With approximately 80 million units sold world-wide, the Nintendo DS has been a runaway success in the gaming arena, but Nintendo still has ambitious plans for the handheld up its sleeve.

According to yesterday's Nikkei business daily, the Japanese video game maker has now revealed plans to release a new version of the DS this Christmas in Japan that will come equipped with a camera, allow users to play music and feature 'advanced wireless functionality.'

Although Nintendo hasn't officially revealed the final details, it's rumoured that the new model will be even slimmer than the DS lite and that the camera will be compatible with some Nintendo DS games. Currently, there's also no word on how Nintendo plans for us to store our musical content on the handheld.

The announcement comes at a time when sales of the DS in Japan have slowed down considerably, with game magazine publisher Enterbrain revealing that the PSP has outsold Nintendo's handlheld for five consecutive months.

The new Nintendo DS will retail below the 20,000 yen ($189) mark in Japan. The latest model currently sells at 16,800 yen.

It seems that Apple's plan to knock the DS off its throne with the iPhone has just taken an unpredictable nosedive.