Your Opinions on the Nintendo DS

We have a Wii and both my kids have a DS - ages 8 & almost 7.

The major difference between them is portability - you can take the DS anywhere. The boys (8-9) in my neighborhood will take them outside and play Pokemon; they trade characters, help each other through levels, DS download (text each other/play same game together) etc etc - then when they get bored with it they grab the football and play football. I was really concerned they would play it all the time, but it's not been an issue. One thing to watch out for with boys is the rating on the games. Because it's portable they take it out to play with their friends. My son is only allowed to play E rated games, but his friends can play T & M rated games so he has access to them when they hang out and play together. He knows he'll lose his DS if he plays them, and it hasn't been an issue, but it is something for you to consider.

My 6 year old doesn't play with hers that much, but she's never been a gamer type. My son had a DS lite at 7 and loved it as well, I think it's totally appropriate for a 7 year old as long as you supervise the time spent and games played.

Ok I am the gamer mamma ... I love video games of all kinds but the shooter games, not my thing.

I have a PS3 and a nintendoDSi, I would suggest you go to your local "gamestop" or gamestop.com and purchase a used/refurbished DS Lite for your child. My 4yr old uses my DSi, however i disable the internet feature. There is NO point in giving your children a DSi unless you are going to allow them to acces the internet. Now they do have the saftey blocks and parental features for the internet access but too many kids can bypass that these days. The games are great especially if you get them used, again gamestop, and you might even find yourself picking it up now and then. You are looking with the DS Lite at about 70-100 per unit and an average of 10-35 per game, make the kids share one.

Side note the DSi XL is internet too!

Good Luck I wish you well.

My boys all have DSs and we have a Wii and computers and iPods. They use them all. The DSs usually come out when we do not allow them to play the Wii on the big family TV. My 13yo has a DSI that he bought with a trade and his own money. The other 2 have DS lites. There is a new DS3D coming out that will be fairly expensive for a hand held.

These are a lot of electronic devices, but they do not spend a significant amount of time on them. We have reasonable restrictions on them.

I do recommend a DS lite for the little one, since they will not be able to use all the features of the DSi (which has wireless and photo capabilities). And I would recommend the DSi for the 9 yo because of the cool factor. It matters at this age (unfortunately).

We have a 5 year old son and he got the Wii when he was 3 and he got the DSLite for Christmas last year. One thing they do teach is great hand/eye coordination and helps with learning to follow directions. I have never regretted getting him either one.

We play the Wii as a family and I sometimes play on the DSLite myself. In fact, I recently took a friend to a doctor appointment and I sat and played the DSLite while she was in her appointment. Mind you, I am 40 years old. =) I do not let my son play any game that involves blood not even at his friends houses. The games he has for his DSLite are different than the games we have for the Wii, with the exception of Super Mario Bros. We have that game for both. I saw no point in paying extra for a DSi or a DSXL. All he wants is to play the video games. We bought a refurbished unit from GameStop so we saved money on that to buy him more games. He's had the unit for almost a year and we've had no issues with it.

Also, we just had to get a new Wii as ours went out so we took ours to GameStop and they gave us $35 credit for it and we bought a refurbished unit for $129.99 with a 1 year warranty for $19.99. In total with the credit and tax, $124.32. I would check them out. Our first one we bought on Craigslist from an individual and it lasted 2 years.

One other thing, the main reason we bought it for him was because we occasionally take long trips out of state and sometimes just have to spend a Saturday running errands. It has been really good for him to have in the car or sometimes he'll sit in a cart and play so he doesn't get bored.

My son has a Dsi - he loved it....until I got an ipod touch - now that's all he plays, the screen is far superior, the games are great, and you can do other stuff on it, it is a great mini computer, organizer etc.

he is 7 btw

I have a DSi and my husband has the DS Lite (I got it for him 4 yrs ago) but he's waiting for the 3DS to come out instead of getting the DSi XL. For kids, yeah, I'd get the DS Lite. You can get them refurbished at gamestop for like $100, while a DSi is about 170-180ish? Good system, though! Very happy with it.

i would want to know why he wanted a DS? is it because he wants his own game in his room? is it because its the latest one? what is his reason for wanting a DS when there is a wii avalible? if its because he wants one in his room i might consider that. because its the newiest one no way! no one can keep up with that rat race. i personally think seven is too young. nine is ok but i would think ten was better.

I think the DS is a great system.

My nephew has had one since he was 5. I would go for the DSi as it can take pictures and the kids seem to like that. My nephew is now 7. He also has a Wii. I think the DS is a good system for having some quiet time playing alone.

I would get both of them one, as I think they both would love it.

My nine year old son has the regular DS and has had it since he was seven. We also have the WII and he plays with both equally. The games he is into at the moment are Star Wars and Mario brothers. I think that you should buy both of your children one. That way if they both have the same game each, they can play eachother. My son does that with one of his friends all of the time with his Star Wars game. If you do buy a DS, I would go with the DSI because you can take pictures with it.

I have a DS Lite and my daughter (she'll be 7 in January) got the DS Lite for xmas last year (when she was still 5). LOVE THEM! And yes, we also have a Wii and an XBox 360. They are all very different gaming consoles and each super fun in their own way. The DS has TONS of games. Literally, tons! I would definitely get your 7yr old one as well. As for the DSi or the Lite...........that just depends on what you want them to have access to. Good luck and have fun! =0)

I say go with the DS XL...the screen size being so much bigger, I think is a good thing.

I have a house full of boys...4 boys of my own plus 2 nephews that practically live with me, ages 19,16,14,10,7 and 5...we have 2 XBOX 360's, a Wii and every one of the boys has had a hand held something or another...the 7 yr old got a DS Lite last year for X-mas and he loves it..like everything else, we try not to "limit" time on things, we try also to take the "novelty" out of the gaming consoles, and in doing so none of our boys have ever been close to being "addicted"...they end up being like any other toy...sometimes used and sometimes tossed to the side.

So, I guess what I am trying to say is, if you have it in the budget, then go for it...he will surely love it and play with it a lot in the first few weeks but don't be too surprised if after the couple weeks are over you start to wonder why you invested all that $ into something that will more likely than not end up being a "car toy" like ours!

I have a DS and I love it!! There are many grown up games (Brain age1&2 and puzzels and suduku,etc) so you may borrow your son's. It also has lots of more educational yet fun games for kids. It has a stylus that writes on the screen, so kids can practice math and writing, depending on the game. I have the DS lite, but the newer one has a camera in it. My daughter wants her own for Christmas, so I think we will get her the XL. We have a PS3, but the DS is more personal and it has more educational type games.

My boys are 9 and 7. The oldest has a DS and the 7 yo a Gameboy Advance. Donkey Kong and Mario Bros seem pretty popular with mine. I do not allow them Gaming time during the week. With good behavior and completed schoolwork they each get a set amount of time on the small games or the Wii. It works well. They only end of up playing for a couple of hours a weekend and they are more conscious of their behavior/schoolwork. cb

Go for the DS lite not the DSi
The DS lite has a slot for the older Gameboy games the DSi does not.
Yes the DSi has the internet and camera but the fact that the lite has the ability to use hundreds more games than the DSi out weighs the usefulness of the camera.

We have both a DSi and a DSi XL, the boys prefer the XL since it has a much larger screen, as well as a built in camera that allows them to take pictures and than manipulate them in funny ways. We also have a wii, and to be honest my boys prefer the Ds's, they are 5 and 6, and the games and controls are easier for them.