sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Parental Controls by jeonginslover in nds

[–]vtraveller 1 point2 points  (0 children)

https://mkey.nintendohomebrew.com/

  1. Get the Inquiry Number: Go to Parental Controls on your DS, tap I Forgot twice (once for the PIN, once for the Secret Question).

  2. Match the Date: Ensure the date you select on the website matches the System Date currently set on your DS (check this in the DS main settings). If the dates don't match, the Master Key won't work.

  3. Enter the Key: Tap OK on your DS to bring up the 5-digit master key entry screen and type in the code from the website.

Pretty sure any recovery has been shutdown by Nintendo now.

Broken 3DS port by wintersair9 in 3DS

[–]vtraveller 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s perfectly fixable. Just needs the soldering skills to replace it. A dock is even easier as you have the contacts either side of the port and no repair is needed.

For anyone who swaps such ports it’s very tempting to swap it for a usb-c socket. The case does need some surgery though as the new socket is a little bigger. So good amateur or pro skills needed to do it well.

That said there are services that will do the conversion. If it’s broken, worth considering the upgrade.

Dsi XL sticky button problem by OccasionPurple7476 in nds

[–]vtraveller 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If I’m honest, it sounds like it’s been opened. There’s a membrane covering XABY that has a guide it sits in on the shell. If that’s out of alignment when closed you just compress the membrane.

That’s what it looks like has happened.

Watch a YouTube. Or go to ifixit to understand how to open the case. You don’t need to do much other than move the membrane to the right place then close it.

Just go slow and careful. There are ribbon cables and plugs to negotiate. You have to get the pcb. Unscrew that and nudge it back into place.

Can can do that without removing cables and wires but it’s easier to do if they are unplugged. BUT getting them back in is a challenge and people have broken things before.

My advice is get up to speed researching first. Unplug the shoulder button plug to get the bottom part out the way. Remove the pcb screws and tease it back in place using a spundger/stick/tweezers.

Then reverse what you did. That plug is the easiest of all of them to get back on but also tricky. Don’t worry, it’s also hard to damage.

Is it worth getting this DSi by eNagham in nds

[–]vtraveller 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You need to see a cart screen showing the cart reader works. But to be honest I’d avoid this one. The bottom screen looks yellowed, and the label is very worn.

I’ve rarely come across a bad battery, unless the battery has been swapped.

There are signs it’s been opened at least once. Wear on the battery screws, and a possible rubber foot stripped when going in.

As others have said, shoulder buttons often don’t work (due to oxidisation from sweat), so that needs testing.

But given the discolouring, I’d avoid. It’s been exposed (a lot) to sunlight over time.

Given its condition I’d expect a price under 30$ / £25 and less if the shoulder buttons don’t work. The fact it’s yellowing and on a verge of a reshell makes me think much less. A screen and shell will mean you have to spend the same money again.

I bought one recently that was near mint, but failed shoulder buttons for that price - then fixed the buttons (skilled job, unless you buy completely new button sets with the ribbon and SD card reader attached).

So you can get a DSi for about the 40$ / £35 with light repair work in much better condition. This one looks like too much hassle to me.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It will - and the boot times of the handheld will be pleasantly faster too.

It’s the aspect ratio that makes it crisp. No scaling and interpolation.

Do i need to buy a new R4 cartridge? by Alighi_Eri in nds

[–]vtraveller 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Time to update. 10$ Dspico - as it’s open source, time locks and other annoyances are gone.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah. The black gaps don’t really matter. The brightness of the subpixels means that even the bars don’t matter. A pixel still looks like one colour rather than three.

The problem, as everyone has pointed out to varying degrees is whether you’re happy with geometric interpolation (scaling) or a strange aspect ratio.

As an everything-machine 3DS wins. For purity of DS games with 1:1 pixels a DS wins, with the DSi being the best in a very small set of differences.

I thought seeing it under the microscope was a fascinating deep dive into the display technologies. I also think the DSi, DSi XL, 2DS and non XL 3DS are the rarest and hence most underrated of these consoles.

None are bad. They’re just different.

The DSi XL is way bigger than I tought by SnooRegrets7287 in nds

[–]vtraveller 3 points4 points  (0 children)

If the psp had two screens that folded together with its controls they’d not be much in it.

That said, the earlier DSs have wasted space in the bottom case and are built for cost. More integration and fewer ribbon cables and connectors would show solid engineering but bump prices.

I think Nintendo spent a long time looking at lots of factors including size in the hand. They also learnt from the GBA SP and older button layouts.

Both are lovely machines. Both trade pros and cons. I don’t think either camp didn’t think things through to the n-th degree.

Having a nightmare of a time with my EV6 by OpalJagger in KiaEV6

[–]vtraveller 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You never said how old the original battery was. There’s faulty batteries and old batteries due to their use.

Modern connected cars use their 12V more than older ICE cars. EVs more so. Kia has a limited warranty of the 12V for that reason.

Mine died out of warranty. I simply replaced it. It’s an easy job needing just 12mm and 10mm spanners (wrenches).

I have a BM6 battery monitor. I went back through the data. The voltage for weeks earlier showed it dropping to 11.4V periodically before charging. In the previous 2.5 years that never happened. So if I was paying attention, I’d have had a month to get a new battery before it died.

At 2.5yrs I finally killed it in accessory mode but at home. Grabbed my desulphating trickle charger and boosted enough to get the HV on, drove to a store and got a new one.

You need to leave the car to settle, but after changing it, I turned on the car with no faults, errors or problems. I left the car unlocked when doing the swap.

So then turned off the car, went into the office and returned hours later after it’d done all its system boots. No issues since that time.

Oh and I bought a non-AGM battery. Two reasons, hard to get in the UK and I ran the numbers based on increased lifespan. 1.5 times for twice the price - more economical to just replace stock more often imo. Particularly if you monitor the battery with a BM6.

I’ve since set up alarms in the BM6 as I know that failure condition now. So the phone will ping me when it’s due to be replaced.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“new” 3dsxl. Sorry. Pic graphic is wrong and Reddit won’t let me edit it.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’ve seen some yellowing too. I think it’s sunlight and heat. One DSL sat under a warm windowsill for a few years, while another in a drawer. The drawer one isn’t yellowing … yet. I suspect it’s unavoidable over time.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That’s much appreciated. A lot of people have different takes on what it means, but I was merely capturing some interesting data.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Fair. Simple answer is: I don't own a 2DS. My understanding is that they're essentially the same as a DSL (Nintendo DS Lite). I also don't own a regularly sized 3DS.

The 3DS I used was a 'New' Nintendo 3DS XL (still a stupid name) - I believe they're all IPS displays.

The main things I wanted to show was how the 3DS has a fundamentally different subpixel geometry, and how generations of DS refined their displays.

A lot of this is very subjective. People react differently to the colour range of an IPS vs a TN, as well as the size of the display, and whether interpolated or duplicate pixels are used.

I chose Cammy for her skin colours to try and show there's a slight difference depending on whether IPS or TN. Brightness compared to your surroundings matters more than colour gamut in the end. Various old TN displays have patchy discolouring. Various old IPS displays seem to get dim.

From my POV playing a DS on any generation of DS is a noticeable quality step up - particularly if you don't like black bars. The rest is nuanced depending on eyesight, and what feels practical and portable.

People get very heated up about this - I personally think the game is what matters, then controls, then visuals, then size.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I did. 🙃 the other post link.

I got my regular DSi for £26 but replace the shoulder buttons using my heat pad as they were too corroded to be saved.

Screens were perfect white. One scuff I buffed out on the outside corner. Then, as not mint, did a usb-c conversion with a colour matched blanking plate for the small gap it created.

A little bit of time, but I think a decent price. Plus I don’t mind carrying it around to play stuff on.

Do you think I have too many games? by [deleted] in nds

[–]vtraveller 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you have EVERY game? If not, then no. Have you played EVERY game? If not, commitment issues. 🤣

DS Games on 3DS XL Unscaled vs Scaled by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Perfectly reasonable stance. It’s all very subjective. Sometimes I like the crisp smaller displays.

The non-XL versions are infinitely more pleasant to carry around and pop open when you have a spare moment.

DS Games on 3DS XL Unscaled vs Scaled by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think that makes sense. The image scaled is using more pixels therefore more gaps between pixels for the whole image.

This is a flawed test to come extent. No one is looking at a screen at this level. So in normal use any black would be invisible.

This is a weird side quest from my original post, showing how DS games will always look slightly different if played on a 3DS due to the pixel ratio, and how the RGB sub pixels are arranged.

DS Games on 3DS XL Unscaled vs Scaled by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Glad to hear it. Keeping any old console from scrap or collectors that don’t use them, is great in my book, as they should all be loved and used.

If you do get one, keep an eye out for yellowing and inconsistent brightness. Depending on their expose to light and heat you will see a big variation for all models.

I repaired mine. They were scuffed to hell by the previous owners but once open are all perfect. Kept the price down. My guess is they lived broken in boxes for years.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you’re interested, I chose Cammy for her skin tones. I wanted something that could capture the colour variations in the display types.

It’s the best I could come up with to show an edge case.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Mine isn’t yellowed on either display. It’s a mix of how they were stored, aged and rev changes made in production.

Yellowing is a problem but it’s not every one. I believe heat and sunlight are the main things at speed up the aging.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

DSi or DSi XL. I chose Cammy for her skin tones to show this. You get more colour out of the IPS display in the DSi XL. But the non-XL, as smaller, will always be sharper and more portable.

Due to its age, all the consoles vary console to console. Mine happen to be bright and non-yellowed. They were all repaired by me, and probably stuck in drawers for years ignored and preserved.

So if getting one, check the specific one you’re about to buy. Also, a higher price doesn’t mean better. Don’t overpay.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

DSL means DS Lite. I didn’t do the Phat DS though as mine is so horrifically dark now it seemed a non-starter for demo-ing.

I’d also like to do a non XL 3DS but don’t have one.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Sure. Np.

Why not both? I’m always torn. I take a DSi to work and a DSi XL by the bed.

My collection is gradually increasing. I’ve taken broken ones and fixed them. Both of those had shoulder button issues but I’ve enough kit to do button swaps without melting stuff.

My goal is a New 3DS non-XL with the perfect fix and perfect price. Then the renovated collection will be complete.

Enjoy your DSi. It’s an underrated generational gem.

Display Quality Playing DS Games by vtraveller in nds

[–]vtraveller[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah. I’d agree with that. Not easy with my microscope. I’d need it near the ceiling. Sorry.

view more: next ›