Topic: 3DS XL Hinge Durability?

How did that happen?

Damm it, why am I so paranoid about this not happening to me yet?

Just had the hinge on my 3DS XL crack for a second time. Actually had it sent in for repairs around Christmas last year (which was around $132 to have fixed) and I noticed last night it was cracked again, in the same spot.

Honestly, I don't fully know what causes it to crack. I would be sure to try and not 3rd click the screen to much (even though I think it happened maybe 1 time since I got mine repaired and it still did it). Seems like to me some of the hinges are so tight with the case that over time it just cracks the hinge casing.

Mine was the Pikachu edition but after spending so much trying to get it fixed last time (and the fact that I'm broke) I don't know if I'll be able to get it fixed if the renewed warranty doesn't cover the repairs.

I'm ether going to get a normal 3DS or a 2DS if this one can't be fixed. I found a few replacement shell casings (none are pikas sadly) so I guess I could try and repair it worse case, though I've heard its pretty tricky and not for the faint of heart.

For now, I'm back to playing my old DSi XL. Had it since they first came state side and haven't had a single problem with the hinges on that thank goodness.

Hope all works out for you!

I am a very clumsy person, and not once has the DS Lite's hinge failed me. The 3DS XL is shaping up to be more durable.

Where did you get it repaired? If its from Nintendo, then you can demand them to fix it for free seeing that you just paid them. Also they will always reset the warranty when the repair is completed.

You should at least contact Nintendo first to see if any warranty would cover it. Keep in mind the warranty does not cover all damages, so you can't necessarily "demand" them to fix it

I click the crap out of my 3DS XL hinge when opening/closing it, sometimes in a rage after playing some Rusty's Real Deal Baseball. It's not showing any signs of damage yet. (The clicks are just to indicate the lock points, and I'm pretty sure they completely normal. I assume that keeping the hinge at a point that hasn't clicked would actually put additional strain on it though.)

My XL does seem to be a little floopy and has been that way sense I got it, it could just be me being paranoid? Fingers crossed nothing breaks, ever lol.

Even if you break it in half it will still work because of induction technology. Trust me.

My daughter's XL hinge broke today. It's gonna cost me $125 to fix it through Nintendo's warranty, so since her birthday is coming up, I've decided to get her a 2DS for her birthday present and then when the Nintendo warranty is up, file a claim with Walmart's protection plan and get a gift card with the purchase price.

The cracking makes me nervous, it's also bad when the crack is so strong that the top screen seems to shake your hand!

I am compulsively careful with my 3dsl xl. A couple weeks ago the pad came off the stick. Now I am occasionally noticing a flickering in the top screen. I am worried as mine is over 2 yrs old so no warrantee coverage left.

I don't think the 3day's are made as well as the older units, tbh. When I think of the rough treatment my kids' gameboys and ds's ( in all the various incarnations) were subjected to yet continued to play perfectly, my only-played-by-a-little-old-lady unit should be holding up better.

I've never had a hinge break that was my fault. I got the DS Lite when it first came out, and there were like 0.02% of consoles that had hinge breaks even if they were new. That was the only hinge I ever had that was broken.

Other than that, I've had 3 DS Lites, 1 regular 3DS, ad the XL I have now. The DS Lite, DSi, and 3DS XL all have a similar hinge, so the regular 3DS is the only DS besides 2DS that will never get that cracked hinge. I personally would worry about it. My 3DS XL took a beating when my brother was the main user for a while, and I'm always ok as long as it runs.

I haven't had an issue with mine or any past hinge based system unless I or someone did something to it and that was once. I'm super careful, the only failure I've ever experience was the lower touch panel on a DSI or lite I forget which. The bottom quarter inch up of the screen was all the way across left to right, shifted about a 1/2 inch to the right, so that the bottom corner of the panel was dead and everything else didn't line up to the screen. It went out playing Lockes Quest I think was the name and since it used that area it was put on hold for a time.

My son's purple 3DS got the cracked hinge problem and it wasn't his fault. To fix it for my daughter to use is $85 plus tax. So I'm thinking of sending it to get it fixed, instead of buying a 2DS. I just wonder what would be better in the long run though. What if the hinge cracks again? Ugh decisions! !!

This thread is making me even more paranoid than normal.........

I just got a 3DS XL pokemon blue edition this year and seeing how some easily get the hinge break off like that by simply opening and closing really scares me and I try to slowly open and close carefully instead of how most people will open and close it. Can anyone here tell me the XL 's hinge is strong or what???????

I have a red pokemon XL and the hinge is fine on it and I've had since it launched. I don't know how my daughter's broke but I'm pretty sure it wasn't from just normal use. I'm thinking it's either because someone dropped it or because I sat on it, by accident. My original blue XL that I got the day after it launched, the hinge is still fine on it just the screen broke.

I have had an original DS(Zelda ed.)‚ a DS lite, a DS XL, and a 3DS and never had an issue of a broken hinge until the DS XL. Now my, less than 2 year old, 3DS has a broken hinge too. I'm an adult and am always careful with it so it is never slammed shut or opened too quickly. These are way too expensive to keep breaking like this. I think Nintendo needs to redo the entire hinge style. Make it worth our while to buy another when something better comes out. I will not be buying another until it is fixed.

"Floopy" is a great word.

My right 3ds xl hinge is cracking in 3 places. What a pain. I heard that some cell phone repair shops may fix, any truth to this?

I've been very very careful with my 3ds... it's surely the doggone plastic, expanding/contracting ever so much when you open/close and the ratchet within moves inside. Big N should've used rubber or a different material.

Over and over I hear about this horrible problem.

I'm very careful with handhelds. I never drop electronics, and I don't slam screens shut or open too quickly. And I'm not a very heavy DS user. There are periods of time where a few weeks will pass and I'm playing consoles, then sometime in the future I'll come back to a handheld game for a couple weeks.

Over a period of less than 8 years, I've went through as many as FOUR DS Lite systems and they all had loose or broken hinges. The 1st DS Lite I had was actually so messed up that if you didn't hold up the top screen just right, the screen would "white out" and lose connection. The 2nd and 3rd replacement DS Lites which initially were purchased brand new online, lasted 6 months each. They no longer made a "snap" noise and the top just hangs if you don't hold it up.

What's the deal? I'm a responsible adult that takes care of my products.

I recently purchased my first ever 3DS XL (the "New" one) and a DSi XL for my DS games. Will these last me a long time? I pay good money for this stuff.

You better be right...

What sorcery is this? Do you keep the screens open all the time? I'm very careful with my stuff and I'm at a total loss.