Nintendo Formally Announces DSi Revision

Following a Nikkei leak earlier in the week, Nintendo formally announced its upcoming DSi hardware revision today.

The system will carry the name Nintendo DSi LL. It will see release on November 21 in three colors, Dark Brown, Wine Red, and Natural White. Pricing is set at ¥20,000, a bit up from the current DSi's ¥18,900 asking price.

As detailed in the Nikkei report, the main difference between DSi LL and DSi is in the screen size. DSi LL will feature two 4.2 inch screens, offering 93% additional area over the current DSi's 3.25 inch screen size.

The LL also has a wider viewing angle than the DSi. Nintendo states that this will allow friends and family to gather around and watch others play.

In terms of internal functionality, the two platforms are the same. However, separate from the system itself, DSi LL will offer users a couple of bonuses .

Nintendo will be including two different touch pens with LL. One can be stored in the system similar to the current touch pen, although it's about four millimeters longer than the current pen. The other touch pen is fatter and about 30 mm longer, and is meant for home use.

LL will also include some free premium DSiWare software. Each system will come with the two DSiWare Brain Age games and Maikyou Kokugo Rakubiki Jiten, a Japanese language dictionary. The dictionary is currently unavailable but will be see release in the near future. The Brain Age games alone would total ¥1,600.

The three colors.

Nintendo has opened up a special page offering a closer look at the DSi LL. A full spec page can be found here.

The spec page lists the LL's dimensions as 161x91.4x21.2mm, up from DSi's 137x74.9x18.9mm. The LL also weighs more, at 314g compared to 214g.

Not surprisingly, there are some changes to the system's battery life. LL owners can look forward to more play time. Under mid-level brightness, LL will last 9 to 11 hours, up from DSi's 6 to 9 hour range. At the highest brightness setting, players can look forward to 4 to 5 hours of play time, up from the current 3 to 4 hours.

Charge time takes a bit longer on the LL: three hours, or about 30 minutes more than DSi's two hours and thirty minutes.