January 20th, 2011
The Nintendo 3DS is touting some impressive features and functionality. It will have upgraded graphics, stereoscopic 3D effects, gyroscope, motion sensing, 3D camera… the list goes on.
But what won’t we be seeing on Day 1? It looks like the system will not have an Internet browser, 3D movie playback capability, the ability to download games, or DSiWare transfers. While that might seem like a lot, when you consider everything else that will be included, most people will barely have the time to complain. As to when we’ll see this functionality, that’s unknown right now. What we do know is that it’s planned. And that’s a good thing to know.
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January 20th, 2011
Nintendo has released pictures of the North American 3DS packaging and it’s looking pretty slick. Nothing too fancy and not a lot of text, but I think the 3DS logo and picture of the device speak for themselves.
January 19th, 2011
Similar to the Nintendo Wii, the 3DS will also have a home menu with slots to fill up for various downloaded games and applications. News this morning is that the 3DS will have 64 spaces on its home menu.
January 19th, 2011
There was exciting news this morning for us North American folks who finally learned that the 3DS will be for sale starting March 27 for $249. The release date itself wasn’t much of a surprise, given Nintendo’s penchant for doing big releases on Sundays, and the 27th being the last Sunday in March. As for the price, I think it was a big plus for the company to keep price under $250.
We also learned quite a bit more at this morning’s live event. First of all, it will launch in 2 colors: Cosmo Black and Aqua Blue.
Included with the system will be a 2GB SD card and a charging cradle. We’ll also see some packed in software with the 3DS such as the Augmented Reality games, a Mii Maker, an Activity Log, and a Pedometer application. The device will also come with an enhanced Internet browser and a 3D video player for various content.
January 19th, 2011
At Nintendo’s North American 3DS preview event this morning, they finally announced the availability details for the 3DS stateside.
We can confirm that the 3DS will be available on Sunday, March 27, 2011 for a price of $249 USD.
January 13th, 2011
Some new details have emerged about what we can expect to find in the box when we open our new 3DS’, as well as some early battery life expectations.
In the box:
- Nintendo 3DS device
- Charger stand
- AC adapter
- Stylus
- 2GB SD Memory Card
- Six AR cards (reflecting the play outside the camera using the compatible software)
- Quick Start Guide
- Instruction Manual
- Guarantee
Built-in software:
- Nintendo 3DS cameras
- Nintendo 3DS sound
- Mii studio
- Mii Plaza chance encounter
- AR Games
Battery Life:
- 3-5 hours for 3DS games (slider position, brightness details not known)
- 5-8 hours for DS games (brightness details not known)
- Roughly 3 hours to charge
September 29th, 2010
Two of the Nintendo 3DS’ wireless features have been spotlighted recently, but what are the differences between StreetPass and SpotPass?
Here’s quick run-down:
StreetPass is the final name given to the 3DS’ communication by way of simply passing by someone. It allows the automatic exchange of data with other players while your 3DS is closed in sleep mode. The specific games doing the exchange don’t have to be in the system at the time, meaning that as long as you have save data on your system, you’ll be all set. When the device is communicating, there will be an active indicator light in the upper right-hand side of the 3DS. At any time you can check the system’s ‘Notice List’ to see past communications that took place.
SpotPass is Nintendo’s implementation that allows 3DS communication with Wi-Fi access points. This feature is more for the automatic downloading of things such as rankings, ghost data, and free software. The system will allow you to configure the kinds of things you want transferred in this manner. This feature can also be active while in sleep mode.
In Japan, NTT East and NTT West will team-up to give 3DS users access to Wi-Fi access points. There will be approximately 2,000 access points in train stations, airports, and restaurants. Also, current DS Station kiosks will be converted to full Nintendo Zone services. One would expect similar deals will be made in other regions of the world as well.
September 29th, 2010
According to Joystiq, a pdf document has been publicized to show more of the handheld’s hardware features.
“¥25,000 ($299) will net you – among other things – a charging cradle, 2GB SD card, telescoping metal stylus and six “paper cards” that can be used for playing the system’s built-in augmented reality games. (The 3DS’ outward-facing 3D camera will detect and replace them in the “scene” with different 3D objects.)
3DS will also perform some neat new tricks. It has backlit face buttons – one of which is the Home button. When pressed, it will bring up an in-game menu enabling users to browse the web, turn Wi-Fi on/off and modify other settings without exiting.
Finally, there’s a breakdown of the built-in software, which includes “Nintendo 3DS cameras,” “Nintendo 3DS sound,” Mii Studio,” “Chance Encounter Mii Plaza,” “AR Games” and “Book” (an ebook reader, perhaps?). Mii Studio is unique in that it allows players to snap photos of themselves to use as a basis for their Mii. More details as they hit.”
