Last night's breaking rumor about a DS redesign came seemingly out of nowhere, but with the next Nintendo conference right around the corner, maybe it's not such a surprise as all that. What we did find surprising were the purported changes in the redesign. Camera? Music? Interesting, sure, but how many of us are already strapped with devices that handle those functions just fine? Is this what you would have chosen for the next DS?
DS Daily: What would you have done?
Last night's breaking rumor about a DS redesign came seemingly out of nowhere, but with the next Nintendo conference right around the corner, maybe it's not such a surprise as all that. What we did find surprising were the purported changes in the redesign. Camera? Music? Interesting, sure, but how many of us are already strapped with devices that handle those functions just fine? Is this what you would have chosen for the next DS?







Reader Comments (Page 2 of 3)
9-28-2008 @ 12:33PM
Mr Khan said...
Remember this will be the DS's 4th birthday this November, which makes it 1 year longer than either the Game Boy Color OR the highly successful Game Boy Advance survived without a replacement
GBA was also replaced while it was still going strong, GBC not as much (successful, but not on GBA levels), but GBC was still a very viable platform when they swapped it out
The case for this being a new "console" is rather strong.
If it isn't, though, i won't be getting it. I never use the camera in my cell phone, and i don't listen to music. The Wii-DS swapping capabilities might be nice
Finally, it almost feels kinda like Nintendo would be copying the PSP doing this move, which is a bad thing on a few levels. Nintendo's the game company that keeps it real, about the games, not the hardware features, and i wouldn't really want to see them leave that route.
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9-28-2008 @ 12:59PM
C02M0 said...
well, IMO the only thing the DS is missing is the power thet PSP for exaple have .
going a bit off topic the main thing id improve in nintendo is stop making remakes .
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9-28-2008 @ 1:26PM
Matdredalia said...
To be honest, I'm really, really sick of everyone trying to take the gadgets I already have and combine them into one Super-I-Can-Do-It-All-Gadget.
First of all, it took me a long time just to be able to afford a DS (my first child), my iPod (2nd child), and then my Digital Camera (3rd child).
All of these things are awesome gadgets that do their job just fine. Sure, they take up a little extra space being individual gadgets, but personally, I sort of prefer that. Not that they take up more space, but the fact that they're separate.
One, have you people seen the learning curve on some of the "smart phones" out there?
Two, when I want to play my DS, I don't want to have to click 58 times to access my DS's DS features. Do we seriously need to have a handheld gaming system that's also an MP3 players and camera? Not really. It's nice, but seriously, completely unnecessary.
I'm from the school of "if it ain't broken, don't fix it."
The Lite, from my perspective, isn't broken, nor has it stopped printing money. Personally, I think releasing a new model is going to cause more trouble than not. But what do I know?
Regardless, back to the original question, what would I have done?
I'd have improved upon the DS's gaming features and left the other crap out of it. MP3's? That's what homebrew is for. Camera? WHY!?
So, what would I have done? At this point in time, absolutely nothing. I'd release more colors worldwide, especially in America, and I'd leave it the hell alone at least until 2010.
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9-28-2008 @ 2:06PM
ducky said...
It's probably a bit early to be discussing whether they should or shouldn't do this, especially since this whole thing is almost certainly a hoax.
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9-28-2008 @ 2:08PM
Zealot said...
A friendly warning for ADHD sufferers to stay away from this behemoth.
Wow, I really wouldn’t have anticipated this level of negativity following the leak of the new design. Everyone’s points about the new bells and whistles being superfluous are valid—of course they’re not going to help improve the quality of games and gameplay. I personally don’t think that a redesign, much less an entirely new device, is needed at this time, but I can see Nintendo’s reasoning.
For one thing, I think that cultural differences between Japan and the rest of the world are fueling the confusion (bordering on outrage?) toward Nintendo’s move. I assume that convergence devices go over very well there due to high reliance on mass transit and rampant technophilia that really don’t exist at the same levels in the west. The PSP has seen a huge surge in sales thanks to Monster Hunter, and it could very well be that people who bought it for that one game are recognizing its abilities as a media player and recommendations from these people to others who may benefit from such a convenience are resulting in further-increased PSP sales. I see this as an attempt for Nintendo of Japan to reclaim the spot of number one handheld by removing the last remaining feature “advantage” the PSP has over the DS.
This isn’t of any use to those of us in the west who like our electronic devices separate. I have no need for a second digital camera, a second mp3 player, or even a first PDA. In spite of this, I’m not going to be negative until I can actually see the device and decide for myself that a camera, mp3 player, etc. is excessive (admittedly, I’d still upgrade anyway because I’m using my launch-day Phat.) This move could stop the upswing in PSP development in its tracks provided that it causes the DS to reclaim the title of top-selling handheld device, though, which is an interesting prospect and would, in my opinion, make whatever drama and infighting we’re going to see over the redesign in the coming weeks and months worth it.
What I don’t want to see is anything that will hamper compatibility with current DS games, though. Resizing can be done a la toggling in the vein of GB games on the GBA, so I’m not particularly worried about that. I just don’t know what else Nintendo has in store and I don’t want something that’s going to force people to purchase the new model to play particular games if it’s not going to be an out-and-out new system, although I don’t know what, other than camera integration, could cause that. I don’t want to see Nintendo’s nickel-and-diming policies from the Wii (Balance Board, Zapper, MotionPlus, WiiSpeak, etc) translate to the DS.
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9-28-2008 @ 2:08PM
Shoyz said...
I personally think Nintendo should go back to the Gameboy franchise. After finally having tried a PSP, I find the two screens to be really irritating in comparison.
Now, a Gameboy with a touch screen..
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9-28-2008 @ 2:11PM
Jace said...
I'm with seemingly everyone else on this. Most of the people I know who have a PSP don't really care about the music player, web browser, or UMD movies (especially UMD movies). They just want good games. I think cheap and reliable GPS would be cool, but not as cool as awesome games. The old Game Boy Camera was neat because of its unique grainy quality and the printer add-on. Why does Nintendo think we want a camera and music player? Who told them this?
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9-28-2008 @ 2:49PM
Brendon said...
Wow! I can take pictures, listen to music, play NSMB, all while cleaning my oven! No thanks.
If a redesign is in order I'd much rather a slimmer, lighter Lite.
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9-28-2008 @ 3:38PM
thefiddlist said...
I don't really care about extras like a camera and/or music playing abilities for a gaming system. I would prefer that Nintendo leave all of that stuff off, and just make the actual gaming experience more powerful.
For me, it is all about the games and nothing else.
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9-28-2008 @ 4:02PM
Cbass said...
WELL WELL WELL...
What do we have here?
A multifuncional handheld that has to compete with another gadgets like what? PSP?, iphone? ipod? the next google phone gadget?, and another mp3 devices and also digicams??
Is not that too much?
First of all, what wouldd be the quality of the camera? good, bad of worst than a regular digicam? MP3? that would be cool improvement but i already an I-audio doing that(and more stufs, pics,videos etc)way better than the homebrew I tried on the DS.
I wonder if it worth it all this improvement to afford the new "DS reloaded".
IMHO, I love handhelds, i'm deeply in love of them, as such i like that any kind of handheld that do their functions at max capacity so that's why i like having gadgets doing the job on their own , and dedicated to do it well...I.E good and awesome pictures? = my fuji digicam, mp3 + videos? = no probs, my i-audio can do it, and finally and most important, the fun games? My beloved DS of course.
With this, i wanna say that i'm a person who like specific devices for specific tasks, and while i'm not against of an all-in-one function packed in just one handheld gadget such as the brand new announced "DS 2" (or 3 in this case), isn't all a bad idea at all and even sounds attractive, but I seriously doubt that the new upgrades will be super awesome and effective like the separate devices on their own.
Now,I'm just speculating about this, but i'll wait to see the quality of the news functions (specially the pictures taken with the camera) of the new handheld. If my suspicious thoughts here become rights, then i don't see any reasons for me to get the new DS.
Of course, i truly believe there will be tons of ppl who gonna get it and won't really care about the points that i mentioned above. Some will find out that is really cool carrying all the stuff in one pack and feel very comfy with it, I think it'll be okay for them.
But as for me, I'm a pretty picky and demanding guy when it comes to the quality of the functions. Lack of quality in any of the aspects that I wrote, i just can't accept and take it. I don't care if carry on with the devices separately but at least, i won't be never disappointed of their performances.
If i'm gonna give my money (and a good amount) for some gadget , i demand good quality doing what they were made for. So that's why I like devices working alone.
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9-28-2008 @ 4:46PM
LocalToast said...
I will admit, I think a lot of you are freaking out about a roughly translated newspaper clipping. A *lot*.
Still, a camera and music functionality is kinda cool. Nobody's forcing you to buy it, and your games won't suddenly become obsolete. Did I hear a bigger screen? I think the GBA had a bigger screen than the GBC, and nobody complained. I don't think Nintendo will screw up something they already nailed down.
If they can add WPA support to the DS, I will definitely buy one. That way I can finally have a secure network and enjoy my DS WiFi games. Sure, I can take pictures with my digital camera and listen to music on my iPod. But I can also take pictures and listen to music on my phone. And on my computer. Even on my 360. Multimedia is huge, and I can see why Nintendo wants to board the train.
You have to remember, this is coming from Japan. Yes, Japan. Japan is also the place where you buy things using your face, and your cell phone. Japan is all about innovative technology and integration. So I wouldn't be surprised if any country outside of Japan never got to see one of these systems localized for their region. It almost seems like a cultural thing to me.
But I adore Japan's technology and I love the DS, so I would definitely buy one, given I knew more about the system. Camera, music, DS-to-Wii connectivity, and bigger screens? Yes please, I'll take one.
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9-30-2008 @ 2:58AM
ALinkFromThePast said...
wow this was the first comment worth reading.
no need to rant about the new product (if it is real), there is one simple solution, if it ain't worth your money.. don't buy it.
9-28-2008 @ 4:58PM
TJF588 said...
Give me a SONG SUMMONER port and iTunes file types compatability, and I'd be fine, I guess.
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9-28-2008 @ 5:17PM
one0fthethree said...
Nintendo's thought process behind DS:
DS = Win
iPhone = Win
DS + iPhone = Win Win?
I think so; i dont need a camera or music, but i dont mind having them.
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9-28-2008 @ 5:30PM
AoOs said...
Next features:
- Faster cpu
- Camera
- MP3 player
- Accelerometer
- Vibrator
- Build-in Win & Mac remote desktop.
These things, and I couldn't be happier.
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9-28-2008 @ 6:17PM
mauroh said...
What I'd like on a redesign? [and that's if it is just a redesign and not a new system altogether]
- a slimmer design
- WPA support
- touch screen like the one on the iphone
- I guess the sd slot is kinda nice too...
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9-28-2008 @ 7:00PM
skaldicpoet9 said...
I don't know why anyone would want to be able to take pictures with their DS. I can see the music playback being viable for those that don't already have an MP3 player but other then that I don't see much use for that as well. I think what they need to do is get rid of the irritating gap between the screens and make the screens wider and taller. If they could figure out a way to eliminate the gap in the middle of the two screens I would be happy.
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9-29-2008 @ 12:43AM
LocalToast said...
Dude, it's Japan.
9-28-2008 @ 7:02PM
Risingsun said...
Well many of us just wanted a thinner DS with larger screens, thats what a lot of the old rumors were anyway. So if this new Media DS still does that plus all of it new features it seems like a worthy upgrade. Better than a gameboy micro at least.
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9-28-2008 @ 7:08PM
rikki said...
If this means the DS will *FINALLY* support WPA -- something it should have done AT LAUNCH, ffs -- I might actually trade in my existing system.
I'm not interested in any of the other features even if this isn't just a photoshop/rumor being reported as fact (it's happened before).
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