Is the DS really this fragile?

by David Hinkle { Dec 19th 2007 at 3:00PM }

Over at flickr, user yatta has had a most unfortunate incident occur. His DS lite has been busted all to crap. It was only dropped about two feet, he claims, but since it fell right on its hinge, it pretty much exploded. Talk about your weak points for massive damage, eh? Maybe this gentleman could use a handy guide to help him fix it? Or, maybe just the phone number to Nintendo customer service.

Any of you out there have horror stories about broken DSes?

Tags: breaks, damage, disaster, hinge

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

tim @ Dec 19th 2007 3:15PM

i had this exact thing happen. the hinges were already cracked, but then one of the kids dropped it on the floor and it wound up exactly like your picture.

i sent that one, and a second with just cracked hinges to Nintendo Canada on their dime for shipping. I told them I didnt have receipts, and if they wanted me to pay for repair they could contact me for my Visa. 3 days later I had 2 replacement units in my hands, no payment at all. Total time without DS's... 4 days. Nintendo rocks!

Benjamin L. @ Dec 19th 2007 4:00PM

I used to work at gamestop, and we had a kid come in one time with his DS, and the bottom screen's image was flipped horizontally [think: the decal-words on the front of a police car] and vertically.

Afterlifer82 @ Dec 19th 2007 4:09PM

Sorry but no way in hell this was only dropped from two feet, it looks like someone stomped on it.

Matthew Hilario @ Dec 19th 2007 4:49PM

i had a cracked hinge, and then it broke like that in the picture...i'm lazy and just bought a new ds. is it too late to try to get mine fixed by nintendo? its been about a year ;X

Brain @ Dec 19th 2007 4:59PM

I don't think that could happen form two feet, no offense. And that's another reason to stick with the old, better-looking, stronger DS.

-The Brain has spoken

evilfoxhound @ Dec 19th 2007 5:42PM

I treat mine like a baby, it has never been dropped or hit. Yet it has still managed to develop cracks in the hinges and a few dead pixels : ( Ironically enough, I have been through two brand new Wii's. Nintendo hardware is such cheaply made Korean shit. And no, I don't treat my consoles badly, my bedroom is like a showroom and I treat all my electronics well.

Dio @ Dec 19th 2007 9:56PM

I want to see some proof. Nintendo's products have always been able to endure so much. I've read the stories of Game Boy Colors surviving the weather. I've seen G4's video of attacking each of the last generation's consoles, and the Gamecube survived.

Hardware failure rates for Nintendo are very very low, and you just happen to be one of the few unlucky ones(but not so unlucky to get a copy of Luigi's Mansion that would brick your 'cube). You shouldn't be badmouthing Nintendo since they will replace your consoles.

mykie @ Dec 19th 2007 5:47PM

My current DS Lite took a 3-foot fall from the bathroom sink to the tile floor, completely unscathed.

However, this is the 4th DSL I've had (I got mine on launch day), the other two replaced by Nintendo, twice for cracked hinges, and another time because the L button started sticking.

It seems like there are certain batches of DSLs that are fragile, and others that are bulletproof. Who knows...

samorama @ Dec 19th 2007 6:46PM

Yeah. Was cracked in that same place then broke all together. I bought a Shock case and tried to swap it out, but then I just messed it up too much. I bought mine on launch day so it wasn't under warranty anymore. I happily bought the gold Zelda bundle though as a replacement. Ps -anyone need replacement parts hit me up. ;)

Menace @ Dec 19th 2007 6:51PM

This also happened to mine, but without a fall even. I had a cracked hinge, and then the base of the DS Lite near the R Button cracked, then it just fell apart like the picture above.

I've had mine since launch of the Lites so I haven't bothered to contact Nintendo, though I might see what they say about it.

Jamar @ Dec 19th 2007 7:19PM

I thought I was the only one that happened to. It happened the exact same way, and since I bought an import model that's not made anymore (that dark blue color) I've stuck it back together with superglue and am getting by.

TheGamingBurrito @ Dec 19th 2007 7:31PM

Am I the only one who thinks this guy deserves it for his username?

Spectre (MPH) @ Dec 19th 2007 9:06PM

ive dropped my black ds lite about 6 times from about 4 ft on to solid ground.

Not a scratch. ive never even had broken hinges.

The only thing that did break it were my seemingly endless MPH sessions..

Ahhh...double kills... great times.

JB @ Dec 19th 2007 9:12PM

Don't junk it! JB it! JB weld will fix that right up and it will probably be stronger than before.

Micah @ Dec 19th 2007 9:40PM

Hah, I had that exact break happen to me, though under different circumstances. I was playing a game and went to adjust the screen, and it just went POP! and broke. Fortunately, it was still covered under the PRP, so I was able to get it replaced. I have a picture, too:

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o24/dhelor/dsgotbwokeded.jpg

Chrissay! @ Dec 19th 2007 9:56PM

Iv'e dropped my ds down the stairs a few times, and it has only one un-noticible crack in it, so maybe the ds fell a fewtimes before, which made it more fragile

Dio @ Dec 19th 2007 10:02PM

It's only this fragile if it has the crack, if only Nintendo knew back then that it wasn't "a cosmetic defect".

http://youtube.com/watch?v=jiGvvj8DksU

I'm glad I don't have the hinge crack, but I accidentally dropped my Onyx DS Lite on the floor the bus and it got some scratches :< I don't know if I want to sell it, keep it, or buy a new case. For now I'll enjoy the time I have with it. I trust Nintendo. My Game Boy Color, both of my N64s, and my Game Boy Advance still work. Unfortunately my SNES died a long time ago ;_;

Juri @ Dec 19th 2007 10:25PM

I ran over my DS Lite with my car.
It was in a handbag I accidentally left behind one of the back wheels while cleaning out the boot. ^^;

On the upside it still works! .. at least everything that isnt the left half of the touchscreen works.

Im honestly starting to think these things are immortal ^_^

reef @ Dec 20th 2007 12:25AM

First I got a release day White DS Lite. It developed a Crack in the Hinge So I sent it back to Nintendo. When I recieved it bck the L shoulder button did not work and there was a red pixle in the screen. So I sent It back to the Mighty N again and they fixed it real good I got a Brand spankin new DS Lite. About 3 weeks after I recieved It back this time My wife in a Menstrual Rage threw it to the ground a few times cracking the case but leaving the DS completely functionable. It didn't even crack the hinge she smashed it on the corners oposite the hinge!

greenman @ Dec 20th 2007 2:38AM

same thing happened to my ds, didnt even drop it, i was just closing the ds when it happened

Pointz @ Dec 20th 2007 6:41AM

No way can that happen at two feet? that exact same thing happened in my hands when i was playing sonic rush2. its that click the ds makes when you open it that kind of weakens it. Plus below the power light and just near the R button is the ds' weak point. the silver ds doesn't do that click anymore

Fraggy4 @ Dec 20th 2007 1:00PM

My sister's DS was left in a bucket of water overnight. The next day, the screen leaked water out of it, and the pixels were all messed up.

SirSloppyMoose @ Dec 20th 2007 3:31PM

Same thing happened to my lite. I didn't drop it though, just saw a crack slowly grow every time I opened and shut it. I ended up buying a black replacement shell (I got a white at launch) and just replaced the bottom half. So now I have a unique black and white DS.

This was after the same thing happened to a friend. He turned his into Nintendo and they charged him $80 for a new DS since his warrenty was up.

We're both careful with our systems and this was the time I ever had a major problem with a Nintendo system (and I still have two NESes from when I was a kid).

Eternal Warrior @ Dec 20th 2007 10:00PM

Hmm, mine's proven nigh on bulletproof. I use the alarm feature every morning and we all know what we do to our alarm clocks... I don't necessarily send it flying across the room, but it's experienced its fair share of rough openings and falls to the floor. It's still looks like new.

yatta @ Dec 21st 2007 1:54AM

So yeah, the damn thing fell just two feet, for real, from a really low coffee table to a wood floor.

I've seen my gf's lite take a lot more abuse than mine and she's never had a problem which is why this was so surprising. I guess it just landed in the worst way possible -- on it's corner.

JonnyFusion @ Dec 21st 2007 3:31AM

Had the same happen to my DS lite which was purchased on launch day in the UK. Cracks developed over time and then the hinge broke after a year of use. Took it back to Costco and got a new DS.

Years ago we used to get the same problem at work with Compaq laptop hinges cracking then breaking. The problem with the Compaq and now Nintendo hinge design is that you have a metal hinge under tension held by a piece of plastic that is not upto the task. The constant opening and closing the case stresses the plastic causing the cracks and eventual failure. I believe Nintendo have admitted a problem with some early DS hinges and have modified the plastics used on the later models.

Neo Samurai @ Dec 24th 2007 4:48PM

This EXACT thing has happened to 5 people I know all in the exact same fashion. The DS lite is a like a pretty girl. Very nice looking, with lots of good features, but is also puny and fragile

ArLuthier @ Dec 26th 2007 12:29PM

My son knocked his original DS off the arm of a chair down onto the CARPET and the right hinge broke... just like the picture (but the it was the fat DS). Everthing still worked, I ended up just making a new hinge out of epoxy and guitar frets. He had the coolest hillbilly edition DS around. :-)

Danyal Vierheller @ Dec 27th 2007 1:46PM

For a second there, I thought you'd snagged pictures I took of mine. But I didn't even drop it - all I did was open it up, and it cracked. I was really pissed, too, considering I was in the middle of playing Phoenix Wright: T&T.

Used the opportunity to get a Crimson & Black DS, which works fine, but I'll be honest - I'm a tad paranoid now. :P