The Nintendo DS handheld video-game machine will work as a portable TV with a data reception card that shows digital broadcast set to start in Japan in April, the company president said on Wednesday.
An internet browser feature is also in the works for the machine, which has two screens, including one touch panel. The machine already comes with a Wi-Fi wireless connection.
Sales of Nintendo DS in Japan has grown to six million in 14 months, faster than Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance or Japanese rival Sony’s PlayStation 2, which took about 20 months to sell that many, said Nintendo President Satoru Iwata.
The new features will help boost sales of the machine, and Nintendo is targeting sales of 10-million in Japan sometime this year, he said.
Nintendo said the browser function will be available in June but did not give details of the dates or pricing for the digital broadcast.
”We are aiming for an unquestionable proliferation of Nintendo DS as a gaming platform,” Iwata said at a Tokyo hall event to lay out strategy for this year. – Sapa-AP