Nintendo DS
In mid-2002, Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi stepped down from his executive role to become an advisor. He proposed a new system built around two screens. Satoru Iwata took over as president in May 2002 and acknowledged that the company had fallen behind industry trends regarding online gaming. Internal research suggested that past emphasis on unconventional hardware complicated third-party development. Iwata supported the dual-screen handheld concept to offer distinctive play styles while remaining accessible to non-traditional audiences. The design emphasized wireless functionality for local multiplayer without requiring recurring subscription fees. On the 20th of January 2004, Nintendo announced the device under the codename Nintendo DS. It was described as an experimental third pillar alongside the Game Boy Advance and GameCube rather than a replacement for either. Few technical details were initially disclosed beyond the inclusion of two 3-inch TFT LCD displays and up to 128 MB of memory. A leaked document in March 2004 revealed one screen would be touch sensitive with the internal name Nitro. The prototype appeared publicly at E3 2004 in Los Angeles where Reggie Fils-Aimé noted the design would change before launch. On the 28th of July 2004, Nintendo unveiled a redesigned version described as sleeker and more elegant confirming the final name. Yamauchi stated in February 2004 that if the system succeeded they would rise to heaven but failure meant sinking to hell.
Nintendo announced the North American launch date of the 21st of November 2004 on the 20th of September 2004. Japan followed on December 2 with releases in Australia and New Zealand arriving on the 24th of February 2005. Europe received the console on the 11th of March 2005. The North American debut featured a midnight launch event in Los Angeles while the Japanese launch was comparatively subdued due to winter weather. Demand exceeded expectations with more than three million preorders placed across North America and Japan. Nintendo initially planned to ship about one million units combined for both launches but added production capacity after seeing preorder volumes. For the U.S. launch, 550,000 units were shipped up from a planned 300,000. Just over 500,000 sold in the first week alone. The system reached one million units sold in the United States by the 21st of December 2004. Worldwide shipments totaled 2.8 million by the end of the year which was roughly 800,000 above Nintendo's forecast. By June 2005 global sales had reached 6.65 million units. Some commentators likened its popularity to the Tickle Me Elmo craze of 1996. Early units were reported to have stuck pixels as was common with LCD displays of that time. Nintendo of America launched a program to repair or replace screens if the owner felt that the stuck pixels interfered with their gaming experience.
On the 2nd of March 2006, Nintendo released a refreshed model called the Nintendo DS Lite. It was slimmer, lighter, featured brighter screens and improved battery life. The top screen has a maximum brightness of 200cd/m2 while the lower touch screen reaches 190cd/m2. Its 1000 mAh lithium-ion battery provides approximately 15, 19 hours of play after about three hours of charging. The included stylus is 1 cm longer and 2 mm thicker than that of the original model. Heavy demand led to widespread shortages when it launched in Japan on the 2nd of March 2006. Nintendo shipped 550,000 units in March 2006 exceeding expectations yet the console sold out quickly. To address demand the company shipped an additional 700,000 units in April but retailers were again sold out by late May. Shortages continued through much of 2006 and 2007. The DS Lite launched in Australia on the 1st of June 2006 bundled with a demo of Brain Age. North America followed on the 11th of June 2006 with reports that some major chains sold units ahead of the official date. By June 12 most major U.S. retailers had sold out and Nintendo reported sales of 136,500 units within the first two days. In Europe the DS Lite was released on the 23rd of June 2006 with early launches in Finland and Sweden to avoid the Midsummer holiday. Following the establishment of Nintendo of Korea in July 2006 the DS Lite became the subsidiary's first console release on the 18th of January 2007. It sold more than one million units in South Korea within its first year reaching 1.4 million by April 2008. The Nintendo DS Lite was reportedly discontinued in April 2011.
The system supports Wi-Fi via the IEEE 802.11b standard enabling local multiplayer over short distances and online play through the now-defunct Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. The service was launched in North America, Australia, Japan and Europe throughout November 2005. An online compatible game was released on the same day for each region. Mario Kart DS launched in North America on the 14th of November 2005 while Animal Crossing: Wild World arrived in Japan on the 23rd of November 2005. Nintendo later believed that the online platform's success directly propelled the commercial success of the entire Nintendo DS platform. Download Play allowed users to play multiplayer games with other systems using only one game card. Players had to be within wireless range up to approximately 65 feet for the guest system to download necessary data from the host system. PictoChat allowed users to communicate with other DS users within local wireless range. Users could enter text via an on screen keyboard or draw pictures using the stylus and touchscreen. There were four chatrooms A, B, C, D where people could go to chat. Up to sixteen people could connect in any one room. The handheld is backward compatible with Game Boy Advance cartridges but lost compatibility with them when the DSi arrived on the 1st of November 2008. The DSi added dual digital cameras larger screens more memory a faster processor and internal flash memory. Only six DSi-exclusive game cards were released despite hundreds of downloadable titles being available.
As of the 31st of March 2016 all Nintendo DS models combined have sold 154.02 million units. The majority of these were made up of the first revision model the DS Lite according to Nintendo. Combined sales including the DS Lite and DSi models surpassed 154 million units making it Nintendo's best-selling system. It was also the best-selling handheld game console and the second best-selling video game console of all time. The DS Lite accounted for over 60 percent of total DS hardware shipments. In 2006 Nintendo reported that 44% of DS owners were female with the majority of Nintendogs players being women. Damien McFerran of Nintendo Life wrote that the DS was the first encounter many people had with touch-based tech leaving an indelible impression. Jeremy Parish writing for Polygon stated that the DS had basically primed the entire world for the iPhone released in January 2007 laying the groundwork for touchscreen mobile gaming apps though he noted the success of the iPhone effectively caused the DS market to implode by the early 2010s. The system introduced touchscreen controls and wireless online gaming to a broad audience establishing a large casual gaming market attracting non-traditional gamers. The success of the DS paved the way for the Nintendo 3DS which is a dual-screen handheld capable of displaying stereoscopic 3D on the top screen.
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Common questions
When was the Nintendo DS first announced?
Nintendo announced the device under the codename Nintendo DS on the 20th of January 2004. The announcement described it as an experimental third pillar alongside the Game Boy Advance and GameCube rather than a replacement for either.
What were the release dates for the original Nintendo DS in major regions?
North America received the console on the 21st of November 2004 while Japan followed on December 2 with releases in Australia and New Zealand arriving on the 24th of February 2005. Europe received the console on the 11th of March 2005.
How many units did the Nintendo DS sell by March 31 2016?
As of the 31st of March 2016 all Nintendo DS models combined have sold 154.02 million units. Combined sales including the DS Lite and DSi models surpassed 154 million units making it Nintendo's best-selling system.
When was the Nintendo DS Lite released and what features did it include?
On the 2nd of March 2006, Nintendo released a refreshed model called the Nintendo DS Lite which was slimmer lighter featured brighter screens and improved battery life. The top screen has a maximum brightness of 200cd/m2 while the lower touch screen reaches 190cd/m2.
What online services were available for the Nintendo DS?
The system supports Wi-Fi via the IEEE 802.11b standard enabling local multiplayer over short distances and online play through the now-defunct Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Download Play allowed users to play multiplayer games with other systems using only one game card.