Slashdot Mirror
Must Nintendo Make a Mobile Phone?
Hiroshi writes "Earlier this year Engadget uncovered a patent filed in 2001 for a Nintendo cell phone but as we all know, nothing came of it. Now CNET is highlighting the Nintenphone once more, stating that it must be built if cell phone gaming is ever going to get better. Interestingly, CNET Photoshopped a DS Lite with Android and a virtual keypad, and while this probably wouldn't be what a Nintenphone would look like, I can't help feeling like the DS would make an awesome phone."
Of course Nintendo doesn't have to do this. I'm somewhat shocked that a tech site like slashdot would be so woefully unaware that this problem has already been completely solved by Nokia with the N-Gage. If you check the reviews you will find that it is " A great multi-function device that plays games too!". So let's get with the times slashdot.
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
...and it's bigger than my watch.
they could stick wheels and an engine on it to make a car for gerbils. That would be as likely.
I have excellent Karma and I am not afraid to Troll it.
Nintendo don't do convergence they do gaming. If they can't even be bothered to get a DVD player for launch into the Wii then I don't see why they would want to converge phones and the gameboy. The only reason they would bring in a phone element is to add a gameplay element, and frankly I wouldn't want to speculate beyond that.
Listen, Nintendo saw the N-Gage flump too...
ilovegeorgebush
Who's next? Tampax?
Can you hear me now?
No, your sounding MUFFled....
FTA: "You only have to look at the DS to realise that it already has the potential to be a PDA. At the moment you can use your DS (via an extra cartridge) to listen to music and browse the Internet over Wi-Fi using an Opera-based browser. Would it be that much of a leap to turn it into a mobile phone?"
But would the DS really be the best competitor for other PDA devices? When one looks at the already existing lineup of converged devices (Blackberries, Treos, nearly the entire lineup of HTC devices that are windows-mobile based), it seems that this market is pretty-well taken care of currently. It only takes one device with some remarkable features to re-invent an entire market's sub-base, but where that "niche" lies for a Nintendophone is what I'm curious to see.
Additionally, I'm not sure how many people would want to have to open the phone to dial. It'd be nice to have the keypad on the outside, and then possibly a qwerty keyboard on the inside for texting and such. But with the well-designed exterior, I'm afraid it would ruin the form factor currently in place.
There's definitely potential for this device. Making sure it includes the features users want most (while keeping the form factor that has made it a success) will be the key to opening up market share if it becomes a reality.
Why doesn't somebody just find a way to better integrate phone service into a laptop(e.g. a USB or PCMCIA SIM adapter, etc.) I'd rather play real games (using a real screen).
Otherwise it'd just be a toy, and those are best left to teenage Japanese girls.
The DS already has VoIP.
Of course they shouldn't make phones. They should make more Wiis so that I can get one for my wife who wants one for Xmas.
Who has time to play games?
They must not.
And I work for a company that makes mobile games.
Look, Nintendo is known for making great familiy friendly games on decent platforms. Their own platforms. Why screw with that model? It would make more sense to just licence out their back catalog (like way back to the original Donkey Kong & Donkey Kong Jr.) to existing mobile game companies than to waste money and time trying to compete in the already cut-throat phone market. Of course, that'll never happen. The only time they ever licenced their IP onto somebody else's platform was back in the Colecovision/Atari 2600 era when they didn't have a platform of their own.
But Hey, if any Nintendo marketing dudes are reading this, call us. We'd love to get Donkey Kong.
In order to call someone using Nintendo's new phone, you not only need their phone number, but you also need their unique 15 digit code. This will prevent random phone calls from child molesters and guys named [666]SatanCock420.
Unfortunately the problem nowadays isnt the hardware nor the software, but the power supply of both mentioned above. It's a fact: Lion batteries are not anymore enough. Ppl who use their cell phone much know what I'm talking about. I've reached the point that I carry a 2nd battery in my pocket as if it were a spare clip for a gun... So imagine a phone that also plays games...
Before I read TFA I was thinking Android + Nintendo would be an interesting partnership and possibly a legitimate competitor to the iPhone in the casual user's market. In my opinion Nintendo is one of the few firms that creates, innovates and succeeds at a level comparable to Apple's design team. Couple this with game devloper support and a true open-source platform (and more likely lower price, in Nintendo fashion), and you've got a serious product.
Do you think Gamestop is taking preorders yet?
art is science made clear. -cocteau
I can't see the DS being turned into a phone ... but the game boy micro's about the right size for a cell phone.
You just gotta figure out where the keypad would go. (and it can't go outside of the d-pad or ab buttons, because that'd affect how you hold it when playing a game)
If you made it thicker to add a slide-out keyboard, I could see it as a cell phone.
Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
If the amount of regulation/hassle/bureaucratic red-tape associated with cellphones (read contracts / improper billing) disappears, then Nintendo might consider it.
As a few other posters have pointed out, Nokia's N-GAGE was somewhat cool, but didn't last. Nintendo is under no pressure to release a device with hand-held gaming and cellphone features. It's not a race yet, so why should Nintendo run?
That being said, Nintendo is company and has responsibility to be profitable for its shareholders. If a prospect is viable (possibly in the future) and potentially lucrative (yes if they are the first one's to market with a decent product), then they'll go after it (in the medium-to-long term).
Could you imagine what would happen if Nintendo put out a motion sensing phone. We'd have people walking around the street swinging that thing in the air, looking like they are going to seizure... And I thought it was creepy to see people talking to themselves via hands-free headsets.
The fact that X company should make a phone is indicitive of one thing: THE CURRENT SITUATION OF CELLPHONES (Esp. in the US) is MISERABLE. As technology evolves, we need progressive thinking companies (like Apple, Nintendo) to design better UI's for these devices, rather than backwards-thinking companies (Sony, Motorola) trying to leverage existing UI's onto new techology. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't (for both types of companies). Also, having an assertive company make the phone (like Apple) means that the carrier cannot modify the firmware so that the default option when I take a picture is to have a print sent to everybody I know at a cost of $4 per print. Even RIM has conceded in this field, disabling GPS for Verizon so Verizon can sell VZNavigator.
I don't understand why cell phone gaming has to get better. Look at a mobile phone, it's in no way comfortable to hold one of those to play games properly. Then look at a DS. What, are we going to bring back side talking? Nobody wants to play the next Mario with a number pad, and nobody wants to have to carry around a cell phone that's larger than necessary.
Maybe if they don't just make a Nintendo Phone, but rather make a cartridge that you can slap in the DS to communicate with the cellular phone network and add bluetooth compatibility then THAT could be viable. At least if you get the DS Next, you can probably use the same cartridge and never have to worry about switching phones.
But if you're asking people to adopt a gaming platform that they have to subscribe to a monthly service to use, I don't think they'll go for it. As for plugging a game controller into your cell phone, that's something else you have to carry around. Part of what makes video game systems attractive is that the media is removable, you can share games, sell used ones, or rent them. It's also important to collectors and hobbyists that it's something tangable in your hands, the game. Part of what makes a phone attractive is its simplicity, unless you're just throwing money away anyway, and then you're not the target market for this. Or are you? It seems like a waste of money anyway.
Outside of Tetris, gaming + mobile phones probably shouldn't mix.
Twinstiq, game news
I wished the Super Game Boy would have continued for GB Color/Advance/etc... I had one for the original game boy and loved it. After a couple of hours I'd get a really jacked up neck from looking down at the GB, but had so many games (as they tended to be a little less expensive and we traveled a lot), it was awesome to play them on the regular TV. In fact a lot of the Super Game Boy "ready" games, colorized really nicely with the device, to where they were pretty close to NES games (still commonplace at the time).
:)).
I wish they would put a DS Cartridge port on the Wii's next revision to play the games using the Classic Controller. The DS games are so small, I think they could "get it in" without harming the asthetic. (maybe below the SD card slot). People will still buy DSes for travel, lunch hours and the bathroom. (yeah I said it.
Forgive my spelling from time to time. I'm often posting during short breaks.
So...what's your point? Do what makes you happy and try not too ruin other people's happiness. That's how I live. If you are happy working on your cyrix, then who cares what your mom or friends think? That has nothing to do with materialism anyways.
Support a great indie game: http://www.abaddon360.com
Nintendo views itself as a game company. They like to contrast themselves with their competitors that they are not making a home media system, a PC extension, they are about the games. And it's worked out very well for them. The only gaming unit consistently outselling the Wii is the DS. They've ramped Wii production from half a million per month to 1.8 million per month and still can't keep them in stock. Going into the highly competitive wireless phone market would be a distraction. I just can't see them doing that.
[Insert pithy quote here]
What about just bringing this number to the US?
...and it should be known by now
I bet we see some Nintendo iPhone games that take advantage of the accelerometer. Would fit right in with their current Wii control style trend.
"materialism is fucking retarded. why do we worship things that end up in junkyards? ... i can see it for what it is, and yet in combating it you become a lunatic by 'the standard'."
Um.... yeah.. if you fling words like 'retarded' and 'worship' around, you're gonna get treated as a 'lunatic'. If this post is any indication, your problems getting anybody to see eye to eye with you are your own doing.
"I like to lick butts!" by MobileTatsu-NJG (#32700246) (Score:5, Informative)
"I was working night and day on tweaking this cyrix 686 i had"
Why were you ashamed of this? How much did you learn by tweaking this machine? Time spent learning your trade and enjoying it is time well spent, definitely more constructive than "going to play outside".
And if working just to get money to pimp out your machine is what you were ashamed of, I don't consider putting that money into buying a better computer "materialism". The only people you could really impress would be your geek friends. Having a better machine would enable yourself to only learn more.
If you post as Anonymous Coward, don't expect a reply.
The issue isn't with bad code, it's with game play on something the size of a cell phone. Yes, there are games you can play that are fun on that scale, but anything much more involved than Pacman is just an academic exercise. I've seen game ports to mobile devices, and while the porters do great jobs you're still dealing with a tiny screen and limited, awkward controls. Of course, I could be lacking imagination.
I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
I understand that people enjoy having multifunctional devices, but at some point people are going to say, "Do I really need another phone, mp3 player, ect.?" If I already have an iphone, would I run off to replace it with a nintendo phone whose phone component I would never use? Adding components increases the price, and if I am not going to use the phone, then I am essentially paying more for nothing. The PS3 is a good example of the problems of combining expensive and extraneous blue ray hardware with a game system, when most people already have a perfectly functional DVD player: an increase in price for little consumer value. I don't think nintendo will go along this path, as they are reluctant to combine multiple devices together. The Wii doesn't even have DVD functionality simply because they did not want to pay royalties on every system sold.
well someone had to say it!
Thanks to file sharing, I purchase more CDs
Thanks to the RIAA, I buy them used...
It's'a me, Mario!
"Time enjoyed wasting was not wasted." -John Lennon
Living With a Nerd
They will... eventually. Right now cellular is just to expensive for data transfer or serious voice. When the cellular fee structures change Nintendo will be able to slide into the market. Remember when AOL, Prodigy, Compuserve, Netscape, changed their billing, for a wile it was 25 hours a month for $20 dollars then it become unlimited for $35. Eventually cellular will move to this type of billing then Nintendo can step in but right now, Google, Nintendo, and other cool companies who need a different cellular fee structure can only attempt to change the fee structure from the outside. Once the structure changes the whole market will explode.
You mean like on the flip-phones that currently make up about 50% of the market?
Support Right To Repair Legislation.
Not that Nintendo has taken many chances lately, but if they were to design, say, a Dual Screen Phone...
The DSP: a RAZResque flip-phone design featuring two 2.5"x4" multitouch sensitive screens on either side. The right hand screen, when held vertically, would also provide the keypad/controls for the cell phone aspect, while the top (left) would provide the traditional display. Other killer features would be a decent camera, motion control (vertical would make a good driving game, horizontally a rail shooter) long battery life (72h standby, 10 hr play, 3-4 talk time) and Wifi capabilites (to communicate with other DSPs, browse the itnernet, etc). The most important feature would be the ability to preserve the state of the game between calls or when the phone is in standby (closed).
I'm sure they could do it. The question is more of a logistical one than a technical one. As Apple is finding out now, the cellular business is a tough nut to crack.
on one side and a phone on the reverse. Now that would be neat.
I have excellent Karma and I am not afraid to Troll it.
I don't think it will bring back the N-Gage's side-talking feature.
Instead, I think it will be modeled after the Wiimote: it won't have any buttons; to dial or compose messages, you draw the numbers/characters in the air. There will be an optional plug-in keypad attachment that you can use to dial.
This phone would certainly be a revolution.
- RG>
Hey pal, this isn't a pleasantforest, so don't waste my time with pleasantries!
After playing Super Mario Galaxy on the Wii and being amazed at its usability (and gameplay, WOWii!!)
I would like to see Nintendo build a personal computer OS. It seems like Nintendo always
keeps the user in mind from step 1 and end in the end they don't forget that they are users as well.
I would definitely like to see a Nintendo Phone. Their UIs are some of my faves.
Mac
Of course, sometimes you can enjoy things more in the long run if you accept having less fun in the short term. "Delayed gratification." With this corollary, Lennon's sentiment is a good. Without it, the quote could be seen as justifying a couch-potato lifestyle.
And we could expect to see Mario on the iPhone soon?
The DS would make a crappy phone.
Wow, I should not post when knackered.
yes
Maybe I'm having some problems, but I seem to recall Sony having a similar patent with the PSP. There were even plans for a headset and voice recognition, it was just an infrastructure -cough**no-way-to-get-people-to-pay-a-monthly-charge-to-use-their-PSP**cough problem.
It's dangerous to go alone! Take this.
Nintendo seems more interested in innovation as a method of driving business than in just jumping on a bandwagon without understanding the market and customer, ala the N-Gage. I can't help but think that if Nintendo did something like this, the phone would act as not only a game system but as a controller or interface for Nintendo consoles as well, which I think would be obvious to many Slashdotters. Could it be similar to what Sega was trying to do with its VMUs on the Dreamcast? That seemed like a good idea, it just didn't have enough developer support or hardware oomph. Think about it: A simple way to keep people continually involved with their games, even when they're away from the television. Keep'em hooked and coming back for more, make it a richer experience, and then... profit!
-
Society has a habit of latching onto a name-brand as the name for a thing. It's nothing new.
* Would you like a xerox copy of that?
* How about I scotch-tape that back together for you?
* The spots? Yea, I spilled some clorox on them while doing the laundry.
Using these as verbs is just as common: xeroxed, scotch-taped, cloroxed.
I've never seen someone get angry about a trademark becoming the generic name. Where were you when people xeroxed their documents? And if I get a physical photo shop to dodge or burn some part of a photo, would that not also be photo shopping?
What sound do people on rollercoasters make? Hint: it's not Xbox 360.
Even if that's true, who cares? I mean, really, are many people concerned about the sad state of cell phone gaming?
I'm not really angry, just exasperated. And I never use the Xerox as a verb, although I do say Kleenex and Google.
The government can't save you.
Sony releases PSP: "All that useless extra stuff! They don't know how to just make a game system!"
Nintendo releases NPhone: "Nintendo invented the multi-function handheld! They're brilliant!!!"
as in the logical fallacy by that name. Here's CNet's basic argument: Mobile gaming will only get better if Nintendo makes a phone. Mobile gaming must get better. Therefore, Nintendo must make a phone. While the first predicate is debatable, the second is clearly contentious. Why should mobile gaming get better? Why is this necessary? To whom is this necessary?
What sound do people on rollercoasters make? Hint: it's not Xbox 360.
"Flag on the moon. How did it get there?"
...mobario
I can't help feeling like the DS would make an awesome phone.
Then your Nintendo Whoredom truly knows no bounds...
Firmware update! The DS could be able to do it. Even if the cart requires a built-in CPU to drive the interface, you could probably have an overlay for incoming calls. Shouldn't cost that much.
I was thinking of ways the design shown in the patent could be improved, and this is what I came up with: What if the phone appeared as it does now minus the number pad. the controls are reoriented to the sides of the screen so that it is played sideways, like the GBA, or the new micro, but somewhere in between for size. Finally, the keyboard slides out from one side like the LG chocolate and others, and the screen reorients. I think that could work.
Why do people always think it's necessary to merge devices? Yes, a DS is portable. Yes a cell phone is portable. So what? Yes games on a cell phone suck. So what? I don't want to play games on my phone. I want to make PHONE CALLS. Just like how my TV is made to display TV and nothing more. There's no built in DVD player, VCR, video game system or anything else in there. My home phone is just a phone (no built in radio, drink mixer, PDA or anything else). My watch tells time. It doesn't have GPS tracking, MP3 player, or anything else. I don't want my movies interactive (I want them to tell me a story!). I don't want internet on my fridge (I want it to keep food COLD).
Sometimes its best to keep various types of technology seperate (and consequently CHEAPER)
I could see it used as a pretty spiffy media player/phone of some kind (it can do Voip and play music (mp3, ogg, m4a), and even some movies already, with the right homebrew software - even browse the net with either homebrew software or Opera browser), if you use a headset/mic like this one: http://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-DS-Headset/dp/B000MXSP2K
http://www.unfocus.com/
Actually there is already a great homebrew application for using the DS as a phone: SvSIP! http://svsip.free.fr/ Use the Nintendo headset, the quality is impressive.
NO.
Cellphones need to stop being EVERYTHING and start being cellphones.
All of the features on cellphones exist merely to sell you more things - be it a more expensive data plan, videos from your carriers "exclusive" selection, ringtones, or other trivial nonsense.
An all in one device would be nice, but the fact is that ANY time you involve ANY data carrier, you end up paying $$$ for pure crap.
It's simply not worth it. Nintendo is not dumb, either, why would they alter the DS at all when it's already (still) selling like hotcakes?
The GIMP would have made a much more amusing example.
Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
Grats nintendo fans, your beloved nintento is a patent troll
homebrew apps for the DS are in early stages but.... if you use voip alot and have a DS with game loader check out this. http://youtube.com/watch?v=eJMliDSKDGY (Using a free SIP server and a new homebrew application, you can turn your DS into a real, working phone!)
The Wii needs a DVD player about as much as my Microwave needs to have a clock.
DVD players are cheap. This might have been an argument when the PS2 came out. It's not an argument anymore.
Well it really seems that everyone just assumes that cellphone gaming is crap. Obviously not many people have owned or even used an N-gage. I have owned one in the past and I thought the games were great and the phone was nice, although it was a little weird to hold when calling someone. Nintendo should not make a phone, it'd be a piece of crap.
They don't mind so much when it means they're wildly successful. Hormel wasn't so fond of the new meaning of "spam".
The Wii needs a DVD player about as much as my Microwave needs to have a clock.
Ironically my microwave has a clock. Without any kind of power backup and without any of the cooking functions having any connection to it.
This is one reason why one shouldn't get attached to people or things.
I mostly share your sentiment but there really isn't much that can be done. As long as people depend on external sources for happiness this will likely continue. Also, let go of your need for approval from the very people caught in this cycle if you think their materialism is retarded (yes, materialism is retarded).
Wow, this sounds like the kind of phone a ninja would use if he was to use a phone! Maybe we should ask a ninja his opinion on it?
It'll be perfect for this Cybernetic Cloaking (TM) feature that this Androids platform provides!
Sadly, it's the same here...