I would change the location of the START and SELECT button

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I'm quite happy with the DS Lite, it's just I wish Nintendo made the diagonals easier on the fingers. That would fix a good number of fighting and top-down view games.

Most of us might have long fingers, and I would prefer if the 'click' of the L and R shoulder buttons were placed closer to the middle. It'll feel much better to press it with the end of your finger rather than at the joint.

The hinge could be a bit stiffer too, as I hate it when the flip starts rattling during a bumpy bus ride.

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I have a lite and i think its ok. The only problem i remember is playing FPS games holding the DS with just one hand, the hand that is holding the DS gets tired soon

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I wish that the d- pad was a little bigger, honestly.

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My hands don't make a square shape when they grasp something. I get hand cramps after a while of gameplay, mainly because of the overall placement of the buttons. Maybe my hands are to big for my lite, but I think if they angled the L and R triggers, and maybe moved the d pad and x, y, a, b buttons up a bit too, I would be a happier DS user.
-My wife just asked me what I was doing, I told her I am commenting on an ergonomics post about the DS. She said, "Oh, I love the ergonimics. Fits my hands perfectly." She has tiny hands. So, I guess I'm just screwed with my man hands...

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With regards to the DS Phat, I can easily say that the D-Pad feels less accurate than that of the DSLite. I walked away from the DS(Phat) about a year ago, but upon returning to the enticing handheld recently, I found that controlling my little Pokemon protagonist was a bit harder on the DS Phat - the sprite I was controlling felt less responsive to my thumbs subtle movements. I've never owned a DS Lite, but I've played around with one during my "handheld gaming hiatus."

I'm not trying to incite a debate, but it's hard NOT to praise the DSLite's anatomy. So, even though I do not own a Lite - I own a blue Phat - allow me to just say how wonderful its D-Pad is - I absolutely love it. In addition to its D-Pad, I love the brighter screens; that alone seems to be enough reason to get a lite.

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My two main concerns with the DS Lite are the D-Pad, with the diagonals being much harder to press than on the original style DS and the overall thickness with the lite. Before I got a pouch which lets me play with the DS in the pouch (it looks like one of those organizer thingys), I always got hand cramps after only a short time of gaming. Now with the added thickness due to the pouch I don't get hand cramps anymore.

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I have a DS Lite.

Good:
- Battery life.
- Screen lightness.

Could be better:
- Larger D-pad (or replace it with an analog D-button so that diagonals work too).
- Larger Start/Select buttons (why are they so tiny anyway?).
- More rounded shape of the whole thing so it's more comfy to hold (my palms don't like the corners).
- Higher screen resolution (handheld means it's close to my eyes, so finer pixels are good).
- Finer point on the stylus (it's a tad too big to select small details).
- Volume control could do with better range (it goes up all the way to deafening, which isn't necessary) and placement (it gets changed accidentally sometimes).

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Having moved to the Lite, I can say I'm tempted to compare the two.

The Phat's buttons were almost perfect for any sized hands and the diagonals on the D-Pad worked easily.

In contrast, the Lite is so small, if I hold it for too long, the bottom corner that's resting on my hand will leave an imprint. The D-pad doesn't work as well as the Phat's does either.

I'd also like to mention the odd placement of the "power switch". One too many times have I accidentally switched it on without knowing.

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My my were in the hearing complains mood huh alisha? First the wii now the ds

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while i haven´t been playing that long with my Lite i agree with softer corners as they print the edges on my hands, a finer stylus would be fine too, but what i´ve noticed on my end is that both the On/Off and Volume Swhich get a little loose after use, whenever i shook my ds it sounded too much for my liking.. finally i noticed that it was a little uncomfy to play with the headphones..the plug is way to the corner near my hand

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The D-pad. I wish for a retractable analog stick, if there's such a thing.

Otherwise, I'm happy with my Lite. It's definitely style over ergonomics though.

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I like the normal DS buttons better than the DS lite buttons.

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Kill the shoulder buttons. I would prefer 6 face buttons.

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Two of my games (Metroid Prime Hunters, Mario Kart DS) make my hands physically hurt. This is the only portable I've ever owned that hurts to play. I may have to surrender the portability and pick up one of those Swing Grip cases, apparently they're pretty nice for larger hands.

Also, there is not one positive thing I can say about the volume adjustment. Even if it was a wheel like the first Game Boy it'd be far superior. The entire volume range being represented by a quarter-inch (I measured!) is rubbish. It stunk on the GBA SP and it stinks now.

Not ergonomically related, but I also think the DS and PSP should come with factory installed screen protectors. To me it's like buying a car without seat belts.

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I liked the face buttons and D-Pad better on the Phat. The D-Pad is much larger, thinner, and easier to "roll" around on. The buttons had less required push to get them to respond, too.

I still like the Lite, but there are things about the Phat I still admire.

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