Nintendo first announced the 3DS handheld video game console on March 23 of last year and showed the device off to the world in the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010 three months later. Now the long wait is over for gaming addicts and Nintendo fanatics: the Nintendo 3DS is finally going to be released to the US market by the end of this month. The 3DS saw an earlier release in Japan and 371,326 units were sold immediately after its February 2011 launch.
The Nintendo 3DS was made to step up to the plate as the successor to the DS series and it is made with a different and new hardware makeup. The device is integrated with backward compatibility that will allow games made for the Nintendo DS and DSi to be played on the new console.
The 3DS resembles the design of the previous Nintendo DS game consoles but there are many marked differences in their features and functions.
Aside from the obvious added feature of a 3D screen, here are some other tech specs for the 3DS:
- Motion and Gyro sensor – These built-in sensors react to the motion and tilt of the device so it can respond instantly to the actions of the players.
- Two screens – The widescreen display at the top boasts of an 800×240 resolution while the bottom screen is an LCD touchscreen display with a resolution of 320×240.
- Analog control – The 3DS offers full analog control with the Slide Pad in 3D game environments.
- 3D camera – The 3DS is built with 2 outer cameras to capture the environment and 1 inner camera on top of the upper screen.
- Adjustable stylus – The stylus that comes with the 3DS is now adjustable! The length of the stylus can be adjusted with a simple push or pull for added control and comfort.
The Nintendo 3DS uses autostereoscopy to produce the 3D illusion to the gamer without requiring the need of any special glasses. The player can regulate the intensity of the 3D settings or even turn it off to play the games in 2D by adjusting the 3D Depth Slider found at the upper right side of the console.
The Nintendo 3DS comes in three colors: cosmo black, aqua blue, and red. However, the red units will only be made available at the end of 2011. The official release for the black and blue units will be on March 27, 2011 and each of these will retail for $249.99.
What do you think about 3D gaming? Have you pre-ordered your own Nintendo 3DS or will you be passing up on this one?
