Nintendo 3DS To Us Widescreen Displays, Arrive By Christmas 2010?

New tidbits on the Nintendo 3DS are emerging, ahead of the 3D-capable gaming handheld's official launch predicted for the E3 gaming expo.  Most interesting is this prototyping board, spotted in a joint FCC filing by Nintendo and electronics hardware manufacturer Mitsumi, which is believed to be a test platform for the 3DS and, as is clear from the image, has at least one widescreen display.

That's prompted speculation that the 3DS will mark Nintendo's switch to widescreen aspect ratios rather than the 4:3 panels currently used on the DSi and DSi XL/LL.  Although the lower of the two displays on this prototyping board is still 4:3, that's probably because it is the resistive touchscreen panel taken directly from an existing DSi; we'd expect both displays to be widescreen in the eventual product.

Meanwhile, Nintendo Chief Financial Officer Yoshihiro Mori has apparently revealed that the 3DS will have "ample security", likely a reference to DRM-encrypted game cartridges, in an attempt to prevent privacy.  He's also emphasised that the 3D system – apparently in development for some time now, and green-lighted now that pricing for the hardware is at a manageable level – will indeed be true 3D only without glasses, rather than a pseudo-3D effect.

As for launch schedules, the FCC filing has a confidentiality request that expires just in time for the Christmas holiday shopping season, suggesting Nintendo plan to release the 3DS before the end of the year.

[via Kotaku]