Hardware Is it possible to power the 3DS with normal rechargeable batteries?

[Xmortal]

I have this idea in my thoughts, since as the 3DS is discontinued it is difficult to get generic spare parts, more than everything here in Venezuela is even worse.

In the following image is a blueprint concept of my thoughts

 

[Hayato213]

No

 

[IC_]

I'm assuming from the 1.2V voltage that you're thinking of using Ni-MH or Ni-Cd batteries, you should not be using those because the 3DS is meant to use Li-ion batteries. This is a dangerous idea, attempting to recharge the batteries in the 3DS would risk damage to the system or batteries and it could even cause a fire or an explosion. You should look for third-party 3DS battery replacements, and in the worst case you could use a 3.7V-4.2V power supply to power the 3DS directly through the battery terminals without using a battery.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

I have this idea in my thoughts, since as the 3DS is discontinued it is difficult to get generic spare parts, more than everything here in Venezuela is even worse.

In the following image is a blueprint concept of my thoughts

You already made a thread about problems about getting 3DS batteries in Venezuela – and got this post as an answer. Fitting and connecting some small li-ion battery seems like the best idea.
It is worth noting that the CTR-003 battery is pretty common and will stay for a while. As far as I know, it is also used for both, the Wii U and the Switch, Pro Controllers.

While 3 NiMH cells have a similar voltage to one li-ion cell, you can't interchange them. Charging methods greatly differ between those two chemistries¹. Estimating charge level by voltage doesn't work on nickel based batteries.


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¹ Li-ion is charged with constant current until a defined max voltage is reached. After that the current is gradually reduced in a way the voltage stays constant. Once the current goes below a certain value the battery is defined full.
NiMH and NiCd are charged with constant current until a sudden small drop "–ΔU cut-off" in voltage is noticed. After that the charger may go to very weak trickle charge (at least for the old NiCd, the newer cells are a little more delicate in this regard).

 

[linkinworm]

3 pin, usually means theres some sort of sense for a battery with some logic

 

[FAST6191]

You already made a thread about problems about getting 3DS batteries in Venezuela – and got this post as an answer. Fitting and connecting some small li-ion battery seems like the best idea.
It is worth noting that the CTR-003 battery is pretty common and will stay for a while. As far as I know, it is also used for both, the Wii U and the Switch, Pro Controllers.

While 3 NiMh cells have a similar voltage to one li-ion cell, you can't interchange them. Charging methods greatly differ between those two chemistries¹. Estimating charge level by voltage doesn't work on nickel based batteries.


_______________________
¹ Li-ion is charged with constant current until a defined max voltage is reached. After that the current is gradually reduced in a way the voltage stays constant. Once the current goes below a certain value the battery is defined full.
NiMh and NiCd are charged with constant current until a sudden small drop "–ΔU cut-off" in voltage is noticed. After that the charger may go to very weak trickle charge (at least for the old NiCd, the newer cells are a little more delicate in this regard).

You are thinking small. Go more outside the box -- you are not in your clean German lab where you can reliably buy cut tape surface mount parts in the small village shop designing for maximum lifetime/return on investment but in a third world shithole and need to make it work with what you can scrounge or get from a sharply limited list of components. Or more generally answer the question the client wants answered, physics might say no in some cases but there are often shades of grey.
If the cell needs to be there replace it with a capacitor or something, and a diode to prevent charging. Maybe charge via side means (think those 360 controller packs that did not use the normal cable but connected to the pack itself, in this case does the AA cells or whatever work as a USB charger/does it provide enough current for max use case*). Don't know what the middle pin spits out here (typically such things are a temperature sensor, don't think it is like the PSP suicide chip where you get some nice custom communications between the battery so Nintendo can have a wallet too fat error pay them some money 2 days after warranty expires like all those drill manufacturers).
We are probably still a few years out of a proper charger adapter that fakes out (it is not so hard to fake out constant current and constant voltage to give what you want) and sits in line to allow a common battery replacement (much less all in a small package that might not need some fun with the shell. If we ever get a decent leap in charge density then it will probably come with that.
Equally just because the ideal charge scenario (never mind deep discharge recovery) might not be available does not mean you can't get something done -- it is not like we don't cook rechargeable batteries every day by having rapid charge options (others playing along your rechargeable batteries might claim 10000 charges or whatever before reaching say 50% capacity. a) 50% is often still way beyond useless but more importantly that 10000 is only normally for slow charge, do a rapid charge like all the fancy phones offer and slam it coming back out as well by doing some high current draw antics and you can slice that number several times over, even more so if 80% is arguably where the starting to get useless cutoff is). In this case so the AAs or whatever get toasted in short order, however if they are still readily obtainable for a reasonable price and the lifetime is somewhere in the region of acceptable at a charge rate that works for the user (especially if it is working or not as the alternative) then yeah.
Also while I pondered diodes above this is saying nothing of what might be accomplished by fiddling inside the 3ds and slicing some traces, desoldering a part (or maybe even if the charger has some alternative modes in the chip), faking out the charger somehow or otherwise playing there.

*I had a particularly thirsty flash cart once on the DS that meant if you left the GBA slot in, had a DS slot in and were playing full light and volume and charged it would still consume some 30mA from the battery where losing one or both would have a net charge flow into the battery).

 

[Xmortal]

You already made a thread about problems about getting 3DS batteries in Venezuela – and got this post as an answer. Fitting and connecting some small li-ion battery seems like the best idea.
It is worth noting that the CTR-003 battery is pretty common and will stay for a while. As far as I know, it is also used for both, the Wii U and the Switch, Pro Controllers.

While 3 NiMh cells have a similar voltage to one li-ion cell, you can't interchange them. Charging methods greatly differ between those two chemistries¹. Estimating charge level by voltage doesn't work on nickel based batteries.


_______________________
¹ Li-ion is charged with constant current until a defined max voltage is reached. After that the current is gradually reduced in a way the voltage stays constant. Once the current goes below a certain value the battery is defined full.
NiMh and NiCd are charged with constant current until a sudden small drop "–ΔU cut-off" in voltage is noticed. After that the charger may go to very weak trickle charge (at least for the old NiCd, the newer cells are a little more delicate in this regard).

You are wrong with the Wii U, the Gamepad battery is not CTR-03. It is WUP-012. And the CTR-003 batteries according to Amazon.com are discontinued, despite being used in the Switch Pro Controller And unfortunately Nintendo of America does not ship internationally.

 

[KleinesSinchen]

You are thinking small. Go more outside the box -- you are not in your clean German lab where you can reliably buy cut tape surface mount parts in the small village shop designing for maximum lifetime/return[…]

You made my day! Hahaha! That's a good one!

Or more generally answer the question the client wants answered

I don't have any "clients". I'm voluntarily trying to help to the best of my knowledge, without any warranties, and gave the best answer I could come up with. Strange methods of improvisation aren't always a smart or creative idea. While I don't see any imminent danger for the user in this idea (NiMH will most likely not blow up on mild abuse or overcharge), I still wouldn't recommend such a setup. If using an external battery holder the charging could be easily done with a regular charger for round cells.

About the middle pin: I've no idea what that does. Maybe someone with more knowledge about electronics could try to find out where it goes on the PCB. DSi also has three pins on the small power board – but only two wires going to the motherboard. My feeling would be, that providing about 3.8V to the positive/negative connectors should power up a 2|3DS and don't do any damage to the console. But this is only a feeling with no facts backing this.

it is not like we don't cook rechargeable batteries every day by having rapid charge options

Yeah, 10% → 80% in 20 minutes is what smartphone zombies powerusers prefer, not what the hard-to-replace-and-glued-in batteries inside the fancy pocket computers like. 2|3DS thankfully don't this.

You are wrong with the Wii U, the Gamepad battery is not CTR-03. It is WUP-012. And the CTR-003 batteries according to Amazon.com are discontinued, despite being used in the Switch Pro Controller And unfortunately Nintendo of America does not ship internationally.

I meant Wii U Pro Controller and Switch Pro Controller. I'm not sure about this. Don't have a Switch and don't have any Wii U or Switch Pro Controllers.
The Gamepad officially uses WUP-012 (with a lot of empty space around) or better WUP-013.
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Totally forgot about this thread. Might be a solution.