Since Nintendo first asserted sole domination over the handheld gaming market with the release of the paperback-sized
Game Boy in 1989, the company has striven time and again to make its pocket systems smaller, meeting fantastic financial success along the way. Nintendo did it with the
Game Boy Pocket, the
Advance SP, the
Micro, the
DS Lite and again ever so slightly with the
DSi -- the last even at the expense of backwards compatibility and battery life. Now, for the first time in the company's history, it's made an existing platform
bigger, with questionable reasons as to why. Does the Nintendo DSi XL squash its predecessors flat? Or is Nintendo compensating for something? Find out inside.
Form
There's a reason Nintendo calls it the DSi XL, and it doesn't have anything to do with your sweater size. At 6.3-inches long and 3.6-inches wide, it's both taller
and wider (closed and held upright) than that 1989 Game Boy, and at two-thirds of a pound it's heftier than either the
original DS or PSP. Less than an inch thin, the handheld is still slender enough to slip into your pocket -- assuming you wear cargo pants -- but the thought is daunting enough we don't expect most to even try.
Of course, Nintendo isn't letting that heft go to waste -- every ounce contributes to the DSi XL's phenomenal design. Though practically every port, light and button from the original DSi is duplicated here in its entirety (down to the power jack -- you can use the DSi charger), Nintendo has crammed in a pair of crisp, clear 4.2-inch LCD screens with nearly double the original real estate, and further rounded the corner grips so they no longer dig into our palms during extended play. It's the comfiest DS we've held, and the most durable -- the unit barely flexes even when twisted, and closed we felt completely comfortable
sitting on the thing. (
Stress testing, anyone?) The only missteps are the two
oh-so-dull colors available (which,
knowing Nintendo, will soon see remedy), and the glossy plastic fingerprint magnet Nintendo inexplicably affixed to the top of the unit -- which developed hundreds of smudges and miniature scratches well before review time. Please don't fix what ain't broke, Nintendo; you got it right with the matte finish DSi.
Function
Sadly, where it really counts -- actually playing games -- the XL has scarcely seen improvement. The software's exactly the same, warts and all; we still had to wade through menus to set up WPA2 security, even as cartridge-based games forced us back to
easily-cracked WEP for their WiFi. The larger screens are a nice touch and do, as Nintendo claims, support wider viewing angles and make text easier on the eyes, but since they are the exact same 256 x 192 resolution, what Nintendo's done is effectively up the size of each pixel. In games that already looked pixelated (especially 3D titles like Mario Kart) the additional aliasing drove us to distraction, and even games with little motion were noticeably made up of tiny squares on occasion. Buttons were similarly a mixed bag; while we liked the additional give on the shoulder triggers, the XL's clicky D-pad and face buttons are even slightly tighter than that of a new DSi, and gave us stiff thumbs after only a single 3-lap race in Mario Kart. The DSi XL is still not a system you'll be playing in a sunny park, also -- a hair brighter than its predecessors, perhaps, but unplayable is unplayable, and as you'll see in our gallery, the XL's a good bit dimmer than an iPhone. Indoors, though, expect to play quite a while; with a 3.7v, 1050mAh lithium-ion battery (compared to
the 840mAh in the DSi) we got a solid 5.5 hours of battery on max brightness -- ahead of Nintendo's estimate of 5 -- which means you can reliably eke out double that duration with the backlight turned up halfway.
The one undeniable improvement in the DSi XL experience is audio quality. We're not sure what Nintendo's done to the unit's speakers other than provide larger grills, but where previous DS units provided only a sizable sound bubble, the XL's two speakers can fill an entire living room with clean audio on max volume. Believe it or not, it's the first Nintendo portable where we'd recommend
against using headphones.
Wrap-up
The Nintendo DSi XL is a solid handheld; without a doubt, one of the most solid Nintendo's ever offered. But at $190, we're not sure exactly who the system is for. If you've already got a DSi (or even a Lite) it's not a worthwhile upgrade; for every point in its favor, there's a trade-off. We'd recommend it as a fantastic first DS, if the
stereoscopic 3DS wasn't just around the corner. For those looking for the latest and greatest, it's an interesting choice, but though portable, it's far too big a bulge in the pants pocket to show off without embarrassment. In the end, the only ones we can think of are those who Nintendo marketing
originally identified; old folks and those with eyestrain who simply can't do without the larger screens. Them -- and the younger version of ourselves.
When we were 15, we crammed our shiny new Game Boy Advance into our overloaded school backpack -- but one day we dropped it, only to hear a sickening crunch. If we could travel back in time and stick a sturdy DSi XL in there instead, we never would have had to cry over that cracked, inky black LCD screen.
posted March 26th 2010 3:53PM
Well here is an idea, maybe besides games they are going to or already have put ereader software into it. Which would be great to have a Game System, Camera, and Ereader all in one. SD memory card storage is already on the thing. And I don't know about others but I rarely (more then likely never) will spend 5 hours per day playing a game and or reading.
And for a $190 it might be good for parents to encourage their kids to read more since it's made by Nintendo. A kids going to just play games you say? Take away the games and give 'em the memory card with the books on it. Simple.
I think that this product is mainly aimed at people who play games on their DS at home. Yes, logically this seems silly, but there are some games for the DS which I simply must play, and I rarely game on the go, also I never feel comfortable playing portable games for long periods of time because of eye strain and moderately uncomfortable controls. Therefore the DSi XL seems a good solution.
However i've already got a DSi so I won't be getting one. Maybe if they release a sexy lime green model I might be tempted.
I am amused by the use of the 'King's English'.
@(Unverified) Have you never striven before? :)
@(Unverified) You mean 'Queen's English' there's no King :P
http://www.pcworld.com/article/190327/nintendo_dsi_xl_gaming_device_and_ereader.html
Screw this noise. I'm holding out for the 3DS.
my review, its big really really big
-4 for making me waste one of my precious, expensive Oblivion Bombs on you
He better be. His life depends on it
Bleh, more minor refreshes for a product thats been out since 2004.
Did anyone notice that this review doesn't actually contain an image of the inside of the device? That is, the most useful view?
I really wonder what Nintendo did with the speakers.
According to Nintendo, in Iwata Asks, it has the same speakers as the DSi, but they did something to somehow make it much louder while still keeping good quality sound.
Could they make it look any more cheap and nasty, looks like someone sat on 2 gameboys!!!
I'm grabbing one and trading in my DSi for it, PURELY because I have issues with the current screen in terms of seeing everything. I'd hold out for the 3DS but I'd like to play my current DS games now, not a year or two years later whenever the 3DS comes out in the US.
Wow...my hat goes off to Nintendo, here comes a couple 50 million more sales for practically doing nothing, lol. What is this, 7thGen now?
I was pretty po'ed at first since the only things upgraded were the screens and the battery but I just didn't like the DSi screen for some reason so I traded that in (plus some games) for a DSi XL pre-order. Shame about the literally ****tty colors but oh well. And I must be one of the crazy ones since I do most of my "portable" gaming at home. I will buy the 2nd Gen of the 3DS since I've been bitten many times before by buying Nintendo's first gen portable devices starting with the original monochrome green Gameboy so this will likely hold me for the next 2 years.
I disagree about the shiny finish. The DSi's matte finish with the removal of the DS logo made it look like a knockoff.
Anyway, as nice as this sounds (and it does sound nice), I still won't get one. I don't like the DSi because it's just more of Nintendo milking their fanbase for money, except this time they sort of 'trap' have-everything gamers into getting it. It provided almost no new features, almost nothing we hadn't seen before hardware-wise, looked uglier than the Lite, and cost more. It really only bothers me because it can have proprietary software, meaning that if you want to have certain games or certain features of games you already have, you have to get one. And that's what the gaming industry does when it releases a new system anyway, except this time instead of being much of a new system, it was really just the DS Lite with a few nothing-special new things and without the GBA slot that I still use. At least other 'new old systems' like the GBA SP and DS Lite were optional to people who had their predecessors.
Good lord, the thing is GIGANTIC! Not quite as portable but probably more fun to play when at home, etc.
3DS plz.
Nintendo needs to add a tegra2 to it to make those pixels on the screen interesting and android or maybe Nintendo's flavor of android to it.
Why not just skip this and wait till the 3DS comes out?
I like the larger DSi XL as the current DSi screen size is too small for us Western Europeans (Australian's). We, unlike the Japanese and Asians dont have small hands, so a larger DSi and larger screens is the best way to go. When I got the DSi I like the new features but the screens were no different, too small. Ive always preferred the larger handhelds, as I dont really care about pocketability - the bigger and more solid it is the better, plus the Nintendo build quality.
As for the matt finish on the DSi, I agree it looks cheaper as no "DS" logo, and not even a "Nintendo" logo on the top - just one big blank area, compared to the DS's glossy top and logo (reminded me of an Apple clear MacBook). The matt finish is great for no fingerprints, but it actually marks easier as it feels like chalk board material, and marsk like chalk on a chalkboard. I prefer the glossy finish which is easier to clean and since I keep it in its original foam pouch, as presented in the box, no marks.
I was just on Wikipedia, and I noticed that this came out November 21st, 2009, When did the original DS come out? Exactly 5 years prior. Coincedence? I don't think so...
what the hell is the point if youre not increasing the screen resolution?
Those pictures don't give any detail really, please put up a few more.
i personally find it embarassing playing PSP or NDS in public, given that i'm almost 30, and the ones usually seen carrying one are 1/3 my age. this takes it to a new XL level of shame.
maybe when it gets to XXL and as big as a netbook i can start fool people that i'm actually getting some work done.
@RadiXe
with a "netbook" that has like 5 buttons?
dude, get an iPhone.
@Wesscoast
provided they don't see the business end of the future 3DSi XXL
@RadiXe
Ashamed to play games in public at 30? Tsk tsk tsk, I'm 52 and could give a rats azz what someone thought of my DS Lite gaming in public, or the fact that half the time it's pokemon. Of course looking like I could outrun, catch and perform an atomic wedgie on most people half my age might have something to do with it. ;)
Eat right and exercise before playing games... then game your azz off!
This DS is perfect for when I get stoned with all my buddies.
I plug in the "Elektroplankton" fish synth in it and they'll all be staring at the screen for hours going: Holy shit, that is so awesoomee! :))
Thats what all that screen real estate and brighter colors are:
Portable "TRIPS"
I do want to get one. I want/need a second ds for playing pokemon with myself. I just don't want to pay almost twice the price of a ds for it.
Wow, that is incredible. I love those colors.
Lou
www.anonymizer.us.tc
Wow... They make a new DS like every other month. Isn't a 3DS coming out soon too..
Is that a brick!!