The Nintendo 3DS is one of the undoubted highlights of E3 2010, delighting show attendees with its 3D skills, improved design and impressive line-up of forthcoming games. But there are a few things about it you may have missed in the excitement – read on for the lowdown on some of the Nintendo 3DS’s traits and talents.
1. No glasses required
The Nintendo 3DS sports an auto-stereoscopic, or lenticular, screen, so you don’t need to wear active or polarised glasses to get the stereo effect – it’s fully visible with the naked eye. This is impressive for two main reasons: first, no goofy specs (yay!); second, there’s no dulling of the image due to you viewing it through a slightly tinted layer of glass – it’s bright and rich.
2. Adjustable 3D
A 2D-to-3D slider allows you to adjust the level of 3D effect shown on the Nintendo 3DS’s screen, and see the change come into effect in real time. That’s mighty clever, not to mention cool in a geeky way.
3. 3D camera
You don’t need to shell out big bucks on a Fujifilm Finepix Real3D camera to snap 3D photos: you can do it on the (relatively cheap) Nintendo 3DS, thanks to its built-in 3D camera (or rather, two cameras). Focus and 3D depth can be adjusted.
4. 3D is for more than just games
Hollywood is getting in on the Nintendo 3DS action, and Dreamworks, Disney and Warner Bros will all be serving up 3D movies to watch on the go.
5. It’s sensitive
There’s both an accelerometer and a gyro sensor built into the Nintendo 3DS, so it’s the most motion and orientation sensitive games console so far (unless you count the iPhone 4, which is fair enough). We haven’t yet seen how Nintendo and other developers are going to use this tech, but it’s bound to offer some interesting new control input methods.
6. It’s as powerful as a Dreamcast – or maybe even a PS2
That’s the early verdict of gaming tech specialists Digital Foundry, who reckon the Nintendo 3DS jumps ahead of the Sony PSP as the most graphically powerful handheld console around.
7. DLC via Wi-Fi
The Nintendo 3DS will be able to communicate with other Nintendo kit, such as the Wii, via Wi-Fi – even when it’s in sleep mode. That means you can link games and grab downloadable content without even having to think about it.
8. Analogue thumbpad
The Nintendo 3DS’s new analogue thumbpad allows for a far greater range of control in games, which can only be a good thing. It’s also a nice large size.
9. SD card slot
Nintendo has finally embraced the ubiquitous SD card format, which should allow you to get media and other content onto the Nintendo 3DS with a minimum of fuss.
10. Only one touchscreen
If you were expecting twin touchscreens this time, think again. Only the lower screen is touch sensitive, which probably makes sense when you consider touching the upper screen would likely shatter the 3D illusion.
Out TBC | £TBC | Nintendo
