New 3DS System Update 7-2-0-17 Now Live

Dat stability tho.

Can never have enough stability

I hope stability includes Grinsia not glitching. I doubt it though.

@Incarnadine That would require a game update, not a system one.

Still a 7 second boot time. Nothing else looks like it's been updated.
Good parental control system with the E-mail system. it scraps the vulnerability that the underground community created to bypass the parental controls.
I'm inclined to say myself that it won't be used on my 3DS as I manage the system on my own.
Could this possibly a step forward or a step back? That is the true question.

I hate the idea of Parental Control. What are parent's trying to protect their children from? Things they can watch on TV with the push of a button?

@Silent I'm sure parents who use parental controls wouldn't allow their children to watch TV unsupervised. Also, many sets include parental controls as well.
3DS parental controls are useful if, for example, a kid wants to browse the eShop on their own. Without them, Nintendo would have to have a system only allowing mature content to be accessible in a tiny window between 11pm and 3am, marginalising a large part of their fanbase.
With parental controls, they'd never have to do that.

My 3DS took seconds to update. No noticable changes. I share my 3DS with noone, so why would I bother with parental controls?

@Silent as a parent of 2 lads I use parental controls primarily for 2 things: to prevent 3D and to prevent accidental deletion of system data. 3D has always been declared as bad for kids under 7, and I always play myself in 2D anyway as I find 3D to require no reflections (darkness), a spotless screen as fingerprints and dirt really show up, and I can't really make it out at the best of times.

Back on the DSi, my eldest son deleted all the system data, which included photos, wifi settings, the browser and downloaded games. I had backups of the photos, and restoring the rest was easy, if a bit of a pain. On the 3DS there's even more stuff in there to restore after a wipe, so I'd rather be safe than sorry. On a related note, I wish game makers wouldn't make it so easy to wipe game saves. The Dempa Men, I am looking at you.

@Quirky I feel your pain, twice I got near to the final tower in Denpa Men only to have the save deleted by my son. After that, he has been banished to the GBA for the next few years

Stability is always welcome.

Ok.

Now that we have this ridiculous parental controls, can we finally get flipnote?

Also, fun fact; if you're worried about your kids messing your 3DS up, then don't let them play it. #problemsolved

I wish we could have an actual password protection system to just lock people out of being able to use your 3DS at all without your permission. I use the parental controls, but they make some things totally unusable with parental controls enabled instead of letting you enter the password to still be able to use it, and there are some things you don't even have the option to restrict.

Wait i thought this was an update for Wii U...

I really don't see much of a point in Parental Controls because services like the Eshop and Miiverse will still restrict you from seeing mature content if your NNID 's age is below 18. I really don't like it as it prevents me from buying mature games on the 3ds like Shin Megami Tensei.

It'll be a great update when It block hacked games from be played online, such as Pokemon and Mario Kart! Hate when I play with cheaters!

@Silent blocking people from buying and playing games like Seran Kagura Burst.
No child should ever play that...

I'm balancing my XL on the tip of my index finger and spinning it like a basketball. So stable.

@Pvtottobot What?

People who don't need the use of Parental Controls, weeping because they even exist.

People never cease to amaze me.

@WillhamBoyGeniu "Further improvements to overall system stability" this is the same EVERY update! I'm making fun of it's meaninglessness

Never thought I would ever bother with parental controls. But being a father of two boys who are proud owners of 2DSs, it is a much used tool. And yes; the new email function will be something I will start using immediately. Thanks Nintendo; that was a spot on idea. Now can we link games to accounts and not systems??

With this parental control can we get swapnote back Nintendo??? I miss chatting with my friends from other countries

Don't parental controls allow for the blocking of system updates? How will one update their system if they've forgotten their password?

@Kyloctopus Its only rated 12 (Same as Ocarina of Time). If you allow one you allow the other though.

I am waiting for the day they release an update that will let you protect your saved data on the system and the SD card. My son has more fun deleting all the data on the system than playing actual games

The list of Nintendo Zones was also updated (why this info isn't in the official log...). By that I mean the rather a small list of SSIDs the 3DS will connect to whenever it sees and allow usage of the Nintendo zone viewer on (plus do spotpass/streetpass on). No idea what changed though. Hopefully the google ones replacing starbucks in America have been added.

@nostalgianinja If it is e-mail only though you have the potential to receive a pre-owned system with no way to disable parental controls (or better still a child locks the parent out of the parental controls). LIkewise unofficial demo units (official ones have autoboot carts which bypass system menu) can be trolled in a similar way.

The eshop had some slight aesthetic differences (font size, additional text reading that a game is available for download) after I updated. Don't know if that had anything to do with it.

I'm surprised they didn't do the update on the 20th to remove the DS WiFi options from the 3DS settings

I'm surprised you guys didn't say anything about the way the eShop looks. Game Icons have a new format for the information above them. Looks more professional in my opinion.

Edit: I missed @Klimbatize's post.

@Starwolf_UK This is, as per the changes as per the terms of service, supposed to be cleaned up.
@CrazyOtto I think there's more to the WiFi options than just the online bit. Remember, Local play will still be accessible and working. Also, the DS profile settings doesn't give the Internet connection directly, it's implanted into the DS program. the DSi Enabled games go through the 3DS connection settings, though.

Another frickin' update..thanks nintendo...when are we getting meaningful ones like updates that help you cross platform buy? hmm? Quit tweaking with my system until you fix that! hmph!

Funny thing is that these stability updates never do a single thing. The 3DS and Wii U are the most unstable modern gaming devices on the market. Nintendo's software and hardware engineers should be embarrassed.
Of course nothing can be perfect, I realize that, but the Wii U and 3DS are so far away from stability that it's ridiculous.

@AVahne I'm curious about what type of stability issues you have encountered on your 3DS. Personally I have not experienced any over the course of 2 years. My wii U used to lock up occasionally after launch but it's been over a year without any issues there either. Maybe I'm just lucky?

My 3DS is so unstable. Glad they finally got this out so I can get it under control.

Took my 63 NES games and put them on a pile. On top of that my 42 SNES games and on top of that my 35 N64 games and on top of that my 15 3DS games. And waaaay up of that my 3DS... I swear it has never been this stable

@Silent my XL has this weird thing were the 3DS flickers on and off if the screen moves.

Thanks to parental controls I could keep them system from displaying 3D at all, making it playable.

@AVahne

You seem to think that issues are not found with time. It is one thing to say that the entire system should be 100% stable (ie: Unable to be hacked, stable from accidental deletions and errors and corruptions, & also to maintain compatibility with Nintendo servers as well as other 3DS units with different System Update Settings). It is Entirely something different to be able to maintain that.

Please keep in mind that, even with all that above needed, there is still a very large hacking project going on to crack the 3DS. Nintendo needs to stay on top of that as well. That includes maintaining their communication lines as well. It would still be a problem if hackers were able to access the 3DS through "updates" made by them so the stability could actually be changes in data communication as well too!

@Andremario: Agreed.

@KnightRider666: I feel that's where the first focus should be. Stablize my account where i can have games on both the 3ds and the wiii u so that way if I drop my system(3ds) in the toilet i can have the same games on wii u and just repair said 3ds and them transfer my games to whatever system i want.

@C-Olimar I hate how I am not allowed to look at M-rated games on the Eshop just because my NNID says that I'm 14. I can't even change it unless I go though a process including verification and all of that "fun" stuff.

@Incarnadine how is it is it good?

um well i use a regular 3DS and not a XL. I don't know about any of you guys but after i got the update the E-shop runs a lot smoother and it won't kick me out of videos.

@Andremario: Exactly! Though I hope mine never falls into the drink lol.

@LordGeovanni
Of course I don't. Every time Nintendo sends out a stability update, I never see a difference in the OSes for either 3DS or Wii U. They're still relatively slow compared to other devices in their class, and still either lock-up (3DS) or completely freeze-up (Wii U) with no change in frequency. I'd understand if they were really new to OS software development, but I wouldn't say they are. Of course their current consoles have their most advanced OSes right now (for Nintendo), but how much longer would I have wait to have a decently stable and smooth experience on my Nintendo consoles? Like I said, it doesn't have to be perfect, just up to par with the rest of the industry. Then again, Nintendo probably puts the absolute minimum amount of resources toward the team that works on these things. Might be the reason why they have such a hard time stabilizing their consoles, much less maintaining them.
And on your comment about Nintendo having to fight the hackers: they're not the only ones. Sony and Microsoft (and I guess Apple?) have to worry about that as well. So what are they doing differently? If you have the answer to that, please tell me. Then maybe I can understand Nintendo's situation better.

EDIT: But if course, my two consoles specifically could just be an isolated problem.

@Andremario
Well I used to accidentally leave my SP my pants pocket when I do the laundry as a kid, and it survived. So unless Nintendo forgot how to build their consoles, you should be fine with a minor toilet drop. Just stick it in a bowl of rice overnight or something.

@mr570
It may be an issue with just certain SKUs of the original 3DS, I don't know, but my 3DS tends to just lock up every now and then. As in, I try to load a system app like Messages or the Web Browser and it won't load. Not even after a 30 minute wait. And even if I could load them, going back to the home menu locks the system as well. Rebooting the system doesn't help. Then again, this might be happening because I only occasionally turn off my 3DS, but it also happens even when I've recently turned the thing off for a day.
Though, the issues tend to resolve themselves after a few days. I still find it weird that it takes more than 5 seconds to load up your messages. Maybe I'm just spoiled by Android. Or maybe my 3DS and Wii U are both cursed?

EDIT: And after typing that, I tested my claims. Browser opened in 3 seconds, which isn't bad, but it took 20-30 seconds to go back to the home menu. Was afraid it locked up again.

Password Reminder via Email.
In other words a way for kids to sneakily unlock the 3DS.
Nowhere as bad as the PS3's holding power till it beeps twice to reset parental controls (amongst other things).

So really I don't see much help in terms of parental controls when really old fashion supervision should do the trick fine.

@AVahne
I cannot specifically respond to any problems you have had with your game systems, however I have had no problem opening any program or closing the programs either. I have not had a single Lock-up or freeze either. The load for entering a game is usually less than 5 seconds for me and the load for the eShop is usually around 30 seconds. Even if that is "excessive", I don't mind the wait. I have had a 3DS since Christmas 2011 as well and never really notice any improvements to speed, however I admittedly don't mind waiting so I might not notice it changing much...

I also have a Wii U as of Christmas 2013. I only had one freeze happen and that was when my Wii U fell and slammed into the table while it was loading a new stage of Mario 3D World. I would doubt that performance was unaffected by that fall and instead was due to "performance issues".

Please note that I am not saying that you are wrong, merely that I have not had or seen the problems that you have.

As for Sony and Microsoft having the same issues, why should that matter? Microsoft for one has countless patches for their Windows software all the time. I know that the Windows XP had another issue within 4 weeks of Microsoft discontinuing the patches earlier this year. People still using it are in danger and Microsoft already told them they are on their own. I can say that they are pretty good at OS stuff too, why are their systems still vulnerable after so many years?

@KnightRider666 @Andremario
I cannot reply to the current 3DS line, but I once left my GB (Brick) outside in a torrential Thunderstorm and not only the GB worked, but so did the two games left outside with it. The games only had those plastic cases around them. I was SO happy.

I also had a DS (Brick) that was useless for me (both screens got smashed by a book landing on something small that crushed the two screens), I decided to put it into one of those Nerf Armor things and then threw it onto concrete from the third floor. No Damage at all. (Yes, I even measured the cracks in the screens and they didn't increase at all. All 20 cracks too!)

@LordGeovanni
You have quite a lot of luck then. Either that or I may have gotten unlucky on both of my particular systems hahah
My 3DS is a limited edition Zelda one, so it's a bit older than yours and I've had it lock up on me a total of 8-ish times. My Wii U, I got a few days after launch and had it freeze up about 9 times before the highly anticipated summer update and then 3 times since that update (which surprised me since I didn't think I would see anymore freezing after that massive update, yet just a few months ago it froze while I was playing Black Ops 2, then froze a couple more times after that.) and these numbers are just for me; I have no idea how many times the Wii U has frozen for my younger siblings.

And as for my comment on the others: even if the other companies have some faults in their OSes, they're still better than what's on Nintendo's consoles while also fighting bigger threats than Nintendo has to (with the desktop and mobile OSes at least). But again, it's probably because of a lack of resources on Nintendo's part.

@AVahne
I actually have two 3DS, the first was also a Zelda Special Edition. Still, both the Zelda one and the Midnight Purple I got a year later work fine for me. I damaged the Zelda one, but that was my fault, not Nintendo's... (Actually, it was this little brat that threw it when I said he couldn't play it. busted up the shoulder buttons, the hinge, and the Wireless communications... )

I don't play on my Wii U nearly as much as my 3DSes and I am extremely certain that you have spent more time on your Wii U than Me on mine... But even then, I only ever had that one freeze...

It could also be that I am extremely lucky and you are similarly unlucky... o.0 Who knows?

Such a shame having a parental control where my kid is able to delete all my saves !!! and he did