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Nintendo has announced the 3DS XL, confirming the rumours that the 3DS would get a larger redesign. It will arrive in Europe on July 28.
New features include a 4.88 inch top screen and a 4.18 inch lower touch screen – this makes the top screen the largest ever on a Nintendo handheld. A 4GB SD memory card will also be included, instead of the 2GB card in the 3DS.
Nintendo has also revealed the new handheld will run for 3.5-6.5 hours when playing 3DS titles, and up to 10 hours when playing DS games – a large improvement over the 3DS if the stats prove accurate.
Bizarrely, Nintendo announced that the 3DS XL won’t ship with an AC adapter, meaning you’ll have to buy one separately or use one that shipped with your 3DS, DSi or DS XL.
No price has been announced for the 3DS XL in Europe, but it will retail for $200 in the US.
Images of the 3DS XL can be found in our 3DS XL Image Gallery.
While the 3DS XL is bigger and will run longer, it’s also missing something that was heavily rumoured: a second analogue stick. After the release of the Circle Pad Pro add-on it was assumed by many that any revision of the hardware would come with a second stick as standard, but this isn’t the case. There’s currently no word on a new add-on that offers a second stick for use with the 3DS XL.
