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Go Back   Cheap Ass Gamer > Blogs > The Original Shipwreck > Review: Nyko Power Pak+ (Nintendo 3DS)
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Review: Nyko Power Pak+ (Nintendo 3DS)

By shipwreck 09-20-2011 09:56 AM
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You know there are significant power consumption issues with the handheld when I review more than one third-party battery for the Nintendo 3DS. A few weeks back I gave Hyperkin’s PowerPlus a go and now it’s time to take a look at Nyko’s Power Pak+. Is this the power source your portable 3D juice sucker has been thirsting for?

Rather than supplement the weak battery that’s in the 3DS, the Power Pak+ decides to completely remove that battery and replace it with one that doubles the capacity. This requires you to remove the back of the Nintendo 3DS and the wimpy battery found underneath it. While this might sound a bit frightening, removing the four tiny screws with the included tiny screwdriver is incredibly quick and easy. The Power Pak+ completely replaces the back casing of the 3DS, so be sure to store that safely away with your original battery. One more thing you’ll want to be sure to do as soon as you have the new battery installed is to reset the time and date of your 3DS. Otherwise, your Activity Log is going to be incorrectly recording dates you played games.

The Power Pak + adds about a quarter inch of nicely contoured matte rubber thickness to the 3DS. Since it changes the form factor of the bottom of the 3DS, you cannot use it in conjunction with Nintendo’s charging cradle (or the upcoming analog stick add-on). Instead, you charge the unit with the standard 3DS power cable or you can buy the Nyko Charge Base (including the Power Pak+ for $30) if you can’t be bothered with plugging a cable into a hole. From an empty battery, the Power Pak+ takes upwards of at least three hours to fully charge. That’s a long time to charge, but this thing has a beast of a battery life. It took seven hours of me playing Star Fox 64 3D with the 3D at max and the volume pretty high for this thing to need a second charge. Or in otherwords, this is the frickin’ battery that should have come with the 3DS. For $15 the Power Pak + is a great investment for those that wish to use their 3DS without constant fear of it being minutes away from being drained. You know, so you can use it like a portable system.

Very Good
Outstanding | Very Good | Fair | Poor | Awful

Recommended Buy Price: $14.99
Current MSRP: $14.99

Nyko Power Pak+ was provided for review by Nyko. I tested the unit over the course of about two weeks going through three charging cycles in that time.
30 Comments

 Comments (Total Comments: 30)  

Old crunchewy crunchewy is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:03 AM
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$14.99 for so much longer battery life definitely seems like a good deal. I think I'll probably pick one of these up when we get a 3DS for our kids this Xmas.
Old TheDrypa TheDrypa is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:16 AM
Although this sounds like an awesome deal, I'm still a bit scared about the fact that the analog stick won't be able to fit on it. It almost seems mandatory to buy the second analog stick, and with this baby on my 3DS, I can't use it. Maybe the'll make a "lite" version of this where the analog stick will fit. So I'll keep my money in my pocket for now,
Old youruglyclone youruglyclone is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:17 AM
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too bad this will be rendered useless when the 2nd circle pad attachment comes out...
Old rhubarbfortress rhubarbfortress is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:27 AM
This is my Amazon review :-) Addresses the battery and the dock.

http://youtu.be/K1v3SitsuFk
Old 100xp 100xp is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:36 AM
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the slide pad needs to come out first before this becomes a hassle...and then there's games that actually use the slide pad. consider that you'd get so much more playtime and street pass time with this on until you finally get the game that uses the slide pad...that isn't region locked.

my only question is, are there compatible cases for the nyko battery installed 3DS?
Old rhubarbfortress rhubarbfortress is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:38 AM
100xp - Yes, definitely. I use a neoprene sleeve and it fits perfectly, but there are plenty of official cases that will still house it. I recommend taking your 3ds to the store and make sure it fits (thats what I did, and several fit comfortably)
Old jer7583 jer7583 is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:40 AM
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I really wanted one of these but with the analog attachment being released, I've decided to pass.

The battery isn't really that bad anyway.
Old rhubarbfortress rhubarbfortress is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:42 AM
Another thing this adds to the 3ds, honestly, is a much more comfortable grip and weight. The 3ds is thin and slick. This gives adult hands something to grip.
Old crunchewy crunchewy is offline - 09-20-2011, 10:54 AM
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The big question is why doesn't the circle pad attachment have a rechargeable battery and provide extra run time for the 3DS? Seems pretty stupid to me.
Old Zelos Zelos is offline - 09-20-2011, 11:28 AM
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This product looks great sounds even better and the price is awesome. But the new nub does sorta kill this or at the lease forces you to wait for a battery extender with a nub attachment built in. Or is that a nub attatchment with a battery extender built in? I'm so confused

Still shouldn't need to compensate for poor design with aftermarket parts.
Old rhubarbfortress rhubarbfortress is offline - 09-20-2011, 11:31 AM
I'm not buying that damn nub, so this isn't an issue for me. MAYBE get a "3ds lite" or "3ds double nub" or "3ds twin pad" or whatever. But I'm not spending an extra $20 to augment my 3ds further.
Old rogXue rogXue is online now - 09-20-2011, 11:39 AM
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wow price drop, was $20 or $30 with the cradle. Worth every penny for me. Now my 3ds can actually sit 3 days before dying on me... Still awesome battery though, installed easy.
Old 100xp 100xp is offline - 09-20-2011, 11:51 AM
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now if nintendo or Nyko can make a portable battery pack like the PSVita is supposed to get...I'd be all over that nahmsayin?! perfect for flights.
Old eliter1 eliter1 is offline - 09-20-2011, 12:05 PM
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These accessory manufacturers must be pissed at Nintendo since their accessories wont work with the Slide Pad. I wasn't going to get it but the Resident Evil game looks very promising. This battery could still come in handy but if you ever want to attach the Slide Pad you would need to remove it and install the other battery, a bit of a hassle.
Old Kaneco Kaneco is offline - 09-20-2011, 12:13 PM
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I wonder if Nyko or some other 3rd party manufacturer will eventually make a battery of the same size to replace the original battery while still keeping the original back of the 3DS still screwed to the back...

The PSP did it, so I hope the 3DS will eventually do it.
Old gr8asianman gr8asianman is offline - 09-20-2011, 12:28 PM
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I picked mine up a couple weeks ago and love it. The extended battery life is a significant upgrade and the slight weight addition make the 3DS feel a bit more comfortable in my hands.
Old NeoGutsman NeoGutsman is offline - 09-20-2011, 12:31 PM
Updated 09-20-2011 at 01:01 PM by NeoGutsman
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Great review! I would have loved if Nyko gave you the charging base since I've read many times that it doesn't work. I think there may have been a revision of the bases and that they may work properly now but I can't seem to confirm that.

EDIT: I checked out rhubarbfortress' review from above (http://youtu.be/K1v3SitsuFk) and he dispelled the misconceptions about the charging base. It turns out that it does work just fine with the battery, just that people weren't actually turning the base on and/or not realizing that the base charges the battery directly and not through the system (therefore temporarily bypassing the 3DS' built in charge sensor - in other words, just go by the indicator on the base when charging rather than the charge light on the front of the 3DS). Highly recommended video review - good work, rhubarbfortress!
Old Monsta Mack Monsta Mack is offline - 09-20-2011, 12:57 PM
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For $15 seems like a bargain for those complaining about battery life. Course the Vita is only gonna do about 4 hours to.
Old kevgret kevgret is offline - 09-20-2011, 01:12 PM
I picked this up from amazon for $19.99 with the charging stand.

Last night, I charged my battery but when I went to turn it on the battery was not charged at all. The charging indicator was red on the base and then turned green so I thought it was fully charged.

I hope it will charge tonight.. anyone else have this problem?
Old NeoGutsman NeoGutsman is offline - 09-20-2011, 01:15 PM
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Bit off topic but does anyone have a recommendation for a case when one has installed this battery? I'm currently using a protective shell with inner silicone padding but this battery looks too good not to buy. I just worry that the stretchy clipcases I used to use for my 3DS won't contain a 3DS + Nyko battery setup.
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