Nintendo 3DS

[PSI Wind]

I'd actually like to see an original Persona made for the 3DS.

[Remy]

I'd actually like to see an original Persona made for the 3DS.

Possible, considering Strange Journey on the DS is basically SMT4. I''d prefer a new persona on consoles though.

[Jetronic]

So... apparently the rest of the specs for the 3DS have been revealed, as well as the actual GPU clock speed.

http://gear.ign.com/.../1122613p1.html

Processor : 2x 266MHz ARM11 CPUs

GPU : 133MHz

VRAM : 4MBs

RAM : 64MBs

Storage : 1.5GBs of flash storage.

Note the dedicated Vram

[Cortez]

Is that good or bad?

[Carbo]

Definitely rapes and blows the DS out of the water.

Can't help but think I expected a bit more than that though.

Edited September 22, 2010 by Columind

[Tornado]

That's... quite a bit less than I was expecting, actually.

That VRAM better be fast.

[speedfreak]

I have no idea what that means.

[Carbo]

It's processors do not outweigh the Wii. As far as memory goes though, 3DS has an advantage.

[EuroMIX]

I suppose knowing the specs is nice and all but it could run off sawdust for all I care as long as I get my Ocarina of Time and potential Majora's Mask remake and tons of awesome games.

...I also have no idea what those specs REALLY mean.

[Tornado]

I have no idea what that means.

...I also have no idea what those specs REALLY mean.

Think anywhere from 2 PSPs to 2.5 PSPs. Or, between the Gamecube and XBox.

It's processors do not outweigh the Wii. As far as memory goes though, 3DS has an advantage.

Eh, I dunno about that. Wii has more memory usable by the CPU (it has embedded and discrete main RAM). The 3DS has a bit more VRAM, but it might not be able to use it in a way directly comparable because of the 3D stuff. We also don't know what kind of RAM it is, so we might end up with an N64 situation again (more RAM than the system can really use most of the time, but the RAM is so inefficient it ends up being a bottleneck anyways), or maybe a PS2 situation (the VRAM is the bottleneck compared to the rest of the components, but it is really fast so it isn't that much of a problem when you get a handle on how it works), or maybe none of the above.

Edited September 22, 2010 by Tornado

[Doctor MK]

1.5 GB of storage?

That's quite hilarious when you consider the Wii has what, 512 MB or something? (correct me if I'm wrong)

[Jetronic]

It definitely surpasses the dreamcast and ps2. Gamecube I can't be sure of, but what helps it the most that the graphics chip has dedicated memory.

To put simply, the Iphone 4 has a better processor, but the 3ds blows it away in terms of graphics. Plus I'm pretty sure not everyone will use the 3D feature in games, so if possible, those two processors may be able to be put to some kick ass use.

1.5 GB of storage?

That's quite hilarious when you consider the Wii has what, 512 MB or something? (correct me if I'm wrong)

Nope, you are 100% correct. Edited September 22, 2010 by Jetronic

[PSI Wind]

So....is it more powerful than the PSP?

[Tornado]

Yes. It's just not crazy Wii powerful like some of us were expecting.

Edited September 22, 2010 by Tornado

[PSI Wind]

Well, that's good enough for me. Now Sony HAS to make a PSP2 .

[LunarEdge]

1.5gb of storage plus the option of a SDHC card is nice if you ask me.

[Candescence]

Yes. It's just not crazy Wii powerful like some of us were expecting.

Well, it certainly can outperform the Wii in some aspects.

Also, an analysis of the hardware specs from a NeoGAF commenter (specifically, brain_stew):

The CPU setup is interesting but perhaps not surprising, two low clocked CPUs can often mean a lower powerdraw than one higher clocked CPUs (both Intel and AMD use this approach in their netbook chips and ARM themselves are going this way with the Cortex A9 and Eagle) and it should make BC with the NDS (which is a dual CPU system as well) a lot easier.

266mhz is a super low clockspeed for an ARM 11 chip but two of them together should be more than sufficient I would think. I never expected an A8 and was kinda worried they'd go with something even simpler so two modestly clocked ARM 11 is decent news in my book. Loading just two CPU cores really isn't all that difficult these days, most developers have plenty experience loading 6+ threads now and its even a skill NDS developers had to learn. The amount of L2 cache will have a big say in just how well those AR M11s perform.

64MB always seemed the most likely from what we'd seen so far but I was still hoping for 128MB.

We knew about the dedicated memory but a dedicated 4MB framebuffer is pretty damn roomy considering the modest rendering resolution.

The 133mhz GPU clockspeed tells us little really without knowing how many pipelines the chip has but its certainly not discouraging news. A 100mhz or lower clockspeed didn't seem out of the question previously.

I really like the design, it seems to take all the good points of the various previous generation systems without any of the drawbacks and it should deliver fantastic battery life. I'd definitely take this design over a PS 2 and GCN and probably even an Xbox as well because of the dedicated framebuffer which overcomes one of the major bottlenecks of that system.

One things clear, its certainly a gaming focused design. This really wouldn't be very good at all for a smartphone but for a machine that only has to worry about pumping out great looking games it seems to be terrifically balanced. Its not cutting edge but its a smart use of the available technology to deliver a system that should deliver the best gaming experience for the given cost and power constraints. Pretty much precisely what you'd expect from a Nintendo system.

[EuroMIX]

1.5 GB of storage?

That's quite hilarious when you consider the Wii has what, 512 MB or something? (correct me if I'm wrong)

The Wii is about four years old now though and it was never intended to store a lot of large on-board data just small saves, Wii channels and a few VC games. The recent support of HCSD cards means that it can support anything up to 32GB which is more than enough for most things.

Plus there is the fact that technology is always getting cheaper so what it cost Nintendo to include 512MB of internal memory four years ago probably is about the same as them including 1.5GB now.

[Mew]

3DS to Launch Nov. 21, Here’s Why

There have been a lot of rumors going around lately about the 3DS release date. Is it coming out March 2011? November 22, 2010? Or some other crazy date? Outlets such as Gamestop and even a product listing for a 3DS game from EA have people talking, but are any of their dates correct?

Of all the dates I’ve heard for the 3DS, I haven’t heard the one that makes the most sense….November 21, 2010 (the Sunday before Thanksgiving and Black Friday). While some places seem to be pulling dates from anywhere they can find a calendar, we decided to take a look at Nintendo’s past product timelines to see why November 21 is the date for the 3DS.

Number 1 Reason: Past Nintendo Hardware Release Dates

Nintendo Gamecube

Released in North America: November 18, 2001 (Sunday before Thanksgiving in the US)

Nintendo Wii

Released in NA: November 19, 2006 (Sunday before Thanksgiving in the US)

Nintendo DS

Announced: E3 2004

Release Date announced: September 20, 2004

Release Date in NA: November 21, 2004 (Sunday before Thanksgiving in the US)

Nintendo 3DS

Announced: E3 2010

Release Date (to be) announced: September 29, 2010

So logically speaking, the 3DS would launch in NA on November 21, 2010 (Sunday before Thanksgiving in the US)

Number 2 Reason: Right before Major Holiday/Shopping Season in the US

November 21 not only fits with past release dates of Nintendo consoles and handhelds, but it also makes business sense especially in the US. Many major Holidays happen in the 2 months following November 21 in the US including Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Year’s. It is historically the best sales period for the video game industry and most every other sales-driven field.

Other Reasons in no particular order:

Would put pressure on Sony’s next handheld and solidify the 3DS as the system to beat in the next-gen handheld war.

70 titles already announced and in development for the system means many titles could appear in November for a strong launch lineup.

Would increase mindshare for Nintendo as “The 3D-games leader” much like the Wii has with motion controls

For these reasons and many more, we believe the Nintendo 3DS will be in your hands before you and your family sit down for Turkey in a couple months

Source

Edited September 23, 2010 by Mew

[Carbo]

That's just desperately grasping for straws right there.

[Arioch]

Well, that's good enough for me. Now Sony HAS to make a PSP2 .

It's already in development. They've just kept their mouths shut.

[Noir]

Makes sense, and if any date had to be picked for most likely, it would probably be that. But again, it's only if a possible date had to be assigned; we're better off not guessing.

[Conando]

That's just desperately grasping for straws right there.

With the release date? Not really, November 21st is the only one that makes sense so far, considering it's a Sunday. It won't be released on a Monday (November 22nd). Nintendo of America releases most major titles and hardware on Sundays, Metroid: Other M was the only thing that WASN'T released on a Sunday in recent memory.

[Tornado]

With the release date? Not really, November 21st is the only one that makes sense so far, considering it's a Sunday.

Well, except for the elephant in the room regarding how they may not release it at all this year in NA/EU.

[Conando]

Well, except for the elephant in the room regarding how they may not release it at all this year in NA/EU.

History with major hardware releases (as in not redesigns) has been pretty good with being semi-simultaneous. They're not being absurd with their guess at all.