The 3DS is the greatest handheld of all time
thatalexguy.devThe 3DS is the greatest handheld of all timeA personal essay praising the Nintendo 3DS XL as the greatest handheld console due to its vast game library spanning multiple generations, portability, customization options, and convenience features like suspend mode. The author chose it over larger devices for travel and uses it regularly instead✦ Read ad free and get the full MichaelFilter · $5.50Part of the MichaelFilter
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Unlock the full reading · $5.50 →A personal essay praising the Nintendo 3DS XL as the greatest handheld console due to its vast game library spanning multiple generations, portability, customization options, and convenience features like suspend mode. The author chose it over larger devices for travel and uses it regularly instead of social media scrolling.
Teaching:
• The 3DS suspend feature—open, play briefly, close—mirrors how students can approach home practice: short, consistent sessions rather than waiting for perfect conditions
• Portability as practice design: just as the author chose a smaller device for real constraints, students need practice sequences that fit their actual lives, not idealized schedules
• The 3DS library spans decades of backwards compatibility—like how foundational poses and breath patterns remain accessible across all levels of Ashtanga practice
• Customization of the 3DS home screen versus Switch's rigidity parallels how students need to personalize practice within the system's structure rather than accepting one-size-fits-all
Writing seeds:
• Essay on practice portability: what makes a sequence truly portable isn't just time but mental load, setup requirements, and re-entry friction
• Post comparing suspend mode to practice consistency—the value of being able to pause and resume without losing state or momentum
• Piece on backwards compatibility in practice: how foundational elements remain accessible and valuable even as students advance, like the 3DS playing decades of games
• Short post on doom-scrolling versus practice: the infrastructure of attention and how physical objects with single purposes (3DS, mat) resist attention fragmentation
Idea map:
• Constraint as feature: choosing the 3DS over more powerful devices because of real-world limits connects to practice as working skillfully within constraints rather than waiting for ideal conditions
• Systems literacy through backwards compatibility: the 3DS library architecture mirrors how Ashtanga's system allows access to foundational practices regardless of current level
• Attention infrastructure: the 3DS as single-purpose device versus phone's fragmentation relates to practice as protected attention space
• Suspend mode as embodied bookmark: the ability to pause and resume without setup cost parallels how consistent practice reduces activation energy over time
Source: https://thatalexguy.dev/the-3ds-is-the-greatest-handheld-of-all-time
Teaching:
• The 3DS suspend feature—open, play briefly, close—mirrors how students can approach home practice: short, consistent sessions rather than waiting for perfect conditions
• Portability as practice design: just as the author chose a smaller device for real constraints, students need practice sequences that fit their actual lives, not idealized schedules
• The 3DS library spans decades of backwards compatibility—like how foundational poses and breath patterns remain accessible across all levels of Ashtanga practice
• Customization of the 3DS home screen versus Switch's rigidity parallels how students need to personalize practice within the system's structure rather than accepting one-size-fits-all
Writing seeds:
• Essay on practice portability: what makes a sequence truly portable isn't just time but mental load, setup requirements, and re-entry friction
• Post comparing suspend mode to practice consistency—the value of being able to pause and resume without losing state or momentum
• Piece on backwards compatibility in practice: how foundational elements remain accessible and valuable even as students advance, like the 3DS playing decades of games
• Short post on doom-scrolling versus practice: the infrastructure of attention and how physical objects with single purposes (3DS, mat) resist attention fragmentation
Idea map:
• Constraint as feature: choosing the 3DS over more powerful devices because of real-world limits connects to practice as working skillfully within constraints rather than waiting for ideal conditions
• Systems literacy through backwards compatibility: the 3DS library architecture mirrors how Ashtanga's system allows access to foundational practices regardless of current level
• Attention infrastructure: the 3DS as single-purpose device versus phone's fragmentation relates to practice as protected attention space
• Suspend mode as embodied bookmark: the ability to pause and resume without setup cost parallels how consistent practice reduces activation energy over time
Source: https://thatalexguy.dev/the-3ds-is-the-greatest-handheld-of-all-time
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