Hardware N2DS XL uses a better TN panel?

[NekoMichi]

So, I was able to get a New 2DS XL and after testing it for a while, something I noticed was that the TN panel of the top screen actually looked quite a bit better than expected, even at slanted angles. It's not as good as an IPS panel, but still visibly better than the TN panel from a small-sized New 3DS. I don't have access to an original 3DS XL, so I don't know if the 2DS XL performs similarly to that. Here are a few comparison shots:

All three consoles had brightness set to level 3 with no other display-influencing mods installed. All images were captured in full-manual mode at 1/15s, f/4.2, and ISO 800 with fixed colour balance to prevent exposure inconsistencies between shots.

At extreme angles on the N3DS, the Pokémon Moon logo was severely deteriorated, with the blue outline of the word "Pokémon" turning bright white and in some cases becoming almost indistinguishable from the yellow text. The dark grey background had also become inverted and in the last image, had started to blend with the Pokémon Moon logo itself.

The 2DS XL had the brightest display of the three, even though all devices were set to the same brightness level. While the dark background was washed out, it was nowhere near as bad as on the N3DS, and the Pokémon Moon logo was clearly distinguishable at all angles. Colours did become washed out, but only slightly and there was also some loss in contrast. Oh, and the backlighting was also uneven in some places along the edge of the display.

As expected, the N3DS XL performed the best out of all three, retaining its full saturation and contrast under all testing conditions.

3DSident was also used, confirming that both N3DS and N2DS XL had dual TN displays while the N3DS XL had an IPS top screen and TN touch screen. While the N2DS XL had a visibly better display than the N3DS, I used CTRAGING and it showed that both consoles used the same 0x0c SHARP-branded part for the top screen:

Just a little something I noticed. Since the 2DS XL is Nintendo's way of getting rid of leftover parts from the 3DS XL production cycle, it's unlikely that they would intentionally introduce an entirely new LCD component just for the New 2DS XL. Could someone with either an O3DS XL or TN-confirmed N3DS XL please compare the top screen to a N3DS and see if they also have this discrepancy?

 

[zoogie]

I think the way the top screen is constructed makes it look bigger than the other TN models.
Can't totally agree about picture quality, though. It's just looks ok to me.

 

[froggestspirit]

Not to go off topic, but I'm not sure I'd consider 2dsxl nintendo getting rid of leftover parts, as I'm not sure any of the parts are interchangeable between other models

 

[cory1492]

Doesn't the 3D effect require something extra on the top screen? Something that wouldn't need to be present on the 2D screen?

 

[Ryccardo]

Doesn't the 3D effect require something extra on the top screen? Something that wouldn't need to be present on the 2D screen?

Yes, a parallax barrier (which sends odd columns to the left and even ones to the right)
It's correct that in theory its very presence degrades the image (by being one more thing light has to pass through), by how much falls into gearwanking territory

 

[NekoMichi]

The air gap between the LCD and the cover layer in the N2DS XL is also a lot thinner than the N3DS, so it's possible that more light is passing through properly whereas a screen with a larger air gap would have light bouncing around the inside, resulting in degraded quality of colour and contrast.

 

[cory1492]

Yes, a parallax barrier (which sends odd columns to the left and even ones to the right)
It's correct that in theory its very presence degrades the image (by being one more thing light has to pass through), by how much falls into gearwanking territory

Yeah it was a nice "oh maybe this is the reason" thought at the moment, but looking again today... if that was the case the IPS panel would show a similar degradation.

I've heard all sorts of weird explanations for the difference between IPS and TN, one fellow trying to sell me a TV tried to claim IPS was "cut" from the "glass" at the outer edge where it's better quality... probably the only sane thing I've heard with regards to 3DS panels is that some TN are inexplicably better than most of the others, nearly IPS quality. My guess is, nintendo simply isn't very picky about binning fully working panels simply to save on costs and thus the supply quality never really consistently improved.