Nintendo is indeed planning to ship a redesigned version of its DS handheld console, despite apparent denials that such a move was being contemplated. The so-called 'DS Lite' is scheduled to ship in Japan on March 2, the video games pioneer said today.

As its name suggests, the DS Lite isn't as heavy as the current version, weighing 218g to the standard DS' 275g. It's smaller too: 13.3 x 7.4 x 2.2cm to 14.9 x 8.5 x 2.9cm. 'Lite' also suggests brightness, Nintendo said, hence the new machine's shiny white carapace, toned to appeal to the iPod generation.

The DS Lite will retail for ¥16,800 ($146/£82), Nintendo said. The new version offers the same functionality - including twin displays, one of the touch-sensitive, and Wi-Fi networking - as the current DS.

Rumours of the redesign have been doing the rounds for some time, all of which have, until now, been firmly denied by company representatives.

The original DS launched in Japan on December 2, 2004. Since then, 5.7m of the handhelds have shipped worldwide, Nintendo claimed. ®