Nintendo DS has dead pixels...what to do?

Rayder

I bought a Nintendo DS to replace my GBA SP. It works fine other than the fact that it has two dead pixels in the top-screen. The dead pixels aren't really noticeable when playing a game, but they are definitely there, one along the right side, the other in the bottom-left quadrant. I, like many others, figure I should get a 100% working system for my $150 right out of the box.

Now, should I send this off to Nintendo to get fixed or just take it back to the store I bought it from and get an exchange? I got it at K-Mart (they were the only place I could find it after driving around for 4 hours).

I ask this here because X-Mas is a none-event in our family (JW's strike again ) and I really don't want to have to go into stores at this time of year if I don't absolutely have to. (It's a freakin' nightmare of stupid zombie people that you feel like slamming out of the way to get where you need to go in the store. )

I realise that I may have to wait until after X-Mas before there are any replacements to be had, but I guess my real question is, do you think K-Mart will exchange it? Replacing it through Nintendo will take days and that is annoying. According to the K-Mart reciept, it says exchanges can be made until March 15, 2005. But does that apply to game systems? Particularly, when it comes to the dead pixels in this DS? Will I encounter any hassles? I haven't shopped at K-Mart in years.....

Louiemaster

Well as long as you have the warranty and that the dead pixels were not your fault, Kmart will have to exchange it.

riles9262

Just take it back and get it replaced.

Rayder

I plan to take it back to the store sometime after Christmas. If the store hassles me about it, I'll send it to Nintendo.

What I understand from Nsider, after you complain, they will send you one first, with a label for sending the old one back. In other words, they make sure you are never without your DS. A free game? Well, I don't remember reading anything about that, but I wouldn't be opposed to it.

You know, it seems to me that companies that use LCD displays in their equipment should make sure that dead/stuck pixels never reach retail. A little QA could go a long way.

Senor_Mota

That's horrible. I'd be vehement if I pulled a DS out of the box to see that crap. Get your money back and buy a PSP.

Rayder

I've went over the PSP/DS decision in my head for awhile.......in the end, I chose the DS. Here's why.

1) The DS came out first and works with my GBA games.

2) I am not a fan of FPS games. I figure the PSP will be the place to best exploit those kinds of games. The DS will have them too, I'm sure (Metroid Prime, anyone?), but they probably will not dominate the library like they most-likely will on the PSP.
Nintendo, on the other hand, will have (I believe) a much wider array of genre's to choose from, not to mention the added innovation of the touch and dual-screen setup that should open up whole new genre's of games in itself. The backwards compatibility to GBA games is just icing on the cake.
The ONLY real negative I have against the DS is the fact that there will be too many 'cutesy' games. I made the mistake of buying the Mario DS game.....decent enough game, I guess, but the cutesy factor is killing me....it's hard for me to stomach. I wish I didn't buy it.....but I digress.....

3) The PSP's battery life is abysmal, this is unacceptable to me regardless of the proposed 'power' of the system. I don't want to be in constant fear of running out of juice like that. The DS's battery life is about the same as the GBA SP which always seemed plenty for as much as I play it.

4) I believe the DS is just more innovative than the PSP. I know the PSP is more powerful graphics-wise, but the DS IS capable of 3-D graphics and has the touch and dual-screen design that's never been seen before. That's enough for me to want to see what kind of games show up for it in a year or two. What unique ways they may come up with to utilize the touch-screen.....

But, you know what? Let's get back to the thread topic here.......

Yeah, when I saw the dead pixels at first boot up, I was like, "Aww, man! Doesn't it just figure.... "), but when you're in the middle of a game, you don't notice them unless you are looking for them and the system works fine otherwise.

I'm just gonna do like I said in the previous post: Wait 'til after Christmas, try exchanging it at K-Mart, if they hassle me, I'll do it through Nintendo.

I mainly just wondered if anyone had any issues with taking things back to K-Mart and if they put you through a hassle or not. That was my main reason for starting the thread.....so far, I've heard no horror stories about K-Mart returns/exchanges. This is a good thing.

@/2ct!<

I would say return it now if you can, its even busier after christmas with regards to returns, since all wrong presents are trying to be returned.