It’s amazing what you can do with old tech, especially if you combine it with even older software.
Take the Nintendo 3DS, for example. Originally released in 2011 with a 268MHz processor, it wasn’t exactly a beast even back then. But one YouTuber managed to get the dual-screen handheld to boot Windows 95 for an entirely different flavor of gaming. (Old Nintendo consoles make popular platforms for modding, thanks to an absolutely massive userbase — over 75 million sold for the 3DS — and easy access to parts.)
One of the biggest additions to the 3DS homebrewing scene was a version of the popular DOSBox emulator, which was meant to get classic MS-DOS games running on the portable (much easier than on other gadgets thanks to its secondary touchscreen).
But you can also technically use DOS to boot into Windows, so that’s what MetraByte (spotted by Tom’s Hardware) tried to do.
Launching DOSBox and getting through the ancient DOS command-line interface with a touchscreen and stylus was no picnic. But for anyone old enough to remember a world before Windows, the process will seem familiar (if somewhat blurry on the low-res 3DS screen).
Getting into the Windows setup screen actually wasn’t that bad considering the limits of the 3DS hardware, though it looks like it’s chewing through the battery rapidly.
It took multiple attempts of the installation process at half an hour per attempt (sounds like the 3DS’s flash storage is quite a bit speedier than an old hard disk) to get the system up and running with working sound.
The final setup took over two hours, but the familiar blue-and-gray interface popped up eventually — and then was almost immediately followed by the infamous Blue Screen of Death, plus several different driver errors and an issue where Windows 95 tried to connect to a registry server. But after a week of tries (during which the modder had to wait for a hurricane to pass), the system slowly progressed towards a successful complete boot.
If nothing else, watching someone try to get through the Windows setup process from almost 30 years ago shows how much easier it’s gotten in recent years. I’m impressed that the modder managed to successfully load in sound drivers and use the Nintendo 3DS’s directional nub as a mouse (a la the ThinkPad TrackPoint).
My favorite part was watching Windows fail to auto-detect a modem, then instruct the user to fill out a paper registration card and mail it in to Microsoft. I’d pay good hard American dollars to see someone call in for tech support for that.
Author: Michael Crider, Staff Writer, PCWorld
Michael is a 10-year veteran of technology journalism, covering everything from Apple to ZTE. On PCWorld he's the resident keyboard nut, always using a new one for a review and building a new mechanical board or expanding his desktop "battlestation" in his off hours. Michael's previous bylines include Android Police, Digital Trends, Wired, Lifehacker, and How-To Geek, and he's covered events like CES and Mobile World Congress live. Michael lives in Pennsylvania where he's always looking forward to his next kayaking trip.