Amazon temporarily discontinues Cosmo Black Nintendo 3DS over hinge concerns
Amazon customers attempting to buy the Cosmo Black Nintendo 3DS were met with something of a shocking sight earlier today. Amazon posted the following message on the product page for the device:
While this item is available from other marketplace sellers on this page, it is not currently offered by Amazon.com because customers have told us there may be something wrong with our inventory of the item, the way we are shipping it, or the way it's described here. (Thanks for the tip!)
We're working to fix the problem as quickly as possible.
While there was no word from Amazon on what, exactly, the defect was, a message from an Amazon rep later on revealed the nature of the problem:
The flip-screen is loose when its opened, please inform them that Nintendo has confirmed as long as the upper screen locks into place, the unit is within Nintendo’s design specification. Customers can call 1-800-255-3700
Apparently, quite a few 3DS owners have been experiencing issues with the the 3DS's hinges, noting that the top screen wobbles a bit too much. But as Amazon confirmed above, that's not a defect at all, but a feature likely meant to prevent the hinge cracking that many users saw with the original DS. Curiously, the Aqua Blue version of the 3DS has not received the same attention.