Where to buy? Ali Express
The original Nintendo DS was launched in 2004, 15 years ago, so it is absolutely unusual to find new units nowadays. But China is China, right? They’re removing the guts off of used DS Lites, renewing them and putting everything inside a brand new case. Refurbished products aren’t novelty, but it’s unusual to find this console being sold through this model nowadays.
It cost me 49 dollars with free shipping and it took 27 days to arrive here (China-Brazil). There were several housing cases available, but the one I chose was this Mario themed one. The handset comes packaged in a lot of bubble wrap, along with simple instructions plus a new but not genuine charger. Inside, I realized that the top screen came protected by plastic, but the bottom one, which is touch sensitive and can be scratched more easily, didn’t come protected.
Talking about build quality, the action buttons, A, B, X and Y, and also both triggers, have good feedback. I just wasn’t a fan of the D-Pad, because it’s a little fluffy and not protuberant enough, although inside the games it shows normal sensitivity. So I think it could be better, but it works as expected.
The overall impression I had about the externals was good. I just note that I found the audio to be kind of low. To be honest, I don’t remember what it was like in the original DS Lite, but anyway… There’s a headphone jack if you want something more immersive.
In-game experience was satisfactory, with no major drawbacks. The sensitivity of the touch screen appears to be normal, and although it’s slightly less vibrant than the upper display, it’s an acceptable result. Speaking of the upper display, I found one dead pixel in it, which should be mentioned but didn’t disturb me at all.
The battery inside it is probably a brand new part, although not genuine. In my use with 75% brightness and high volume most of the time, I got about 6 and a half hours of gameplay, which is below an original DS Lite.
To answer the title question, based on my experience with this unit, yes, you can trust the product. However, if it is worth buying, this is a question with different answers based on the origin of the reader. Here in Brazil, the $50 charged for this item, when converted to local currency, is still slightly below the average charged at online sales sites. In countries such as the US, however, this needs to be considered according to local reality.
Leaving price aside, I think that for those who are collectors or enthusiasts, people who care about small details, this is not a recommended product, because here and there it’s possible to find little differences to a factory sealed unit. But for those who just want to have casual fun, or maybe are seeking for a gift to a small child, this DS Lite is an option. Despite some of the technical flaws I mentioned, the general view is that it’s a device that came in pretty and working as expected.
PROS:
– Yes, works as expected
– Nice housing cases options
CONS:
– Low audio
– D-pad not as good as the original