Nintendo Selling Refurbished 3DS and DSi Consoles

Sweet! May pick one up for the wife... Hmm... Maybe one for me just for the heck of it. A Zelda 3ds edition

....... sniff cant buy it from my country....

@orravan85 Same here...Might get a purple one "just for the heck of it"

If I didn't have a 3DS and a 3DSXL I'd probably get one for my girlfriend. Of course, they would have to do it in Europe first, where it'd be more expensive because here electronics have two year warranties.

I hope the $30 Mario Kart and $40 OOT are not refurbished...
Club Nintendo slips is not listed in the contents (though I think the serial number can function as a registration in America).

@Starwolf_UK I don't see why the games themselves would need "refurbishing". After all, Nintendo's charging full price for the games if you observe the pricing difference between the bundles and the standalone consoles.

Not a bad idea... some of my friends want a 3DS but they don't have one because it's expensive. But they can't get one of this consoles because we live in Portugal -.-

buy this http://www.ebay.com/itm/Shenmue-Ryo-Hazuki-Timex-Expedition-watch-Super-RARE-/111062124090?pt=Wristwatches&hash=item19dbd1863a

Not a bad idea at all. We get cheaper stuff, Nintendo still gets the money.
But how did Nintendo acquire these used consoles?

Traded in my black 3ds bout a week ago at EB games here in Canada for a re-furbishing promotion (they gave me more money), after upgrading to my beautiful pink XL! Hope they replace one of the springs in the power connector before re-selling, as adaptor head jiggles a bit, affecting charging. Other than that, my system was in mint condition

Ugh. I just want Nintendo to cover screen damage under their warranty. My 3DS got cracks from the infamous scratch lines and they refused until I called 4 times while diligently researching the design defect. I've also seen 2 separate 3DS XLs get cracks within a few months of purchase (both appeared from no extraordinary trauma-closing the system was all it seemingly took). Instead of offering to replace or repair they ask you to pay $120 if you send under warranty or waive your warranty claim completely to save $30 on the repair (and any game save data cannot be exchanged or recovered if lost).

I'm extremely offended by this shady tactic. After 20 years of decent experiences, I couldn't be more disappointed with NOA's customer service of late. I don't even want to talk about my Wii U launch experience (which includes 2 bunk systems out of the box, after waiting out before work when I didn't have to)...

Are you sure the Aqua Blue isn't in production? I thought that was only in Japan, where they replaced it with Cobalt Blue.

As far as I'm aware, it's one of the most popular colours; it would be mad to discontinue it.

@Selene: EB and GameStop apparently sell their "re-furbished" handhelds as is these days... Or maybe they send some to Nintendo...

@ACK that's sad to hear. Nintendo UK has excellent service - they repaired my brother's 3DS after he used a fake charger with it, breaking his battery.

(They replaced the battery. Then we replaced it ourselves with one with 4X the charge 3 )

It was a launch Aqua Blue model but because we had a repair in January last year the warranty was extended by 12 months.

That's surprisingly a good idea, especially in the US where Amazon doesn't want to sell Nintendo hardware online.

@C-Olimar: Yeah, it is sad. I thought NOA excellent service until the Wii-U launch debacle and then the screen problems. These are pristine 3DSs kept in immaculate care (one never even left home). When told it had cracks that appeared from being closed, they claim it must have had previously unnoticed hairline cracks, which is frankly absurd. The screen is too big and, like the 3DS with it's scratch lines, there is a defect in the clamshell design considering the size and heft of the top screen. Compare the way the DSi XL closes (my kids, 2 and 4, have been manhandling one for years) and the problems are readily apparent.

@Shugo OMG YOU'RE PROFILE PICTURE!!!!!!!!! POKEMON TRADING CARD GAME!!!!!!!!!

...Sorry about that, it just happened.

Save from that, they should also provide customers with pictures of the console they're sending and of the defects they're selling it with so that consumers truly know what they're getting.

And yet a NES release in 1985 still works while a Xbox 360 died out in a matter of years from the red ring of death.

@TheRavingTimes: And therein lies the problem. Microsoft climbed to the top with vastly inferior hardware durability. That's the power of Xbox Live and the digital platform; because all those red ringers bought more systems over the years (if no other reason than to access their account, or use their subscription), the hardware sales were greatly boosted. Then those refurbished systems still likely found their way back to market, encouraging more subscribers.

What does that tell a company like Nintendo, who built a pretty spotless record over decades of hardware production?

Do you get Club Nintendo coins for buying a refurbished system? I tried reading through the FAQs on Nintendo's website but could not find an answer. If so, I'm certain I'll purchase one. If not, no sale. I'll just have to save more for a new system

@ACK I know exactly how you feel! Long story short: broke circle pad from 3DS XL (while playing MK7), called Nintendo, they tried to charge me $120 for what they saw as "physical damage" plus two weeks without my system! I said no thanks, they reminded me of how if I personally messed around with the system that I would void the warranty. Still, I went ahead and repaired the darn thing myself.

I'm upset at: a. they wanted to charge me the $120 for the "physical damage" I caused while playing one of their games and b. the fact that they wanted to separate me from my system for such a long time. I even offered to drive the system to the repair center since I live in the L.A. area but they said they no longer do repairs in the US! I guess Nintendo repairs are not once what they were .

Maybe the will be the previous owners eshop games still on there!

@idork99:

Maybe the nature of the problem determines where your 3DS is sent for warranty repairs, or perhaps the phone rep gave you incorrect information. I live in L.A., too, and recently I had to send in my 3DSXL to have the touch screen replaced. I used the online repair request, rather than the phone line. In my cover letter, I mentioned that there was also a slight scratch on the top screen, in case there was anything they could do. Even though my 3DSXL was under warranty, I offered to pay for the repair if neccessary, since I felt that the touch screen damage had been partly my own fault. I dropped the 3DS off at Fed Ex on a Monday afternoon, and it was back on my doorstep on Wednesday afternoon, which was less than 48 hours. The repair was done at a service center in California and they had replaced both screens (all under warranty.) I was really impressed.

I wonder if these can be registered on Club Nintendo like the new ones...

@ACK Simply asking for another cookie to crumble. A scam in words simple enough for even some of the simplest to understand. It would seem that without the red ring Microsoft may have suffered many hardships by 2008 and possibly experience a dramatic decrease in sales by 2010 due to the PS3's uprising and the Nintendo Wii's best year.

$130 for a 3DS? That's a great deal for anyone who doesn't already have one.

I guess i'm still hanging out to upgrade to a 3DS XL when a zelda bundle comes out later this year.

That Midnight Purple is tempting me! I have a Black Original and a Blue 3dsXL and don't need a purple one but it's so tempting me

I wonder: Where do those handhelds come from?! Are those the devices people send in for repair?

Anyway, fun for people who don't mind a second-hand device. But I'll always go for new!

cool! these'll be a great gift for my nieces and nephews.

If they start offering a 3DS XL on this, I may go for it. My 3DS is starting to suffer from the lines caused by having the system closed. It used to be that I could wipe the screen and it'd be good, but these are staying now! Seriously, whats up with that anyway?

When will nintendo realize that there are other countries that also consume their brand? I can't purchase ANYTHING with my CC for my Wii but SONY does on my brothers PSX3. And I'm a 75% loyal fan of Nintendo almost 50% if they don't do something about that.

Not bad at all. Never thought I'd see them sell refurbished systems

@SMW I'm having the same problem with my 3DS. There is a design flaw on the Original 3DS, and Nintendo needs to address a solution to the screen line damage problem on the 3DS!

Blue with OOT, please!

@Tasuki wiping personal and finanacial info isn't the same as deleting games. I've bought several [systems] with eshop games still on them. Wiping those is a seperate step.

@sillygostly I suspect the 'games' are downloaded versions as well, not likely physical.

@Tomography I too have had only good experiences. Nintendo sub-contratcs these repairs to independant (qualified electronics) repair facilities dependant on where you live.. geographically close to you... I feel their services is/are A+ better than any e-device of any type I've every owned.

@idork99 said " and b. the fact that they wanted to .....separate me from my system for such a long time." future posssible events are hardly facts and then there is the point that b is based on sentiment. No business runs on or considers sentiment [on thier banlance sheets] as a tangible resource to be bought, sold or traded.... so on that point they could care less. Nintendo is a profit based- Business first, last and foremost.

@TrueWiiMaster if the DSi was any example they will register it and give a 1 year warantee but no coins... the fifth second hand one I registered got no warantee. It depends on whether the original warantee from first person is still in effect.