3DS Recorder 1.1.0 records the whole 3DS with Luma3DS, sends it to your phone and adds a 30-second Replay

Recording with no PC or capture card

3DS Recorder is a Luma3DS system module, MIT-licensed and created on November 8. It records whatever is on both screens with the sound, whether a game, the HOME Menu or a system app. You start and stop it with R + SELECT from anywhere, and the console converts each recording to MP4 by itself. You then send it to your phone by scanning a QR code, with both devices on the same 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi network.

1.0.0, out of beta

The November 13 release is about smoothness. On an Old 3DS the recording goes from about 22 and 11 frames per second to about 30 on both screens. With Mario Kart 7 it measures about 29 on top and 28 below, with no lost frames during the race. There is a quality setting, Auto or Lossless, and on a New 3DS the encoder uses a core that games leave idle. The MP4 for the phone runs around 25 MB a minute. The author tested it on an Old 3DS and on a New 3DS XL, and says the last New 3DS change has not been rerun on the console.

1.1.0 and Replay

The November 14 release adds a 30-second Replay. With the option on, the recorder keeps the last 30 seconds all the time, and X + SELECT turns them into a clip that shows up in the gallery within a minute. It also fixes the bottom screen running behind the top one in demanding games such as Yo-kai Watch, and recordings over 2 GB getting stuck at 0% on conversion.

Replay writes to the SD card all the time, several GB an hour in a 3D game, and that wears it out. It reserves 512 MB and needs 700 MB free to switch on. It has not been tried on a New 3DS yet.

What you need

Any 3DS, 2DS or New model with Luma3DS. You install the .cia with FBI, or the .3dsx from the Homebrew Launcher, and in the Luma menu (SELECT at power-on) you turn on loading external modules. A 3D recording takes up to about 320 MB a minute. DS and GBA games cannot be recorded, and on an Old 3DS some frames are lost while a game loads.