The games are great and capable of draining out before you know it in 3 to 5 hours.

Now, think about it. If a game is able to keep you busy for that long in a single session, it has to be a really good game.

 That´s a good way to see it... 3-5 hours is bad, but is still enough when I am not home... Normally I could play up to 6-8 hours but only when I am home, so I think that wouldnt be a big problem for me at least. 

don't you people have girlfriends? I wished I could play 3 to 5 hours straight...  -_-"

/checks wiki on what a girlfriend is

OF COURSE I HAVE ONE!

I usually only play for no more than a hour and a quarter at a time...

I can't remember the last time I played for more than an hour without being plugged in or the ability to be so.  I'm sure such people exist, but they aren't me by any means.  If the "short" life of the 3DS actually becomes a bother you probably arent doing it right, and if you somehow are you must be Japanese.

for me 3 to 5 hours is good for my daily commute and at home there's always a power outlet nearby, so the battery life shouldn't pose a problem. now for long car trips or plane rides I can see the battery as possing a problem but with that new extended battery coming out there's an obvious solution to the problem.

I suppose you can always turn the 3D slider all the way down and dim the brightness to get more time out of a single charge if you're a marathon portable gamer.

I think the only really disappointing thing is that the battery pack isn't easily swapped out (four screws; not "difficult" but hardly convenient) making the whole "buy extra batteries" solution a little less viable.

So sure; disappointing to anyone who plays over 10 hours a week on their DS, maybe not such a big deal to those who play a bit more sporadically like the typical user.

I think someone mentioned that you have to turn the 3D off in the system settings to actually turn it off and that will boost battery life greatly. By using only the slider, it somehow still suck up battery.

I am sure most (if not all) reviewers turned the 3D 'off' by the slider rather than system settings.

Well, I'll run my own tests (which are ultimately the only tests that matter), but I have a hard time believing that I'll only get 2-3 hours out of a single charge with 3D active.

It is a bit of a pain that this is even an issue (one that could have easily been avoided with a larger battery pack) as I never even bothered to "test" battery life on the DS; it seemed to last forever as someone who only plays portable games sporadically.