And not only did the Nintendo Wii win the home console wars, but the Nintendo DS continued to destroy the Sony PSP in the handheld video game market. The year-end tallies at VGChartz.com shows that, to date, Nintendo has sold some 94.7 million DS units worldwide while Sony has only sold 42.3 million PSPs. Granted, selling 42.3 million of any product is nothing to scoff at, but when your competition is doubling you in sales you have to wonder if you’re even competition any more.

The Yahoo! article gives a somewhat bleak outlook for Sony in the new year:

As for Sony, well, they just can’t catch a break. The company scored a major coup when Blu-ray officially trounced HD-DVD in the hi-def format war, but few believe the technology will catch on with consumers. Strong sales of big-time exclusive Metal Gear Solid 4 were promising, but the troubled launch of their ‘Home’ network coupled with relatively weak holiday sales (only Resistance 2 cracked the Top 10 list in November, all the way back at number 9) cramped their style. The once-promising PSP is getting whomped by both the DS and Apple’s surging iPhone. Did a witch cast a spell on these guys or what?

Many people forget that the iPhone is out there and competing in the handheld space. Further, the iPhone directly competes with the PSP since both are generally purchased by the “core” users of high-end electronics. The same group of core gamers are currently stifling both XBox 360 and PS3 from breaking out and really competing against the Wii. Nintendo is laughing its way to the bank!

Finally, VGChartz.com shows 43.8 million Wii consoles being sold worldwide (with more than 20 million in the United States alone). This compares, worldwide, to 26.5 million XBox 360 units and 18.8 million PS3 units. Yeah, you might say that Nintendo is firmly on top of the console wars!

Do you know someone who absolutely MUST have his or her cell phone on their person at all times? Do they get phone calls on the cell phone and then run into a corner to talk to whoever is on the other line about a gigantic secret (likely what to eat for dinner that night)? Think of who this person is in your life – the person who is constantly text messaging or reading their e-mail on their phone. Now think about whether or not that person could survive without their cell phone.

Probably not, huh? Come to think of it – could YOU survive without your cell phone? The New York Times ran an article today talking about how the writer of the article voluntarily gave up her cell phone! From the article:

The first inkling that I’d stepped over the line was when my husband called Verizon to cancel my account and the service representative reacted as if we were trying to pull a fast one. My husband’s account of the call:

Rep: “Is there a problem?”

“No,” my husband said.

Rep: “How can I change your mind?”

“She just doesn’t want her cellphone anymore,” he said, adding, “I feel like I’m talking to a counselor at a suicide prevention hot line.”

The rep laughed nervously, as if hearing a rumor of the Apocalypse. “She’s really just going to switch to an iPhone, right?”

The article is pretty interesting and it got me thinking about a few things like whether or not I need a cell phone at all and, if so, then what services I need on the phone. I guess I do need a cell phone at this point in my life, but I could probably pare down the service somewhat (which is already down at the lowest level, I think). Take a read of the article, I think you’ll enjoy it!