Comments on: What to do with a broken DS Lite?

Question: What to do with a broken DS Lite?

oulipian — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:26:53 -0800

I thought I was the luckiest thrift-store shopper ever when I found a Nintendo DS Lite at Value Village for $10, complete with box, instruction manuals, and spare battery. Of course, it doesn't work....

The DS Lite appears to be borked. When I plug in the AC adapter, the yellow indicator light comes on and the unit appears to be charging, but the DS will not power on. Nothing appears on the screen, and no sounds come from the unit at all.

The warranty on the unit has expired, and my understanding is that Factory Service from Nintendo will cost $75, which is more than I am willing to pay to get this working. I am in Canada.

Does this sound fix-able? If not, what should I do with my DS?

By: Chocolate Pickle

Chocolate Pickle — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:33:52 -0800

Dissect it and post pictures on the web.

By: battlebison

battlebison — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:55:08 -0800

Turn it into the nerdiest wallet imagineable.

By: danb

danb — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:57:45 -0800

It's a long shot, but it might be worth trying another AC adapter in case that's the broken bit. You can get a cheap off-brand one at GameStop.

By: phredgreen

phredgreen — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 18:59:54 -0800

Out here in the PHX metro, I know of an old used games shop where the guys in the back can repair almost any console or handheld you can drag in. I would recommend that you ask around at some of the independent games shops (not the big name chains) in your area to see if they know of anyone like my guys.

By: mindsound

mindsound — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 19:06:24 -0800

phred has it. Look for a crusty mom-n-pop used-games place. If they can't fix it, heck, you're out a burger and a beer.

By: amyms

amyms — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 19:14:08 -0800

Thirding phredgreen's suggestion. Our local independent video game guys can diagnose all kinds of problems (diagnosis is almost always free). Once you get a diagnosis you'll know whether it's an easy and inexpensive fix or whether you should just toss it.

By: box

box — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 19:35:46 -0800

Pull the battery entirely, then wait for a minute or two, then put it back in. Should prompt a hard-reset. Hey, it's worth a shot.

By: oulipian

oulipian — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 19:59:44 -0800

box: Thanks for the suggestion, but it doesn't seem to make any difference.

The indicator light only comes on when the AC adapter is plugged in - when it's just the battery I can't get any response at all from the DS. Both batteries are the same way.

I should note that these results are with an empty DS - I don't have any games to test it with. Based on past experience with Nintendo products, I'm assuming that the power button not working at all (nothing on the screen and no sound) is not normal behaviour for a game-less DS.

By: box

box — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 20:01:43 -0800

Yeah, the DS would normally still power on, even without a game in it.

By: box

box — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 20:02:47 -0800

I'm wondering, from the way you describe it, if it isn't that both batteries are all-the-way dead. I had a laptop a while back that, when the battery stopped holding a charge at all, stopped functioning even with the AC adapter plugged in.

By: box

box — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 20:03:57 -0800

That also might explain both why the Value Village sold it for ten bucks and why the original owner got rid of it.

By: legotech

legotech — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 21:00:03 -0800

dealextreme.com has parts for cheap...no, they are not OEM, yes, everything I've ever bought from them has functioned.

By: nanojath

nanojath — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 21:18:58 -0800

The DS Lite does turn on without software in it. Its set-up functions and pictochat (wifi console-to-console chat client) work without external software.

Normally, when charging an amber light comes on, and when it is fully charged the light turns off. Does the light ever turn off? If not that might indicate a battery issue being the first place to look. Normally it takes a few hours, less than 5.

When working normally the power switch slides upwards and then returns to its original position with a spring action. Repeating the same action turns it off.

The batteries are fairly cheap. As suggested by others a friendly game store would probably at least let you test a fresh one in it.

By: glenno86

glenno86 — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 04:14:08 -0800

I'd sell it on ebay, a search for "broken ds lite" returns several broken ds's, fetching between 30-$40 and bidding hasn't even ended yet.

By: oulipian

oulipian — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 06:07:20 -0800

nanojath: The light does eventually turn off if I leave the unit charging, but the DS still won't turn on. The power switch works properly.

Thanks for all the suggestions, everyone. I think my best bet is to bring it to an independent game store to see if it can be inexpensively repaired, as phredgreen suggested. I'd considered eBaying it, but I'd much rather have it fixed.