Agreed. All the stuff I'd want to change would just be simple durability issues: better D-pad, somewhat less crappy plastic, stronger connectors, etc. Nothing comes to mind which would warrant a proper redesign.

I'd like the ability to view the screen in sunlight instead of looking for shelter so I can see the thing on-the-go.

@tekdroid: Definitely need an anti-glare coating, because boy is it hard to read in so many environments!

Nintendo do not need to make any new games as long as the third parties continue to deliver. We're in July and for each month of the year there has been at least one must have game. I believe that's a great rate for any console, let alone a handheld. If you feel unfufilled by the DS then maybe it's not for you.

I second this motion. You said it better than I could have.

*shoulder buttons more rounded and comfortable, a la Game Boy Advance (original, not SP)
*sunlight viewability
*bigger and more clicky D-Pad like the original DS
*matte exterior, not gloss
*cable support for multiplayer Game Boy Advance games
*more tapered, less blocky corners for easier fit into pockets (though this kinda relates to redesigning the blocky shoulder buttons)

...are just the first things off the top of my head.

Curmeo, you're on foreign land here. Your jovial trolling will not be tolerated. I jest, of course. I see you come in peace and I accept you as a long lost brother. Here, hug me.

Despite the pleasantries, I think you're wrong in every suggestion you've made. It's all so unneeded. An elaboration of my opinion would require an energy I don't have at this time, so I will leave it at that.

two models add unnecessary confusion in the marketplace (Joe wonders whether it's an entirely new console, whether things are compatible, etc). Nightmare.

They tried a very very similar thing with the Game Boy Advance and Game Boy Micro, remember?

Game Boy Micro:
1) dropped support for original Game Boy Games.
2) Was 'mini'
3) Confused the marketplace
4) didn't sell well
5) was dropped

PS. DS Phat production has long since stopped.

Why remove the GBA port? It's quite essential to one of the latest DS games (Guitar Hero) and pretty useful for others (Pokemon in particular come to mind). I don't know why people want the GBA port gone so badly.

You took the words out of my mouth - this is the one feature that I really wish my DS had. I don't care if it's via a firmware update (hopefully free, but if not I'm ok with that), or even a new model of DS.

Currently, I'm just not worrying about getting my DS online at home at all. I'd rather have a secure network instead of some DS demos (via the Wii) or playing the occasional game online.

Well WPA would be nice but there's quite a problem preventing the older software from using it. If the current hardware isn't able to do that then a simple replace would be sufficient you might think, however the fact is that all the wifi code is built in the games themselves and there's nothing used from the DS's firmware which is in fact pretty much just what you see when you start the DS up and the settings. The reason all the WiFi setup screens in commercial games look the same is simply because it's the WiFi setup screen from the official devkit and thus a simple upgrade of the device does nothing to the games. I'd love WPA support aswell tho.

Thats my exact problem i cant believe the number of people with a DS who ave not complained thi leads me to believe that not many people play with their DS online.

Or perhaps that people just aren't concerned with their network's security... considering the number of open networks available from my backyard I'd say this is probably the case. It takes someone with the right software less than 3 seconds to crack WEP however so you might as well leave it open. You used to be able to purchase a dongle to provide yourself a connection without changing router settings but even that isn't exactly an elegant solution.