See, this is what I was telling noise in PM. Just before Christmas-time, the XL's didn't sell - they came out $25-35 higher but a few weeks later were CHEAPER than the originals, about $150-170 and the originals were $160-180. At the time, I didn't have any of them, but I certainly questioned why the price on the original was remaining constant and the "new / improved / larger" version kept price dropping.AppleQueso wrote:I ended up getting the small 3DS myself because I'm kinda a cheapass sometimes.
Not knowing and not seeing obvious differences in the store (aside from stylus placement, and larger screens) I assumed it was a screen size preference, but beyond that folks weren't seeing the allure to upgrading. The allure from a DSPhat to a DSlite was/is obvious.
I won't dispute battery life - I certainly think it stands to reason it lasts longer, but I haven't noticed. My kids nor I never play more than an hour or two in any sitting and recharge them long before they die. Never had an issue w/battery life on any of the DS models.
As for preference, i'm not the only one, just asked all 3 of my kids, and my 10yo and 5yo prefer the smaller for comfort, my 7yo prefers the larger for the bigger screen.
All things being equal, if the XL is in stock and the price difference is marginal >$20, get the XL, but I think the argument that it is FAR superior is more "bigger/newer is better" than actual substance. I mean, an extra hour on battery and stylus placement? Yeesh. Who plays for 5+ hours in between charging opportunities? And...once you have the stylus out, was it really that hard to find it? In fact, I think most games you (noise) and I like, don't use a stylus.
