Topic: 3DS not turning on

Hey guys,
Not sure if this is the right place to post this, so if it's not please redirect me somewhere else!

Anyway, I am in a state of panic. My 3DS is not functioning in the way it should, I press the power button and the screen comes on but suddenly a tiny popping noise is made and the system turns itself off. I am obviously worried and would know if there is any quick way to fix, or if I just need to send it off to get repaired. It is out of it's warranty so it'd cost me.

Thanks in advance.

Is the red light blinking when it's turned on?

No it's blue as normal.

Does it happen even if you have it plugged in?

Yes, it is perfectly charged and still occurs when it is plugged in.
What's horrible is that I am so careful and treat my gadgets like new born babies. XD

Well, you could call Nintendo to see if they suggest anything other than sending it in, but the cost of the repair is almost as much as getting a new system, so I'd probably just get a new system if mine broke out of warranty.

You didn't recently get moisture in your system did you, because some people have suggested leaving it in a bag of rice for a while to soak up the moisture? If not, the only other thing I would consider trying is maybe removing the battery for a while or trying to power it on plugged in without the battery if that's possible.

Do you know for certain if the cost of repair is that high? :S

If your system is out of warranty, it costs (iirc) a minimum of something like $75 for a repair, not including shipping. And they will only fix the problem(s) you specifically state for them to solve. Essentially, it comes down to how much risk you're willing to take.

Do you know anything about UK price? And yeah for this big year of gaming i'd die without my 3DS.

You're in the UK? Sorry, I'm an American, and as much as I can help out with questions regarding warranties and sending in consoles from my own experience, I'm completely clueless as to how the UK system works.

Yes I am. That is fine, I have just learnt the price for repair would be £47.50 which is the equivalent to $73.

If your system is under warranty, they'll fix it for free.
Repairs out of warranty don't cost as much as a new console. It's around $80($90 cheaper than buying a new one).
They do ask you to describe the problem your having with the system. Just tell them exactly what you told us, and you'll be fine.

My old DS does that, it could be anything (in my DS, it's because the top screen isn't connected properly - I was tinkering with a screwdriver :3), you'll need to send it for repairs - the popping sound is just the speakers losing power, it's not like some there's a component frying or anything.

If it's under warranty, Nintendo will repair it for free - it's most likely a hardware malfunction and not accidental damage. If it's not under warranty, I'm not sure what the pricing is.

Their official UK support website is here: http://www.nintendoservicecentre.co.uk/

No, I've had it since day one and that is out of warranty now. I will have to send it off I am prepared to pay the money. I just thought it should be a last resort if there were other solutions out there. Thank you anyway!

I found the following on http://www.nintendoservicecentre.co.uk/ that will likely be of relevance:

Don't worry, your repair should only cost a maximum of £77.50 (€88.50 if in ROI). What's more, you can send your console in free of charge and we'll give you a no-obligation quote before beginning repair.

They'll fix it for sure, so don't worry. Your warranty will be renewed for another year, too.

Woah, after some tinkering I turned the system on with the lid only open a tiny bit thus only opening at less the a 45 degrees angle. It worked perfectly fine then I further opened it and at the same point every time it popped and turned off?

Yeah, that sounds like there is a loose connection in the hinge, like Raylax said.

Is there any way to fix that?

If your system is already out of warranty the trouble is you could pay to fix it, but maybe other parts are rundown too, so I think it's better just to get a new system, especially if you can find one on sale. I've heard people say the repair cost them as much as $90, but I once got a new 3DS for $100, so that seems silly to me to pay so much for a repair unless you really need it to get your data. At least if it's possible for you to use it with the screen barely open, you should be able to transfer your software to a new system, and maybe you'd want to keep the broken system around to streetpass with. If you want to try fixing it yourself you could get a tri-wing screwdriver cheaply from DealExtreme, but the one time I had to take my DS Lite apart to fix it, it was way more trouble than it was worth by the time I got it working again.