My son's 6th birthday is coming up.. tbh I have been hesitant to buy my kids a handheld before now as I prefer to game with them. My son seems to prefer us playing together, too. But his mother (ex-wife) has decided that she is getting him a DS for his birthday and has asked me which one. I've heard bad things about kids using the 3DS, though don't actually know anyone with one. Plus, you can turn the 3D off (though I'm not sure how this affects gameplay). Also, it seems to be more powerful, and is £20 £10 cheaper than the DSi XL. I'm also not sure of the size diff between a DSi and a DSi XL. Do you guys have any suggestions? Edit: NM... called her about something else and she's bought a supposedly new DSi Lite + games from eBay for £70. Apparently. Thanks for the help though, guys! Now I just need to make sure I don't feel the need to compete
Note the advice on imact on eyesight for younger children - 3DS has an age rating of 7, younger than that & the eyes are still developing. My son, age 4, has a DSi. Yes, the 3d effect can be switched off, but kinda defeats the purpose. Where are you seeing it £20 cheaper than the XL though? The only real positive argument I'd offer for the 3DS is shelf life.
The 3D being turned off does negate it's purpose in a way but it doesn't really detract from the unit being substantially more powerful and capable than any DS before it. I've noticed the 3D giving a clear and obvious bonus to a game a couple of times up until now and I had one on release day. I would definitely say 3DS over DSi however if you're seriously considering the potential implications on his eyesight then the DSi XL is the logical choice. Easiest way to see the size difference for yourself is to go into a shop and ask, most game outlets have them on display already anyway. For info purposes the DSi XL is 4.2" with a 256x192 resolution and the 3DS is 3.08" but with a 320x240 resolution. Not the easiest to visualise but hope it helps.
Game are selling the DSi for £109, the DSi XL for £140 and the 3DS for £130. Using my apparently broken math 140-130 = 20 :\
I'd say the 3DS - however you need to disable the 3D because its unsafe for eyes in young people (apparantly)
The disabling of the 3D is an extremely simple affair by the way. There is a slider on the side of the top screen to determine the apparent 3D depth, slide it all the way down and it's off, simple as
i would recommend the dsi especially if its going to be for a 6 year old, there is a far wider range of games for him/her to play when on. The 3ds the games at the moment are mainly things such as Zelda or star fox 64