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Nintendo DS Full Specs Allegedly Leaked
sarcastodon writes "Various sources such as GI.Biz are suggesting that detailed specifications of the upcoming Nintendo DS have been leaked. Surprising capabilities contained in the allegedly leaked Japanese-language document for the dual-screen handheld include 3D hardware acceleration, 802.11 wireless support, and the inclusion of a touch screen." However, GI.Biz notes: "Of course, a single leaked screenshot of a Japanese document doesn't constitute hard proof of any description, and this document should be taken with a pinch of salt - but if it is a forgery, it's a rather good one."
Their initial announcement stated that they would be backlit (as opposed to the GBA SP's frontlit screens).
I found some end-of-2003 numbers here:
http://print.pcvsconsole.com/?hank=549
Which unfortunately do not come with a source. The numbers seem to be roughly in line with expectations, though.
Uh...no. You misread those numbers. GameCube recently caught up to XBox in the US, and XBox has been pretty much a complete failure in Japan, selling under a million units IIRC.
Nope, Nintendo has already stated they are VERTICALLY stacked.
There are unreadably small words between "Cache:" and "8Kb", as well as "TCM:" and "32Kb" which have been ignored by the translation. They probably refer to two separate types of cache under each category.
:P
The word there is "meirei," which means "command" or "order." Does that make sense in that context? I'm not a hardware person.
I bet it's just in ad-hoc mode (peer-to-peer) and not infrastructure mode.
No, I believe Nintendo said that they're going to be vertically stacked... ...if that is the case, I'd like to see a layout like the Danger hiptop where the touchscreen is on top, for palm-pilot like use, or for games that only require one screen.
The second screen could be hidden under the first, with the top screen swivelling up and 180 degrees for two-screened games. This also means that the second screen could be used as an option, not all games would have to incorporate it, and it would be hidden and protected when not in use.
I don't see a touchpad as a replacement for an analog stick, though. Touchpads/screens STINK when used as controllers. I think it's more likely that an analog controller will take the form of a standard crosskey that responds to how hard you press. It's also possible to make a (recessed) analog control ball, instead of a stick. The old sega saturn analog controllers had these, and they were almost impossible to break.
Actually the GBA has dropped in price. It launched at $100, and immediately dropped to $90 from stores' competition. It's now down around $70, though some of that is because of the SP.