Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has detailed some of the business strategy behind the Nintendo DSi, stating that the goals of its new online capabilities, audio playback and camera features did not include reaching parity with competitors like the Sony PSP and Apple iPhone.

Speaking in an interview with Nikkei Net, Iwata said that instead the goal was to make the hardware more essential to users.

“We wanted users to have the device on them at all times,” he stated. “By downloading subway maps and other things, for instance, the DSi can be useful for applications other than playing games. We wanted to create an offering that would fit naturally into people"s everyday lives.”

Iwata also mentioned that the DSi’s improved online function will better allow users to customize their DS experience, and that the hardware would “probably” launch in the US and Europe in 2009.