Nintendo+3DS

Nintendo 3DS
 Nintendo first announced the release of their newest DS gaming system at E3 in June of last year. This is the only gaming system that allows you to enter another dimension, without glasses. From the outside, the 3DS looks like the typical DS that has been in stores since 2004, but it has some new features. The top screen is now larger, there are two cameras on the outside now (for taking 3d pictures), and now includes motion and gyro sensors. Also, this new version is a bit chubbier than its predecessors.

When you first open the system, the first thing you notice is an analog thumb slider (Nintendo prefers to call this the Circle or Slide Pad. This new feature is compatible with the older games and tends to be more comfortable when in use. To make room for this, the d-pad had to be moved into an awkward position, about an inch below where it normally resides. The next thing that you notice is the placement of the start, home, and select buttons. These are now located beneath the bottom touch screen and resemble buttons on a cell phone. Also the stylus is now located next to the game slot in the back of the DS. The touch screen resolution has been increased as well as its size. It is now three inches wide and has a resolution of 320 x 240 (the old was 256 x 192).

Now for the major change – the 3D screen on the top of the system. The screen is now three and a half inches diagonally and has a resolution of 400 x 240 pixels. On the side of the screen is a slider that adjusts the 3D to maximum or not at all. In order to make the most of the 3D aspect, you need to hold the system about twelve inches from your face, and at a point that is relatively flat to your eyes. Any deviation from this will cause your eyes to see the split image that the screen is portraying and it will not be clear.

The main complaint about the system is the battery life. When the 3D and Wi-Fi are both going at capacity, the battery life is about three and a half hours. When both are off, you only gain half an hour. Most people strongly suggest investing in a car charger.

There have been several new games released for the system, and those games only work in the new system. This is due to a little tab that sticks off the side of the cartridge; this also means that the game slot on the 3DS is larger. But that doesn’t mean that the old games don’t work. The only difference is that the older games take longer to load and they look better on the higher resolution screens. Also, just like the DSi, game boy and game boy advance games do not work on this system because there is no slot for them.

The 3DS now has three cameras spread throughout. There is a pair of cameras on the outside lid that do two things. One being 3D picture taking. Two being augmented reality tricks. The system comes with a stack of six cards that allow you to view 3D characters such as Kirby, Mario, and other classic Nintendo stars. The card with the question mark is where the fun is. When you view this card through the cameras, a series of boxes pops up with different categories. These boxes allow you to enter another world and escape reality on your system.

References

[|www.engadget.com/2011/03/21/nintendo-3ds-review/] [|www.popsci.com/gadgets/article/2010-06/hands-nintendo-3ds/] [|www.gamestop.com]