DS Lite game stuck in cartridge - help!

MHYoshimitzu

Hi,

My Dad's fiance has a white DS Lite that she got for her birthday two years ago. She was playing Brain Age 2 last night and went to switch games when she found that the game was stuck inside the system. It ejects the game about a centimeter, but the physical game cannot be pulled out. The game can still be played fine, but it's the only game she can play.

She called Nintendo, and the service people directed her to the website, where she found that her DS is out of warranty, and that it would cost $80 to fix.

Has anyone else even heard about this issue, and if so, what should I do about it? Is it worth it to call Nintendo Customer Support and try to convince them it's a manufacturer's defect so they'll take it back? Since the eject mechanism works, it isn't likely that it's her fault the game isn't coming out, but that it's the system itself.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

LewieP

Never heard of this problem.

Nintendo are know for being lenient in this kind of situation, I suggest another polite phone call might be the best bet.

Magus`

Try harder. The chance of you breaking a cartridge by pulling it up (where it's not straining on anything) is pretty moot.

That being said, yeah, call Nintendo again and see what you can do. Also, look online for dismantling your DS. It's usually not too hard and you can pull it out that way.

MHYoshimitzu

On second inspection, it's more like it ejects the cartridge halfway. I'm comparing it to my DS, the same type and purchased maybe a year before, and it makes the same ejecting sound.

I'll try to make a polite call to them tomorrow on behalf of her. She's not too good at dealing with people civilly when she feels like she's being shafted by someone, especially a company.

Wouldn't opening up the DS on my own void the warranty? If there's absolutely no way they're going to fix the problem, then yeah, I'm probably going to do that, but if there's any chance of them fixing it for free I want to be sure.

The_Scarab

$80 for repair versus $30 to replace Brain Age 2.

Daedalus

Sounds like she got some sticky stuff on the game card (which wouldn't be covered by the warranty even if the system was less than a year old). Just give it a good tug and you'll probably be fine.

Opening the DS requires a tri-wing screwdriver, which can be hard to find but ThinkGeek sells them, and will of course void your warranty but that expired anyway.

randombattle

Uhh just call nintendo and lie and tell them the warranty is still good?

Magus`

Yeah, it's not like they have a list or anything.

The Deliverator

Nope, it's not like they track serial numbers at all.

Oh wait, they do. Nuts.

MHYoshimitzu

They can track the serial numbers on the back of the DS and can tell when it was purchased.

I know, because they did the same thing with me when I sent mine back because of a few dead pixels.

Nintendo's web site wrote:

Nintendo DS Lite - Game Card will not eject:

Press down on the top of the Game Card. It should spring up slightly, giving you enough of a grip to remove the card. If after doing this the Game Card still does not eject, we recommend you have your system repaired.

Nintendo offers convenient repairs, fast turnaround times and, for all systems repaired, a new one-year manufacturer's warranty. To begin the repair process, we will need to gather some information from you.

Please click 'Continue' if you wish to set up an online repair order. We will walk you through the process step by step.

Putting in the serial number brings up Factory Repair ($75) and Remanufactured System ($85) and says the warranty is expired.

Magus`

Just yank on it much harder. I can't even conceive of something for it to snag on outside (as someone said) an outside substance.

And wow, that sounded less sexual in my head.

MHYoshimitzu

It feels like it's locked in there, as if what prevents it from coming out when you push it in there is still partially attached. Yanking it like that could break the mechanism that ejects the games, making her unable to play anything.

Magus`

Get a thin paper clip and see if you can 'hit' whatever it's locking on.

MHYoshimitzu

Yeah, not working. I'm afraid of breaking the paperclip inside the DS, and I don't seem to be doing anything. I stuck it down as far as I could and wiggled it around, and there wasn't anything sticky on either side of the cart.

It would help if I knew how the DS actually attaches to the cart so I could see how I can dislodge it.

Magus`

I sold my DS to get a PSP, so I can't look inside.

But as far as I remember, it's just a bunch of connectors sliding into contact. I can't think of what it could get caught on unless something bent.

It's.. odd.

MHYoshimitzu

It sounds as if one of the connectors just failed to dislodged.

Edit- On third inspection, she has a cracked hinge. That is a manufacturer's defect, as far as I know, though I don't know if they still replace them out of warranty. I could get it in on a technicality, but would they replace the system or just give the same one back to me?

Ginger Mijango

Looking at mine, the locking mechanism seems to consist of a piece of plastic with a nub on a spring, putting the cartridge in pushes the plastic nub down and locks the spring into place, then there is also a smaller spring slightly closer to the entrance that keeps the cartridge in place, but still removable if you pull it.

Pushing the cartridge in again, should unlock the spring and push the cartridge back out, the second spring is no where near strong enough to keep the cartridge in when someone's pulling it.

Sq

Back in the day we used to have problems with floppy disks getting stuck in the drive (usually a bent shutter or something stuck in the drive). Pulling it out with brute force took a lot of energy and would usually damage the read/write heads, but a small amount of energy from the right angle could release whatever was catching and allow you to pull the disk out with minimal damage.

To that end, the trick that I learned was to take a piece of paper, cut it in half & fold it over a couple of times to make a long, thin, and narrow paper tool. You could slip that in above or below the disk and slide it back and forth to get it between the disk or drive and whatever was catching. Maybe you could try something similar with the DS: start with a much smaller piece of paper (maybe a post-it note?), cut it in half and fold it over once or twice, then try to slip it between the cartridge and the contacts or spring release mechanism to see if you can free it.

MHYoshimitzu

That's not a bad idea, but my Dad said he stuck a swiss army knife in there to try to unjam whatever was doing that. He didn't feel anything inside the slot.

Seems my best bet is to send it in to Nintendo as a cracked hinge system. Has anyone had their DS sent to Nintendo in this way? Was your system repaired or replaced?

FunkyWaltDogg

The_Scarab wrote: »

$80 for repair versus $30 to replace Brain Age 2.

It's actually down to $20 now. Just yank the damn thing out.

liquidlogan

Yeah you ought to just use brute force. Look at it this way, if the DS breaks as a result, who gives a shit since you'd have to pay the same amount to have it replaced to begin with whether it was broken or not?

tetsuoZshima

there is nothing on the cart; if you brute force it out you will break the spring mechanism in the system. it will still play games; but it's not going to hold them properly. you are going to have to end up taping them in or something to play them. on the other hand, this likely happened because it's already broken, so damned if ya do, damned if ya don't. my guess is like someone else said, the right pressure from the right angle will free it. try moderate pulling from different angles/wiggles/twisting combinations. but even if you get it out, you'll need to get it fixed or it will try to eat the next game you stick in there. or work a few times....but you WILL see the problem again. you ever bend a slinky out of shape? weak springs don't just go back how they were.

edit: and since you said you were out of warranty anyway -- why not try taking the system apart and taking the game out that way/seeing if you can bend the problem back into shape?

SirToasty

If you have a broken hinge you should be able to get it replaced for free no matter what as it is a known manufacturing defect.

Try pulling the game out while it is pushed in all the way (this can be done easily without harm to the system anyway). Just get your fingernail on the edge and try and get it out. Who knows if that will work, I'm just guessing.

Æthelred

Apart from brute force (which should work), maybe try clicking it in-and-out rapidly to see if that knocks it loose.

Doc Holliday

To answer the question you asked before, they replace the entire lid of the system (top screen and hinges) but not the entire system itself. Sorry

The Deliverator

Ok, I just took a look at my DS, to see how the latch worked. The only place the cartridge catches at all is on the side of the slot nearest the R button. There's a bit on the side that the cartridge pushes down when you insert it, and that bit has a little spring catch that is pushable when the side bit is out, and not pushable when it's all the way in. This is the only thing thats actually holding the cartridge in place. It sounds like that could be stuck, causing the cartridge to not want to pull out. With the cartridge partway out you could try poking a pin or something down that side, and try to push that catch in like it should be. If that fails, just pull the cartridge out. Don't worry about breaking the catch. That catch isn't overly important, as the contact springs should be enough to hold the cartridge in place while it's in, and the other spring bit should still work fine to pop it out.

SirToasty

That little metal nub holds it in place but does not prevent the card from being removed. As I said before, even with the card pushed in fully it can still be pulled directly out without resetting the spring mechanism.

That seems to be the most likely reason that the card is stuck. The nub may be stuck in such a way that it does not press down.

acidlacedpenguin

commit warranty fraud!

apotheos

acidlacedpenguin wrote: »

commit warranty fraud!

No, and not funny, and ... just no.

citizen059

I don't like the idea of just yanking it out, just doesn't seem right. Something will most likely break and I can't see it being the cartridge.

Send it in or do-it-yourself (after acquiring the proper screwdriver) seems to be the way to go.

Also, when I read the title "DS Lite game stuck in cartridge", I envisioned a tiny program trying to break free from the constraints of his cartridge world. This is probably because I've been playing TRON 2.0 lately.

MinionOfCthulhu

MHYoshimitzu wrote: »

Edit- On third inspection, she has a cracked hinge. That is a manufacturer's defect, as far as I know, though I don't know if they still replace them out of warranty. I could get it in on a technicality, but would they replace the system or just give the same one back to me?

They don't. My brother's DS Lite hinge cracked into the giga crack (where the plastic part where the battery light is comes off and the DS is unhinged, like you this right here.), and the bastards wanted 70 dollars to fix it.

Derigor

Needle Nose Pliers.

If a hammer and screw driver cant fix it. Pliers can.
This applies to most things in life I find.

MHYoshimitzu

Talked it over with her and told her her options.

She has some bills to pay for the month and, while she'd like to play other games, it isn't worth breaking it trying to get the game out. She'll buy a new one when she can afford it (she's partial to the pink ones that weren't out when she got the system) .In the mean time, though, it can still play Brain Age 2, and both my father and I have DS Lites she can borrow if she wants to play another game. She'll probably end up tossing out the other system, unless someone can recommend a place she can sell it for parts.

Thanks for all the suggestions. If it were mine, I'd try to pry it out, but this is what she ended up deciding.

DonaldRumsfeld

MHYoshimitzu wrote: »

Talked it over with her and told her her options.

She has some bills to pay for the month and, while she'd like to play other games, it isn't worth breaking it trying to get the game out. She'll buy a new one when she can afford it (she's partial to the pink ones that weren't out when she got the system) .In the mean time, though, it can still play Brain Age 2, and both my father and I have DS Lites she can borrow if she wants to play another game. She'll probably end up tossing out the other system, unless someone can recommend a place she can sell it for parts.

Thanks for all the suggestions. If it were mine, I'd try to pry it out, but this is what she ended up deciding.

heres a way better plan

when your dad's fiance is ready to buy a new DS try putting some more effort in fixing the old one. in case you break the DS no harm done since she is already prepared to buy another one. what exactly was your plan for getting the cart out when she got a new DS? were you just going to throw everything away including brain age?

acidlacedpenguin

give it to me for free?

FyreWulff

MHYoshimitzu wrote: »

Talked it over with her and told her her options.

She has some bills to pay for the month and, while she'd like to play other games, it isn't worth breaking it trying to get the game out. She'll buy a new one when she can afford it (she's partial to the pink ones that weren't out when she got the system) .In the mean time, though, it can still play Brain Age 2, and both my father and I have DS Lites she can borrow if she wants to play another game. She'll probably end up tossing out the other system, unless someone can recommend a place she can sell it for parts.

Thanks for all the suggestions. If it were mine, I'd try to pry it out, but this is what she ended up deciding.

You can't really sell it for parts. Her only options are

1) Attempt to get BA2 out, possibly break the system
2) Buy a new one, attempt to get BA2 out of the old one, possibly break either the DS or BA2
3) Throw away a perfectly good DS and game (what she's chosen)

I'll buy it off her for 20$.

SirToasty

DonaldRumsfeld wrote: »

MHYoshimitzu wrote: »

Talked it over with her and told her her options.

She has some bills to pay for the month and, while she'd like to play other games, it isn't worth breaking it trying to get the game out. She'll buy a new one when she can afford it (she's partial to the pink ones that weren't out when she got the system) .In the mean time, though, it can still play Brain Age 2, and both my father and I have DS Lites she can borrow if she wants to play another game. She'll probably end up tossing out the other system, unless someone can recommend a place she can sell it for parts.

Thanks for all the suggestions. If it were mine, I'd try to pry it out, but this is what she ended up deciding.

heres a way better plan

when your dad's fiance is ready to buy a new DS try putting some more effort in fixing the old one. in case you break the DS no harm done since she is already prepared to buy another one. what exactly was your plan for getting the cart out when she got a new DS? were you just going to throw everything away including brain age?

This is the way to go.

Xenogears of Bore

you can still trade in defective systems to EB or whatever for some nominal amount.

sonicmage

ive never heard of that happening before, but then again i have a launch DS =\ nintendo's usually really good with their hardware, so i dont know what could haev gone wrong

Zeon

Why not just take it apart? Im pretty sure i remember seen pictures of a disassembled DS and the card slot is fairly well revealed. Youd be able to see whats caught then.

Or, just yank that fucker out.

Its stupid to toss out the DS rather than risk breaking it, ESPECIALLY if youre getting a new one anyway.

Hevach

http://www.phosphors.com/nds/

I used this page to take my DS apart for no good reason after the warranty expired. The cartridge slot is under a metal guard. It might be easier to find what's catching, but that guard might still make it hard to fix.

If that's the case, you're prepared to replace the DS anyway, grab some pliers and rip the metal piece right off - worst case scenario, you save the game. A couple of my DS carts have survived horrible abuses up to and including being lost in a snowdrift for over a month, so unless you're actually trying to break it, the game itself is safe.