99.9% of Nintendo DSi XL users care little for the engineering behind their new console. But there are those - almost certainly men - who like to dig a little deeper. Tech DIY site iFixit have opened up the DSi XL and had a peek at its innards. Ever wondered what CPU the XL was using? Or the details of the battery? Come on through then...
The main highlights are described by Kyle Wiens from iFixit. First up the CPU.
Nintendo is again using a custom ARM CPU, manufactured in December of 2009. This chip is marked identically to the DSi, and definitely not the Tegra chip that had been rumored.
Owners probably already know this, but battery life is improved on the XL.
Battery capacity is significantly greater than the DSi. The DSi uses an 840 mAh battery compared to the DSi XL's 1050 mAh battery. Given the internal similarity of the XL to the original DSi, we assume the extra juice helps power the larger-sized screens.
And what about the electronics?
The logic board grew proportionally to its casing. We're sure Nintendo's engineers were happy with not having to pack as much electronics as possible in a smaller design. In this instance, Nintendo's going against the normal trend in electronics
Finally the screen gets some comments.
The lower display is held in place solely by the pressure of the logic board secured over it -- no screws! Although the screen size has been enlarged, the resolution still remains the same at 256 x 192 pixels per screen.
What do you think then? Do you care about the innards of your console? And have you ever attempted to fix a broken one yourself?
