Nintendo DS: The pinnacle of Innovation
Written: Dec 27 '04
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Real Backlit screens, Can play GBA games and DS games.
Cons: Few games so far, no online service yet, system is a bit bulky.
The Bottom Line: I would definitly recommend the Nintendo DS, it has awesome potential at a reasonable price, and it can play GBA games too.
|
|
|
| saraab's Full Review: Nintendo DS Console |
I recieved a Nintendo DS for christmas after much anticipation about this new system. The system does not disspoint and delivers pretty much everything as promised. I am also the owner of every Gameboy incarnation released in the USA, and although nintendo states this system is a "third pillar" people will still think of it as a Gameboy since its such a widely known name.
The layout of the DS is nice, except i feel its a bit bulky, but then again it does have 2 screens. It is not quite as portable as the GBA SP, and is significantly heavier. The handheld has 2 screens, with the top being for viewing the game's action, and the bottom screen is the touch screen, in case you didnt know. The touch screen on my DS feels very durable and seems to have a protective-like shield on it, so you are not touching directly on the LCD screen. I have not owned another device with a touch screen before so i am assuming this is how most touch screen devices feel. It also comes with 2 stylii which are really small, and the stylus fits into the system nicely so it does not get lost eaisly. If it gets lost you can just use the replacement stylus provided or purchase a 3 pack of stylus designed for the DS from a store.
However i would NOT recommend buying this system for young children. Any touch screen can break when excessive amounts of pressure are placed on them. The DS is also more delicate due to having 2 screens than the other gameboy's and will not taking dropping or excessive abuse well.
This is not a simple 2 button gameboy, it has 4 buttons, x, y, a, b, the standard d-pad, and L and R buttons in addition to the touch screen. Fans of the Super nintendo will be very happy to have the extra buttons added! How the touch screen is used depends on the game you are playing, and how the developer of the game chooses to implement the touch screen in the game. This is a system that was obviously made for gaming and it does that wonderfully.
The DS does everything wirelessly, so there is no need for link cables anymore. Also the DS CANNOT link GBA games no matter what, there is no port for the GBA link cable, and the wireless used on the DS is different from that used on the GBA wireless adaptor. Since there is no port on the DS for the GBA link cable, that also means that you cannot use the DS to link to the Nintendo Gamecube. The only thing the DS lets you do with GBA games is allows you to play them by yourself.
There are 2 kinds of wireless connectivity built into the Nintendo DS, 802.11 wireless and Nintendo's proprietary wireless. The propreitary wireless is the one that you use to play a game multiplayer with a friend or to use pictochat with a friend or friends (pictochat is described below). The range of the propreitary wireless is only around 100ft according to the system's manual. The 802.11 wireless is what will be used to let the Nintendo DS go online, there is a lot of speculation about the use of the DS online, but at the time of the writing of this review the DS does not have any online services yet.
The following options are accessed via the menu that comes right after the start up screen.
The system itself comes with Pictochat built into the system, its not an additional game pak. Pictochat is a system for talking between 2 or more DS's. I do not find it very useful since right now i do not know anyone else with a DS. Again it is not useful for a public place either since no one is ever using a DS at least around here. It is also not useful cause nintendo again dissapoints by making it impossible for one nintendo ds that is turned on to detect another nintendo ds that is in range, so there is no way to know when another DS is near you unless you see it with your own eyes. The range is also only 100ft and you have to start out with the DS's closer together if you want to establish a connection according to the manual provided with the DS. I have not tested pictochat myself with anyone because as of now i do not know anyone with a Nintendo DS. If you do have a friend with a DS, with pictochat you can draw pictures, and write using either the keyboard letters or write with the stylus. You cannot actually type on the keyboard though, you have to tap the letters on the touch screen with the stylus.
Also included built into the system is a calender and clock feature, the clock only displays time in military time but does feature the display of a normal wall clock next to it. The calender doesnt do anything but show you what the date is, and the corresponding month. It would be a lot more useful if you could record messages to remind yourself of important events on the calendar.
Another feature of the start up screen is the " DS download Play" option, from what i understand this lets you download data off another person's game pak onto yours so you can play multiplayer with them. This is only compatible with certain games though, and only for use if you have a friend with a DS. I have not tested this feature yet.
The last option on the start up screen is to select to play a gba game, which does just that. When you select to play a gba game it will automatically display the game on the top screen, but you are allowed to choose which screen you want the game displayed on. The top screen is the better choice in my opinion though.
Speaking of the screens, both of the screens on the Nintendo DS feature real backlit screens. They are not frontlit like the screen on the GBA SP. It makes the images on the screens look 100 times better than on the GBA SP. The images are clearer and do not look washed out at all. The colors also show up bolder and brighter and its just an all around better picture. GBA games just look fantastic on the DS.
The DS also comes with a rechargable Lithium Ion Battery. It is similar to the battery used in the GBA SP. The DS battery has a very good lifespan, i have heard anywhere from 6-12 hours depending on what you are doing. If you are playing a graphically intense game made for the DS only then you will probably get less out of a single charge on the battery than you would if you used the system to play GBA games. So basically it can last about 6-10 hours on a single charge for DS games and a couple hours longer if you are only using the DS to play GBA games. I have not tested battery life myself so i am going by the generally accepted battery life's for the DS. Note that the GBA SP only gets 10 hours at maximum power with the light on, the DS will get more than that when used only for GBA games, even with the backlight on.
As of the writing of this review, the DS has a poor library of games, but if you are looking for some fast game recommendations there are 2 games that stand out. Super Mario DS and Feel the Magic. Feel the magic is recommended for older gamers and has some mature themes but is really a collection of mini games. Super Mario DS is a port of Super Mario 64 for the N64 with a few extra features, this is a platformer type game that anyone will enjoy.
This system will really start to shine when more quality games are released for it. The system has all the makings of being very good, it just needs games that take full advantage of the system's capabilities.
The price is also reasonable for the DS, 150$ for a system with 2 screens is not bad, plus a rechargable battery and charger, and stylii included. It also includes the Thumb Pad/Strap, which is like a stylus you wrap around your finger. This also attaches to the system through a strap. The games will run about 25$ to 40$, recently i saw Feel the Magic on sale for 22.99 so watch the sale ads for better prices.
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
saraab
|
|
Member: Sara Zielinski
Location: Niagara Falls, NY
Reviews written: 46
Trusted by: 0 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.