mic on the Nintendo 3DS sucks.

Baggins · May 22, 2011, 12:53:30 PM

No seriously it's in a lousy position. I've been trying to help my mom out with the pan flute sequences in Zelda Spirit Tracks. It's just not picking up the 'blowing' very well. It doesn't help that the mic hole is hidden under the start/home buttons which are covered by out right hand while we attempt to move the flute from note to note.

It's so low on the system I basically have hold he 3DS in an awkward position to even get it to register. Even then it doesn't always pick up the blowing.

MusicallyInspired · May 23, 2011, 12:02:57 AM

I guess you don't have the DS Phat? I've never had a problem with it.

Baggins · May 23, 2011, 06:23:07 AM

I have a DS phat, yes. Don't use it much anymore. I switched over to a DSi. Traded that in for the 3DS, and also got a Lite (for use of GBA/Accessories functionality with brighter screen).

The mic position and quality on the Lite and DSi was great. In the middle of the system, completely away from where your hands are. Don't have to hold it awkwardly to blow into it. Actually the pan flute sequences on the lite and DSi is much easier to do.

But the position of it on the 3DS, under the right hand, under the plastic (the tiny hole were the mic is located actually points downwards along the bottom edge of the system just to the right of the start button), seems to muffle it's ability to pick up sounds. You have to kind of hold the system at an extreme angle, close to your mouth, while trying to move the pan flute On screen. The screen is much harder to see and move in that position. It wouldn't pick up my constant blow, and kept on cutting out, between notes. Maybe it's because I have big hands, is part of the problem, but I don't know.

Lambonius · May 23, 2011, 07:12:41 AM

Nah, I'd say you're right that it's just crappy design. The 3DS seems to have been pretty well rushed out the door before it was totally ready. Another in Nintendo's gimmicky game platforms that the public inexplicably laps up like ambrosia. This is just more proof.

Baggins · May 23, 2011, 08:45:43 AM

Well, that and the blur filtered DS emulation sucks as well.

I don't yet have a proper 3DS game to test the system with (why the hell are most of the 'must-have' games all ports of older games?) Paper Mario is the N64 game (my least favorite Mario RPG of all time)... I'll probably get Zelda because it OOT wad one of my favorites and to have both it and Master Quest portable allows for quite a few hours if gaming... But seriously I'd rather have an all new adventure.

Then they didn't bother to throw in the Virtual Console and DSi app store either during release... It's Supposed to be a future update...

Sorry the novelty is wearing thin on me... I totally resent having traded in my DSi (I suppose I could always get one of those XLs now)...

I know some things will get better... I disliked, or found my DS Phat useless for a year when it was released, since it didn't offer any games I was interested in. I was just not impressed with the early line up... Bought it for Metroid which I thought would have been released that year (but was delayed several times). I was not interests in Mario 64, another damned port with 'improvements' (probably my least favorite Mario game), instead of an all new adventure.

It took awhile but some great original games came out... I'm sure the 3DS will grow into things someday... But right now I'm suffering from early adopter remorse, I guess.

...and seriously, future games better keep away from gimmicky mic use... Because it will be a source of frustration...

MusicallyInspired · May 23, 2011, 10:48:09 AM

I'll upgrade to a Lite and that's it. Just for the extra battery life. I'll get a 3DS eventually for Ocarina 3D, though.

Arkillian · May 23, 2011, 03:34:09 PM

Quote from: Baggins on May 23, 2011, 08:45:43 AM
Sorry the novelty is wearing thin on me... I totally resent having traded in my DSi (I suppose I could always get one of those XLs now)...

This is why I got a DSXLi- I can't handle the 3D graphics for long. The DSXL is perfect though- I use to have issues reading text and stuff, but the large screen is ZOMG SO MUCH BETTER. I don't mind it being slightly pixelly too. It's only VERY slightly. Alot of people I know have gone XL also cause they saw how cool mine was. It's really good- just not small. That's fine though

Baggins · May 23, 2011, 04:33:29 PM

I suspect that the pixelization in the DSiXL isn't all that bad, or much different than previous systems. The screens are still designed with the DS aspect ratio and resolution for each screen (256 x 192). Just enlarged. The DSi original were also slightly bigger than DS lite for example, but still same amount resolution.

All screens were designed for the same resolution, so that means they should all essentially look as good, just larger screens!

Whereas 3DS emulation, has to stretch the graphics onto a larger higher resolution screen (something like 400 x 240), not designed for the earlier graphics. One pixel of the original resolution shares something like 4 pixels of the new screen. Even still the two resolutions are not even equivalents, so one pixel is stretched wider than verticle (think trying to "stretch" pan and scan onto a wide screen tv). They added that blur filter to try to hide the fact that pixels were stretched and skewed across more than a single pixel. But it makes it look really smudgy, like a low resolution youtube video. That and sprites and 3d graphics look a little 'fat', LOL (since they are stretched horizontally).

Arkillian · May 23, 2011, 04:39:47 PM

Yeah, I heard they were doing stuff like that, and basically what the deciding factor was at the endo fo the day was if I could play all my old DS games. Apparently I can do so on a 3DS, but I couldn't afford it, and I was told the XL would play all my American and NZ games. I'm not really all that interested in the 3D technology as it is now. IT makes me motion sick. I'll give it a few generations and stick with my XL. It's sexy in an awesome way

I'm not a fan of buying 1st gen technology

Baggins · May 23, 2011, 05:02:17 PM

The 3DS will play all your American and NZ DS games, just as long as they are original DS games, and not import 3DS games or import DSi only games (these are region locked). If you had any of the latter region locked DSi games, you'd already have a problem on your DSiXL.

I tested one of my imports to vouch that regular DS games work just fine on the 3DS (its a Europe DS game). It just plays them with very fugly graphics (blur filter)!

Nah, I'd rather play DS games on a classic DS model of some sort!

Arkillian · May 23, 2011, 05:34:40 PM

That's good to know

We'll see how long that lasts

BTW- MY DSXL kit came with a USB SD Card Reader. Do you know what that is for? Like... obviously it has a significant meaning to the XLs :/

Baggins · May 23, 2011, 09:04:54 PM

QuoteWe'll see how long that lasts

They won't be able to change it, since old DS games aren't programmed with any region coding, they are regionless. They all show up as any other cartridge put into the system. If they tried to block any DS game, they'd end up blocking all the DS games.

DSi games were the first to add region locks on the cartridges. There aren't that many of these games though (or at least none that I was all that interested in). These were really only DSi because they added camera support (but shared backwards compatibility with previous systems). I got my mom one of these, Woman's Murder Club. Another was Assasin's Creed: Legacy (you could put your face on wanted posters).

Some unscrupulous companies chose to add this region lock to newer games, without adding any specific DSi features. In those cases you could only get around it by using a DSlite or earlier (or so I remember?). But ya its a similar system to what the 3DS uses.

http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy&hl=en&safe=off&source=hp&q=dsi+region+locked&aq=f&aqi=g2g-v3&aql=&oq=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&fp=393a2c8b528a8706

QuoteBTW- MY DSXL kit came with a USB SD Card Reader. Do you know what that is for? Like... obviously it has a significant meaning to the XLs :/

USB SD card reader, quick way to take your SD card 'photos' (DSi cameras) over to a pc? Not everyone has a pc SD card slot.

What some of us would like to know is why the 3DS has a docking station, if you can plug the cord into the system directly... I'm supposing its to limit scratches and stuff to the system case... But who knows?

wilco64256 · May 24, 2011, 03:49:26 PM

I find it a bit more convenient - I just leave the docking station plugged in all the time and sitting on my dresser, then I just have to set the 3DS on there to recharge and can come by and pick it back up quickly later. Then I don't have to be messing with the cord every time.

Baggins · May 24, 2011, 03:58:03 PM

Ya, that makes sense. I think that and its more stable location. Slightly less likely to pull the cord and the system off a surface together.

Arkillian · May 24, 2011, 05:08:51 PM

My DSXL starter kit came with a docking station. IT saves me losing the cord all the time

It DOES however make a lousy nightlight :/ It's base glows and I can't turn it off. IT should only glow when it's in use I reckon :/

News:

mic on the Nintendo 3DS sucks.