Nintendo DS XL or 3Ds for a Six Year Old

Updated on December 03, 2011
M.C. asks from Ann Arbor, MI
22 answers

Which one is better?

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J.A.

answers from San Francisco on

6 is too young for this. Wait a year or two. You will be glad you did. Children 'learn' technology very quickly so there is no rush.

3 moms found this helpful

H.S.

answers from Cincinnati on

Neither. Go with the DS lite. It's the more appropriate model for a 6 year old. Slightly smaller to hold, and not h*** o* the eyes.

2 moms found this helpful

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L.*.

answers from Chicago on

I asked a friend this same question. She said the 3DS because you can always turn off the 3d if you want but you can't add it to the regular one. Merry Christmas=)

2 moms found this helpful
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A.S.

answers from Philadelphia on

We have the XL for my 6 yr old... it is bulkier and easier for him to hold. Guess it also depends on what games they want... because I think the 3ds games can only be played on it....

2 moms found this helpful

M.B.

answers from Orlando on

I have the DSi xl for my son. Like another poster said the 3ds makes me dizzy. As far as games there are so many for the DS so I doubt you will have any trouble finding them.

1 mom found this helpful

J.W.

answers from St. Louis on

I would go with the 3DS, despite what others have posted the 3D can be turned off and the game views like any other handheld. It also has an amazing camera and software for the camera that my 10 year old daughter can't get enough of.

1 mom found this helpful
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C.J.

answers from Dallas on

go with the 3ds - why? because they are phasing out the other two (according to the kid, err clerk, at Toys R Us). Basically what he told us is that in 2012 the current nintendo and Playstation hand held gaming systems (psp and those other than the 3ds) will not have any new games made to support them and the 3ds games are not interchangable. So to acquire games in about a year (2013) from now you will be searching gamestop, ebay and movie trading company, etc and they will not be new games.
This is just what I was told so thought I'd pass it on for what it is worth:) (oh and this kid - clerk - does not work on commission so I don't believe he was just feeding me a line to help nintendo's bottom line - lol)

1 mom found this helpful

C.O.

answers from Washington DC on

I personally don't like the 3D - it makes me dizzy and my kids too. They actually took it to GameStop and traded it in for the XL and games.

The XL is great. lots of options.

1 mom found this helpful
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P.S.

answers from Houston on

One of my kid's friends has a 3DS and after watching them play in 3DS I wouldn't recommend it. The kids actually turned it off after showing me. My 6 yo hates watching the screen. Plus, it would give me a headache after staring at it for 5 minutes. It is REALLY COOL to watch the first few time, but I can't imagine it being good for the eyes during long term play, esp for young developing eyes.

We got the XL only b/c the screen is bigger. Worth the money when you take it on long trips.

1 mom found this helpful
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S.K.

answers from Detroit on

We've been trying to decide between the two and are now leaning towards the 3DS. I've been told that very soon (possibly by summer) all new release games will be designed for the 3DS only. (I haven't found official confirmation of this, but it's the info I got from more than a few people.) So if you get the DSi XL which plays only the DS and DSi games, you will still have a very large selection of games to choose from, but you won't be able to play any of the newer 3DS games. The 3DS can play the DS, DSi, and 3DS games.

Also, there is a switch to control the depth of the 3D on the screen which also allows you to switch the game to 2D. And I haven't actually seen this, but I was told that there is a parental control to lock the machine into 2D mode only.

Whichever one you decide on, I highly recommend getting a protective case for it. My son has a nerf case for a little extra protection. And also get screen protectors to keep the screen from getting all scratched up.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.J.

answers from Sacramento on

Get the 3DS. Our son got the regular DS when he was six. Two years later, Santa is now giving him the 3DS he's obsessing over. You can always turn off the 3D and use it regular, and buying this version now will save you from upgrading later if your child really gets into DS.

1 mom found this helpful
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T.M.

answers from Tampa on

As I understand it the 3DS is not really recommended for smaller kids...more for the over10 age group. I bought Dsi systems for my almost 4 and 6 year olds for Christmas.

1 mom found this helpful
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M.2.

answers from Chicago on

We have decided to get our 6 year old daughter the 3ds for Christmas this year. She plays my husbands DS lite and loves it but has been asking for her own since last Christmas. I debated between the DSiXL and 3ds and have decided to go with the 3ds for many reasons. Some being it's the newest one, the 3d feature can be turned on and off, you can play all ds games on it (not sure if you'd be able to play 3d games on all of them), it's the one she wants, and I actually called our eye doctor to inquire about getting this for my daughter and told her of my concerns - she also has a 6 year old daughter and told me that's exactly what her daughter was getting for Chistmas this year and that like anything else (computer, tv, etc) it should be used in moderation.

ETA - They are currently the same price (DSiXL and 3DS) plus many stores are offering gift cards with a purchase of a 3DS - we bought my daughters from Target about a month ago and received a $25 gift card that we'll be using towards a DS game for her.

✿.R.

answers from Boston on

I say the DS XL. I got it for my kids last year and they love it. I play too. The bigger screen makes a big difference. My kids want the 3D but I hate it. Go into Target and play with it. It's hard to see. I think it's going to make their eyes strain. I don't think it's good for them.
:)

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M.C.

answers from Washington DC on

No to the 3DS. Too young

The DS Lite is the smaller version of the XL. Go for the XL, a 6y can work an XL.

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L.N.

answers from New York on

the reports are the 3D is the most awful version. my nephew has both and he prefers the xl over the 3d actually he rarely plays with the 3d. MY kids have the xl and they love it

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G.T.

answers from Chicago on

you should buy 3ds. Lots of new games coming out can only be played on it.

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B.

answers from Augusta on

I second the DSlite if you HAVE to get one of these for a 6 yr old.
Mine didn't start playing a DS until they were 7 and didn't get good until 8.
The DS lite has more options for games, they play the DS games as well have a slot for the Gameboy Advance games which you can get used at game stores like Gamestop , etc.
The systems are also cheaper so if something happens to it it's easier to replace.

I have played the 3ds , 3D switched on or off it gives me a headache.

ETA : the Ds lite is not the smaller version of the DSiXL , the DSi is the smaller verson, the DSi and the DSiXL do not have the extra slot for Gameboy Advance games.

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K.A.

answers from Saginaw on

xl...I`ve heard from sales people to many kids that say the 3d hurts your eyes. I went with the xl.

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K.S.

answers from Miami on

My 10 year old was given the option of updating to the 3d from her dsi and she said not really. She didnt even want it. Her friend has it and didn't like it any better to want to switch. She loves her dsi though. The i being the important part. Not a regular ds. She loves he camera and the games that come with the dsi. She has about 10 of them.

K.I.

answers from Los Angeles on

My kids love the DS XL!

The screen size makes a huge difference and they have played with their friends' 3D DS' and say they are not that great?!

~I am not really jumping on the 3D bandwagon, just MO.

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V.M.

answers from Cleveland on

We are comtemplating thsi for the 7 yo,

I'm thinking that in 4-5 years there will be newer and newer technology and even the 3 d games would be obsolete, If my kids could play for 3 yrs or so with out stuff breaking, i think we would be ok, So I'm leaning towards the NON- 3D version. not sure which xl or lite. personally, i only plan on bringing it out on car trips of an hour or longer so really if they had 4 games, I figure they would be ok, to rotate those out and then just upgrade when they are around 10 or 11 and then get the newest new thing there is.

if anyone sees anything faulty about my logic please pm me.

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