Product Review: Nintendo DS Hand Held Gaming System

The Nintendo DS is the successor to the Nintendo Game boy Advanced. The DS is a huge improvement over the Game boy Advanced and includes many features that you don't find with most other hand held devices. The DS packs a punch with a new dual screen setup that includes touch screen technology so you can be more involved in your games then ever. If this wasn't enough you can also use the microphone to participate in games and there is also Wi-Fi multiplayer capabilities.

Graphics:

The Nintendo DS comes with two high end processors which give the DS a lot of power. The graphics are down right amazing in this little device. The system boasts full 3D with smooth frame rates. Developers have yet to take advantage of all the capabilities of the DS. The games that are currently released have some amazing effects which really show what the DS can do. I am constantly amazed with the graphical effects in the games I play. It's a virtual smorgasbord of eye candy.

Sound:

The sound and music that the Nintendo DS offers is almost as exciting as the graphics. The sound tracks are great and the sound effects even better. The Nintendo hand held has stereo speakers which simulate surround sound. This is an awesome feature and really makes a difference during game play. Some games take advantage of this and you can tell where an enemy is by which speaker it's coming out of which is really cool!

Design and Feel:

The Nintendo DS is a tad bulky but there is good news. Nintendo released a smaller version called the DS Lite. It costs the same and has all of the same capabilities. The game cartridges are almost half the size of the Nintendo Game Boy Advanced cartridges but the DS will still play older advanced games. There is a slot on the bottom of the unit for those older bulkier cartridges.

The Nintendo DS also includes a stylus for use on the touch screen. It's very nice to have something different to use when playing a game. The level of involvement goes up when you are using the stylus and adds to the gaming experience.

Specs:

Weight: 275 g (9.7 oz.)

Size: 148.7 x 84.7 x 28.9 mm (5.85 x 3.33 x 1.13 inches)

Screens: Two separate 3-inch TFT LCD screens, 256 x 192 pixels each

CPUs: Two ARM processors, clock speeds of 67 MHz and 33 MHz respectively

Battery Life:

The battery life on this unit is awesome. Nintendo has done a great job of picking the best battery for this unit. The unit comes with a lithium ion battery with expected life rangers of 14-20 hours of game play from a full charge. I can't tell you how many times I have played the heck out of this system, set it aside for a month, came back and played the heck out of it again and still haven't had the low battery indicator come on. It seems to last forever and is almost never out of battery when I want to play it. If and when the battery goes bad, it can be removed and replaced. It's said that it's good for about 500 charges and then its capacity drops by about 70 percent.

Conclusion:

The Nintendo DS has all of the features you could want and more. I can be sitting in bed, playing Mario Kart against someone from Japan, Russia and Australia all at the same time. The graphics and audio are sweet, the wifi is icing on the cake and the game selection is growing rapidly. The system is down to about $129 and is well worth it. The games have great replay ability as I find myself coming back to them after months for another smack down. Give it a try and you wont be sorry.