• by Steve Smith  @popeyesm, January 4, 2012

Analysts are estimating that 13 million iPads and 4 million or more Amazon Kindle Fires were sold this holiday. But tablets and smartphones are not the only devices to claim retail glory in the flurry of holiday post-game announcements. Fighting back against conventional wisdom that its 3DS handheld game console has fizzled in the market, Nintendo boasts this week that it sold 4 million units in the U.S. alone during 2011. Launched earlier this year, the 3DS had lackluster sales until the company radically slashed its $249 launch price to $169. Since then the console, which adds 3D gaming without the need for special glasses, has been selling much more briskly. The company also says that 3DS game titles “Super Mario 3D Land” and “Mario Kart 7” were the fastest-selling games in the history of the respective Mario Land and Kart Racing franchises, each now topping 1 million sold.

Nintendo has been on the defensive all year, not only for the rough launch of the 3DS but over the inroads that mobile gaming has made on the dedicated console market. With the technical sophistication and touchscreens of Apple iPhones and many Android smartphones as well as tablets, many analysts wonder if consumers have any reason to invest in portable game devices at all. Developers too have been turning their attention to the boom in mobile gaming, leaving the release schedules for the Nintendo DS/3DS and PlayStation Portable (PSP) thin this year.

Quietly, Nintendo has been developing its 3DS online network into a channel for downloadable apps as well as marketing. The video channel on the handheld device carries select music videos and game promotions. Red Bull has a branded video currently on the deck. And Netflix is available as a downloadable app.

Sony will be hitting the U.S. handheld market in February with its own attempt to answer the challenge of mobile gaming. Its PlayStation Vita launches here at $249 (WiFi-only) and $299 (WiFi + 3G) on February 22. Like the 3DS, the Vita tries to out-dazzle smartphones on specs, with front and back multi-touch controls and processing power that will drive highly detailed 3D graphics.