Coming off of my hijacking the Peach! thread, I'm curious about a few things:

1a)  Who currently owns the old model DS

1b)  Who doesn't and why

2)  If you plan on getting the new model within the first couple of months of its respective regional launch or by importing it beforehand

For me, 1)Yes and 2) Not currently.

1 - Yes.

2 - I'll most likely get one but I'm in no rush right now.

1. I have the original model DS... the color I have dubbed "early adopter gray"

2. Once I get to hold a DS Lite in my hands and oogle over the brighter screen a bit, I will decide whether or not I want to purchase one.  I probably won't be getting one for a long time, or unless my original DS meets an unscheduled demise (not likely, this IS Nintendo hardware we're talking about.)

1a) If you mean by the original model then yes. Original color? No. I bought my DS when the Mario Kart bundle came out so my unit is red and silver.

1b) None of my friends do. Some people just aren't into handhelds I suppose. I'm not very big on handhelds myself but Mario Kart DS drove me to buy it aside from it being another Nintendo product I must have.

2) I have no plans to buy a DS lite. The unit is sleeker, nicer, yes, but too small for my hands to find comfort. Like the GBA SP and GB Micro, I don't really care for Nintendo's plans to microize all their consoles to fit smaller hands. Heck, I had difficulties on the normal GBA much less the SP. Forget the Micro...

1. I don't own one. I was waiting for the inevitable redesign, or at least for a black color to be released here. I had plenty of games to occupy my time in the meantime (still do).

2. I would like to buy one within a few months of its domestic release, though it's not a top priority. Again, I will wait for a desirable color, either black or that enamel navy.

I'm happy with my GBA.

I have GBA(playing DK3 and Fire Emblem Sacred Stones) and NDS(red one bundled with Mario Kart) - but DS have one ugly dead pixel about in the center and I have to write to Nintendo about it, they should replace it.
great systems.
I will get lite edition as well( despite minor changes, its like buying GBA Micro haveing GBA SP).

1a) Got mine at the U.S. launch.

2) At this time, I have no plans to buy the DS lite unless something bad happens to my existing DS.  I very much want to try it out, though.  Maybe if I'm really wowed it'll change my mind, but I doubt it.  Note that I never puchased a GB Pocket, GBA SP, or GBM.  In all of those cases, the original model met my needs just fine.

I can't really see the comparison that much, considering the Micro is sort of a downgrade from the GBA SP.  In order to say they're similar, the screen size on the Lite would've had to get smaller and it would've had to drop GBA cartridge support.

As far as my own DS ownership goes, I've still got the launch model ("early adopter grey" IS a great way of putting it), but I'll be getting the Micro eventually.  After holding one, I can confirm the screens are a whole lot better and the system is actually more comfortable for my big hands than the current model.  I'm not sure why, but it might have something to do with the fact that the edges of the part you hold don't taper downward like they do on the current model.  I'm not really in any huge rush to get one, though... I'm content to watch the insane scrambling for units right now and then see if another color I want comes out or just get a Navy one at my leisure.

Erm, you do mean "DS Lite" and not the "Micro," correct? ;)

>>1a)  Who currently owns the old model DS

I've owned the original model since February of last year.  Although people may say that it's too early for an upgrade, I'm willing to bet that most who played on a Micro or (especially) a new GBA SP are in agreement that the DS is overdue for a screen upgrade.  I mean, just look at these shots:

Original DS vs DS Lite: http://i2.tinypic.com/ou8g78.jpg

Original DS: http://www.geocities.jp/srqjx458/NDSL/P1000791.JPG
DS Lite: http://www.geocities.jp/srqjx458/NDSL/P1000790.JPG

>>2)  If you plan on getting the new model within the first couple of months of its respective regional launch or by importing it beforehand

Well, it seems that the current launch fiasco has caused import shops to have a delay in their shipment of DS Lites, so unfortunately, it looks like my order with NCSX is placed on indefinite hold.  Worse still is the possibility of price gouging, with places like the aforementioned NCSX, Lik-Sang and Play-Asia hitting prices of upward to $300 USD.  I very much want a DS-L, but I'm not quite sure I'm hard up enough to warrant the hike in cost.

1B. Me. Waiting for a price drop and making sure Nintendo supports the system properly for a long time, instead of dumping it for something more powerful to match muscle with Sony prematurely.

2. I have to sample the D-pad on the new one before I make any plans.

Be interesting to see where exactly DS stands next year.

I like the DS!  I might get the DS lite, depending on the price.  As far as I know there's still no confirmation that it'll make it's way over here to the States, correct?  Most likely it will, but it might be a while.

cheers,

-avatar!

I own the original model, haven't played it in forever though, lack of games that interest me.

I thought I read somewhere that it will launch here in the US with the New Super Mario Bros (is that really going to be the title?).

I think you'll wait in vain for a price drop, PS2 style.

PS2 is a steal at $199 or less, considering its' versatility (and I actually paid $299 for mine). I don't consider anything over $99 a fair price for the DS.

Really, it doesn't bother me because I'm still in a wait-and-see mode anyway because I want to see just how committed Nintendo is to the system. It's having success now and I want to see where it goes from there. Smart move would be drop the price at the same time New Super Mario Brothers comes out. But that would almost make too much sense.

Best thing it has going for it is Nintendo already milked most of their classics onto the GBA, so now they're forced to bring new games out to entertain the DS crowd.

Sorry, I can't follow your way of arguing.

Couldn't disagree more, considering the PS2 was worthless in its first year and I very much regretted having purchased it after I finished the first couple games I had for it.  The DS on the other hand has had a first year so strong that I consider it already to be a vastly superior system to the GBA.

I meant PS2 in its' library's current state. There's no reason for Sony to drop the price from where it is currently (which I believe is what Datschge was referring to) because there's really no reason for a gamer not to have one and it would still be worth it at $199 or $299 nowadays. I regret buying mine early too though, but hey...It WAS the most cost-effective DVD player at the time as well.

I don't believe DS will get to where PS2 is now...Going strong and getting better after 5 years on the market (6 for Japan). More power to DS enthusiasts...There are some fine games out and coming out for it. I'm just wondering if Nintendo is going to make something of this current success and really establish the system or if they're just going to dump it for something else as soon as Sony overtakes them. Basically, I'm expecting a life-cycle similar to Gamecube's (and you see how well it's supported now, after doing fairly well for a few years).

I don't think comparing the DS to the GC is valid, considering the latter was never more than moderately successful while the former is doing incredibly well (and in no danger of the PSP overtaking it anytime soon). Considering Nintendo and third-party's strong support with original and entertaining titles, I don't see why there's any doubt that it won't be established (which I personally think it already is).

Then again, I prefer handhelds to consoles nowadays due to my preference for the old-school, so it may just be a difference of opinion. I haven't been this excited about gaming since the SNES days, and my excitement is mainly rooted in the DS; meanwhile, my PS2 has a modest collection of games and has spent 75% of its life as a DVD player.

The GBA will never be beat in Handheld superiority. Because of its long life it has a huge variety of games, great ports, and great originals. The DS should be given more time as should the PSP or if it already has passed the minimum time limit for it to be in a fullblown debate it will not do so well. I miss my SP. But we all have different preferences in games.

It's valid because they're both made by Nintendo and they promised a lot of things for both GC and GBA that were never met. I'm hoping Nintendo's answer when DS's success slows is to make more and better games, not invent a new system and exponentially drop support. I really don't feel like shelling out for more hardware that will be rendered obsolete prematurely and I personally don't trust Nintendo anymore.

I don't get that excited about handhelds, simply because of their screen format. I prefer my home set-up.

What did Nintendo promise for the GBA and Gamecube that were never met?  The majority of what people complained about that never happened with the cube was based on speculation and rumor that was never actually promised by Nintendo.  And the DS vs. Gamecube comparison is completely off-base, considering 3rd parties are actually strongly supporting the DS, whereas they never did the Gamecube.  And I'd hardly say Nintendo themselves are abandoning either system, though 3rd parties have definitely done so to the Cube.

Though frankly it's quite useless arguing with you on this, as you're completely jaded and seem to care more about whining about what's not rather than enjoying what is.  You don't trust Nintendo... fine.  You are well within your right to be angry that Nintendo isn't following the GoldfishX model of business or game design.  I guess If you're really that adverse to good games simply because they're on a system by a company whose direction and bad luck you don't like, just shut up about it and play different games on another platform.

As far as promises go, both GBA and GC were left for dead last year, well before the five year life cycle was up. And then there was a quote that said GBA and DS were to co-exist...I'm not really seeing that, with regards to new releases (especially not comparatively). I'm a fan of good games...I'm not a fan of prematurely abandoned and undersupported hardware and the companies that feel the need to pump as much as possible out to play said games(see Sega). Which is why I've said before that Nintendo would be better off as simply a 3rd party at this point.

I actually get tired of repeating myself on this...I was originally answering the poll, which asked if you had a DS or not, then simply responded to Datschge, who made reference to a PS2-like price drop. I'm not completely adverse to the thing, but I also said I'm not buying one until the price drops and that's partly out of protest for the way Nintendo goes about their business and partly because I feel it's overpriced at the moment (considering it's a portable) and partly because I want to see where DS and PSP go from here (and sad to say, Sony has had a much better track record than Nintendo over the past 10 years). Like I said, more power to DS owners...They're taking a risk and getting to play some decent games for it. I want to see if the current crop of titles coming out is a passing phase or something that will last.

To Goldfish: Out of curiosity, why aren't you bashing Microsoft, too?  Xbox 1 has was "left for dead" (as you say) last year too.  MSFT officially stopped releasing new games for it after Forza (Fable: The Lost Chapters and Conker are not exactly new games).  Not to mention that this cessation of titles occured before the system's four-year anniversary.  Nintendo is still releasing new games for NGC, however infrequently.  Sure, third party stuff on GameCube is just about over now, but pretty much every upcoming third party XB title is heading to PS2 as well, so they're not really reasons to hold on to the system.

Also, please be aware that the PS2 currently sells for $149.99 (not $199.99) and has been selling for this price for well over a year.

As for the DS, I can hardly see what difference it makes if Nintendo drops support for the DS tomorrow.  It already has enough great games to justify the $129.99 price tag.

I bought my Gamecube for first party stuff anyway(I dont care for ea sports games and so on from third party), there is still on the horizon amazing stuff for it - new Kirby Adventures and equally anticipated by me and millions of others - Zelda TP.
Qube has very impressive library of first party games - games that you cannot find anywhere else on any other system, and thats the reason for me to buy every single new system by Nintendo - be able 2 play  these innovative and one of a kind games.
it would be disappointing for me to see Nintendo as a 3rd party developer for all the other systems - hopefully that will never happen(its a shame Sega ended this way).

Thanks, I haven't laughed at anything so hard in quite a while. 

Edit: and to add to what Princess-Isabela said, it would be absolutely horrendous if Nintendo went third party.  Look what happened to Sega when they did so - having their own system and being able to set their own rules is what allowed them to be as brilliantly innovative as they were.  Has Sega done ANYTHING even remotely as creative or risky as the software they made for the Dreamcast in the time since then?  Of the three companies still making hardware today, Nintendo IS the sole risk taker... the only company whose first party studios are making anything new and bold on a consistent basis.  I shudder to think what will happen if both Sega and Nintendo are stripped of their ability to do whatever they want.  We're already halfway there...

I don't yet have one; I'm going to wait until my tax break comes in and hold aside the scheckels for a Lite, particularly since it has been mentioned that this model better accomodates big hands.

I already have Phoenix Wright, but would like to get Peach and some earlier DS releases before they go the way of all fish (those game stores have to make room for more UMDs for PSP after all!...*choke*).

Fair enough question...I expected less from Microsoft than I did from Nintendo is the best answer I can give you. Microsoft made a bold promise and impact by establishing Xbox Live and successfully convinced me to buy into playing games online (by offering games no one else offered). I own far fewer games for my Xbox than my PS2, but most have near-unlimited replayability (and that's including multi-platform games...Soundtrack ripper is indispensable for getting rid of licensed music in games like Burnout 3 in addition to Live's online play). If you remember, I laughed off the 360 a few months back, so I'd hardly call myself pro-Microsoft. I already have what I want from them (and I still don't own a single Microsoft first-party game), so they can go about their ways in trying to best Sony by any means needed without my haggling, since everyone knows beating Sony is their only goal. Only issue I have with them now is that they leave the various servers for Xbox 1 Live games on.

I did say the PS2 sold for $149 (which is why I said there's little reason not to own one). I also said at one point it sold for $199 and $299 and if it had the line-up it had today at those prices, it would still be worth it. Currently, I don't think DS is worth its' asking price. It doesn't have the one killer app out that would make me overlook Nintendo's past couple years and spring for it. Peach is probably the most promising one to come along. Phoenix Wright looks interesting, though one could argue the GBA games that proceeded it should have come out, and Under the Knife looks like it could hold my attention for a few hours. Mario Kart and Animal Crossing are the two main online games, which don't do a great deal for me (I'd probably pick Mario Kart up if I had the system, but I wouldn't buy the system mainly for it). New Super Mario Brothers looks like it might be THE killer app for it, so we'll see...Like I said, I want to see where the system is a year from now or even after E3. Anything could happen at this point.

Joe: I haven't stopped laughing at Nintendo's N64 cartridge format or 6-12 month delays for decent games or stuff like GBA Connectivity or (warning: subjectivity ahead) big titles they have fallen flat, like Wind Waker and Mario Sunshine or the nonstop Mario-whoring that Nintendo has seemed to be content to hide behind (really, how many Mario Party games are needed? I've had the chance to play some of them recently and I'm not even sure they'd be worth it with online play...At least if 4 and 6 are any indication. And I'm still waiting for Mario Curling). Sony's hardware quality is a laugher, but the library of games and the fact they haven't been behind Nintendo in any generation at any point speaks for itself. IMO, the only reason we have DS is because of Sony's threat to Nintendo's handheld monopoly.

I thought Sega was too conservative with the Dreamcast even. The only thing really ballsy they brought out outside of pioneering console online play for this era of systems was Seaman (and maybe Samba de Amigo). Sorry to say, I didn't notice much of a change with them going third party (and console-maker or not, we still never got a single Sakura Wars game here. Or Segagaga, whatever that damn game was called). Microsoft allows stuff like Steel Battalion...I don't think Nintendo would do too badly under their wing and the multi-player aspect of their games would be better.

Goldfish, I totally agree with everything you are saying here. As I have said here before, I think Nintendo have completely lost focus of where their strengths lie and they don't seem to have the confidence to be able to compete game for game. The contempt they show for gamers on my side of the world doesn't help matters.

All that aside, and whatever the reason we have the DS is (and I agree with your thinking) how you can doubt it now as a viable system is baffling. Even if not one more game was released for the system, it would be a worthy purchase. The current games have transcended the system's gimmicks, moved past the updated GBA games and are now simply excellent games in their own right. Phoenix Wright, Animal Crossing, Castlevania, Ouendan are all worth buying a DS for and there are many more. It has got the games. It has proven itself as a system and deserves to be taken seriously.

I'm not saying it isn't viable...I guess what I'm questioning is whether or not it's a smart purchase. Consider the last two nintendo systems (and the ones I currently own) are now on premature life-support due to poor management and in order to play any of the DS games, requires yet another hardware purchase.  Also consider the PSP, which is basically assured of a long life and which has roughly the same amount of games I'm interested in as DS. In making that choice, DS would seem to have an advantage: memory is cheaper, has better loading times, is better made and games are cheaper overall. But then there's the X factor: How long will DS hold out, once PSP gets the lead out, drops its' price to something reasonable and goes on a software run like DS has had the last six months or so? I don't plan on buying both and an early DS exit isn't going to raise Nintendo's stock with me.

Both systems are viable and I'd say DS is firmly ahead at the moment. At the same time, both systems have a lot of baggage that needs to be sorted out and I don't see a killer app in the mix, so there isn't a clear winner yet. Basically, I want to see how Nintendo responds to PSP once it actually does something and if they stay and fight or if they try to pull another system out of their hat. And at the same time, portable gaming is not my biggest priority and I don't use my GBA much outside of the house as is (mostly I listen to music). So DS isn't just competing against PSP...

IMO Sony isn't giving much attention to the PSP and Nintendo isn't giving any vast attention to any of their current systems.

I agree.  Once a system has a few games that you want and are only available on that one system, that to me is worth the price of the system. 

cheers,

-avatar!

Disagree.  Although it's true that Nintendo is not giving much attention to the GC (due to the upcoming release or Revolution), however the DS has wonderful games coming out on it!

cheers,

-avatar!

when it comes to games - Nintendo DS totally dominates(Castlevania, Kirby, Mario, Yoshi, Meteos, Nintendogs, Advance Wars, Peach, Animal Crossing), PSP has Lumines...and maybe gta libery stories, besides there isnt much of a killer aps for the system....
love them both though and I'm hoping that PSP will manage to gather more great titles in near future.