I can't imagine it won't, unless Nintendo somehow cuts the life of 3DS short like they did with the GBA (which had only been out for 3.5 years when they released the DS). However, somehow I don't see them releasing a successor to 3DS in 6 months or so...

Also, PSP isn't going to sell any worthwhile numbers this year and beyond, and I don't think we'll be seeing a true successor to 3DS until Q4 2015, at the very earliest.

Ever year they've shipped less than 15m. First year it had launch sales and that hefty price cut, 2012 it had gamesand a new model, 2013 it had games and a new model (Pokemon too I might add).

yet all these big 2014 games (Care to list them?) are going to propell it higher? I don't think so. The figures I gave paint the more accurate picture. 3DS isn't at 80% of DS sales. After 3 full years DS sits at 65m. 3DS sits at 42m. By my calculations that's 65%, and shrinking incredibly fast.

I used to speak about a software drought for the 3DS around 2014. Nintendo already put out all of their big guns. Pokemon, Animal Crossing, Mario Kart, 3DLand, Nintendogs, NSMB2, Brain Training, LoZ. What other big portable games do they have? They also have Monster Hunter, Tamagotchi and Puzzle and Dragons released for their platform. Outside of Dragon Quest and FF I just don't see what we can have to make it beat the software already released.

Furthermore mobile seems to be a larger priority for the largest Japanese publishers so I'm not sure even 3DS will continue getting blockbuster games from there. Because of this I expect the tail on the 3DS to be significantly shorter without more major releases to prop it up like the DS had.

The best case scenario I see Smash if it does as well on portables as it has on consoles and a few lower profile games such as Kirby, Yoshi and a few localisations for the west. Past that I can't imagine them developing for it in favor of the Wii U which actually has some competition now.

Why is this even a question lol, of course it can.

You're right. I just think excluding it from the realm of possibility is a little premature.  For months after the handheld released it was a joke too many, now look at it.  Nintendo games do wonders on handhelds.   

What do you think is the max 3DS can reach? 

I say no. PSP sold over 80k this week. No way 3DS will sell that much at that point in its life.

Ultimately GBA, PSP and 3DS will finished very close but with PSP the top of the 3.

Let's see.

Based on VGC yearly-charts. Looks for me, that current trajectory is above PSP. Also 3DS has already two years above the peak-year of PSP.

The problem with that is PSP was very steady for most of its life. No Nintendo system of late has shown that, when it starts falling it doesn't get back up again. See my thread on 3DS peaking in the first year in the US? (3DS looks overtracked to me as well).

Nintendo are gonna need something amazing to keep it anywhere near 14m this year.

depends on how soon the next iteration gets launched

You said the current trajectory suggests it wouldn't beat PSP. But the data shows, that the current trajectory shoots for way above PSP. Now you play a different song. I believe as you, that the 3DS will not have the same longevity as the PSP. But it is really hard to guess, which one will sell more. So you are ASSUMING it will drop in sales early enough, to prevent it from overtaking the PSP. That may happen or not, but it is nothing you can take from the data.