The story is update. You should read this.
http://blog.wired.com/games/2007/05/ds_lite_special.html
DS Lite: Special Lines, Security Guards
More than a year after its launch, DS Lite is still perpetually sold out in Japan. You can find them easily at second-hand stores for a considerable markup, but buying one at its actual retail price at an original retailer is nearly impossible unless you literally get up very early in the morning. Since that's what I had done, I headed over to Yodobashi Camera, one of the biggest stores in Akihabara, to see if they had systems. They did, and it was the first time I ever saw DS Lites legitimately in stock.
In fact, as you enter the store, there's a sign out in front telling customers what is and isn't in stock. The Wii sign says that they're sold out. The DS Lite sign says that they have systems in stock, but that they may run out very soon and to hurry upstairs if you want one. The PlayStation 3 sign loosely translates to "Oh my God, please take them. Please. We'll pay you." I am kidding, sort of.
What I didn't expect to see upstairs was this. They'd closed off three of the cash registers and devoted them entirely to DS Lite purchases. A store employee with a bullhorn told customers buying other items to use the three registers on the right. A steady stream of DS Lite-seeking men, women, and (it's entirely true!) grannies entered the cordoned-off DS line, where they were handed a ticket for a system by another employee, who was watched over by a security guard who was there to keep order in case there were riots and also stop tourists from taking pictures, which is why I only got this one.
I'm sure they were sold out a half hour after this picture was taken, at most.
