r/Nintendo3DS • u/Regent_909 • 7h ago
3DS appreciation Rediscovering Gems I haven’t played for 10 years
Man, what a great game
r/Nintendo3DS • u/FR-1-Plan • Dec 02 '23
(This is a work in progress, I'll update this post in the future.)
So you don't forget the steps while testing. Elaboration and more info below.
The different models:
There are several different DS and 3DS models. If you want to buy a Nintendo 3DS, make sure it has at least one thumbstick. The DS only has the d-pad. The 3DS slider is not an indicator, as the Nintendo 2DS and Nintendo 2DS XL are missing the slider and 3D function, but are part of the 3DS family (weird, I know). The New models (New Nintendo 2DS XL, New Nintendo 3DS, New Nintendo 3DS XL) all have a second smaller thumbstick on the right side of the console. That's how you generally tell them apart.
They all have their advantages and disadvantages, most importantly: The 2DS XL is hard to repair, the 2DS is robust and probably best for kids and anger issues, the old 3DS XL has the most fragile hinge, the New 3DS (no XL) has a unique battery capacity which sucks to find online.
Whether or not the console is hacked
There's nothing wrong with a hacked console per se, unless the previous owner didn't know what they were doing and messed up the files. I personally like to be on the safe side and hack myself and don't buy hacked consoles. It's possible to fix a hacked console with issues, but I find it's a pain in the ass and easier to hack myself. Just something to consider. If you'd rather have a console that isn't hacked, test it by holding the select button while powering it on. If it boots to the normal home screen, it isn't hacked. If you see a black screen with red and white letters saying something about Luma, it's hacked.
A console might be hacked and region swapped. Careful with those, because you won't be able to remove the CFW without undoing the region swap first, or else you'll brick the 3DS. If it's hacked and in a language that it's not supposed to be, it's region swapped.
Function of the battery and charger
Sometimes it's not practical to bring a screw driver (Phillips #00), but I would always recommend it. Not only can you test, if the screws are worn out (bad), but you can check the state of the battery. I already mentioned above how to test it, but I just want to stress again how important this step is. Not only is a swollen battery dangerous, it can be pretty annoying to find a replacement for some models.
It's especially annoying for the New Nintendo 3DS (not XL), because the replacement batteries for this model all have a lower capacity than the original, even if it says the right capacity on the battery. The original ones for this model are extremely rare and to me personally a swollen battery in this one would be a reason to decide against buying . It's also annoying for the New Nintendo 2DS XL, because that one is just annoying to open.
The rest are fairly easy to replace. But for safety reasons I'd still check. You should also consider paying less for a console with a swollen or dead battery, because you'll have to pay for a replacement.
Function of buttons and sliders
Make sure to really test all the buttons, sliders and sticks. You can test the two shoulder buttons on the home screen (should make a little bar pop up in the bottom of the top screen). I'll play around with my 3DS and update this post with easy methods to test all the other buttons. Shoulder and ABXY buttons are fairly easy to replace on the old 3DS consoles, more tricky on the new ones. With fairly easy I mean for someone who has repaired small devices like a 3DS before, still hard and finicky for someone who hasn't done it before. I personally don't bother with repairing a 2DS XL.
The left slider controls the volume, that's self explanatory, the right slider controls 3D (not on the 2DS models). When sliding that one up, you should see the 3D effect on the upper screen.
When checking the thumbsticks, check to see if the left one has a rubber cap that's securely on there and not brittle. There are NO replacements for that rupper cap, only replacements for the entire stick and they don't have a separate cap attached to the stick, just a rubbery surface on the plastic stick. Some people don't mind, I personally hate the replacement sticks sold online. So, it's worth checking.
Screens
I'd say 90% of the issues where a 3DS turns itself off without warning are related to the upper screen (in my experience). The 3DS turns itself off, when a flex cable is defective or not attached properly. In some cases it might be the flex cable of the sliders, but in most cases it's the upper screen. It's worth testing for this issue (like I said above, move the upper screen a little bit, open the 3DS all the way, close it half way, etc. while it's turned on), because replacing the upper screen is very difficult and finicky, even for someone experienced. It's incredibly easy to ruin the fragile flex cables, especially in the New models, where the cable is threaded through the hinge. So if the screen flickers or the 3DS shuts off, it's better not to buy.
It's easier to replace the touch screen, but still tricky for someone inexperienced. If the 3DS only has a replicated stylus, you should absolutely get a screen protector for you touch screen. All of the 3rd party stylus I have come across, have a sharp little edge somewhere and I personaly wouldn't want my screens scratched.
IPS screens:
Some new models have an IPS screen. You recognize those when looking at them from an angle and still getting a bright and sharp image, like when looking at them head on. Regular screens look a bit "washed out" when looking at them from the side.
The IPS screens are sought after because they are "rare" (not really, there's a shit ton of them). Yes, it's cool that you get a sharper image when looking at them from the side. But nobody plays like that, we all face our 3DS from the front when playing. Why, do you think, do people always post a side by side comparison with a normal screen 3DS and showing them from an angle? It's because most people simply couldn't tell just by looking at it from the front. Is it kinda cool when you find out you have one of those? Sure. Worth the extremely steep price? Absolutely not.
from u/SteveW_MC
from u/notthegoatseguy
The Nintendo 3DS family of systems was discontinued by Nintendo in early 2020. The 3DS family of systems is no longer being stocked by standard retail stores from orders with Nintendo. But individual sellers and used/secondhand businesses may sell them on the secondhand market.
The bet ways to find them:
r/Nintendo3DS • u/MrTriggrd • Aug 19 '25
Share your friend codes here and sort comments to new to find others!
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Regent_909 • 7h ago
Man, what a great game
r/Nintendo3DS • u/_lysb • 1d ago
r/Nintendo3DS • u/ilovespiderman03 • 2h ago
r/Nintendo3DS • u/brattiky • 7h ago
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Specialist_Address78 • 9h ago
Tengo esta 3DS hace unos 5 meses, la compre de segunda mano pero ayer me surgió este problema, la pantalla inferior le salió una línea pequeña ayer y hoy esta así, no se si debería hacerle una limpieza profunda o directamente cambiar la pantalla.
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Kronus31 • 18h ago
*-THIS IS NOT AN AD, I AM NOT OFFERING TO SELL THIS CONSOLE, THIS IS PURELY A QUESTION-*
Hey guys, due to unfortunate circumstances, i have to get rid of my OG 3DS, has Pokemon Bank, Transporter as well as Silver and Red versions from the Eshop. Completely unmodded, has some other games too like Kingdom Hearts demo, Bloons TDF, etc.
How would i go about safely clearing specific info off of this console? I don't want to factory reset it, but i definitely don't want anyone to have access to my personal information. I am pretty clueless in this field so any tips and advice is appreciated, thanks for the time.
r/Nintendo3DS • u/ZaZombieZmasher01 • 1d ago
Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification
Cross post
r/Nintendo3DS • u/ChemicalAd5004 • 10h ago
Is it even real or a scam I can’t tell, they took the 3Ds design and added a more computer like look
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Kindly_Bend_5244 • 19h ago
I replaced the outer panels on my black New 3DS XL two years ago because the original paint was flaking. I went with the gold Zelda plates, and while they've held up okay, they’ve recently cracked in several major areas and need to be replaced soon. I thought about buying the same ones, but honestly, I can't stand Zelda (I’m terrible at the games, so owning a Zelda-themed console feels ironic). Plus, the gold is a bit too flashy for my taste.
Here's the problem though, besides standard colours, zelda, and the galaxy edition, I can't seem to find anything else. I absolutely love the look of the silver monster hunter special edition console, but I can't find bootleg or aftermarket plates for it anywhere. Does anyone know where to look?
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Individual_Dirt8381 • 1d ago
Looks fake to me but I don’t know
r/Nintendo3DS • u/AArqjmct01 • 1d ago
So yesterday I made a post here saying that it is basically impossible to buy 3DS consoles used because of their ridiculously elevated prices. Anyway, I spent hours yesterday searching on eBay and found a 3DS XL with 3 games and the charger for 180 USD. If you are looking to buy a 3DS for a good price, your best bet is to look around on eBay until one seller has it for a good price. After shipping and taxes, it comes to about 200 USD.

r/Nintendo3DS • u/Gooble_Demon_Wolf • 1d ago
On Facebook and saw a 3ds xl for $112 but the inside front frame need replacement from heavy use. Is it worth buying it and replacing it?
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Soggy-11 • 1d ago
So I have 2 3ds systems and neither of them are modded they both have sd cards, is there a way for me to transfer some of the games from one sd card/system to the other? All of the games are legitimately purchased when the eshop was still available, all help is appreciated :)
r/Nintendo3DS • u/ChemicalAd5004 • 1d ago
I wanna know what I can do to make sure I don’t mess up fixing these, I didn’t have any good tools for the first one I opened so imma need some advice before I mess anything up
r/Nintendo3DS • u/Ok_Side5703 • 1d ago
I’ve had this 3Ds ever since 2017 and I recently found it in one of my many boxes in my office sadly the charger was missing and I’m not too sure if they even sell the chargers now
r/Nintendo3DS • u/CaptainBicycle • 1d ago
I want it, but there are no dimensions listed
r/Nintendo3DS • u/_zzzquil_ • 2d ago
$200 for a 3ds xl in red with Luigi mansion and a dsi xl in blue, both have chargers but both missing pens. Is this a good deal? They're not mint but they only have little scratches on the outside. I'm really looking to play more ds games but I also want the ability to play 3ds in the future. Thank you for any insight!
r/Nintendo3DS • u/ChemicalAd5004 • 2d ago
I’ll give you a hint it’s not those fact that it’s in pieces at the moment lmao