M3 Lite (Slim) Hardware Review

GBAtemp.net review of the...
M3 Perfect SD - Lite Model

Aka: M3 Lite, M3 Slim, M3 Adapter SD rev. 2, R2, Model 2
Supplied by Kick Trading
Manufactured by: www.m3adapter.com

You can buy an M3 Slim on GameYeeeah!

By shaunj66 - 25th March 2006

Introduction

Welcome all to yet another GBAtemp.net hardware review!

Today I'll be taking a brief look at the new re-design and more compact model of the new M3 "Lite". But first of all, I'd just like to thank Kick Trading for supplying us with another flash kit to review here at GBAtemp.

The new M3 "Lite" is simply just a hardware re-design of the first generation SD M3 adapter. The re-design is only available in an SD memory card version, and there is no compact flash version, simply because of the much smaller size of SD memory cards as opposed to CF cards.

The M3 "Lite" Itself

Let's take a look at the new design next to the old model...

As you can clearly see, with the new re-design they've managed to trim down just over 1cm (approx.) off the entire cartridge. They've also added a little "handle" to the end of the cart to make it easier to grip when removing from your console (similar to real game paks).

To make this re-design possible, they've actually had to relocate the SD card slot from the original design, which was on the bottom-side of the M3 adapter, to its side on the new M3 "Lite". Now the memory card fits in horizontally rather than vertically.

This is obviously the only real major difference between the new and the old design. Now, you're going to have to remove the M3 adapter from the console before you can remove the memory card, whereas in the old design; you could simply remove the card without removing the adapter itself.
Some people may find this annoying, but with the new re-design, obviously you're going to have to make a sacrifice for the new smaller form. Luckily, with the M3 adapter having a good reputation for their build quality, removing and inserting the adapter from your console is a piece of cake.

Let's take a look at how the new M3 "Lite" shapes up next to some other carts.

As you can see above (and clearer below) the M3 "Lite" is even slightly smaller (approx. 3mm) than the SuperCard SD, which also has a side loading SD card slot.

And compared to a regular GBA game pak, it's approx. 7-8mm taller.

Packaging

The M3 "Lite" was packaged in a box almost identical to that of the original M3 adapter. The only things that have changed are the photos of the M3 adapter, and a few new lines of text and listed features to emphasise the high compatibility with Nintendo DS and GBA ROMs. They even went as far as to note that the M3 "supports" the use of Nintendo Wi-Fi connection.

They've included a mini-CD which contains the latest version (on packing) of the M3 Game Manager software. They've also included a detailed manual document describing how to use the Pass Key 2 (which may or may not be included depending on what package you buy) in both English and Chinese.
Also on the CD are some other useful utilities and software that will come in handy (especially for 56k users) such as the latest DirectX version, Windows Media Player, Quicktime alternative etc...

Even though you will want to download the latest version of the software from their website. Besides that, it's a useful and thoughtful CD.

Hardware and Design

I've already briefly gone over the design change in the 'The M3 "Lite" Itself' section above. But let's look into the new design a bit further!

Again, with the new M3 "Lite" the SD card slot is on the side of the unit. The slot is spring loaded. The SD card clicks into place when inserted, and to eject, you just have to push in on the card, and it will pop out. There's a nice curved groove on the side of the adapter to make this easier.

So... Was the new re-design really necessary?

If you've ever used a M3 adapter before, or have really seen one in use. You'll probably agree with me that the new re-design is definetely welcome. Granted the old design didn't really get in the way or annoy me at all, I certainly welcome a shorter design. Even if it is simply for looks.
If you own a compact flash version M3 adapter, you'll no doubt be eyeing this new M3 up!

The folks over at the M3 factory have once again provided us with a nice bulid quality. The adapters casing is solid and doesn't creak when you touch it or try to remove it from the console.
It fits into your console easily, and you don't have to apply any force at all. It fits just like a real game pak.

Inserted into a DS and a GBA, the M3 "Lite" certainly does look better than the old model. See for yourself below...

M3 "Lite" SD in Nintendo DS:

M3 "Lite" SD in Game Boy Advance SP:

M3 Adapter SD (old model) in Nintendo DS:

SuperCard SD in Nintendo DS:

Curious to see how they fit all the components in the small plastic casing? Here are some photos of the PCB...

As you can see it looks to be quite a tight fit in there!

Using the M3 "Lite"

Actually, I'm not going to cover the use of the M3 "Lite" in this review. As software wise, it's identical to the old M3 adapter (SD).
If you want to learn more about the software side of things, please check our other reviews of the M3 adapter family.

Click here to go to our Review Section.

Or check out the 'Links' section of this review.

Conclusion

This new re-design of the M3 adapter is a great update to an already fantastic piece of kit.

No doubt if you're currently looking into getting a DS backup/media kit you should consider this one.
Unless you're really picky and must have a bottom loading SD card slot, then there's no reason to pick the old design over this new smaller re-design.

The M3 adapter may not be the cheapest kit out there, but it is worth considering if you read through other full reviews.

Pros
+ Very compact design
+ Great build quality

Cons
- Having to remove the adapter to remove SD card?

I'm not going to give this new kit an overall score out of 10, simply because it's just a new hardware design. So read through my review if you want to find out more.

This new design definetely gets my thumbs up.

Just don't expect it to look as pretty when you get a DS Lite!

Links

Affiliated sites

Purchase this cart from our affiliated shops:

http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=39966

QUOTE

Let's address the one difference between M3 "Perfect" and "Professional". Professional is made strictly for NDS use. By reducing the memory size, which cuts costs and is cheaper for consumers to afford, GBA functionality has been stripped away. If you're considering this product, then you're already omitting GBA playback as a deciding factor. This means that GBA ROMs won't be on your day-to-day activities, though the smaller ROMs will still work. One distressing finding was the loss of NDS-GBA Linkage. While few game pairings take a strong advantage of this, it's still a loss that may shy some users away. If GBA support isn't something you absolutely need, then this is a moot subject. You'll find everything on the NDS side to be working and pleasurable.

If NDS functionality is the sole factor in choosing a flash card, then you cannot go wrong with M3 Lite Professional. It continues to be one of the top flash cards. With a retail price of $30-45USD and teamed with a popular nopass, such as PassCard 3, it is possibly the most affordable yet attractive offerings today. Yes, you're cutting out GBA usage, but it's a conscious choice to make for such a huge price slash. Skins, as always, help make your M3 Professional more personalized. G6/M3 Team once again delivers their promises. DS Lite owners will find little reason not to purchase it. I still wish they'd rework the casing build, but again, it's tolerable.

-another world

shaunj66	Post #1 Posted 01 April 2006 - 04:47 PM
GBAtemp's Classy Admin Group: Administrators Posts: 9,543 Member No.: 31 Joined: 24-October 02 Location: South England	GBAtemp.net review of the... M3 Perfect SD - Lite Model Aka: M3 Lite, M3 Slim, M3 Adapter SD rev. 2, R2, Model 2 Supplied by Kick Trading Manufactured by: www.m3adapter.com You can buy an M3 Slim on GameYeeeah! By shaunj66 - 25th March 2006 Introduction Welcome all to yet another GBAtemp.net hardware review! Today I'll be taking a brief look at the new re-design and more compact model of the new M3 "Lite". But first of all, I'd just like to thank Kick Trading for supplying us with another flash kit to review here at GBAtemp. The new M3 "Lite" is simply just a hardware re-design of the first generation SD M3 adapter. The re-design is only available in an SD memory card version, and there is no compact flash version, simply because of the much smaller size of SD memory cards as opposed to CF cards. The M3 "Lite" Itself Let's take a look at the new design next to the old model... As you can clearly see, with the new re-design they've managed to trim down just over 1cm (approx.) off the entire cartridge. They've also added a little "handle" to the end of the cart to make it easier to grip when removing from your console (similar to real game paks). To make this re-design possible, they've actually had to relocate the SD card slot from the original design, which was on the bottom-side of the M3 adapter, to its side on the new M3 "Lite". Now the memory card fits in horizontally rather than vertically. This is obviously the only real major difference between the new and the old design. Now, you're going to have to remove the M3 adapter from the console before you can remove the memory card, whereas in the old design; you could simply remove the card without removing the adapter itself. Some people may find this annoying, but with the new re-design, obviously you're going to have to make a sacrifice for the new smaller form. Luckily, with the M3 adapter having a good reputation for their build quality, removing and inserting the adapter from your console is a piece of cake. Let's take a look at how the new M3 "Lite" shapes up next to some other carts. As you can see above (and clearer below) the M3 "Lite" is even slightly smaller (approx. 3mm) than the SuperCard SD, which also has a side loading SD card slot. And compared to a regular GBA game pak, it's approx. 7-8mm taller. Packaging The M3 "Lite" was packaged in a box almost identical to that of the original M3 adapter. The only things that have changed are the photos of the M3 adapter, and a few new lines of text and listed features to emphasise the high compatibility with Nintendo DS and GBA ROMs. They even went as far as to note that the M3 "supports" the use of Nintendo Wi-Fi connection. They've included a mini-CD which contains the latest version (on packing) of the M3 Game Manager software. They've also included a detailed manual document describing how to use the Pass Key 2 (which may or may not be included depending on what package you buy) in both English and Chinese. Also on the CD are some other useful utilities and software that will come in handy (especially for 56k users) such as the latest DirectX version, Windows Media Player, Quicktime alternative etc... Even though you will want to download the latest version of the software from their website. Besides that, it's a useful and thoughtful CD. Hardware and Design I've already briefly gone over the design change in the 'The M3 "Lite" Itself' section above. But let's look into the new design a bit further! Again, with the new M3 "Lite" the SD card slot is on the side of the unit. The slot is spring loaded. The SD card clicks into place when inserted, and to eject, you just have to push in on the card, and it will pop out. There's a nice curved groove on the side of the adapter to make this easier. So... Was the new re-design really necessary? If you've ever used a M3 adapter before, or have really seen one in use. You'll probably agree with me that the new re-design is definetely welcome. Granted the old design didn't really get in the way or annoy me at all, I certainly welcome a shorter design. Even if it is simply for looks. If you own a compact flash version M3 adapter, you'll no doubt be eyeing this new M3 up! The folks over at the M3 factory have once again provided us with a nice bulid quality. The adapters casing is solid and doesn't creak when you touch it or try to remove it from the console. It fits into your console easily, and you don't have to apply any force at all. It fits just like a real game pak. Inserted into a DS and a GBA, the M3 "Lite" certainly does look better than the old model. See for yourself below... M3 "Lite" SD in Nintendo DS: M3 "Lite" SD in Game Boy Advance SP: M3 Adapter SD (old model) in Nintendo DS: SuperCard SD in Nintendo DS: Curious to see how they fit all the components in the small plastic casing? Here are some photos of the PCB... As you can see it looks to be quite a tight fit in there! Using the M3 "Lite" Actually, I'm not going to cover the use of the M3 "Lite" in this review. As software wise, it's identical to the old M3 adapter (SD). If you want to learn more about the software side of things, please check our other reviews of the M3 adapter family. Click here to go to our Review Section. Or check out the 'Links' section of this review. Conclusion This new re-design of the M3 adapter is a great update to an already fantastic piece of kit. No doubt if you're currently looking into getting a DS backup/media kit you should consider this one. Unless you're really picky and must have a bottom loading SD card slot, then there's no reason to pick the old design over this new smaller re-design. The M3 adapter may not be the cheapest kit out there, but it is worth considering if you read through other full reviews. Pros + Very compact design + Great build quality Cons - Having to remove the adapter to remove SD card? I'm not going to give this new kit an overall score out of 10, simply because it's just a new hardware design. So read through my review if you want to find out more. This new design definetely gets my thumbs up. Just don't expect it to look as pretty when you get a DS Lite! Links GBAtemp Exhaustive M3 SD, Passkey & Passkey 2 Review GBAtemp M3 Perfect Adapter CompactFlash 3rd Generation Review GBAtemp SuperCard vs. M3 Adapter Comparison Official M3 Adapter Website Purchase an M3 from KickTrading Purchase an M3 from SHOP.01media.com M3 Adapter Wiki Affiliated sites Purchase this cart from our affiliated shops:
	Top Quick Edit Full Edit

mary122	Post #2 Posted 13 July 2011 - 10:32 AM
Newbie Group: Newcomers Posts: 7 Member No.: 281,153 Joined: 08-July 11	M3 Lite Perfect VS M3 Lite Pro What are the main differences? Thus far, I know the the PRO is incompatible with GBA games. Is that the only letdown? Thanks!
	Top Quick Edit Full Edit

Another World	Post #3 Posted 14 July 2011 - 06:10 AM
AKAIO Connoisseur Group: Former Staff Posts: 7,922 Member No.: 111,084 Joined: 03-January 08 Location: From Where???	http://gbatemp.net/index.php?showtopic=39966 QUOTE Let's address the one difference between M3 "Perfect" and "Professional". Professional is made strictly for NDS use. By reducing the memory size, which cuts costs and is cheaper for consumers to afford, GBA functionality has been stripped away. If you're considering this product, then you're already omitting GBA playback as a deciding factor. This means that GBA ROMs won't be on your day-to-day activities, though the smaller ROMs will still work. One distressing finding was the loss of NDS-GBA Linkage. While few game pairings take a strong advantage of this, it's still a loss that may shy some users away. If GBA support isn't something you absolutely need, then this is a moot subject. You'll find everything on the NDS side to be working and pleasurable. If NDS functionality is the sole factor in choosing a flash card, then you cannot go wrong with M3 Lite Professional. It continues to be one of the top flash cards. With a retail price of $30-45USD and teamed with a popular nopass, such as PassCard 3, it is possibly the most affordable yet attractive offerings today. Yes, you're cutting out GBA usage, but it's a conscious choice to make for such a huge price slash. Skins, as always, help make your M3 Professional more personalized. G6/M3 Team once again delivers their promises. DS Lite owners will find little reason not to purchase it. I still wish they'd rework the casing build, but again, it's tolerable. -another world
	Top Quick Edit Full Edit

M3 Lite (Slim) Hardware Review

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