Being left-handed, a second circle pad is crucial for me, so I won't buy one until they incorporate it into the design, since many games have you using the circle pad and the touch-screen simultaniously, and using a pen with the right hand is just too fucking hard.

And I'm sure this version will come sooner or later. There are always thousands of versions of Nintendo handhelds.

There will never be a version of the 3DS with second circle pad built in.

Adding a second circle pad would essentially make it new platform, with an entirely different user base, as the games would be incompatible with older versions of 3DS. Nintendo would be stupid if they did this.

When I said last, I meant most recent thing released that plays them officially. I actually have a GameBoy Player for my GC, but I have no desire or use for a PSP.

What? Why?
The people who possess older modells could still buy the Circle Pad Pro. And they did it before, with the Wii Motion Plus for example.

So do you normally switch the functions of the analogue sticks on a gamepad?

EDIT: e.g. walk with right, aim with left?

No, that's different. I can use analogue sticks fine with the right hand, but using a touch pen is weird and hard - just like writing. If you've got a DS and have a game that supports a left-handed layout, try it out sometime. You can probably manage to play it more or less, but you're definitly going to be much worse than normally.

yeah the button layout on the ds was designed to be symmetrical to accomodate both handedness, it's rather a shame that they didn't even bother thinking about it with the 3ds. *shrug*

The Wii Remote is a $40 controller, not a $170-$200 portable gaming system. Making a controller of a gaming system obsolete is one thing, but making the entire gaming system itself obsolete and forcing people to buy a bulky attachment for a device that is supposed to be portable is another thing. A 3DS with 2 built-in circle pads will NEVER happen.

I see what you mean then, yes. DS games with lefthanded options could use the ABXY buttons as a d-pad, but since the 3DS lacks a second stick it can't be reversed so easily.

I never buy a handheld till they get finished bringing out all the revisions for it

I don't see how
Wiimote + Motion Plus addon -> Wiimote with Motion Plus built in, is any different from
3DS + Circle Pad Pro addon -> 3DSPro with second circle pad built in.

Just as the addon was not the cost of a whole new controller, the circle pad pro is not the cost of a console. In fact far from it.

All that said, I don't like the circle pad pro and would be annoyed if a 3DSPro was released and games started requiring the second circle pad, but I don't see how you can rule it out so easily.

Mmmm I honestly haven't sat down and timed it. However with any prolonged use I note I need to charge it every day or every other day, as opposed to when I used to charge my DS maybe once a week. I'm sure a Google search would give hard numbers =)

I certainly hope not.
Kindof like removing the GBA slot, or splitting the market into DS and 3DS halves? So now it's in what, quarters?

Is it sad I'm jealous of that DS Lite? I am.

I just bought a Halo 4 headset and controller, uhg, I am such a fanboy.
So you're continually a generation behind then?

There's an advantage to that, I got a PSP to keep me busy while I pay for the Vita, since the PSP is at the end of its commercial life all the games are cheap as biscuits.