Nintendo shrewdly got in on the luxury consumer goods racket in 2006, partnering with Austrian glass blowers Swarovski to produce a range of blinged-up DSes much too gaudy for the general public, but just expensive enough to tempt the chihuahua-stroking monied class.
The first set of glass-encrusted handhelds, adorned by New York blingsmiths NYC Peach, exclusively retailed in the city's Nintendo World store for between $600 and $800 a pop. The designs had absolutely nothing to do with Nintendo, presumably to help persuade those more interested in a fashion accessory than a piece of games hardware to part with their (possibly) hard-earned cash.
In 2007, Swarovski linked up with Nintendo again to release a range of more brand-focused but equally ugly crystal-studded DS Lite plates, again flogging them for an eye-watering $600. This came a year after Paris Hilton herself designed an all-pink, all-putrid DS Lite ruined by 1200 stones pressed into its case. It was sold in London's Multipazz jewelers for £200.
