"In my experience, you don't launch a product that early to Christmas unless you're confident in it--and going to spend a lot of money on it," the anonymous source is said to have told CVG. "We're reassured that Nintendo is going to give it some decent backing."

All Nintendo has confirmed so far is that the DS successor offers "3D effects without the need for any special glasses" and will be released before March 2011. The company promises to reveal more at E3 this year--including the release date, says CVG's source.

The technology powering the 3DS's display has been the subject of much speculation. Leading rumours suggest that the handheld contains an LCD screen by Sharp which uses a parallax barrier system to produce a 3D effect within a 'sweet spot.'

The plus-sized 'DSi XL' revamp of was released in North America less than a month ago--five days after the 3DS was hastily announced. Reports indicate that Nintendo had not intended to reveal the 3DS so early but rushed the news to pre-empt a press leak.