Hacking Finding Perfect Crystal Case for DS Lite

[mixinluv2u]

hi guys,

not sure if any of you guys followed a few of my posts here, but i have been trying to find the perfect crystal hard case for my white DS Lite. i am currently using the bestskinsever full body skin but it's starting to turn color and looks very ugly on my white DS, that's why i am looking for a crystal case as the alternative.

i tried the MadCatz showcase as people have been talked about it here and it's available in the US. i figured that MadCatz looked legit enough as a video game accessories company that the quality of the product should be pretty good. however, their showcase does NOT allow the DS to close all the way and therefore is a automatic fail to me. the clips they used to hold the case onto the DS gets in the way.

disappointed as i was, now i am starting to hunt for the perfect case once again. i like the case to be slim, ideally it should be slim enough to still fit in my jeans pocket. the DS must be able to close all the way still. and i would prefer a clear case.

i looked at the Dragon Guard Masks because they seem slim and they close all the way. i was willing to take the navy ones even though they are not clear. however, i can't seem to find any store or website that carries the navy ones so i guess i am out of luck there.

i did see this person's review on a crystal case he bought off of ebay though. seems promising since it apparently doesn't use clips but use "bulges on the internal case" to hold case and the DS together. i don't like how there's a curved indent on the top cover (seems like they just used the mold from the bottom case or something, lazy!) but closing all the way is important.

http://www.wiitalk.co.uk/forums/gaffer74s-...ase-review.html

anyways, so i was wondering if any of you had experience with crystal cases bought off of ebay? what is your experience with them? especially important is if they close all the way? do you remember which seller is the good one? here are some of the cases i found on ebay so far, if you have any thoughts or experience to share with me it'll be greatly appreciated. =)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=008
$7 - seems like the exact same one that was reviewed on wiitalk. the indent on the top cover still kind of bothers me.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=004
$7.50 - the top cover on this one covers the whole thing, and it appears to not have clips based on the pictures. although without seeing it in person, i am not confident enough to say that it'll close all the way or what mechanism it uses to hold the case and the DS together. does anyone have experience with this seller or this case in particular?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=024
$6 - this one's top cover also covers the whole thing. and it also appears to not have clips based on the picture (and better/clearer pictures than the one above). it does have a weird air bubble looking thing over the logo on the top cover though. i wonder what that is? is it a sticker to prevent scratchs before it is sold/used? hopefully someone can shed some light on this seller and/or this case.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=020
$5.50 - this one seems like a guard mask version of the crystal case. i know the guard masks does not have hinges (and therefore does not provide extra support there), but do they actually feel more slimming than the crystal cases? or does it not matter that much? the pictures are not very clear for me to see if it's being held together by clips or not, although i am assuming it is with clips since i would feel clips are necessary for the guard masks to hold on.

i know the ones by Dragon have indents on the opposite side where the clips are (indent on top where the bottom clips are, indent on bottom where the top clips are), and that's how they allowed the case to close all the way. i can't really tell with the pictures on this one. there seems like it could be clips on the side of the top cover, where it would line up to the power switch, which could allow the right side to close all the way theoritically, but i don't know how they will do the left side. or where the bottom clips will be positioned. reminds me slightly of the Let's Angel Guard Mask design although i can't be sure. i also heard the Let's Angel Guard Masks does NOT close all the way.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=004
$6 - this one also looks similar to the one reviewed at wiitalk. it also has that weird air bubble thingie over the logo on the top cover. any experience with this seller or case?



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so yea, i know this is kind of a long post. but i figured this is the best place to ask about DS Lite accessories since we have so many DS Lite users and probably have quite a few that are passionate about protecting our favorite hand-held. i hope you guys can help shed some light because i really don't feel like buying case after case after case and feeling more and more disappointed each time.

thanks in advance!! =)

 

[Kiljaeden]

I'd like information on this too. I've got the Limited Edition Zelda DS coming over from US and would love to keep it in pristine condition.
I'll probably use the Hori Skins and then find a hard crystal case also.

 

[mixinluv2u]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=020
$5.50 - this one seems like a guard mask version of the crystal case. i know the guard masks does not have hinges (and therefore does not provide extra support there), but do they actually feel more slimming than the crystal cases? or does it not matter that much? the pictures are not very clear for me to see if it's being held together by clips or not, although i am assuming it is with clips since i would feel clips are necessary for the guard masks to hold on.
so i contacted this ebay seller feooog asking for more details regarding his clear guard mask type crystal case, since i was considering it... especially if it closes all the way.

unfortunately, when he got back to me he basically said that the pictures shown in the auction is not the ones he sells anymore. he gave me a picture of his current product and it looked like the ones reviewed at wiitalk in the above post. he said he will update his auction photos to match the actual product.

i asked him if he will ever carry the clear guard mask type ones again, and he said those are hard to find now so he doesn't know.

QUOTEhttp://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=024
$6 - this one's top cover also covers the whole thing. and it also appears to not have clips based on the picture (and better/clearer pictures than the one above). it does have a weird air bubble looking thing over the logo on the top cover though. i wonder what that is? is it a sticker to prevent scratchs before it is sold/used? hopefully someone can shed some light on this seller and/or this case.

i was able to see the pictures posted in this auction more clearly at home, and i realized that this one is also the same as the wiitalk reviewed one. it just looked like it covers the whole thing because it has a piece of plastic covering the top.

i asked the seller ecomhk regarding the "air bubble" looking thing and it was confirmed by him that there was no air bubble. "this is just a basic plastic case." says the seller

 

[Toni Plutonij]

Actually, this topic is very interesting as I'm too in a search for a crystal case for protection..

I've been reading about various shells for quite some time now, and concluded that one from the wiitalk review is the best one there is..It has nice DS logo on top side (that way, even if you put some skin on your Nintendo, the logo will be visible by the crystal case), it has good build quality, and fits on Nintendo perfectly, but giving enough space to close all the way..

The only negative thing (or maybe NOT) is the little cut on the top part that doesn't cover DS all the way..But maybe they made it that way to take of shell more easly or some other reason that makes sense..

I'm going for that Crystal Case, and think that you should too mixinluv2u!!
Did you maybe found something better?!

 

[mixinluv2u]

i am actually going for this one by ebay seller kelsonbid.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Brand-New-Nintendo-DS-...oQQcmdZViewItem

it's a little more expensive at $8.50, and it's probably the same one as this by yesproducts.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...:MEWA:IT&ih=004
$7.50 - the top cover on this one covers the whole thing, and it appears to not have clips based on the pictures. although without seeing it in person, i am not confident enough to say that it'll close all the way or what mechanism it uses to hold the case and the DS together. does anyone have experience with this seller or this case in particular?

but kelsonbid has clearer pictures of the products, so i feel more confident on exactly what i am getting. and they also offer refund if the package is lost after 30-45 days. so i figured the extra $1 is worth it.

i know it does not have the logo, which kind of sucks. but i just don't like not having the whole top covered if i was going to put a case on.

 

[DaMummy]

about how much bigger does the ndsl become after putting the case on? whats the thickness of on of these cases?

 

[Cactuar]

I found the same Exact case at circuit city marketed under the name Armorlite Case, the manufacturer I forgot already though. They were on sale for 5.99 down from 9.99. I bought one for my Zelda Gold DS Lite and one for my girlfriend's White DS lite which went from right out of the sealed box and immediately into the safety of this case. VERY VERY slick cases that protect the system perfectly.

 

[Fieryshadowz]

I found the same Exact case at circuit city marketed under the name Armorlite Case, the manufacturer I forgot already though. They were on sale for 5.99 down from 9.99. I bought one for my Zelda Gold DS Lite and one for my girlfriend's White DS lite which went from right out of the sealed box and immediately into the safety of this case. VERY VERY slick cases that protect the system perfectly.

Exactly the one I was about to recommend. Very good, can take scratches. . . (Mine is sorta dirty though) Lint / Dust under the cover because I keep my NDS in my pants pocket when I go to school and such. But I can remove it and clean it so it's all good.

 

[mixinluv2u]

i heard that the Armorlite case by Joytech (the one you guys got at circuit city) does NOT allow the DS Lite to close all the way. Can you guys confirm?

i believe it uses little clips to hold the DS lite and the case together, just like the MadCatz showcase. and those clips get in the way of letting the DS Lite closes all the way.

 

[BakuFunn]

well, i own two, for both my ds', and i could say the ds lite doesnt close all the way. Maybe a millimeter?

edit-the case compensates by raising the gba slot cover a bit, if you want pics, they will be up

so yea, there is a bit of a non closure on the curve of the ds.

 

[mixinluv2u]

yea that's pretty much the same as my MadCatz case. that's why i am trying to find a new one that can close all the way.

the 2 clips on the sides of the DS and the bottom clip right above the GBA slot all gets in the way of closing. in fact, if you try closing the case by itself without the DS in it, you will be able to clearly see that it can't even close all the way like that.

 

[Godot0102]

Looks like the hinge might break if the ds is closed or inside of a pocket.

 

[BakuFunn]

naw, the spring isnt that strong.

 

[mixinluv2u]

my crystal case finally came in!

i ordered it on 12/19 and was notified via email that it was shipped on 12/20. i received the package on 1/3. i think that's pretty fast considering it came from HongKong and it was over the holidays. now why can't the HK flash cart vendors be like that??

i only had about 5 minutes to look at the case before i had to leave home, but here are my first impressions.

the case is by a company called Pega. it does not have clips on it and it closes all the way without the DS inside. however, i also did not notice any bulges on the inside of the case. =\ so i am not sure exactly how it's going to hold the case and the DS together (other than just being sure form/tight fitting).

the top cover does not have any indents and it covers the whole top. it also lacks the DS logo like the other crystal cases. it's pretty much exactly the same as the pictures on the ebay page.

so i am keeping my fingers crossed. i plan on peeling off my BestSkinsEver full body skin tonight so that i can try the case on. hopefully it'll fit well.

 

[jabran200]

I really don't like those really tight fitting crystal cases as they put a lot of pressure on the hinges and noticed pressure markes on my hinges after that. Possible i had a bad one but i will steer clear from those anyway as when my sister dropped the ds it didn't provide protection as it was open but it does when it is closed but your not gonna drop a ds that your not playing anyway but it is good if you travel and play a lot though.

 

[azotyp]

every crystal case will make micro scratches on ds just watch ds shell for couple of months from now

(tested on bigben crystal case)

 

[mixinluv2u]

if there's no movement between the case and the DS, why would there be scratches?

also what if you insert a piece of paper (skin/graphics) between the case and the DS?

 

[mixinluv2u]

here are some pictures:

the package it came in. the brand on the package says Pega.

out of the package. you can see that there's no logo on top. there are also no clips that gets in the way of closing.

fitting of the back, with my DS inside.

fitting near slot-1. the cartridge touch the case slightly when taking it in or out because the opening is not perfectly aligned. the opening for the wrist strap is also slightly misaligned.

with DS inside and open

front of DS closed. it does allow it to close all the way shut. which i am pretty happy about.

close up of the top cover. you can see how it does NOT cover the whole top, which i am a bit disappointed about. sigh.

overall it looks fairly decent, dispite all the imperfections. why is it so hard to find the perfect case!?!?

here's my BestSkinsEver full body skin that i peeled off. you can see the discoloration. i think the clear case looks MUCH better. yuck!! they are definitely not clear anymore and my DS definitely did not look white. =\

 

[mixinluv2u]

i made some skins for it. =) i think it looks pretty good now. and the part on top that the case didnt cover is now covered by the skin. =) oh yea, and i fixed the image links in my last post so the picture shows up.

comparing it to one without the case. it does make it just a bit bigger and heavier.

 

[Devante]

I don't understand why everyone puts holes in their cases!
It took me forever to find this:

http://videogame.brando.com.hk/prod_detail...=008&cat_id=019

It's very cheap but as long as you don't drop your case or mistreat the hinges, it'll work great.

I've had mine over a year. I dropped it and there's a huge crack down the side, but it's pretty much cosmetic.

If you don't mind the crack, I'll sell it $5 shipped!

Or buy it brand new for about $10.

I found the same case but with 2 clear stylus on another site, but I'll never be able to find that site again unfortunately. :