Nintendo DSi, Nintendo DSi XL, Nintendo 3DS

 

Nintendo DSi

There are three handhelds from Nintendo in the market that are officially supported and marketed. Nintendo DSi comes in a clamshell design with two 3.25-inch screen and two built-in cameras. Out of the two screens, one of them is a resistive touch-screen that is usually operated with the bundled stylus. Not all games are based on touch-input as the DSi also has four face buttons, two shoulder triggers and a D-pad. You can get one of these for approximately Rs. 11,000, with game cartridges costing between Rs. 799 and Rs. 2, 899.

 

Nintendo DSi XL

As the name suggests, DSi XL is a larger version of DSi, with a screen size of 4.2 inches and improved viewing angle. The prices of these handhelds can really fluctuate and this one is currently going at quite a bargain at PlayAsia for Rs. 8,336.

 

Nintendo 3DS

This is the latest handheld console from Nintendo and while it may look similar to the other two, 3DS is quite a different beast. The top screen of 3DS can display images in stereoscope that thankfully does not require special glasses. The screen at the bottom retains its touch input functionality, while the controller layout has seen the addition of a thumb-stick for analog input. 3DS has a more powerful processor and more memory, which translates into higher resolution. Due to the recent price-cut, current 3DS price is ranging between Rs. 11,000 and Rs. 17,000, which means you will have to do some bargain hunting to get a good deal. Since this is a fairly new platform, we still haven’t seen lower price-points on this console, with games currently selling for somewhere in between Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,500.