Comparison: Nintendo 3DS vs Nintendo 3DS XL

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It arrived in stores around the world last July and has managed to gain a foothold in the market. The extra-long version of Nintendo's portable console, 3DS, arrived this summer after being announced by the Japanese company once the E3 2012 video game fair concluded . Its increase in the size of the console and screens , as well as the duration of the battery are the strongest points of this new model that, even with its launch, will coexist with the first version of 3DS, in the same way that happened with Nintendo DS and XL.

It is very likely that we will have doubts about which model of Nintendo 3DS to buy or if users of the first model should change to this new version, as it is a model with slightly different features. At yourExpert Games we have tested both consoles face to face, and we tell you in detail the clear (and not so clear) differences between the normal model and the extra-large version of Nintendo 3DS.

In case someone did not know yet and plans to go directly to Nintendo 3DS XL , it is important to note that, unlike the first Nintendo 3DS model , the large version of the laptop does not come with a charger, so if we are a new User of this laptop, we will have to pay a little extra to have such a necessary accessory, while if we are not first-time users of 3DS , we must not forget the charger of this one to continue enjoying our most precious 3D games .

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Both Nintendo 3DS and 3DS XL have the same technical specifications and the same game catalog, but the way of playing and enjoying the titles of these notebooks totally changes with each one of them, since the increase in screen size and the change in the shape of some buttons makes us play more comfortable and with a greater visualization , with an even more panoramic stereoscopic screen, which translates into a better immersion of 3D.

We compare both consoles using what is already one of the laptop's “flagship” games : Super Mario 3D Land , which exploits the potential of the console significantly and makes use of all its functionalities. The screens are sample enough to see that the large size suits 3D games very well and we will not see any type of deformation in the image between one console and another, since the resolution ratio is maintained , seeing in this test a Mario larger, in a setting that we see clearer and with more definition , something that could only be achieved by increasing the screen.

We play until one of the consoles is unloaded, playing with the volume, brightness and 3D effect to the maximum, being the first to drop Nintendo 3DS. The XL version allows us to play a little less than an hour more compared to the first model, which becomes a very strong point of the console in this comparison. If we do a good management of the power consumption of Nintendo 3DS XL, adjusting the brightness appropriately and adapting the sound to our needs, we can get the battery to last a few hours longer than its first version.

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Is the switch from Nintendo 3DS to 3DS XL worth it? It is logical to think that it is not a mandatory change, but if we choose to acquire it , we will notice a clear improvement between using the previous screens and those of the XL model , 90% larger, which allows us to see even better any of the two screens that it includes the laptop. Nintendo 3DS XL is currently worth around 200 euros , a price that can be high if we consider that the only notable changes are the size of the console and its screens, but there are also other points such as the change of the material of the same, its finish and its new battery life, soThe investment will not fall on deaf ears and we will be very satisfied with the console update. There is a weak point for those 3DS players who use the Circle Pad accessory in some of their games : it is not compatible with this new model, so we will have to find another way to play those titles that use it, which is not entirely nice, at least until a version of the larger accessory shows up.

Future Nintendo 3DS users will wonder which model to choose when buying the console. Leaving aside the issue that the 3DS XL does not come with a charger , the extra-long model of the notebook is worth it compared to its predecessor, as long as the size of the current model does not seem less portable to us as it is slightly larger . The price difference between the two is about 40 euros, which can increase about six or ten euros more if we consider that we must buy a chargerto be able to enjoy it for longer than the initial battery charge allows. In short, we are before two laptops that, for the same type of users, we will have to choose between tastes, if we want it more or less portable or if we want more or less features, with two different prices and a large catalog of games available. Whether we opt for 3DS or 3DS XL the choice will be good, but if it is an extra-large version, the better.