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DS Sells 20 million, 17 Million More by March 2007 115

Wowzer writes "Nintendo announced today that sales of its hand-held, dual-screened video game player, the Nintendo DS, have topped 20 million worldwide (guesstimates say 21,270,000). Nintendo expects DS (Lite) sales to be 17 million between April 2006 and March 2007. From today's financial report: 'The company raised its full-year sales forecast of the DS handheld game players to 17 million units for the year ending March 2007, up from 16 million unit sales projection made in May. Sales of DS game titles are projected to rise to 75 million units, from 70 million.' The report refers to PSP owners as just combat-game fans, while the DS is said to target a wider audience with more diverse games such as the 6 million seller Nintendogs." I will say, I was very skeptical when I first heard about the DS and the split screen — but having played a number of different games, I've found I like it. But I have not played Nintendogs, unlike some other people I know.
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DS Sells 20 million, 17 Million More by March 2007

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  • My Mom has one now (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Enry ( 630 ) <enry@@@wayga...net> on Monday July 24, 2006 @09:07AM (#15768863) Journal
    And she was the kind of person who never let us have a console game after the Apple II+ showed up (we had an Atari 2600 before that). Every $PRESENT_GETTING_TIME, we'd ask for a playstation, or nintendo, or something, but we were always told "No, you have a computer, it plays games, no consoles". So we went without. My wife bought me a PSX back in '96, but I haven't upgraded since.

    Then a few weeks ago I got a DS Lite and my mom visited for a few days. She started playing Brain Age and that was it. When they left, my dad asked how much they were and where they could be purchased. A week later, she's busy playing Sudoku and Mario on her own DS Lite.

    If you want to get one and your spouse gives you a wary eye, go get it and get Brain Age at the same time. You'll be a hero. But you may wind up arguing who gets to play with it.
    • But you may wind up arguing who gets to play with it.

      You're a geek with a wife. You shouldn't be arguing over who gets to play with it, she should have full permissions, rights, and access to anything of yours she wishes to play with, with minimal downtime.

      So stock up on batteries and vitamin E.

      • I got a wife, and not only does she like playing video games, she is a freaking rampart gamer. If you think girls liking jewelery is expensive, try a girl who FORCES you to go out and get Diablo II and the expansion and then makes you play it FOR FREAKING 20 hours over the course of a weekend!

        If I got a DS Lite, and she wanted to play it, I'd probly hit her with it. No, J/K. I'd let her play, then I could get another DS Lite!
    • My fiance plays Sudoku on my DS (that she bought for me). I try to get her to do the Brain Age stuff, but she got an 80 due to the "blue" bug (for lack of a better term) and has since been turned off by it. Too bad about that, but she does love the Sudoku on the DS.
      • I try to get her to do the Brain Age stuff, but she got an 80 due to the "blue" bug (for lack of a better term) and has since been turned off by it.

        You can always say you can't speak, but my wife is hit by the blue bug as well, but I'm not. I think she'll be glad to hear that others are having the problem as well.
      • Hold down select when you press the 'Brain Age Check' button (I forget the specific text), and that brings you to a *secret* menu where you can select which tests you want to do. If I do the Calculations, the Connect game, and Number Cruncher, I'll get a 20 everytime. If I take my chances with the Stroop Test, I'll fluctuate as high as 38 depending on how sensitive the microphone is that day. (I lack the patience to do the Word Memory test, though I enjoy it.) Its a shame about the 'Broo' bug, as there
    • by Gulthek ( 12570 )
      If you want to get one and your spouse gives you a wary eye, go get it and get Brain Age at the same time. You'll be a hero. But you may wind up arguing who gets to play with it.

      That's why to be truly heroic, you buy two.
    • If you want to get one and your spouse gives you a wary eye, go get it and get Brain Age at the same time.

      And don't forget "Animal Crossing". We had to get a second DS for her so I could have mine back.

    • My mom just got one too. And this after suffering through years of me playing Atari and the NES, she was the last person who I thought would ever express an interest in video games.

      But she saw an add for Brain Training and had to have it. After looking all over town for a DS Lite, she finally got one at WalMart and I haven't heard from her since....

    • Nintendogs is like crack for girls. A friend got a DS Lite recently during a period where his girlfriend was staying with him during a university break. He picked up with Nintendogs and a couple of other games and I asked him if he got a handheld for himself as well. He didn't get the joke.

      About two days later he calls me, complaining that he hasn't had a chance to really try any of the games. Eventually, he just took it to his work but she would call him and ask him if the dog had been fed, bathed, walked,
    • You'll be a hero. But you may wind up arguing who gets to play with it.

      That, or you just buy an import Royal Pink DS Lite just for her (unless she doesn't like pink, in which case you can also buy a Navy Blue or a Light Blue import, or a Polar White or Jet Black one from your nearest dealer)

      (Unless you're in the USA, in which case you'd also have to import the Jet Black one)

    • If you want to get one and your spouse gives you a wary eye, go get it and get Brain Age at the same time. You'll be a hero. But you may wind up arguing who gets to play with it.

      I have heard a lot of good stuff about Brain Training for the wife, but I have never tried it yet. One thing I would like to know though is, is the game more like "Any-Brain Training" or "Brain-that-speaks-English-fluently Training"? My wife's mastery of English is far from perfect, and losing points because of that would suck (no

      • French version is sold under the name "Brain Training - Programme d'Entraînement Cérébral du Dr Kawashima : Quel âge a votre cerveau ?" (english name "Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!", original name "Tôhoku Daigaku Mirai Kagaku Gijutsu Kyôdô Kenkyû Center Kawashima Ryûta Kyûju Kanshu - Nô o kitaeru Otona no DS Training").

        I strongly suspect that the US game would work as well (most DS games are multilingual), but i'm not sure. Anyway, if y

        • French version is sold under the name "Brain Training - Programme d'Entraînement Cérébral du Dr Kawashima : Quel âge a votre cerveau ?" (english name "Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!", original name "Tôhoku Daigaku Mirai Kagaku Gijutsu Kyôdô Kenkyû Center Kawashima Ryûta Kyûju Kanshu - Nô o kitaeru Otona no DS Training").

          Thanks for the pointer. Unfortunately, Amazon.fr can only ship it in the UE, and I'm in Quebec, Canada. I'll keep an e

    • This is a perfect example of the viral nature of the DS Lite. You (the technopioneering geek type) go out and get a DS lite, and a few games. EVERYONE around you starts asking questions: "How much is that?" "where can I get one?" "Only $129???"

      And soon enough you're having pickup tetris tournaments on the couch.

      Word of advice: As many posters have already said, BUY TWO! The first week I had mine, it ended up in my gf's purse. So I had to buy her one, too (a shiny black one!)
    • I got a DS lite for my wife last week with Brain Academy & Animal Crossing. She was pretty disappointed when she found out I bought it. She's not a video game player.

      Lets say she's hooked on Animal Crossing now. I never believed it could happen. She's all over collecting sea shells, bugs, paying off the mortgage, designing clothes & decorating.

      Now I know what it looks like when I play WoW all day. Pretty soon I'm gonna want my wife back (and play WoW a little less too).
    • Can we get a time line for these events? ;) I think you said playstation when you meant sega?
  • by SpaghettiPattern ( 609814 ) on Monday July 24, 2006 @09:10AM (#15768878)
    We own two. One for the son (blue), one for the doughter (pink).

    My wife and I like the brain training games so two units are used by four people.

    I'm sure my mum (79 years of age) will like the brain training games too so I bought a DS lite (white) with two games for her which I will give to her next Saturday.

    What makes a god-fearing, law-abiding family father buy expensive electronic toys? High amounts if good (and mostly clean) fun!!!

    I' still think I'm not a Nintendo fanboy but I sure like the stuff they make!
    • The DS is the first game system I bought since my sega genesis system back when.. oh before time itself. I love this thing! It is a hell of a lot more advanced than the Sega, costs about the same, and is like 1/10 the size. I spent the first few days just shaking my head at the power, capability, and size of the thing. And the games are actually entertaining, not frustrating or something you have to give up your life in order to play properly. So, Im one of those 'casual' gamers who spent the $120- I used
    • We own 5. One for my wife (first one bought). Then two for Child A and Child C. Then one for Child B (but with his money) after he saw how much Child A and Child C were enjoying them. Then one for me. Never been tempted by a PSP though.

  • Nintendo would be able to at least add a 1 to those numbers if they released the black DS Lite in the USA (a.k.a. "I'd buy one"). Even though it has some nice hardware (touchscreen, built-in WiFi, mic, ARM processor), I was also skeptical of the DS at first: "Oh come on, how many developers are going to make use of the touch screen"... thankfully my skepticism was vanquished when developers came through with real creativity and awesomeness. Add to the awesome games the ability to play movies and mp3's (ht [lik-sang.com]
    • Re:Well (Score:5, Insightful)

      by grapeape ( 137008 ) <mpope7 AT kc DOT rr DOT com> on Monday July 24, 2006 @09:27AM (#15769004) Homepage
      If your looking for homebrew development the psp or gamepark is probably the way to go. As a former (well current but its collecting dust) PSP owner, I came to appreciate the DS because it didnt play movies, music and run linux....it just played games and played them well.
      • Re: (Score:1, Flamebait)

        Comment removed based on user account deletion
      • I'm not going to get one because it can do those things -- but its ability to do those things makes me all giddy and the techno-freak inside me smile. It's a game machine and gosh-darnit, I'm going to play games on it :]
      • You're wrong, try google moonshell and DSLinux.
      • You *must* be joking. Sony is doing it's best to eliminate any possibility for piracy, and as a side effect, homebrew on the PSP. The only option for PSP owners is to downgrade their BIOS, and then never play a new game, for fear that their BIOS would be involuntarily upgraded.

        Meanwhile, you can get a simple passthrough card and a slot-2 storage device for the DS for under $100, these days. You can then grab devkitarm and hack away. And you'll love it... the DS hardware is very simple and easy to work w
    • Re:Well (Score:3, Informative)

      by Yvan256 ( 722131 )
      If you're looking for an mp3/movie player for the GBA (and thus Nintendo DS too), don't buy this one. I've heard bad things about it (low FPS, etc).

      The official one from Nintendo is really well made, doesn't drop video frames and supports real standard .mp4 video files (custom specs required, but still standard .mp4 files).

      http://www.lik-sang.com/info.php?category=246&prod ucts_id=8168& [lik-sang.com]

      I've been using that one on my Mac with Quicktime Pro. I use "export to MPEG-4" along with "preserve aspect ratio"
      • Re:Well (Score:2, Informative)

        by Kirsha ( 201264 )
        Just get the M3 player. LOTS of features and excellent compatibility.

        http://www.m3adapter.com/ [m3adapter.com]

        It has its own wiki too

        http://m3wiki.com/ [m3wiki.com]
        • From the mp3adapter.com website:

          The format can be played on GBA / NDS is the special GBM and GBS format. Abundant movies and music have already provided for everybody to download at present.

          I'm sorry but I once had an M3. Not sure if the new firmware is a whole lot better, but when I used it the GBM/GBS files were crap, took a huge amount of space, the framerate was low, the sound quality was crap, and it required Windows-only software to convert everything to its GBM/GBS formats.

          The Nintendo Play-Yan micro

    • You could always buy the white and use some glossy black paint to make your own black DS. Heck, if you have a friend with an airbrush, I'm sure it'd look great if the guy knows what he's doing. Black model paint tends to be pretty resiliant and even if it does chip it's very easy to touch up. Go wild MrSquirrel, go wild.
    • If you can't wait for black, you could import a Japanese or European one from Lik-Sang. The DSs aren't region protected in any way. It will cost you a premium, but you'll have it.

      I have one of the older blue DSs... and I love it. I've played with the Lites, and I'm impressed, but as long as what I have plays the games well, I'm happy with it.
  • by Anonymous Coward
    If they bring something besides Hyper White DS Lite to the states. I've got a platinum DS, and I like it, but I want a new one. Two DS's would also open up multiplayer Mario Kart, Mario64, and Tetris with my wife, and she could get her own Nintendogs. Come on, Nintendo! Give America the other DS Lite colors! And don't bundle them with something, please. Unless you let me choose what game I want in the 'bundle', then we can work something out. Black/Navy Blue DS Lite to the states! Send 'em over. As lo
  • by Daetrin ( 576516 ) on Monday July 24, 2006 @09:29AM (#15769029)
    but what are the latest worldwide shipped figures for the PSP?
    • by Anonymous Coward
      I don't have the worldwide numbers but it is interesting to note that June (because of the DSlite release) is the only month since last November that the DS outsold the PSP in the US

      sorces [videogamecharts.com]
      • June (because of the DSlite release) is the only month since last November that the DS outsold the PSP in the US

        You misspelled "outshipped". There's a stack of PSPs at Wal-Mart, but I can't find a DS Lite in my whole city.

        • That doesn't mean too much to me. Walmart is well known for their ability to manage JIT inventory. Just because they don't have a DS doesn't mean it sold out. Just because they have PSPs lying around doesn't mean they're not selling. You can't read anything into inventory lying around. I went to Circuit City last week and they had a million DS games and not one PSP game even though they had the hardware and accessories for both...so the PSP games must be selling out completely?
          • I think there are problems at Bentonville with regards to DS shipments. I went by the local one last week looking for a DS Lite for my wife and was told they didnt have their second shipment yet. Went to another and found they said the same thing. Finally went to a Target a few miles further down the road and found they had 2 in stock.
          • I went to Circuit City last week and they had a million DS games and not one PSP game


            Huh, I can't think of any reason why that could be [google.com]...

            (Sorry, I usually try not to be a fanboy, but this one I couldn't resist.)
          • It means alot, actually. Nintendo have sold over 20 million DS/DS Lites since its release. Thats to the stores and out the doors in the hands of customers. Sony have so far only release details on how many PSP's it has shipped. All that means is that Sony have delivered them to someone. Walmart might have 500,000 sitting unsold in their warehouse, but Sony still count it, whereas Nintendo dont count it unless money has changed hands between customer and retailer.
            • Like I said, it's comparing apples to oranges. You can't compare units shipped to units sold. So unlike your conclusion, it means nothing. Not to mention that Nintendo's method of tracking units sold to customers is spotty at best. How can they know exactly how many were sold unless the retailer tells them? And is it really in the retailer's best interest to report how many units they've actually sold?
              • I'm not sure if its the same with the DS, but all the major retailers DID report sales for the GBA SP. As soon as the unit was rung up and the serial number scanned (which is why it was visible from outside the box), the serial, date, and name/location of the store was sent on to Nintendo. That's part of how they kept track of warranty information.

                I found this out first-hand when I tried to exchange a silver SP (still unopened) that I bought on clearance at K*B for a black one at Wal-Mart the next day.

            • That's a pretty meaningless argument because

              a) There's only so much inventory a retailer's going to have lying around. If the PSP didn't sell no retailer would order more from Sony.

              b) If Nintendo doesn't want people to compare Sony's shipped versus their sold figures all they have to do is publish their own shipped figures. They just have to add it as an afterthought to the sold figures (20 million sold and over 768 million shipped).

            • Think logically here. Consider the system as a flow, from Sony to the retailer, and from the retailer to the customer. Units shipped/month measures the flow rate to the retailer, units sold/month measured the flow rate to the customer. In practice, the two rates are roughly equal. The retailer might keep some inventory, but that's irrelevent. What's relevant is that the retailer isn't going to keep a continually growing inventory. For the size of the inventory to remain constant, the number of units shipped
      • I'd like to see the numbers of both sold AND shipped psp's. (why compare Sonys shipped numbers to Nintendos sold numbers?)

        psp has been out selling the ds in America but psp games haven't done nearly as well.

        (maybe locoroco and tekken will help change that. doesn't look like it though)

    • 17.03 Million as of March 31st. Quite out of date, but expect new numbers in the next few days.
  • by Yvan256 ( 722131 ) on Monday July 24, 2006 @09:31AM (#15769041) Homepage Journal
    Nintendo, just like Apple, understands something that others still don't: it's not all about hardware and raw power anymore. Who cares if the Wii is less powerful than the Xbox 360 and PS3? Who cares if the Nintendo DS is less powerful than the PSP? In the end, it's all about innovation and software.

    The iPod would be almost useless without iTunes (the program, not the iTMS - iTunes Music Store), and the Nintendo DS would be pointless if all it could play was the same games as on the SNES/N64/Gamecube.

    More processing power? Sure. Better graphics? Of course. But not at the expense of innovation and good software.

    I don't remember who said it, but it goes something like this: "The most powerful computer on the planet would be useless without software to run on it."
    • Not to mention that there are actual games out for it. You could go buy yourself a PSP, and play the limited selection of PSP only games, as well as the PSP port games, or you could go buy yourself a DS, and choose from a much wider selection. And then there's the curiosity factor, the "oooh, pretty" factor, and the cost factor. It's moments like this that makes me glad that Nintendo lost the huge market share. Now they have to actually do something to make money.
      • You could go buy yourself a PSP, and play the limited selection of PSP only games, as well as the PSP port games, or you could go buy yourself a DS, and choose from a much wider selection. And then there's the curiosity factor, the "oooh, pretty" factor, and the cost factor.

        Umm, I think you just accidentally proved that it is Sony who is the Apple of the portable games market.
      • and choose from a much wider selection

        And even then, you forgot a few advantages of the NDS over the PSP:

        • The games are actually good and interresting. PSP has like 2 games I find interresting (Lumines and Loco Roco), others are merely crappy PS2 ports.
        • The... NDS... has... batteries... 10 hours of autonomy vs 3 hours helps a lot, for a handheld

        In the PSP/DS match, Nintendo has the numbers, it has the variety, and it has the quality.

        Meanwhile the PSP has better 3D.

        And the last, but not the least, mo

        • The DS Lite advertises 18 hours of battery life on the lowest brightness setting, and I can personally attest to this fact. Due to the fact that I have a wife, I keep track of exactly how much time I spend playing games. (It helps with arguments about how much time I spend gaming. For those of you who are married, you probably understand where I am coming from... wait... this is Slashdot... never mind about the being married part.) Anyway, I have played my DS Lite for 36 hours since I purchased it about a m
      • I don't consider myself a fanboy on either side of the current portable handheld situation, as an owner of both a PSP and a DS. I also agree with the general consensus of the current status of "good" games on the PSP: few and far between. That being said, look at the software that was available in the earlier days of the DS. There wasn't much on it to play in the first year or so, at least nothing that struck my fancy. I didn't end up picking up my DS until Kart was released, while I got my PSP right a
        • Starting in June of 2005, DS began receiving consistently good releases (this is in the US, possibly sooner in Japan). Meaning that 8 months after release, the DS library went from ignorable to stellar. The PSP has so far been out 15 months, and its library of games is still mediocre. The PSP will need to come with some really spectacular games to compensate for being behind. There are actually 2 or 3 in the works, but there are something like 15 excellent games planned for release for the DS between Au
      • I keep hearing this thing about the PSP not having many games, but the last time I was at a Fry's or a Best Buy I saw dozens. The problem is that the PSP is basically a portable Playstation; meaning that it gets the same sorts of games that I already have at home. The DS, on the other hand, offers a unique gaming experience. I own both systems (actually two DS's, the old and new) and I find that I only use my PSP when I'm flying somewhere, mostly to watch the few UMDs I own or play Hot Shots Golf. The D
      • It's moments like this that makes me glad that Nintendo lost the huge market share. Now they have to actually do something to make money

        What are you smoking ?
        Nintendo never lost the huge market share. It lost it if you bypass handheld sales, which were always going strong.
        And they always made money too.
        Now, it's even worse for (bad) competitors, as Nintendo has a big chance of getting back a huge share of home consoles share with the Wii.
        Fortunately, Nintendo is the only console vendor that still makes cons
    • In the end, it's all about innovation and software.

      I can imagine that Nintendo understands this, but Apple?

      Well trolled, sir, well trolled. ;)
  • Guesstimates? (Score:3, Informative)

    by Cutriss ( 262920 ) on Monday July 24, 2006 @10:45AM (#15769578) Homepage
    Nintendo themselves has said they've passed 21 million.

    Source [planetgamecube.com] - this is off PR Newswire, so it's a regular press release.

    Not to mention the idea of posting this article without a reliable news source. Blogging a quarterly shareholder meeting is one thing, but when Nintendo has released press releases with the same information, why bother falling back on a pretty-much no-name blog? And if you don't think PGC is "reliable", then pick one more to your liking [google.com]. Preferably one without a stupid animated GIF in it.
  • It may be cutesy, but Animal Crossing is a lot of fun. It's what I wanted The Sims to be like. I haven't visited anyone via the net yet, that's my next task.

    It's also a good game to sit and take a casual half hour break with every day or two, so it really focuses on a different part of the potential gaming audience.

    I had no fundamental objection to the PSP, and there were 3 or 4 games I'd have played on it, but when I tried one the loading times were really intolerable.
  • The half price DS Lites GAME is selling seem to be going pretty quick too: the last fifty took less than 30 seconds...
  • by Rosebud128 ( 930419 ) on Monday July 24, 2006 @03:20PM (#15771658)
    Almost two years ago if someone pointed to this dual screened mutant and said,

    -It would lead a gaming renaissance in Japan, making the Japanese game market larger than America so far in the year 2006.

    -It would outsell the PSP in all markets.

    -It would be very popular among girls too.

    -And popular among older people with a game called 'Brain Age'. This demographic the industry thought was impossible to reach.

    -Animal Crossing Wild World would outsell Final Fantasy 12 in Japan (could Final Fantasy 3 outsell FF12?)

    -A game called Nintendogs will outsell Halo and is set to outsell Halo 2.

    -Companies like Electronic Arts will struggle on the system as they do not know how to deal with disruption technology. But smaller companies like Atlus shall rise.

    -Let's not forget a new 2D Mario (after fifteen years) turning the markets on fire everywhere.

    You would think the person had gone mad. And many people thought Nintendo had gone mad in late 2004 (just as many thought they had gone mad with the Wii)

    Where is the PSP? Well, the software for the PSP is abysmal in Japan. The DS sales lead over the PSP in Japan is so gigantic that if you begin to combine PSP markets, the PSP still doesn't outsell the DS.

    So what is different? Nintendo sees the DS's true competition of those who aren't interested in games at all. The company mission is taking affect: "Make as many gamers as possible."

    Two years ago...

    -Japan had been in a slow decline and analysts were wondering if it worth the effort to 'win' Japan anymore.

    -Everyone predicted the PSP would do to the DS what Playstation did to the Nintendo consoles.

    -America's game market was extremely healthy with blockbusters like GTA: SA and Halo 2.

    -Nintendo was about to go third party.

    Now...

    -Japan's game market is now bigger than America's and is rapidly expanding.

    -Everyone's lofty PSP predictions now have egg on their face.

    -America's game market has been in free-fall since 2004. People are ignoring this issue and calling it a 'transition period' without mentioning that the next-gen systems out such as the PSP and Xbox 360 are not growing the market in any way.

    -Nintendo swims in profits.

    Anyone who believes the seventh generation of consoles will match the PS2 era is deluding themselves. Let the Seventh Generation of Consoles be known as the Fragmentation Era as the games market is dividing into seperate realms.

    Welcome to the new world.
    • Nintendo was never about to go third party, and never will go third party. They could lose the bank with the Wii and would still only make games for their own systems. It just wont ever happen with the current leadership.

      And the Japanese gaming market was always larger than the USAs. Unless you go back to the days of Atari and Intellivision.


      • Glad you saw that too. I remember reading an article a few years ago where the president of nintendo said, in no uncertain words, that they would always be in the hardware business and never be a 3rd party developer.
    • Almost two years ago if someone pointed to this dual screened mutant and said,

      Some said it, but it seems hard to do with an USA centric view.

      -It would lead a gaming renaissance in Japan, making the Japanese game market larger than America so far in the year 2006

      This is BS and american centric view : japanese game market was always bigger. It wasn't when you didn't count handhelds.

      It would outsell the PSP in all markets

      Only hardcore 3D (mostly FPS) 20-ish gamers believed the contrary. I'm an old time gamer,

One man's constant is another man's variable. -- A.J. Perlis

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