In contrast to recent speculation, it appears Nintendo has opted not to make use of NVIDIA technology in its next-generation handheld; the Nintendo 3DS.
The upcoming device, successor to the hugely-popular Nintendo DS, will be officially unveiled at next week's E3 Expo in Los Angeles and has over the past months been rumoured to feature an NVIDIA Tegra processor.
However, refuting those claims, Eurogamer blog Digital Foundry now alleges that industry insiders have confirmed that the Nintendo 3DS will not feature NVIDIA hardware.
According to the site's independent sources, the Nintendo 3DS "features a design totally divorced from the NVIDIA Tegra SoC".
The report is also being backed up by gaming website IGN, who adds that several of its own developer sources have confirmed Nintendo's decision to shun NVIDIA.
In a move that could signal a substantial blow for NVIDIA, Nintendo is instead thought to be working with a Japanese partner for its chip design.
Following years of heavy investment, NVIDIA has repeatedly suggested that the low-power Tegra SoC would be critical to the company's future growth.
During a conference call last summer, NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang suggested that "more than 400 million" Tegra-based devices would ship in 2012, adding that the chip would open up "an additional $10 billion growth market for us".
Having launched over two years ago, the Tegra processor has seemingly struggled to attract major design wins. Over the past 24 months, the chip has featured in devices such as Microsoft's Zune HD media player and KIN mobile phones. Tegra is widely expected to power numerous tablet computers later this year, and is scheduled to appear in Audi vehicles in 2012.
