How to Replace Original Nintendo DS Screen 

Hah! Thanks for the kind word!

Thank you!

I never had an original DS until I started doing some repairs and collecting. I'm sure from a nostalgia factor, they're pretty nice. But man, those screens are so dim and hard to view, compared to even the newer DS lite screens!

i just bought 6 off of ebay that just have bad shells this is too cool

@@ogiimo good replacement shells are so hard to come by.

i was wondering about that. the ones i got are just busted on the top screen hinge it looks pretty easy. why don’t they make cool aftermarket shells for them?

@@ogiimo everyone prefers the DS Lite.

Thank you for the kind words! I'd love to make more, but I'm unsure if people like them or want to watch them, so your comments are much appreciated!

Sounds like a fun project to work on!

Thanks for the suggestion! I don't have one yet, and I'm such a small channel, I'm not sure how much interest there would be in mail day videos, but someday, if the channel gets big enough and has enough interest, I would love to do that!

Actually I just meant that we can send you stuff to repair on your channel or extra tools and supplies, stuff like that . I also refurbish used or broken Nintendo handhelds as a hobby and sometimes I come across some I can’t fix so maybe I can send them to you and maybe you’ll fix them on one of your videos or just use them for parts.

Yeah, that'd be pretty sweet! The next time you come across something that, feel free to throw a comment in one of the videos, or send me an email from the About tab, and we can figure something out!

Will do 👍🏼

Nope

Your hinge is loose. Mine has that too. Its due to age just be careful with it

Nope! They're completely different screens, and aren't interchangeable between generations.

It should be, yes. I can't tell you with 100% certainty, because I didn't take it off. But, on the newer systems, it's held in place by double-sided tape, and can be removed.

No you can not from what I've heard. The ribbon cables might be compatible but it wouldn't matter. The screens are of slightly different sizes from what I've heard. I forget if the DS Lite screens are slightly bigger or smaller then OG DS. Another big difference is I believe the DS Lite's top screen cable is unified thus if you replace the screen you have to do the whole thing of feeding the new cable through the hinge unlike OG DS where if the hinge isn't broken and the cable going through it isn't damaged you can more easily swap the screen. (plus even if you do have to replace that cable, it is overall easier to do due to how that hinge was designed). Now that I think about it I don't recall there being seperate power ribbon cables for the DS LIte's screens so yeah definitely not compatible even if you managed to shove one in despite the differeing ribbon cable lengths and screen sizes. I wonder though if building an adapter is possible. It would indeed be pretty awesome if you could somehow run DS Lite screens on OG DS. The D-pad/button spacing on the DS Phat is surprisingly good and I prefer it for certain games like Mario 64 DS where it's not quite as bad to play on D-Pad with OG DS's larger D-Pad design. A shame they didn't do a DS XL. They could have brought that D-pad design back for it. :P

Hey! That sounds like you've got a lot of fun to work on in the near future. :) It sounds like you've got a few problems: 1) A dying lower screen 2) A set of broken hinges 3) A torn ribbon cable to the top screen So, good news and bad news - first, the good news - the top screen on the DS (and ONLY the original DS) doesn't connect directly to the bottom motherboard. Rather, it connects via a small control board in the top shell. Then, a ribbon cable runs from that to the lower assembly and attaches to that motherboard. So, it's likely the screen itself is good, and won't need to be replaced. Now, the bad news - I'm not sure if you can buy just that ribbon cable to replace. I suppose you can, but the console's old enough, and there's probably not enough demand for it, that it'll be hard to find just that ribbon cable. You'll have to do some sleuthing to see if you can find it online. But if you can, you should be ok! But also the bad news - if the hinge is broken, you'll need to replace the entire shell. This is doable (I've got another video that walks through the re-shell process for the OG DS). But it'll take some time, and you'll have to be careful when doing so. As far as the lower screen, you can get replacement screens. But, if it's just a few sets of dead pixels, unless you're going to be playing it a lot, I probably wouldn't worry about it. If you want to replace it though, it's super cheap to do. Example: www.ebay.com/itm/New-Lower-LCD-Bottom-Screen-Replacement-for-Nintendo-DS-Original-NDS/132169624686?hash=item1ec5ec6c6e:g:7bwAAOSw5UZY~jyC I guess it all boils down to how much you really want to keep your original DS in pristine condition. You'll definitely spend more money than its worth to fix it up, compared to just buying another one. But if it has nostalgic value to you, it might be worth doing so. If you want to buy a digitizer though, here's a link to one on eBay: www.ebay.com/itm/New-Replacement-Nintendo-DS-Original-Touch-Touchscreen-Digitizer-Repair-Part-US/221580818096?hash=item33973ef6b0:g:KQcAAOSwF1dURFns Good luck with whatever direction you decide to go with it!

@@TheBrokenPast Thanks for your reply! I've found a ribbon cable on aliexpress for about $7 or so.. So in total it would be around $20 to replace the shell and cable.. but then I still need to do the fixing.. And i will just leave the bottom screen as it is, because its just 3 small spots and I probably wont use the device as much! I just want to feel the thrill of repairing it and blowing new life into something like this..,. HAHAHAAH i guess im just a lil crazy

@@martijn439 No, not crazy at all! It's the thrill of the repair that keeps me coming back for more. (Spoiler - I'm a bit behind on my next video because I've been sick, so I can't narrate it until I get my voice back, but it goes on a completely different direction than handheld consoles!) I'd recommend maybe buying another one that's broken down to tinker with first. If you've got a lot of memories of your console, I'd hate to have you break it more trying to fix it! But if you're ok with the potential of breaking it, go for it!

@@TheBrokenPast Yeah, I will try and go for it i guess! I will buy the parts and see how it goes.. it will take a while to arrive from China but I will give it a shot.. I mean what is $20 for a couple hours of fun and I might learn stuff or i dont know.. Do I need to solder anything? Because i know in DS lite you have to solder stuff and I currently do not have a soldering iron

@@martijn439 It's been awhile since I've touched my OG DS. I don't think there was any soldering necessary. You should be good to go!

3 years late, but the most likely cause is that the ribbon cables aren't connected properly. You have to push them in as far as they can possibly go. If the DS cannot detect both screens, it will not power on (the screen will blink and then shut off).

3 years late, but this is caused by the ribbon cables not being fully inserted. Push them in as far as you can. The white lines on the motherboard will let you know when the ribbon cable is fully inserted. If the DS cannot detect both screens, it will not power on.

@@Angel-mt8eg thanks for the response! Good advice is never too late ..

Sorry! In my case, I never actually had to separate the hinge on this guy! I had one (the teal one) that was broken when I got it, that had the ribbon cable completely annihilated. I used the screen from that (which was already ripped from the lower body), and replaced the screen on the dark grey one with it. Since you don't actually need to remove the hinge or the top half to replace the screen, I didn't need to actually do it here. But you're in luck! I have another video, where I converted another OG DS into a MacroXL. In that one, I clearly walk through the steps on removing the top half of the screen from the bottom part of the body. You can see it here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-lR-AlJbL_2A.html Take a look at that, and let me know if you have any questions!

@@TheBrokenPast Thanks man. That was dope of you to give me the link and everything. Subbed.

You’re quite welcome. Thanks for joining! :)