Topic: My First Impressions of the 3DS at Gamestation

The very first thing I noticed about the 3DS, before even looking at the screen was "oh, is that supposed to wobble so much? This is bad"

When the lovely grinning Lady at Gamestation handed me the 3DS that the WHOLE TOP PART WOBBLED A LOT when open! She didnt know why and the other guys at Gamestation didn't seem to have a excuse... I opened it totally flat and it didnt wobble but I couldn't play it like that. It didn't wobble when closed either. The wobble was annoying and happened so easily (like the point it opens to was worn badly) it has made me want to check mine before I pay for it!
I hope this is just a bad model... can anyone else confirm/deny this with a different console please? This was Gamestation Lincoln UK

thats the only thing I found wrong with it.

I have been geeking out online for a year now about this console and the screen still blew my mind.

I played with Augmented Reality Dragons and Faceraiders (BOTH the most exciting things I have ever played in my whole 30 years!) so I have only seen the real world through the screen.
It is amazing.
It is like there is no screen at all,.. like they cut a big hole in the top and your just seeing the world as you do normally. To begin with your eyes TRY to SEE the 3D but you quickly realize you just look at it normally and its all real... exactly like the real world. The quality of the image displayed is noticeably loads better than the DSi too. Loads better. It really just looks real. Made my head spin by putting my hand up to the camera, which is almost at arms length only to have it projected onto my nose! Epic!

I won't spoil the Augmented reality for you but it is beyond what I expected. A lot of posts online put down the graphics of this console but just the Augmented reality set in the REAL WORLD had fantastic graphics and fit in ever so well. Also the Table at Gamestation is black and the room is badly lit and everything worked perfectly.

I moved the 3DS around a lot and found that personally I didnt loose the 3D unless I moved it to a position I couldnt play it anyway. Also I stood behind a friend while he played and I could see the 3D just fine and even side by side with him I could see it with only minimal double-ing.
The console is very small. The blue one just looks superb (though I have a black one on order)
The screen is big and crisp and it just looks real 3D like my fingers do typing this from my point of view.
I almost forgot to test the buttons but managed to snatch back the 3DS to try most of them.

3D SLIDER: I don't think it changes ANYTHING! when you go all the way to the lowest setting it POPS into 2D and when you wove it up it POPS into 3D! I didn't get it, I thought it supposed to show differing levels of 3d?

CIRCLE PAD: Brilliant. Simple as that. It's so tiny!

A.B.X.Y: Good as you would expect.

SELECT/HOME.START: Really nice, they are buttons, they press in nice and the home screen comes straight up.

D-PAD: Same as DSi = Good.

CONCLUSION.
I hope the hinges are not all wobbly. The wobble was in the direction it opens... not side to side.
I had half an hour with it, I had no problems with the 3D, it was just like seeing anything that is real. No headaches. My mouth is stuck in a "wow" position.
Nothing can compare to seeing this for yourself. It is a different 3D to the cinema. It looked real.
Nothing can compare to the graphics on this, now I know what it looks like I see how any game on this will look and seem more real.
The dragon's body went round... you could see its fatness... its weight...
The future is only one month away!

Woah, hang on... Did you just go into Gamestation and get to play a 3DS?! If so, I know where I'm going this weekend! Does anyone know iff all their stores are doing this?

Also, for the record, the top half of my DSi XL wobbles quite a lot as well, but as long as you don't move too much (as in sway back and forth dramatically) it doesn't affects it at all.

@NFreak007 My DSi does too but this was a lot worse. It almost freely moved around and it is a heavy screen.

and yes, Gamestation in Lincoln has a 3DS and they let me hold it and run around the shop giggling with it too. Could have stolen it.

I sure am looking forward to when GameStop here in the United States begin's putting the 3DS on display for customers to see after reading your review 3DBrains. This is an exciting era in the world of Nintendo. BTW from what I've read the 3DS and Sony NGP are quite heavy although the NGP is a lot more bulky and slightly larger (larger than even the PSP 1000) unlike the 3DS. Perhaps, this is indeed a sign that even as we speak (although Nintendo executives will deny it) the artist and designers at Nintendo are working to develop a 3DS Lite although we won't see it for at lest two years on the street.

Maybe we will see a 3DS TekCase by TeknoCreations
I love it for the DS and DSi systems.
Plus they have a built in extra battery pack.

Contact your local store as they're staggering sending out units; my local store is getting one next week, whereas some have theirs now.

The 3DS felt exactly the same weight as my DSi. It is loads smaller than you would think too. Smaller than my DSi I think. The weight is distributed differently too, the top screen is heavier and the bottom is slightly lighter. Feels grand.
If anything they will bring out a bigger version, this is as small as you would want it.

My DSi XL's top half wobbles a lot as well. I figured it is because of the weight.

Question for you. Did the touch screen seem noticeably smaller to you than your DSi?
I'm glad to hear that the image quality is so clear. That's still my biggest concern is struggling to see the tiny screens after so long on a DSi/DSi XL.

To be honest,
I did not pay that much attention to the bottom screen, I was to busy having my head f**ked by the top screens clarity.
I did use it to look at the home screen, but it did not seem small even compared to the top screen which is bigger than the DSi's. It is definatly crisper and better quality.

So does that mean if I purchase one of their cases for my DS Lite which desperately needs a battery that it will work? Or do I still need to purchase a battery for my DS Lite from BatteriesPlus?

For the record, neither Gamestation nor GAME in Bournemouth has a 3DS yet. I speak from disappointing experience.

@NFreak007 Don't worry, they'll be on the way soon. Every store in the group should have one in the next week or two!

Has anybody seen one in Oxford?

@archie Call your local Gamestation/GAME store.

i really want paper mario and zelda but i dont know when will they release

@3dbrains: it's great that you've had the chance to check out a 3DS for yourself. Feel free to post any thoughts you have about it to this existing thread for pre-launch user 3DS experiences. thank you :3