Nintendo Factory Hardware

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Nintendo has used a wide variety of bespoke hardware as part of their manufacturing processes, many pieces of which have surfaced into the community via Xianyu.

This page will catalog items of factory hardware which don't yet have their own articles.

Many of these are copied (with revisions) from the Odd Taobao Neocities site, with permission from the author. This isn't a 1:1 copy of what's on that site, as this article's scope is limited to factory hardware, and several other types of items have showed up on Xianyu which will be documented separately.

For items which originated from a Xianyu listing, some listing metadata is included as taken from the Odd Taobao site. A "showoff listing" is one which was created by the seller primarily to show off what they have without any real intention of selling it, often with an exorbitantly high price specified.

Nintendo has a tendency to use their own products as part of factory testing setups for other products, even sometimes across console generations. As such, there are a lot of odd revisions of consoles and peripherals here which were themselves used to help manufacture other consoles.

GameCube

"Engineering Test Controller"

• Listing Price: 90¥
• Listing Description: "Nintendo ultra-rare collectible NGC original engineering test controller"
• Listing Description (Original): "任天堂 超稀有收藏品 NGC原装工程测试手柄"

This is a white, final model GameCube Controller with a second wire with an unknown plug type attached to it in addition to the regular one. It's unknown what this was used for, possibly for controlling some kind of test equipment (not necessarily for the GameCube itself).

Rough translation of the label:

External objects management Management Number: S-B8520-465 Angular Velocity (CFS8280 Handle)

DS/DSi

Factory/Internal Top Halves

• Listing Price: 9999¥ (Showoff listing)
• Listing Description: "This is my first time seeing this. Does anyone know the origin of this machine? Nintendo World New York"
• Listing Description (Original): "第一次见，有了解本机出处的吗，纽约任天堂世界"

These are several DS/DSi console top halves with various internal-use labels. Of note is parts from a 3DS that appears to have been used as part of a microphone tester setup, a DS that appears to be from NST, a highly defective 3DS which failed numerous factory tests and has the error codes printed on it along with "NG", three DSi XLs with the names "Kin Corn Karn", "Unira", and "Sable Able" printed on them, and a DSi branded with the Nintendo World Store (now Nintendo NY) logo.

Internally-used DS Lite

• Listing Price: 158¥
• Listing Description: "Nintendo Not for Sale Japanese Version NDSL Engineering Test Machine Pearl White"
• Listing Description (Original): "任天堂 非卖品 日版NDSL 工程测试机 珍珠白色"

A DS Lite with an internal asset tag on the back reading "DS Lite JP Prod 0006" and serial number UJF10000861. "Prod" indicates that it's not a prototype, but it may have been used as part of a factory process.

Factory Test Cartridge

• Listing Price: 1599¥
• Listing Description: "Nintendo Factory Test Card"
• Listing Description (Original): "任天堂工厂测试卡。"

An unidentified DS test cartridge.

TWLC-FMCOM-01 board with TWL-EVA 3.1 flashed

• Listing Price: 100¥ (Though, this seller often does not list items for their genuine prices)
• Listing Description: "A copy of Nintendo's finished product inspection board TWL EVA. Version 3.1, dated December 21, 2009. During the production of Nintendo's DSi system, the software was used inside the factory to evaluate each unit before it was put on the shelves."
• Listing Description (Original): "任天堂完成品检查基板 TWL EVA的副本。版本3.1, 日期为2009年12月21日。在任天堂DSi系统的生产过程中, 该软件曾在工厂内使用, 以评估每一个单元, 然后将其放入货架。"

A 'TWLC-FMCOM-01' memory board which connects to a 'TWLC-FDUMMY'. Written to it is version 3.1 of the factory test suite TWL-EVA.

The "TWLC" naming scheme suggests a connection to the DSi Crusher system.