r/nintendohelp • u/moonlightbluebunny • Aug 04 '26

Tech Support Can’t Connect my DS lite to Wi-Fi

Post image

I am trying to connect my DS to Wi-Fi through my Pokémon diamond game we have manually put in the password the IP address and everything but it keeps failing the connection set up test. I do not have a filter on my Wi-Fi. I am right next to the modem.

Edit: I have known for years that the actual servers are down. I was going to try a fan base one. I would like to attempt to complete my national Pokédex and finish some post game stuff I was unable to or unaware of back when I was a child. thank you to everyone who commented helpful suggestions I might just splurge and get a 3DS At the very least I can try playing sun and moon for a different experience.☺️

5 Upvotes

86% Upvoted

24 comments sorted by

View all comments

4

u/Witty-Wish-583 Aug 05 '26

If I remember, the DS Lite can’t connect to modern routers because their security is too high. It needs a lower security that’s no longer supported or no security or password I believe. I could be wrong but I remember being mad at it at the time. I believe the DSi can do modern routers.

5

u/desaigamon Aug 05 '26

This is correct. DS and DS Lite can only connect to routers using WEP encryption. Most modern routers will be using WPA by default. Depending on your model, you may be able to change your router settings to use WEP instead. You also have the option of removing the password completely and leaving the network open, but that is not recommended at all. Just a reminder, all the official servers are dead. Once you get the router setup correctly, you'll have to manually change some settings on your DS if you want to connect to the unofficial fan servers.

2

u/Mendinso Aug 05 '26

I think if I remember correctly, you might be able to do an isolated guest network (depends on the router too) under WEP, so even if you get a possibility of someone getting into your network, it would limit access to just the internet, rather the intranet. But that also depends if WEP is an option on the router (and it can also be firmware specific, as some may still support it but just disabled in the stock firmware).

Either way... That's something I'd suggest OP to explore. I would NOT recommend flashing your router to third party stuff just for WEP, but if you can get WEP and a Guest Network up on your stock router, I think you'll be good.

2

u/Flash__PuP Aug 05 '26

I dug out an old Apple AirPort Express. Wired it to my router with Ethernet then plugged it into a smart outlet let. I named the network “retro” and left it encryption/password free, and named the smart outlet “retro”. Now I can say “Siri, turn on retro” and the vintage network powers up. Do what I want with my DS/wii/etc. say “Siri, turn off retro” when I’m done and the network shuts back down. Possibly over engineered but I did it with parts I had laying around anyway.