Solder
Member
Yeah, good point, the price is a bit high. But you do also get longer battery life, almost on a par with the DS Lite.
My son wants a Nintendo DS...
- Thread starter SilverDuck
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donkeykong81
Well-known member
At 9 years old I believe he won't mind having the DS Lite. The DSi just seems to cater more towards the slightly older crowd with its extra features. It's also $40 more for a DSi for a young(er) kid who might not be so careful with it as maybe a teen would.
They're both small, sleek, and have good looking screens. He will be able to play Mario Kart and all the other good games with his friends. He probably isn't going to be browsing the web or downloading games and if he needs to play music there's plenty of other ways to do that.
As for the DSi XL as it is being called at this point...I don't have a DSi yet and I was holding out for this one. I'm not sure why but the huge screens seem fun to me. They're really, really big in comparison to the DS Lite just look for a comparison picture. I like the quirky things Nintendo makes like this...just like the GBA Micro. I'll have my DS Lite to fit a little better in my pocket still.
They're both small, sleek, and have good looking screens. He will be able to play Mario Kart and all the other good games with his friends. He probably isn't going to be browsing the web or downloading games and if he needs to play music there's plenty of other ways to do that.
As for the DSi XL as it is being called at this point...I don't have a DSi yet and I was holding out for this one. I'm not sure why but the huge screens seem fun to me. They're really, really big in comparison to the DS Lite just look for a comparison picture. I like the quirky things Nintendo makes like this...just like the GBA Micro. I'll have my DS Lite to fit a little better in my pocket still.
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Solder
Member
I'd certainly go for a DS Lite in preference to a standard DSi.
copious
Well-known member
I'll second that.....
I have the DS phat, (3) DS's, and the DSi. My kids greatly prefer the DSi bacause of the camera. I have a 7 year old and a 11 year old.
The real only zinger with the DSi is the lack of GBA slot. Which doesn't bother me. But, you get added functionality like the camera and photo library, a sound editor, music player (AAC only), a true dashboard like menu system, Opera Web Browser, access to the DS store which has some free demos and free apps like FLIP BOOK which absolutely ROCKS.
Also, the DSi supports WPA/WPA2 encryption. If you get a DS lite and your router is using newer encryption you can't get the DS on your network for wi-fi play. Which blows. However, older DS titles don't support WPA even if they are in the DSi.
And the DSi has larger and much brighter screens. But, they are barely larger and it's not really noticeable.
The real only zinger with the DSi is the lack of GBA slot. Which doesn't bother me. But, you get added functionality like the camera and photo library, a sound editor, music player (AAC only), a true dashboard like menu system, Opera Web Browser, access to the DS store which has some free demos and free apps like FLIP BOOK which absolutely ROCKS.
Also, the DSi supports WPA/WPA2 encryption. If you get a DS lite and your router is using newer encryption you can't get the DS on your network for wi-fi play. Which blows. However, older DS titles don't support WPA even if they are in the DSi.
And the DSi has larger and much brighter screens. But, they are barely larger and it's not really noticeable.
I have one FS...if you are interested PM me.
black DS lite with cyclo ds evolution card, 8gb SD micro card and the ram upgrade (ez flash v 3 in 1 slot 2 card) .
Adult owned (me), used very little and has had screen protectors from day 1.
black DS lite with cyclo ds evolution card, 8gb SD micro card and the ram upgrade (ez flash v 3 in 1 slot 2 card) .
Adult owned (me), used very little and has had screen protectors from day 1.
ncfiala
New member
I've got a DS phat, two DS lites, and a DSi. I really like the DSi, but if I could only have one DS it would probably be a lite.
Phetishboy
Well-known member
We bought the pink DSi for my daughter, she loves it. Is there a good software for converting movies to be watchable on these things? Anyone convert movies for a fee?
Brick Top
Well-known member
Look up Revolution R4 and go from there. I know they work great for the DS, I am sur they have them for the DSi too.
Its a hack that just drops into the slot on the back. Runs a little OS and then you can load game ROMs MP3's and movies directly off a micro SD card that plugs into the R4 card.
It's all illegal, so if that bothers you, don't do it.
There are thousands of game ROMs out there on the internet. You can search for movie converters like "Super" that can put movies in the proper format for the DS. Once they are converted, the file size is remarkably small.
8-Bit
Member
You can't go wrong with any model DS. If you would like him to be able to use the camera, browser, downloadable games, and music player (via SD slot) the DSi is the best choice. If you don't any of that stuff get a DS Lite. The larger screens on the DSi are nice, but the DS Lite ones are still excellent.
On a side note you can configure parental controls on the DSi but not the DS. However I don't think this includes a play time limiter.
The new model DSi coming out is very very large and is designed for people whose eyesight is failing. It's probably too big for your kid to use actually, and it's not nearly as portable (it will not fit in his pocket). So I'd just ignore that model in this case.
ALSO! A lot of the homebrew cards (like the R4) will not work in the DSi.
On a side note you can configure parental controls on the DSi but not the DS. However I don't think this includes a play time limiter.
The new model DSi coming out is very very large and is designed for people whose eyesight is failing. It's probably too big for your kid to use actually, and it's not nearly as portable (it will not fit in his pocket). So I'd just ignore that model in this case.
ALSO! A lot of the homebrew cards (like the R4) will not work in the DSi.
Solder
Member
The DSi also has a noticeably shorter battery life compared to the DS Lite.
It may have been designed that way but that doesnt mean it's exclusive to those with failing eyesight. My eyesight is fine and it still appeals to me, simply because it will be nice to play DS games on a larger screen.
That depends how big his pockets are. It's not THAT huge!
Plus the DSi XL has much better battery life than the DSi.
TK_Monkey
New member
That's the 2nd or 3rd time I've seen a browser mentioned and I forgot to respond in my original reply. There is a reasonably well working (not the beefiest thing ever, forget streaming video or a huge image gallery) web browser that works with the DS Lites. It's basically a version of Opera on a DS cart and a ram expansion that goes into the GBA slot. Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-DS-Lite-Browser/dp/B000OAO494
As far as the homebrew cards not working on the DSi, the older gen stuff won't, but there's a whole new range of flash carts specifically made for the DSi. I know there's a DSTT, I think Cyclo has one in the works if it's not out already, and there are a bunch of others. With the wifi firmware update feature on the DSi it'll likely turn into another arms race like with Wii homebrew where Nintendo releases a firmware update that kills off the carts, the cart makers come out with a firmware update to the card that gets around the new stuff, etc, but there's definitely working flash carts for the DSi.
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Once he gets it, Retro Game Challenge is a neat game and has a decent enough clone of Galaga on it (there's a namco museum title for DS, but the interface is a little iffy) and clones of a bunch of old school arcade/console games wrapped into a storyline about challenging the ultimate gamer in the universe or something. I've been having fun w/ it.
The opera browser for the regular DS is buggy garbage and barely usable. I bought it and immediately sold it. The Opera browser on the DSi is much much much much more refined. And, it's free.
