Another one to add to the list of issues already mounting. You can see what I'm talking about centrally in the image below, near the D-Pad, which suggests to me other 3DS's may follow suit. It's sharp edges have scratched my top top screen when the 3DS has been closed pocket while travelling. I don't think it will be too long now till the whole bezel deteriorates and flakes off, it's certainly not hard to imagine when you see how incredibly thin this layer of plastic is.

This is undoubtedly the worst made product of Nintendo's I've ever owned, It's design is shockingly bad, so bad that I'm starting to think it's all Intentional, a scam to make more money with the inevitable newer model which will arrive next year. We're talking about a clam shell portable device that scratches your screens when closed, I really don't think it can get much worse than that...

PS: Nintendo's customer services have also been pretty shit to say the least, when I suggested that this might be because of the close proximity to the D-Pad, the service guy suggested that I don't use the D-Pad and use the Circle Pad instead, when I have the option to...

Being a first adopter leads to this.

Nintendo thanks you for Q&A on their product.

damn 3ds is a piece of crap Nintendo wtf

It is a load of shit, Anyway, I'll be sending it off to repair in the morning.

Got it back this morning, Nintendo completely replaced the topside of the bottom half and gave me a new top screen, and they didn't charge me a single penny. I think the frosty toned letter I included in the package, as well as the frosty toned booking call I made earlier, had a lot to do with it. I was adamant on the phone that I wouldn't be prepared to pay a single penny , as this was my third repair in six months.

What I find interesting is that the D-Pad feels significantly better than the last, it's a lot smoother now, and the Slide Pad seems to have more tension also.

It appears to be not so much a hardware defect as it is an engineering defect.