Nintendo ds or 3ds for a 6 year old?

[Red Dog]

My 6 year old wants a DS. Is this something that is right for her age? What about this new 3ds? I don't want to spend a lot of money on something that she will be tired of in a month.

Any thoughts on this and deals. Should I wait for BF or should I try to purchase one now?

[amood06]

My 6 year old wants a DS. Is this something that is right for her age? What about this new 3ds? I don't want to spend a lot of money on something that she will be tired of in a month.

Any thoughts on this and deals. Should I wait for BF or should I try to purchase one now?

When you say DS, do you mean DS Lite or DSI? There are I think 4 DS systems out right now. The DS Lite, which is the oldest version, that plays game boy advance games as well as the regular ds games. Then the DSI came out and this has a camera and you can play online, but you can't use older gameboy advance games. Then the DSI XL came out and this just has a wider screen. Finally, the 3DS is 3D without the glasses.

 

Just wanted to let you know your options, in response to your question, I would get the DS Lite if your just looking for a cheap ds system they are a little harder to find, (try the actual stores, instead of online) and they cost $99. The DSI is good if she wants to use the camera or the online gaming and I think the prices will drop on those for BF, if you see one for $99 snatch it up, because I think they're like $149 right now. I think unless she specifically asks for the 3DS go for the DS lite or DSI. The DS systems are good for 6 years old and they have tons of games, she won't tire of that in a month, trust me. Also if you wait for BF be mindful that you might have to be very open minded with the colors. If you want a specific color on BF they might be hard to come by. Hope this helps, sorry so long.

[Kim3498]

My 6 year old wants a DS. Is this something that is right for her age? What about this new 3ds? I don't want to spend a lot of money on something that she will be tired of in a month.

Any thoughts on this and deals. Should I wait for BF or should I try to purchase one now?

Well, my DS13 has all 3 systems. He was 5 when he got his first DS, so yeah I would say she is about the right age. He says he likes his 3DS better because it has more options. The control pad is easier to use (has a thumb joystick pad), and he has the 3D option (you do have the option of turning the 3D off), along with a telescoping stylus. They are also bringing out new games that are only available for 3DS (who didn't see that one coming, LOL). Nintendo just price cut the 3DS from $249.99 to $169.99, so personally I don't expect to see any GREAT deals on the system on BF, possibly a store giftcard. ToysRUs did have a decent deal on it 2-3 weeks ago with a free game (around $40.00 savings depending on the game you choose). On the other hand, you might consider that at 6 years old, and how expensive the 3DS is, would your daughter take care of it. If it were me, and considering her age, I would keep that in mind as well. If I could find a decent price, I would buy now. BTW another poster on another thread said she found a DSI at Radioshack for $69.99, so if you decide to go that route I would check my local RadioShack's.

Edited October 4, 2011 by Kim3498

[peppysfireball]

My son is 14 and has them all starting with the Gameboy Advance. He likes the ds lite best because he has a lot of gameboy advance games still. He has certain games he plays on the dsi, but the camera is the major difference and he uses his cellphone or camcorder instead. He has no interest in the 3ds, he says there is only 1 game for it he'd even want. My grandkids are 5,7,9. the oldest plays an old ds but the girls can't work any of them yet although they try, my sons games aren't for little kids.

[Kim3498]

My son is 14 and has them all starting with the Gameboy Advance. He likes the ds lite best because he has a lot of gameboy advance games still. He has certain games he plays on the dsi, but the camera is the major difference and he uses his cellphone or camcorder instead. He has no interest in the 3ds, he says there is only 1 game for it he'd even want. My grandkids are 5,7,9. the oldest plays an old ds but the girls can't work any of them yet although they try, my sons games aren't for little kids.

Right there with ya on DS lite too (DS13 plays it more than the regular DSI by far because of the Advance games). DS 13 had all of his Gameboy systems out the other day playing with them. Looking at his Gameboy, Gameboy Color and Gameboy Advance I just can't believe how far Nintendo has come.......

[DylansMom]

My 6 year old got one last Christmas. It is safe to say he has not grown tired of it!! He has the DS Lite and plays it often. I'm sure if we would let him, he would play ALL DAY EVERY DAY!! When he got his, it was right when the DSi was being released, and I was too afraid to spend that much money and not know how much he was going to play with it or if he would take care of it. Plus I was a little weary of the online capability. I am very happy with our purchase and if I had to do it over again, I would still buy the DS Lite even though I see how much he does play and that he takes care of it (for the most part!). Hope this helps!!

[Red Dog]

Thank you all so much for the information! I did not know there were so many choices. I think I'm going to try to get the Grandmas to go in together so we can get her a 3DS. She has a leapster and she does take good care of that so I think we will go that way. YOu all have been very helpful.

 

Thanks and God Bless!

Red Dog

[bovichtj]

Be sure you research the 3DS. I have read that younger shildren should limit their exposure to 3D technology, as it may damage their eyes. My son has had DSlite for 3.5 years (he is almost 8) and has done very well. We are looking to upgrade to DS I this Christmas.

 

http://www.technewsworld.com/story/71549.html

[peppysfireball]

My son is 14 and has had the gameboy advance, the ds and now the dsi. He says he has no interest in the 3ds because there are only a couple games for it. Make sure they are for your sons age. I mistakenly bought Toy Story for my son's first ds game thinking it would be for his age but although it was geared towards younger children, the skill level was very high and he couldn't play it for a few years. My grandkids are 5,7,9 and the 2 younger ones can't really play any of the games that we have here.

[Kim3498]

My son is 14 and has had the gameboy advance, the ds and now the dsi. He says he has no interest in the 3ds because there are only a couple games for it. Make sure they are for your sons age. I mistakenly bought Toy Story for my son's first ds game thinking it would be for his age but although it was geared towards younger children, the skill level was very high and he couldn't play it for a few years. My grandkids are 5,7,9 and the 2 younger ones can't really play any of the games that we have here.

Great idea on making sure that there will be games of appropriate age for your child. I ran into that problem when I bought the PS3 for DH when PS3 first came out. I ended up buying a Xbox 360 for DS because of the fact that there were hardly no kid friendly games.

 

I will say, though that DS13 went into our local Gamestop last week and had one of the workers print him a list of upcoming new releases coming out between now and Christmas for all systems and the 3DS had alot more games to be released than DS (of course, you already have a lot of choices for the DS). They are beginning to make some games for only 3DS and that is why DS13 ask for the system in the first place. He saw that one coming before me. Lol. BTW: If you do go with the 3DS, I would consider limiting her exposure to the 3D until she gets use to it. It is very easy to turn the 3d option off on the system. I really like that.

Edited October 17, 2011 by Kim3498

[angleyez423]

Just remember that 3D should not be used for children under 7 (all 3DS items print this warning). My son bought his this summer and he just turned 9. We told him to limit the 3D part of it but left it up to him. We didn't have to waste our breath, within a day he decided he didn't care for the 3D that much. Says it hurts his eyes to play it in 3D. BUT the great thing about the 3DS is there is a slider switch to adjust from no 3D to strong 3D or wherever you feel like in between. There are no "settings" to access so it can't be changed at any time. Granted if you tell them no 3D and they want it, it's just as easy to turn it on.

 

My son had upgraded from a DSlite to the 3DS and his sister has a DSi. Lite has the benefit of playing gameboy games, but he felt his sister's DSi was far superior. We didn't turn internet on yet for either one, but for some reason they love to brag about having it, lol.

 

Without 3D the 3DS is just like a DSi with a second 3D camera. I think everyone compared your options pretty well so I won't repeat all that. I would almost always suggest getting the newest system (3DS in this case). It's going to be the last of the options to get completely outdated.

 

As for age wise, our kids both got theirs when they turned 7. 6 is not too young for a DS, it's when they both started asking.

[tokanm]

It has been reported that some kids have had issues with headaches and other disturbances with the 3DS (pediatric journal iirc)

[Mandy4Matt]

My older kids have the 3DS and to be completely honest...the actual 3D games..suck. I know around Christmas they are coming out with Mario and Mario Cart. My five year old has a DSI XL and is asking for a 3DS simply because his brothers have one, I refuse to do it. I just don't see what he would get out of it if he wouldn't be playing the 3D games.

[bfaddict1977]

I got my 8 yr old the 3ds and my 5 yr olds the ds lites at target. I think either works.

[fluffkin79]

My daughter saved for over a year for a DS. She finally got enough on her 8th birthday. We did a lot of research and this is what we decided:

 

DSlite: No. It's older and doesn't have a camera. My daughter didn't already have a camera of her own and it's one of the features she was interested in having.

 

DSiXL: Nah. Her hands are little so I can't see getting her the biggest handheld.

 

DSi: Possiblity. It had everything she wanted and there are a lot of games out for it. My one concern was that the newest games are being made for the 3DS so she might not be able to get the same games her friends are getting.

 

3DS: Possibility. It had just come down from $250 to $170, putting it in her price range. Being the newest system, this is the one that should last the longest as far as the games that are being produced.

 

I gave my daughter the information and let her decided which way to go. She had tried the 3DS at Target and didn't like the 3D feature - she liked it better turned off. She chose to go with the DSi and use the $20 difference toward games. There are plenty of DSi games out there, and since the system is older there is a good supply of used games as well (I found some at a garage sale for $3!). It may not play the newest games being released, but I honestly think that it was a good choice for her. Even though she takes good care of it, it will probably be broken (dead battery, broken hinges, etc.) before stores stop carrying games and accessories for it.

 

We ordered from Amazon about a month ago. She paid $150, but it was tax-free and they were running a deal that gave here a $30(?) credit. She plans to use the credit for games. The first night she got it she didn't have any games, but she had a bunch of fun playing with the camera and voice features. Now that she has games, she still loves to play with the camera and voice.

 

Our favorite game so far is Super Monkeyball. Our kids are 8, 6, & 4 and they all love it.