DS Lite- Great Gift for the Holidays!

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Nintendo makes good systems at a good price. The most recent addition to their line up (the 3DS) might not be the best answer for all consumers out there- the very young or those with vision issues. I personally love it, and think it is a very good hand held. But for my kids I would rather have a system they can use no matter what age, to its maximum potential without breaking the bank for the system and games. One of the more recent additons to the Nintendo handheld market to the rescue, the DS lite. The DS lite is smaller then the first iteration of the DS, has better battery life and comes in four colors: red, blue, pink and black.

The system is built like a rock. Ours has taken quite a few tumbles without much more then a scuff mark. Even while being passed back and forth while paused in the middle of a game, the system just keeps on going. This is not an easy feat for any piece of technology!

The DS lite also has access to multi player gaming, both through a local connection and also through the Internet. I like how the Internet gaming doesn’t use any personal information. Instead, you trade DS friend codes or just connect and play with another random player from any corner of the globe. But there is nothing more exciting then playing Mario Kart with four friends in the same general area. So much fun at any age, really. Recently on a train ride, a friend and I played through a few levels of Lego Batman and had a great time playing, even though we were as quiet as church mice.

The main time my kids use their DS Lite is on car trips. We have about 10 games they share, two copies of Mario Kart DS for multi player. In the car this is perfect, they are quiet and having fun while Mom and Dad are trying to keep us from getting lost and able to enjoy some quality time, well- as quality as it can get while driving, LOL.
The DS lite also plays Game Boy Advance games as well. If upgrading from the GBA to the DS Lite, all your old games will work. Horray! You don’t realize how important this is until their favorite games don’t work on their new systems and it opens a whole new can of worms.

The DS lite’s price is also a strong selling point, as of today it is possible to buy a DS lite for $100. The games vary in price from $20 to $35 for each game. So you can get your little ones a new DS lite with 2 games for less then $150. The games available are of varied types from racing to role playing to puzzles and more. If there is a type of game you or your kids like to play it is definitely on the DS. There are Mario games, sports games and even party games.

The DS Lite and DS games are all available just about anywhere.
Keep an eye out for these great little devices and thank your stars for cheap handhelds on the next car trip. 🙂