The latest generation of the endlessly upgraded Nintendo DS handheld has come to pass with the release of the DSi in North America on April 5th. Sales of the new unit, priced above the regular, and now utterly dull, DS model, have shown that gamers are easily tempted by shiny objects. To be fair, the DSi does offer some impressive features over its lesser brother, such as larger screens and a pair of digital cameras to further empower the upskirt photo industry. On the other hand, the one that isn’t casually held under the seats on the subway, the DSi doesn’t accept Gameboy Advanced games, which is a damn shame since that’s where all the best Pokemon lives.
Used retailer and necessary evil, Gamestop, has reported that DSi preorders are coming in at double the rate of those for the launch of the now useless and uncool Nintendo DS.
The biggest change in the DSi involves how Nintendo views the gaming community in light of its massively successful Wii console. Reaching out to more than just the hardcore gamers, the DSi has been marketed for its multimedia capabilities, allowing users to chat, buy games off a special online service, and share MySpace camwhore shots with the built-in photo editing software.
Ever since I first saw the flood of hardware additions and strange utility games for the original Gameboy, there’s been a vision in floating through the back of my imagination of the Gameboy at the center of a personal network of electronics. The hub between your cellphone, wearable printer, camera, internet connecting thingie, and whatever other hovering gadgets Japan could pump out and network. Now that the DSi is offering those same capabilities built-in, I begin to wonder if the true age of wearable computers and personal networks won’t come from Microsoft or HP, but instead be carried to our generation by way of a mushroom-licking plumber. All the next version of the DSi needs is a hard drive, a couple USB ports, and a secure wireless network, and you could run an internet business from your pocket. That’ll be the dawn of true personal networks, since nothing is real until you can make money through it.
Oh, also, the old and decrepit DS will remain on shelves for the foreseeable future. I mean, if you want one.
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