Nintendo's 3DS handheld won't be using graphics tech from Nvidia or AMD...instead it's going with Japanese embedded graphics developer DMP.
Back in March Nintendo turned heads when it announced it was bringing 3D technology to handheld gaming system with the Nintendo 3DS…and turned even more heads when it claimed the system would not require special glasses to achieve 3D effects. Now, the company has made a critical technology selection for how it plans to power the 3DS graphics—and it’s not a solution from graphics developers Nvidia or AMD. Instead, Nintendo has chosen (Japanese) the Pica200 graphics technology from Japan’s Digital Media Professionals, a company that specializes in embedded graphics systems.
Nintendo showed off the 3DS last week at the E3 trade show; the device sports two displays, one measuring 3.5 inches and the other measuring 3 inches. The device will be the successor to the very popular Nintendo DS and DSi handhelds, and enables users to experience 3D gaming in their hands without wearing special polarizer or shutter glasses.
Nintendo apparently considered graphics technology from AMD’s ATI division, which also developed the graphics systems used in the Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Xbox 360 consoles. Other companies in the running included Nvidia (which handles graphics tech for the PlayStation 3) as well as ARM and the UK’s Imagination Technologies.
DMP says its solutions will enable the 3DS to offer very high-quality shaders and autostereoscopic effects with low power consumption.
Nintendo plans to launch the 3DS by the end of the year in its native Japan, and is currently targeting a worldwide launch by March of 2011.
