This item arrived today and to my surprise, it looks much better in real! Sure I thought the metallic part was actually metal but this is full plastic, and would scratch in a snap (actually already made a scratch on the back by taking it off the box, or perhaps it was already there I'm not sure).
I am very anal when it comes to my electronics, I have a red 3DS and the mix looks cool with this shell. Above it all, I have the original leather travel case for my 3DS and I do not need to remove the shell to fit it in. Sure I have to push a little harder to fit it but it fits and this is what matters. Also no more wobbly upper screen for people playing upside down in their beds lol.
Do not expect the best quality for 10$ but you get plenty for your money with this product, I definitely recommend it for anyone wanting to protect their 150-200$ handheld from outer scratches. And it does add a little fancy to your 3DS making it slightly bulkier but also looking better.
My only concern was the accessibility to the pen, you must close the 3DS to remove it. But it wasn't much of a bother to me seeing the 3DS is designed to allow games to keep running while the screen is closed. So all it does is add a few seconds to access the pen, but hey... you lazy player, call that supplement exercise for your fingers, you might burn a calorie or two with this.
Finally, it's a 10$ shell, for the price I decided to pay, I'm pretty happy, I would purchase again from CTA. Cheers.