Nintendo DS

The Nintendo DS (ニンテンドーDS, Nintendō DS) is a dual-screen handheld game console developed and released by Nintendo. The device went on sale in North America on November 21, 2004. The DS, short for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld gaming: two LCD screens working in tandem (the bottom one featuring a touchscreen), a built-in microphone, and support for wireless connectivity. Both screens are encompassed within a clamshell design similar to the Game Boy Advance SP. The Nintendo DS also features the ability for multiple DS consoles to directly interact with each other over Wi-Fi within a short range without the need to connect to an existing wireless network. Alternatively, they could interact online using the now-closed Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Its main competitor was Sony's PlayStation Portable as part of the seventh generation era.

Prior to its release, the Nintendo DS was marketed as an experimental, "third pillar" in Nintendo's console lineup, meant to complement the Game Boy Advance and GameCube. However, backward compatibility with Game Boy Advance titles and strong sales ultimately established it as the successor to the Game Boy series. On March 2, 2006, Nintendo launched the Nintendo DS Lite, a slimmer and lighter redesign of the original Nintendo DS with brighter screens. On November 1, 2008, Nintendo released the Nintendo DSi, another redesign with several hardware improvements and new features. All Nintendo DS models combined have sold 154.01 million units, making it the best selling handheld game console to date, and the second best selling video game console of all time. The Nintendo DS line was succeeded by the Nintendo 3DS line in 2011.

Nintendo DS Lite

The Nintendo DS Lite (ニンテンドーDS Lite, Nintendō Dī Esu Raito) is a dual-screen handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It is the best-selling handheld video game console of all time and also the best-selling DS model of all time. It is a slimmer, brighter, and more lightweight redesign of the original Nintendo DS. It was announced on January 26, 2006, more than a month before its initial release in Japan on March 2, 2006 due to overwhelming demand for the original model. It has been released in Australia, North America, Europe, New Zealand, Singapore, and defined regions in South America, the Middle East, and East Asia. As of March 31, 2014, shipments of the DS Lite have reached 93.86 million units worldwide, according to Nintendo.

Launch and development

A larger model of the DS Lite was an unreleased alternative to the DS Lite. It was ready for mass production, but Nintendo decided against its release as sales of the DS Lite were still strong. Instead Nintendo prepared the DSi and released a "DSi XL" version of that console a year later.

Game Boy Advance

The Game Boy Advance (Japanese: ゲームボーイアドバンス, Hepburn: Gēmu Bōi Adobansu), often shortened to GBA, is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China on June 8, 2004 (excluding Hong Kong).

Nintendo's competitors in the handheld market were the Neo Geo Pocket Color, WonderSwan, GP32, Tapwave Zodiac, and the N-Gage. Despite the competitors' best efforts, Nintendo maintained a majority market share with the Game Boy Advance.

As of June 30, 2010, the Game Boy Advance series has sold 81.51 million units worldwide. Its successor, the Nintendo DS, was released in November 2004.

History

Contrary to the previous Game Boy models, which were all following the "portrait" form factor of the original Game Boy (designed by Gunpei Yokoi), the Game Boy Advance was designed in a "landscape" form factor, putting the buttons to the sides of the device instead of below the screen. The Game Boy Advance was designed by the French designer Gwénaël Nicolas and his Tokyo-based design studio Curiosity Inc.

Nintendo 3DS

The Nintendo 3DS (Japanese: ニンテンドー3DS, Hepburn: Nintendō Surī Dī Esu, abbreviated to 3DS) is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. It is capable of displaying stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or additional accessories. Nintendo announced the device in March 2010 and officially unveiled it at E3 2010 on June 15, 2010. The console succeeds the Nintendo DS, featuring backward compatibility with older Nintendo DS and Nintendo DSi video games, and competes with the Sony's PlayStation Vita handheld console.

The handheld offers new features such as the StreetPass and SpotPass tag modes, powered by Nintendo Network; augmented reality, using its 3D cameras; and Virtual Console, which allows owners to download and play games originally released on older video game systems. It is also pre-loaded with various applications including these: an online distribution store called Nintendo eShop, a social networking service called Miiverse; an Internet Browser; the Netflix, Hulu Plus and YouTube streaming video services; Nintendo Video; a messaging application called Swapnote (known as Nintendo Letter Box in Europe and Australia); and Mii Maker.

Nintendo DS line

The Nintendo DS line of handheld game consoles was developed and sold by Nintendo from 2004-2013. It succeeded the Game Boy Advance family and was succeeded by the Nintendo 3DS line in 2011.

Initially released as an experimental platform ancillary to the Game Boy line, the Nintendo DS line soon replaced it as Nintendo's flagship handheld device family. Featuring and interacting with many of the game series that are seen on the company's home console lines, the DS line has often represented the bulk of the company's unit system sales throughout the course of its history.

Throughout its lifetime, Sony's PlayStation Portable has been the main market competitor. There have been four different models of the Nintendo DS line on the market: the original Nintendo DS, the Nintendo DS Lite, as well as the Nintendo DSi and its XL variant. The Nintendo DS line has been highly successful, continuing the trend of its predecessor, the Game Boy line. With over 154 million units sold worldwide, the DS models are the best-selling handheld consoles, and second best-selling console overall behind the Sony PlayStation 2.