only)
The system's 3D hardware consists of rendering engine and geometry
engine which perform transform and lighting, transparency auto
sorting, transparency effects, texture matrix effects, 2D billboards,
texture streaming, texture-coordinate transformation,
perspective-correct texture mapping, per-pixel alpha test,
per-primitive alpha blending, texture blending, Gouraud shading, cel
shading, z-buffering, W-buffering, 1-bit stencil buffer, per-vertex
directional lighting and simulated point lighting, depth test, stencil
test, render to texture, lightmapping, environment mapping, shadow
volumes, shadow mapping, distance fog, edge marking, fade-in/fade-out,
and edge-AA. Sprite special effects available are scrolling, scaling,
rotation, stretching, and shear. However, it uses point (nearest
neighbor) texture filtering, leading to some titles having a blocky
appearance. Unlike most 3D hardware, it has a set limit on the number
of triangles it can render as part of a single scene; the maximum
amount is about 6144 vertices, or 2048 triangles per frame. The 3D
hardware is designed to render to a single screen at a time, so
rendering 3D to both screens is difficult and decreases performance
significantly. The DS is generally more limited by its polygon budget
than its pixel fill rate. There are also 512 kilobytes of texture
memory, and the maximum texture size is 1024 × 1024 pixels.
The system has 656 kilobytes of video memory and two 2D engines (one
per screen). These are similar to (but more powerful than) the Game
Boy Advance's single 2D engine.
The Nintendo DS has compatibility with Wi-Fi using the IEEE 802.11b
standard, optionally with WEP encryption. Wi-Fi is used for accessing
the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection (discontinued on May 20, 2014); play
with other users playing the same Wi-Fi compatible game; PictoChat;
or, with a special cartridge and RAM extension, browse the internet.
Today these standards are outdated and (in the case of WEP) considered
insecure and they are no longer available on most wireless routers.
Nintendo claims the battery lasts a maximum of 10 hours under ideal
conditions on a full four-hour charge. Battery life is affected by
multiple factors including speaker volume, use of one or both screens,
use of wireless connectivity, and use of backlight, which can be
turned on or off in selected games such as 'Super Mario 64 DS'. The
battery is user-replaceable using only a Phillips-head screwdriver.
After about 500 charges the battery life starts to decrease.
Users can close the Nintendo DS system to trigger its 'sleep' mode,
which pauses the game being played and saves battery life by turning
off the screens, speakers, and wireless communications; however,
closing the system while playing a Game Boy Advance game will not put
the Nintendo DS into sleep mode, and the game will continue to run
normally. Certain DS games (such as 'Animal Crossing: Wild World')
will also not pause, but the backlight, screens, and speakers will
turn off. Additionally, when saving the game in certain games the DS
will not go into sleep mode. Some games, such as 'The Legend of Zelda:
Phantom Hourglass', use the closing motion needed to enter sleep mode
as an unorthodox way of solving puzzles, or include gameplay sequences
that require the console to be closed, such as 'Looney Tunes: Duck
Amuck'.
Accessories
=============
Although the secondary port on the Nintendo DS does accept and support
Game Boy Advance cartridges (but not Game Boy or Game Boy Color
cartridges), Nintendo emphasized that the main intention for its
inclusion was to allow a wide variety of accessories to be released
for the system.
Due to the lack of a second port on the Nintendo DSi, it is not
compatible with any accessory that uses it.
Rumble Pak
============
The Rumble Pak was the first official expansion slot accessory. In the
form of a Game Boy Advance cartridge, the Rumble Pak vibrates to
reflect the action in compatible games, such as when the player bumps
into an obstacle or loses a life. It was released in North America and
Japan in 2005 bundled with 'Metroid Prime Pinball'. In Europe, it was
first available with the game 'Actionloop', and later 'Metroid Prime
Pinball'. The Rumble Pak was also released separately in those
regions.
Headset
=========
The Nintendo DS Headset is the official headset for the Nintendo DS.
It plugs into the headset port (which is a combination of a standard
3.5 mm (1/8 in) headphone connector and a proprietary microphone
connector) on the bottom of the system. It features one earphone and a
microphone, and is compatible with all games that use the internal
microphone. It was released alongside 'Pokémon Diamond' and 'Pearl' in
North America, and Australia.
Browser
=========
On February 15, 2006, Nintendo announced a version of the
cross-platform web browser Opera for the DS system. The browser can
use one screen as an overview, a zoomed portion of which appears on
the other screen, or both screens together to present a single tall
view of the page. The browser went on sale in Japan and Europe in
2006, and in North America on June 4, 2007. Browser operation requires
that an included memory expansion pak is inserted into the GBA slot.
The DSi has a web browser available for download from the Nintendo DSi
shop for free.
Wi-Fi USB Connector
=====================
This USB-flash-disk-sized accessory plugs into a PC's USB port and
creates a miniature hotspot/wireless access point, allowing a Wii and
up to five Nintendo DS units to access the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
service through the host computer's Internet connection. When tried
under Linux and Mac, it acts as a regular wireless adapter, connecting
to wireless networks, an LED blinks when there is data being
transferred. There is also a hacked driver for Windows XP/Vista/7/8/10
to make it function the same way. The Wi-Fi USB Connector was
discontinued from retail stores and the service discontinued in 2014.
MP3 Player
============
The Nintendo MP3 Player (a modified version of the device known as the
Play-Yan in Japan) was released on December 8, 2006, by Nintendo of
Europe at a retail price of £29.99/€30. The add-on uses removable SD
cards to store MP3 audio files, and can be used in any device that
features support for Game Boy Advance cartridges; however, due to
this, it is limited in terms of its user-interface and functionality,
as it does not support using both screens of the DS simultaneously,
nor does it make use of its touch-screen capability. It is not
compatible with the DSi, due to the lack of the GBA slot, but the DSi
includes a music player via SD card. Although it stated on the box
that it is only compatible with the Game Boy Micro, Nintendo DS and
Nintendo DS Lite, it is also compatible with the Game Boy Advance SP
and Game Boy Advance.
Guitar grip controller
========================
The Guitar grip controller comes packaged with the game 'Guitar Hero:
On Tour' and is plugged into the GBA game slot. It features four
colored buttons like the ones found on regular 'Guitar Hero' guitar
controllers for the stationary consoles, though it lacks the fifth
orange button found on the guitar controllers. The DS Guitar Hero
controller comes with a small "pick-stylus" (which is shaped like a
guitar pick, as the name suggests) that can be put away into a small
slot on the controller. It also features a hand strap. The game works
with both the DS Lite and the original Nintendo DS as it comes with an
adapter for the original DS. The Guitar Grip also works with its
sequels, 'Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades', 'Guitar Hero On Tour: Modern
Hits', and 'Band Hero'.
Nintendo DS Lite
==================
The Nintendo DS Lite is the first redesign of the Nintendo DS. While
retaining the original model's basic characteristics, it features a
sleeker appearance, larger stylus, longer lasting battery, and
brighter screens. The screens have a maximum brightness of 200cd/m2
for the top screen and 190cd/m2 for the bottom screen (touch screen).
The lithium-ion battery (1000 mAh) is capable of delivering 15 to 19
hours of play time on a single charge; a power-saving sleep mode is
also available. The console takes roughly three hours to fully charge
the battery. The DS Lite uses an AC power adapter that differs from
the one used for the original Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance SP due
to a smaller adaptor AC port on the top of the unit. The included
stylus is 1cm longer and 2mm thicker than the stylus of the original
Nintendo DS.
Nintendo DSi and DSi XL
=========================
The Nintendo DSi is the second redesign of the Nintendo DS. It is
based on the unreleased larger DS Lite model. While similar to the
previous DS redesign, new features include two inner and outer 0.3
megapixel digital cameras, a larger 3.25 inch display, internal and
external content storage, compatibility with WPA wireless encryption,
and connectivity to the Nintendo DSi Shop.
The Nintendo DSi XL features larger screens, and a greater overall
size, than the original DSi. It is the fourth DS model, the first to
be available as a pure size variation. It features larger screens with
wider view angles, improved battery life, and a greater overall size
than the original DSi. While the original DSi was specifically
designed for individual use, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata suggested
that DSi XL buyers give the console a "steady place on a table in the
living room", so that it might be shared by multiple household
members.
DS family comparison table
======================================================================
Name Nintendo DS Nintendo DS Lite Nintendo DSi Nintendo DSi XL
Logo 130x130px 130x130px 130x130px 130x130px
Console 125x125px 150x150px 150x150px 150x150px
In production colspan="4"
Generation colspan="4" | Seventh generation
Release date Launch price
Current price colspan="4"
| colspan="4" | **Worldwide:** 154.02 million (as of June 30, 2016)
Units shipped
rowspan="2" | Display
256x192 px 256x192 px 256x192 px 256x192 px
Processor colspan="2" | 67 MHz ARM946E-S & 33 MHz ARM7TDMI
colspan="2" | 133 MHz ARM9 & 33 MHz ARM7
Memory colspan="2" | 4 MB PSRAM colspan="2" | 16 MB
Camera colspan="2" | No colspan="2" | One front-facing and one
outward-facing 0.3 MP
Storage colspan="2" | 256 KB of serial flash memory colspan="2" | 256
MB of internal flash memory with an SD card (up to 2 GB) and SDHC card
(up to 32 GB) expansion slot
Physical media colspan="2" | Game Boy Advance Game Pak Nintendo DS
Game Card colspan="2" | Nintendo DS Game Card Nintendo DSi Game Card
Input controls colspan="2" * Power flick-switch * Volume slider *
Eight digital buttons (A, B, X, Y, L, R, Start, Select) * D-pad *
Resistive touchscreen (lower screen only) * Microphone colspan="2" *
Power button * Ten digital buttons (A, B, X, Y, L, R, Start, Select,
Volume Up, Volume Down) * D-pad * Resistive touchscreen (lower screen
only) * Microphone * Front and back cameras
Battery 850 mAh lithium-ion battery ~10 hours 1000 mAh lithium-ion
battery 15-19 hours 840 mAh lithium-ion battery 9-14 hours 1040 mAh
lithium-ion battery 4-17 hours
Weight
| **W:**
| **H:**
| **D:**
| **W:**
| **H:**
| **D:**
| **W:**
| **H:**
| **D:**
| **W:**
| **H:**
| **D:**
Dimensions
Regional lockout colspan="2" colspan="2"
| colspan="2" | **Physical only** Game Boy Advance Cartridge
| colspan="2" | **Physical only** **Nintendo DS Game Cards**
Backward compatibility
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
===========================
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection was a free online game service run by
Nintendo. Players with a compatible Nintendo DS game could connect to
the service via a Wi-Fi network using a Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector
or a wireless router. The service was launched in North America,
Australia, Japan and Europe throughout November 2005. An online
compatible Nintendo DS game was released on the same day for each
region.
Nintendo WFC Service launch date by region
!Region !Launch date !Compatible launch title !
|North America |November 14, 2005 |'Mario Kart DS' |
|Australia |November 17, 2005 |'Mario Kart DS' |
|Japan |November 23, 2005 |'Animal Crossing: Wild World' |
|Europe |November 25, 2005 |'Mario Kart DS' |
Additional Nintendo DS Wi-Fi Connection games and a dedicated Nintendo
DS web browser were released afterwards. Nintendo later believed that
the online platform's success directly propelled the commercial
success of the entire Nintendo DS platform. The Nintendo Wi-Fi
Connection served as part of the basis of what would become the Wii.
Most functions (for games on both the DS and Wii consoles) were
discontinued worldwide on May 20, 2014.
Download Play
===============
With Download Play, it is possible for users to play multiplayer games
with other Nintendo DS systems, and later Nintendo 3DS systems, using
only one game card. Players must have their systems within wireless
range (up to approximately 65 feet) of each other for the guest system
to download the necessary data from the host system. Only certain
games supported this feature and usually played with much more limited
features than the full game allowed.
Download Play is also utilized to migrate Pokémon from fourth
generation games into the fifth generation 'Pokémon Black' and
'White', an example of a task requiring two different game cards and
two handheld units, but only one player.
Some Nintendo DS retailers featured DS Download Stations that allowed
users to download demos of current and upcoming DS games; however, due
to memory limitations, the downloads were erased once the system was
powered off. The Download Station was made up of 1 to 8 standard
retail DS units, with a standard DS card containing the demo data. On
May 7, 2008, Nintendo released the Nintendo Channel for download on
the Wii. The Nintendo Channel used WiiConnect24 to download Nintendo
DS demos through it. From there, a user can select the demo they wish
to play and, similar to the Nintendo DS Download Stations at retail
outlets, download it to their DS and play it until it is powered off.
Multi-Card Play
=================
Multi-Card Play, like Download Play, allows users to play multiplayer
games with other Nintendo DS systems. In this case, each system
requires a game card. This mode is accessed from an in-game menu,
rather than the normal DS menu.
PictoChat
===========
PictoChat allows users to communicate with other Nintendo DS users
within local wireless range. Users can enter text (via an on screen
keyboard), handwrite messages or draw pictures (via the stylus and
touchscreen). There are four chatrooms (A, B, C, D) in which people
can go to chat. Up to sixteen people can connect in any one room.
PictoChat was not available for the subsequent Nintendo 3DS series of
systems.
Firmware
==========
Nintendo's own firmware boots the system. A health and safety warning
is displayed first, then the main menu is loaded. The main menu
presents the player with four main options to select: play a DS game,
use PictoChat, initiate DS Download Play, or play a Game Boy Advance
game. The main menu also has secondary options such as turning on or
off the back light, the system settings, and an alarm.
The firmware also features a clock, several options for customization
(such as boot priority for when games are inserted and GBA screen
preferences), and the ability to input user information and
preferences (such as name, birthday, favorite color, etc.) that can be
used in games.
Japanese, American, and European consoles support the following
languages: English, Japanese, Spanish, French, German, and Italian.
On consoles from mainland China, Chinese replaces Japanese, and on
Korean consoles, Italian is replaced by Korean.
Later revisions of the DS released after 2006 feature the added option
to toggle screen brightness levels, as with the DS Lite.
Compatibility
===============
The Nintendo DS is backward compatible with Game Boy Advance (GBA)
cartridges. The smaller Nintendo DS game cards fit into a slot on the
top of the system, while Game Boy Advance games fit into a slot on the
bottom. The Nintendo DS, like the Game Boy Micro, is not backward
compatible with games made for the original Game Boy and Game Boy
Color because the required hardware is not included and the console
has physical incompatibility with Game Boy and Game Boy Color games.
The handheld does not have a port for the Game Boy Advance Link Cable,
so multiplayer and GameCube-Game Boy Advance link-up modes are not
available in Game Boy Advance titles. Only single-player mode is
supported on the Nintendo DS, as is the case with Game Boy Advance
games played via the Virtual Console on the Nintendo 3DS (Ambassadors
only) and Wii U.
The Nintendo DS only uses one screen when playing Game Boy Advance
games. The user can configure the system to use either the top or
bottom screen by default. The games are displayed within a black
border on the screen, due to the slightly different screen resolution
between the two systems (256 × 192 px for the Nintendo DS, and 240 ×
160 px for the Game Boy Advance).
Nintendo DS games inserted into the top slot are able to detect the
presence of specific Game Boy Advance games in the bottom slot. In
many such games, either stated in-game during gameplay or explained in
its instruction manual, extra content can be unlocked or added by
starting the Nintendo DS game with the appropriate Game Boy Advance
game inserted. Among those games were the popular 'Pokémon Diamond'
and 'Pearl' or 'Pokémon Platinum', which allowed the player to find
more/exclusive Pokémon in the wild if a suitable Game Boy Advance
cartridge was inserted. Some of the content can stay permanently, even
after the GBA game has been removed.
Additionally, the GBA slot can be used to house expansion paks, such
as the Rumble Pak, Nintendo DS Memory Expansion Pak, and Guitar Grips
for the 'Guitar Hero: On Tour' series. The Nintendo DSi and the DSi XL
have an SD card slot instead of a second cartridge slot and cannot
play Game Boy Advance games or 'Guitar Hero: On Tour'. In certain Wii
games such as Band Hero, the player can use a Nintendo DS for
additional features.
Regional division
===================
The Nintendo DS is region free in the sense that any console will run
a Nintendo DS game purchased anywhere in the world; however, the
Chinese iQue DS games cannot be played on other versions of the
original DS, whose firmware chip does not contain the required Chinese
character glyph images; this restriction is removed on Nintendo DSi
and 3DS systems. Although the Nintendo DS of other regions cannot play
the Chinese games, the iQue DS can play games of other regions. Also,
as with Game Boy games, some games that require both players to have a
Nintendo DS game card for multiplayer play will not necessarily work
together if the games are from different regions (e.g. a Japanese
Nintendo DS game may not work with a North American copy, even though
some titles, such as 'Mario Kart DS' are mutually compatible). With
the addition of the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, certain games can be
played over the Internet with users of a different region game.
Some Wi-Fi enabled games (e.g. 'Mario Kart DS') allow the selection of
opponents by region. The options are "Regional" ("Continent" in
Europe) and "Worldwide", as well as two non-location specific
settings. This allows the player to limit competitors to only those
opponents based in the same geographical area. This is based on the
region code of the game in use.
The Nintendo DSi, however, has a region lock for DSiWare downloadable
games, as well as DSi-specific cartridges. It still runs normal DS
games of any region, however.
Media specifications
======================
Nintendo DS games use a proprietary solid state mask ROM in their game
cards. The mask ROM chips are manufactured by Macronix and have an
access time of 150 ns. Cards range from 8 to 512 MiB (64 Mibit to 4
Gibit) in size (although data on the maximum capacity has not been
released). Larger cards have a 25% slower data transfer rate than more
common smaller cards. The cards usually have a small amount of flash
memory or an EEPROM to save user data such as game progress or high
scores. The game cards are 35 x (about half the width and depth of
Game Boy Advance cartridges) and weigh around .
Hacking and homebrew
======================================================================
In South Korea, many video game consumers exploit illegal copies of
video games, including the DS. In 2007, over 500,000 copies of DS
games were sold, while the sales of the DS hardware units was 800,000.
Another modification device called Action Replay, manufactured by the
company Datel, is a device which allows the user to input cheat codes
that allows it to hack games, granting the player infinite health,
power-ups, access to any part of the game, infinite in game currency,
the ability to walk through walls, and various other abilities
depending on the game and code used.
License
=========
All content on Gopherpedia comes from Wikipedia, and is licensed under CC-BY-SA
License URL:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Original Article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo_DS
