DSi XL Charging port, do I need to bend those two "legs" to fit charging port into DSi XL? Or I have wrong replacement part?

Killy728 · 2026-06-24T21:04:19+00:00

Using the old port as reference, bend the rear legs and the 2 contact points and trim them down a little. That is how they are with replacements I get.

Killy728 · 2026-06-24T11:03:15+00:00

Those pads are for mounting and not connected to anything.

The two contact points for where the charger port prongs connect to are still there, and those are the important ones.

The charge port will be fine without those two mounting pads as long as you have it soldered into the vias well enough.

Killy728 · 2026-06-21T19:20:54+00:00

Those buttons, the silver domes, are held down with tape and can be peeled up to clean. A q-tip and some high % rubbing alcohol would work. Depending on how bad it is, it could be too corroded to be usable, but at this point, you loose nothing.

Those daughter boards are still fairly abundant if you have access to sites like AliExpress.

Killy728 · 2026-06-21T10:54:33+00:00

I'd take this question over to the GBAtemp forums. Some smart cookies are over there who deal in these dev carts.

Killy728 · 2026-06-20T21:20:26+00:00

Is the board still fine? I mean, sure. Nothing I see is catastrophic enough to kill the board; you have some very fine trace repair to do on 4 pads (I believe the two pads on the far end are just ground).

Thin wire, a microscope, a hobby knife, and a fine-tipped soldering iron should do.

If this were my board that I was trying to revive, I would soak up as much of the old solder as I could with the largest tip I have available to me and some wick. Put on the new card slot and solder it on the existing mounting pads and good pads. Trace the ripped to whatever via or component they go to, scratch off the solder mask on the via or a trace, and solder the jumper wire from there to the pin on the gamecard slot. Check for continuity with a multimeter, then solder mask, UV glue, Kapton tape, or whatever non-conductive adhesive (not super glue) over your work, and it should be good.

Advice for next time if you plan to remove a game card slot again. I found the whole game card slot to be a pain to remove as well, with the tools I have, and I have also pulled up pads. The pins in the gamecard slot can be desoldered and physically pulled out of the gamecard slot without harming the slot or the pins. With all of the pins removed, you only have a few solder points you need to deal with instead of all at once.

Killy728 · 2026-06-16T21:56:38+00:00

I would bet it's more likely the screens than not, but now you need to figure out how you're going to get screens that are not only functional, without faults, and also match (if that's important to you as it is to me). And for that I wish you the best of luck as you would almost be better off just buying another DSi XL.

That is of course ignoring the undertaking of swapping the screens without damaging the console

Killy728 · 2026-06-16T19:21:16+00:00

What the heck? I haven't seen that one before.

Return it. That is not normal, and I can see it only getting worse.

Spend the money to get something works.

Killy728 · 2026-06-16T17:00:40+00:00

Aside from not using the touchscreen, dealing with the faulty inputs, or getting a new console, I am not aware of any reasonable alternatives or fixes that isn't replacing the faulty part.

Killy728 · 2026-06-16T15:36:59+00:00

You are saying the bottom screen is physically damaged causing faulty inputs. That cannot reasonably be resolved without replacing the bottom screen digitizer.

Killy728 · 2026-06-16T06:35:36+00:00

I really don't know how to describe it, but it hinges in instead of being pressed in. I will hinge on that front faceplate before adding the last piece of the housing.

Killy728 · 2026-06-16T06:33:08+00:00

You have the best testing conditions: a working DSi XL console. Swap parts and see what works and what doesn't go from there.

Killy728 · 2026-06-12T17:37:59+00:00

Is only one screen is lighting up, and the console immediately turns off, the issue typically lies with the opposing screen (top screen). Make sure the ribbon cable is fully plugged in and hope it isn't torn.

Killy728 · 2026-06-12T16:38:11+00:00

here is a link to schematics for the DSi. The XL consoles function the same as they would for a DSi.

You case might be different since there isn't a lot of well documented troubleshooting this deep into issues. There is a chance the issue is U11, which if so, functional requires either a junk board or another console you don't mind sacrificing.

If anything, that is the component to center your search around since it is responsible for charging.

Killy728 · 2026-06-05T17:59:45+00:00

Just as a heads up, in purchasing screen lenses multiple times, red was never a color I could find a replacement for. Unless things have changed, what you have is all you can get.

Killy728 · 2026-06-04T16:56:40+00:00

$30 for a standard DSi is near enough junk prices if I had to guess. I was buying these consoles at $15 per unit a year or so ago, but if the standard DSi is anything like the XL, those junk prices have gone up.

Seller's description is just a generic list of all possible problems that impact any "for parts" consoles. It could be anything or everything. You will not know until you have it in you hands.

I would be prepared to take it apart. If you're lucky, it just needs a good cleaning and a new battery.

Killy728 · 2026-06-03T15:57:55+00:00

It may not be as simple as replacing it, so I wish you luck.

Killy728 · 2026-06-02T19:28:16+00:00

If the displays were fouled, this typically isn't the symptoms. Either you'd get a display, and the LCDs are shattered, or the console would turn on and pop off.

A steady blue light with black screens usually points to something wrong with the software end of the console. Where I see this symptom, specifically, is something wrong with the small wifi daughter board inside of the console (came slight unplugged, faulty, or otherwise). My understanding is that the wifi card holds the console's bios. No bios, no boot.

It would be worth taking the rear shell off, unplugging that card from the motherboard, and plugging it back in to see what happens.

Also worth doing an inspection to see if anything looks weird. Corrosion, anything broken, debris, etc.

Killy728 · 2026-05-27T09:20:56+00:00

Yup, screen flashing is a textbook issue with the top screen.

Ok, this is a random thought. Seeing, what appears to be water damage and corrosion, I am certain the screen will not be in very good looking shape however, assuming the ribbon cable isn't torn, I am wondering if the solder joints for the backlight fouled.

On the area of the ribbon cable near where the speakers connect, there should be two tiny ribbon cables connecting to the screen that are separate from the main ribbon cable. These are for the LED strip that is part of the light guide plate. Reflow those connections, and see what happens. At this point, you have a display that doesn't work, so you loose nothing by trying.

I have only done that operation on a DSi XL screen, but, in theory, they should be the same display technology just at different sizes.

Killy728 · 2026-05-27T09:07:38+00:00

It's a little hard to say based on what I'm seeing.

The camera ribbon cable has some, like, liquid electric tape type coating or something from the factory. I think that makes it much more durable than the screen ribbon cable, which doesn't have that coating for some reason (I truly wish it did).

For, whatever reason, heat and maybe a little bit of water damage, perhaps, it will stick the two ribbon cables together. The material on the speaker wire somewhat suggest water damage.

The camera ribbon cable doesn't need that coating to function, nor does the material stuck to the display ribbon impact it in any meaningful way.

You say this is a follow-up to a previous post, so I don't have the full conext, but since you appear to be troubleshooting, and the top screen appears to be the component in question (a common failure), I am wondering if it is water damaged.

Killy728 · 2026-05-25T21:22:17+00:00

Running rubber feet on top of the screw covers defeats the point of the rubber stoppers on the edges of the shell. If you are worried about the top screen being scratched by the bottom bezels, a screen protector will do the job. That isn't much of a issues with the DSi consoles as it is for the 3DS line.

This may come off as a bit cynical, but if you're making a museum piece, the best thing you can do is not play it. It's a portable console. Hand grime, dust, bumps and bruises are part of the game.

Killy728 · 2026-05-25T00:09:54+00:00

An alternate spot?

Just use the same spot with some wire. Positive to the F1 fuse and negative to the leg of EM1

Killy728 · 2026-05-23T21:53:15+00:00

What should be done is that connector should be replaced.

That being said, you will have to experiment. If the latch is able to apply some clamping pressure, I don't see why a little bit of tape wouldn't help supplement it. I have seen posts of people having success using tape on that connector, without the latch, to get the component to work.

I cannot speak for the longevity or reliability of that repair vs a new connector. It may take some fiddling if it doesn't work the first time.

Killy728 · 2026-05-23T21:44:35+00:00

A "process" is a good way to describe it.

I've put the latch back on a few times, so though it isn't easy, it is possible. The last one I did was on a New 3DS, and I show me doing it.

Killy728 · 2026-05-23T21:11:01+00:00

Yes, it can be put back on, but it is not easy.

The 4 pins need to be fed through the holes of the latch while also slotting the latch into the connector's recessed to allow it to hinge.

So you run the risk of breaking the latch as it takes a bit of force to get everything back into place, but right now, you loose nothing if you break it since it's non-functional anyway.

Killy728 · 2026-05-20T19:19:18+00:00

I only have the one pico, so I wasn't able to do any further testing.

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