Hardware Which DS shoud I get? (n3DS, n3DS XL, or 2DS)

sp957 · May 24, 2016

I want to buy a n3DS, n3DS XL, or the 2DS, but I'm not really sure which I should get.

But I'm in the US, and all I see for the n3DS is the XL version. Is there no regular n3DS here? The XL version looks pretty big (the biggest handheld I have used so far is the DSi). And I saw pictures of the regular sized n3DS and I like the Famicon buttons

.

I'm even thinking about just getting a regular sized o3DS over a n3DSXL because the XL just seems so huge.

Will games run smoother/faster on the n3DS over the 2DS and o3DS? I know the n3DS has a faster processor but I'm not sure if that is just for select games or most/all games.

I'm kind of leaning towards the 2DS right now, since the titles I want to play are usually more mainstream titles like Marios and Pokemon. I don't care about using 3D features. And the 2DS is at a good price bundled with Mario Kart. I already waited years to buy a 2/3DS system, and I feel Nintendo will announce their new handheld system again soon, lol , so I won't feel as bad if I drop $80 dollars on the 2DS compared to $200 on the n3DSXL.

Treeko · May 24, 2016

For starters if you want to play on a budget then the 2ds is the way to go, with the recent price drop its a great deal, you won't need to spend a penny after getting it, because of CFW to get games for free, besides getting a larger sd card for enough space there's nothing extra needed.

If you are in the US then the normal size N3ds is not available there, the N3DSxl is the only "new" model available if I am not wrong, the N3DSxl or the normal version of it have some benefits over the normal old 3ds, when using CFW you can livestream only on a N3ds which is great if you intend to record gameplay it removes the need for a capture card and you can also make the N3ds run on full speed mode which makes lots of games run better than on the normal old 3ds, like pokemon games for example there is a huge framerate drop when using 3d in battles or when having triple battles, but on a N3ds with fullspeed mode it runs smoothly.

As for nintendo announcing a new handheld I think thats already been confirmed with the nintendo NX releasing early next year, nintendo themselves announced this so yeah theres not much of a reason to buy a "new" 3ds unless you want the best perfomance on any 3ds game and also forgot to mention snes virtual console games which are exclusive to the New 3ds line only, also the only new 3ds exclusive game xenoblade chronicles, I would suggest a 2ds cause of that great price point they have.

nxwing · May 24, 2016

DS lite is always the best!

On a mor serious note, the regular N3DS is only available in bundles such as the Happy Home Designer Bundle and the Pokemon 20th Anniversary Bundle.

Both the N3DS and its XL counterpart can run N3DS exclusive games: Xenoblade Chronicles 3D and the Binding of Isaac: Rebirth. That's right! Only 2 exclusive games for N3DS if I'm not mistaken.

The N3DS and its XL counterpart also have higher framerates in 3D for N3DS Optimized games. C-Stick and the Z Buttons are useful for games like Smash.

Some emulators also work better on the N3DS.

2DS on the other hand, is actually more comfortable in your hands than it looks. It's a budget version. You can play 3DS games in 2D ONLY. It has mono speakers but supports stereo audio through a headphone jack.

sp957 · May 24, 2016

Treeko said:
you can also make the N3ds run on full speed mode which makes lots of games run better than on the normal old 3ds, like pokemon games for example there is a huge framerate drop when using 3d in battles or when having triple battles, but on a N3ds with fullspeed mode it runs smoothly.

Thanks for mentioning CFW. That sounds cool, and I will definitely use that. I don't intend on using livestreaming, so I'm leaning towards the 2DS.

This "full speed mode" is it just for 3D?

You say there is a huge framerate drop when using 3D in battles. What about battling on the 2DS? Does it run in full speed mode since it doesn't use 3D at all?

blax722 · May 24, 2016

You can actually set the CPU speed (via cfw or homebrew) on N3DS and benefit from faster CPU in all games.

Treeko · May 24, 2016

sp957 said:
Thanks for mentioning CFW. That sounds cool, and I will definitely use that. I don't intend on using livestreaming, so I'm leaning towards the 2DS.

This "full speed mode" is it just for 3D?

You say there is a huge framerate drop when using 3D in battles. What about battling on the 2DS? Does it run in full speed mode since it doesn't use 3D at all?

Yes battles will run fullspeed on the 2ds, except for triple battles, for obvious reasons, otherwise the 2ds should be a good pokemon machine, everything else should just run fine, if you are not interested in the New 3ds exclusive stuff then the 2ds should be the way to go.

sp957 · May 24, 2016

nxwing said:
The N3DS and its XL counterpart also have higher framerates in 3D for N3DS Optimized games. C-Stick and the Z Buttons are useful for games like Smash.

Some emulators also work better on the N3DS.

So you get higher framerates only when you have 3D enabled?

Are these emulators on flash carts or ones you download directly to the 3DS?

Treeko · May 24, 2016

blax722 said:
You can actually set the CPU speed (via cfw or homebrew) on N3DS and benefit from faster CPU in all games.

Thats what I meant by making it run fullspeed on CFW, but I only see the advantages of this when playing pokemon with 3d or triple battles, or while playing smash, otherwise most games run the same like fire emblem fates so its not that big of a deal imo.

blax722 · May 24, 2016

There are plenty of games that I finally enjoyed lag-free, like Rayman 3D.

Treeko · May 24, 2016

blax722 said:
There are plenty of games that I finally enjoyed lag-free, like Rayman 3D.

Haven't tried rayman yet but thanks for the heads up.

But tbh that game had problems from the beginning I remember people complaining about it not being ported to the 3ds properly or something.

blax722 · May 24, 2016

Well, it's not bad ported its bad optimized for 3DS HW. People complained because it was laggy as hell. And some of the fishes are fuc*ed up, few sounds missing... but I am glad they made this port, its one of the reasons why I bought 3DS.

sp957 · May 25, 2016

I landed a decent deal on a n3DSXL.

Is it as easy to get free games on the n3DS using CFW as it is on the 2DS?

DKB · May 25, 2016

sp957 said:
I landed a decent deal on a n3DSXL.

Is it as easy to get free games on the n3DS using CFW as it is on the 2DS?

Yes.

iAqua · May 25, 2016

If I were you I would hop over to a GameStop grab a hyrule gold n3ds XL and install a9lh.

Treeko · May 25, 2016

sp957 said:
I landed a decent deal on a n3DSXL.

Is it as easy to get free games on the n3DS using CFW as it is on the 2DS?

Just follow this guide
https://github.com/Plailect/Guide/wiki

Don't try to deviate from any of the methods in the guide, follow it as closely as possible if you hit a dead just ask a question here don't try any workarounds to any of the steps in the guide.

Its a long guide so be prepared but in the end its 100% worth it, also get a sd card with enough space a 64gb or 32gb minimum you don't wanna run out of space after you set everything up.

nero99 · May 25, 2016

-snip-

SushiKing · May 27, 2016

iAqua said:
If I were you I would hop over to a GameStop grab a hyrule gold n3ds XL and install a9lh.

Do you know what version it's on? Would it be possible to downgrade if it's on the latest update 11.0???

I was thinking about getting it :3

iAqua · May 27, 2016

SushiKing said:
Do you know what version it's on? Would it be possible to downgrade if it's on the latest update 11.0???

I was thinking about getting it :3

9.9 I got that twice.

SushiKing · May 27, 2016

9.9 is still safe to downgrade? (Just Checking)

iAqua · May 27, 2016

SushiKing said:
9.9 is still safe to downgrade? (Just Checking)

100%

Hardware Which DS shoud I get? (n3DS, n3DS XL, or 2DS)

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