Nintendo just emailed us the following announcement of the redesign of the Nintendo DS (dual screen) handheld.
"Nintendo President Satoru Iwata today announced Nintendo DS Lite, a slimmer version of the best-selling Nintendo DS™. Also featuring brighter screens, Nintendo DS Lite will launch in Japan in March. Nintendo DS Lite will be less than two-thirds the size of the original Nintendo DS and more than 20 percent lighter.
Nintendo DS has enjoyed extremely strong sales in Japan and around the world, selling more than 14.4 million units worldwide. The Japanese sell-through of the existing Nintendo DS hardware exceeded 5 million within 13 months, which made Nintendo DS the fastest-selling video game system there.
Nintendo will announce more information about the availability of Nintendo DS Lite in North America and other territories in the future."
Additional details can be found on Nintendo's Japanese site.
Japanese release date: March 2, 2006
Weight: 218g (compare to 275g for the current Nintendo DS)
Dimensions: 133mm x 73.9mm x 21.5mm
Higher-resolution images for you.
And closed:
[Update 2: added higher-res photos.]
[Update 3: added details from Japanese press release.)
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 3)
1-28-2006 @ 3:17PM
dest said...
boring
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1-28-2006 @ 8:05PM
anthony angiada said...
rrrrrrr!! im so frustrated because i just wasted my money on the phat one now this one make up your mind nintendo when you make another potable system
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1-29-2006 @ 12:59AM
Nathan said...
Smaller and lighter sound great the old DS dont sit to well in pocket. I hear theres 3 brighness levels and a battery meter fantastic!! Great job Nintendo.
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1-29-2006 @ 1:06AM
Nathan said...
Is this like when lisa from the simpsons makes the doll lisa lion heart (old DS) and then they put a new hat on malibu stacey (new DS) and everyone gobbles it up :P
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1-29-2006 @ 7:33PM
Nick said...
It's nice. I knew that Nintendo was going to redesign the DS. It's a nice redesign. I like the fact that they made it a glossy coler like the PSP and thats a plus from the original color. I love the fact that its smaller, more lightweight, and, of course, sexier, BUT..... when I looked at it it was beutiful, but i just dont like where they positioned the Start and Select buttons. It looks like i will be accidentily pressing them unless you have to push them with a bit of force like you did on the original DS. That's all I'm really worried about. Otherwise, Nintendo, YOU ROCK!!!
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1-30-2006 @ 1:20AM
play games said...
This is sweet redesign, but I just got a DS for Christmas!. Hopefully it will be available in black/charcoal later this year. Slim is good, 20% lighter is great!
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1-30-2006 @ 2:51PM
Caspar PH said...
If I Bought One From Japan Would PictoChat ect be in japanese?
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2-11-2006 @ 3:25PM
Miranda said...
Caspar, I bought my (regular) DS in Japan, and I was able to set it to use English for its menus, pictochat, etc. I would think the DS Lite would be the same way.
Of course, the *games* I bought in Japan are still in Japanese. ;-) (I knew they would be, I'm just kidding.)
That's why I stuck with games that would not be text-dependent. :-)
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2-28-2006 @ 7:39PM
Uncle Darryl said...
It is cool. A question. Is there still the spot on the back for the wrist-strap? Stylus on the side is cool. Easier to grab it and put it back quicklyier.
How did u have accidental shutdowns. U have to hold the power botton for a few seconds before it turns off.
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3-02-2006 @ 4:11PM
Chris said...
Is there going to be an internet browser and live TV on it?
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3-08-2006 @ 2:32PM
Dagnabbith said...
Well, ultimately, it's a complete piss-off to early adopters. Perhaps the rich kids who have been saying, "Learn 2 play, n00b, just get teh n00 1" wouldn't have a problem with buying two systems in two years just because of the looks, but I certainly would appreciate some props from Nintendo for buying into their new concepts. Instead, I get buggered with an electric toothbrush with the Nintendo logo on it.
Let's hope for a trade-in so I won't look like a complete tool for having what will be known as the "old-school" DS.
On the bright side, the new DS Lite does look awesome, and that's what inspires such wrath: it is awesome, and makes chumps like me covet it with foamy-mouthed fervour. The improved screens look tasty, though I already thought the old DS screen was more than adequate - I have used the GBSP, the DS, and the iPod Nano as flashlights, because of their awesome backlight capabilities.
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