DSi LL is Large and Ugly
Nintendo sends out sample display units to retailers.
Posted Nov 19, 2009 at 18:12, By Anoop Gantayat
I toured the streets of Tokyo yesterday searching for signs of the DSi LL being promoted ahead of its Saturday release.
Aside from a few pre-order notices at some retailers, I found no such signs.
It turns out that Nintendo was waiting until today to kick off the system's retail promotional push. DSi LL hardware popped up at Shibuya's Bic Camera and Tsutaya retailers today, and I took the opportunity to snap some sneak pics with my iPhone.
Tsutaya has the system in a display case. It's next to other systems, including the DSi and Wii, allowing for size comparisons.
Bic has all three color variations in its DS section, available to touch, but not play. The shop also has box mockups.
I saw, I touched, and I have to admit that I lost a good amount of interest I'd initially had in the system.
DSi LL is a massive system. It reminds me of a really old portable. Unfortunately, Tsutaya didn't have old DS phat systems in its display case so I couldn't compare it with that monstrosity of hardware design.
The system also isn't particularly attractive, especially compared to the slick DSi. The glossy cover unit and matte base unit don't mix well. It almost looks like the system has a protector shell around its cover.
I'll wait until I've actually taken the system in hand and used it before totally passing judgment (the Bic units could not be picked up). It's possible that being able to play portable games on a large screen will make the size of the system worth the tradeoff.
On looks alone, though, this is one hardware revision I can probably live without.
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Reader Comments (showing 4 of 4)
Cosign @ 2009.11.19, 22:26
It looks alright. Wouldn't exactly call it ugly, - man those finger smudges really show! But what I want to know is what does the picture look like when you actually play the games. Especially games with big blocky 3d characters that use 0.5kb sized textures
yowvapa @ 2009.11.20, 1:33
The DSi LL having a glossy cover and matte base unit reminds me of the laptop models being released, so the argument that its appearance is "ugly" can also be used to refer to laptops as well.
Anyway, we may have to see on Saturday whether the Japanese will be receptive towards the system whether they based it on looks or not. Consumer feedback and sales may determine whether Nintendo will release a matte cover version in the future.
lech @ 2009.11.20, 3:14
It has the opposite effect on me. I was initially turned off by the size of the thing (in the Iwata demo shots), but now it looks quite workable in the wild. It might actually motivate me to play more DS games. And I love the faux-wood grain display stand. Give me a woody DSi LL!
anoop @ 2009.11.20, 3:42
I was all for the system until I saw it. I was seriously considering trading in my DSi for it, even though it would mean giving up all my DSi Ware games.
I do agree, though, that the stand is pure class!