# New Review - R4 DS



## shaunj66 (Jan 1, 2007)

*New Review - R4 DS*
Official GBAtemp Review








I've just finished writing up the official GBAtemp review of the *R4 DS*. I know a lot of you have been waiting for this one, so enjoy the read!

The R4 DS is yet another slot 1 DS flash kit. It takes micro SD memory cards and boasts 100% compatibility. So to find out how it shaped up, go on and read the in-depth review at the link below!






 R4 DS Review
Feel free to leave your comments on the review in this topic!


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## phoood (Jan 1, 2007)

Looks like from your review, it's a nice product.


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## SynGamer (Jan 1, 2007)

Definitely glad i bought the R4!  Great review


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## g.crow (Jan 1, 2007)

nice one, thx

mars


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## Hairy (Jan 1, 2007)

Yarrr, pretty much seals the deal for me! Thanks for the awesome review shaun! Hopefully they'll improve the download play support soon!


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## Harsky (Jan 1, 2007)

Ooooh... this is tempting me to now part with my M3 CF.... Not too bothered about the download play problems anyways but still.... I'll see what the M3 can offer before I splash out. Considering I haven't been playing much GBA stuff, I don't think I'll be relying on slot 2 solutions for long.


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## adgloride (Jan 1, 2007)

Great review.  I'm still unsure which slot 1 solution to get.  I'll wait for the M3 simple and supercard DS (one) review.


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## Romain (Jan 2, 2007)

I read on the official website of the R4 that it supports FAT32, see this picture: http://www.r4ds.com/pic/2.jpg but you wrote in your (nearly perfect) review that it's not the case, what's wrong?

I think it's important because FAT32 means compatibility with bigger µSD cards (>4GB?)


Thank you


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## pristinemog (Jan 2, 2007)

Gah, FAT16 only after I already loaded everything onto my microSD for the big day tomorrow morning (when my R4DS arrives at my door) in FAT32. The site says it supports FAT32 though... That's weird.

It's also a relief to see no problems with the 1GB Ultra II microSD (which is what I purchased) unlike the Supercard DS One's bugs with it.

Great review. I must say I love this place.


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## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

I was specifically told to use FAT16. But I'll try FAT32 right now.

Maybe they plan to support it at a later date...


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## leetdude_007 (Jan 2, 2007)

Simplicity seems to be the answer here, and I'm not going to be surprised if power consumption is low, as well. R4 and M3 simply are going to be excellent. Some doubt about M3, but that's because it hasn't been reviewed yet!

EDIT: Excellent, as in performing well in their intended function.


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## H8TR (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(pristinemog @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> Gah, FAT16 only after I already loaded everything onto my microSD for the big day tomorrow morning (when my R4DS arrives at my door) in FAT32. The site says it supports FAT32 though... That's weird.


Funny, I did the exact same thing. Great review. Can't want for my M3 DS Simply to come tommorow.


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## aristo (Jan 2, 2007)

Review that everyone's been waiting for...
Great work!

I couldn't go to sleep, until I checked this review with my own eye~

Hoping English 1.05 to be released soon, so everybody can start skinning~


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## ambitous21 (Jan 2, 2007)

GREAT review!
its everything i want..
all the games work. decent GUI, though can be better.
and i dont need download play and homebrew

so i love the R4DS!!


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## Vincent Vega (Jan 2, 2007)

Thanks for the review!  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



I´m glad to read it. 
My unit is en route.


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## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

Ok the R4 supports FAT32 just fine. ROMs perform the same and are still running at full speed. 

I'll update the review now!


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## SynGamer (Jan 2, 2007)

Since the source for the R4DS was released...couldn't someone (or someones) overhaul the GUI, possibly something close to the SCDS's?  I'm sure a look deeper into the source would allow for more options in the GUI.


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## pristinemog (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(shaunj66 @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> Ok the R4 supports FAT32 just fine. ROMs perform the same and are still running at full speed.
> 
> I'll update the review now!



Yay! I don't have to format and put all my ROMs back on my microSD!


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 2, 2007)

i heard that there was software on the CD that converted saves from slot 2 flashcarts including the G6

can your confirm this, and say if it works etc


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## lexus-8 (Jan 2, 2007)

is FAT the same as FAT16 ?


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## ambitous21 (Jan 2, 2007)

and things look even better!
9.2 ?


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## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> i heard that there was software on the CD that converted saves from slot 2 flashcarts including the G6
> 
> can your confirm this, and say if it works etc
> 
> ...


Yes. FAT and FAT16 are the same.


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## 4saken (Jan 2, 2007)

Nice review.

is it possible for a firmware upgrade to fix the problem with download play? Or is it a hardware problem?

ALSO: I didnt read anything on wifi internet play. Has anybody tested it?


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## aristo (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(shaunj66 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > i heard that there was software on the CD that converted saves from slot 2 flashcarts including the G6
> ...



On commercial CD, there are:

1. Save converter
2. R4DS Rom Trimmer
3. 1.0 Skin/Firmwares (total 5 English and Japanese(??))
4. R4 Manual
5. Moonshell 1.5
and read me~


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## IOmega (Jan 2, 2007)

hi... well i got a micro sd sandisk and well i whas thinking if with this card it will be ok... for the r4.... for the presentations of the castlevania and that stuff.... have someone try the r4 with a sandisk ??? sry for my english :S


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## Katalyst (Jan 2, 2007)

Nice review. I was hesitant, but I think I made the right choice when I cancelled my Supercard DS order and ordered an R4. Ships tomorrow.


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(shaunj66 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > i heard that there was software on the CD that converted saves from slot 2 flashcarts including the G6
> ...



theres a peice of software on the website

could you try it out please?
i dont have one, and the 1 thing stopping my from buyin it is i dont wanna start all my games again

i think if you just changed the .0 to a .sav and then convert it, it should work

http://www.r4ds.net/other-2.htm


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## ambitous21 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> Nice review. I was hesitant, but I think I made the right choice when I cancelled my Supercard DS order and ordered an R4. Ships tomorrow.Â


damn you
i envy you.. haha
my paypal money is stuck in cybernet
have to wait one or two days til it appears in my bank.


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## AceHazard (Jan 2, 2007)

Well, I ordered one from GameYeeah yesterday.  Looks like this will do exaclty what I want it to.  I also ordered a SanDisk 1gb microSD (not the ultra).  Anyone know if this will impact performance?  Hopefully someone can do some testing with a non-ultra SanDisk microSD card and post their results.  Now I just gotta find a black DSLite instock somewhere!


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## Katalyst (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(ambitous21 @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> damn you
> i envy you.. haha
> my paypal money is stuck in cybernet
> have to wait one or two days til it appears in my bank.


lol, yeah my PP money is still waiting to hit the bank, I just used some other funds and whenever PP finishes transferring, that'll replace it.


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 2, 2007)

Are Gameyeeah reliable?

I get cecurity warnings when on their site....


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## digital_sin (Jan 2, 2007)

The review was awesome, you guys nailed all of the pros and cons.

However, most of the cons dont matter that much to me... for example download and play because as of right now all of my friends have ordered a R4 too 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 and Homebrew support is already dodgy on all carts, homebrew isn't "perfectly" supported by any cart except for maybe the DS-X (124$ 512MB). as for the Chinease firmware updates comming out faster than the English ones, that's a valid point (so far) and I'm hoping that the R4 team will always keep release dates close and keep them comming to fix bugs and add features. finally, the GUI itself being outdated/not customizable, that's just temprorary untill they release 1.05 so we can make our own skins (already working on a few of my own, I will upload them on H8TR's website L8TR 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




).

GO R4!


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## ambitous21 (Jan 2, 2007)

yes could someone try a sandisk 1 gig with the r4 and see if everything runs fine?

just try a few benchmark games like castlevania, animal crossing, etc

i'm not sure if i can find a kingston around.. and sandisks are much more cheaper so the 1gig is mor affordable  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



me --> poor college student


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## tetsuya (Jan 2, 2007)

That was a nice review. At the moment I have about 46$ in my paypal. Can someone tell me how much is the shipping at Gameyeeah is?
Thanks for the good review shaun


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## Wuschmaster (Jan 2, 2007)

What does "Download Play Problems" mean?
Does that mean it doesn't work AT ALL or does it mean it only works with flashed receiver?

Can you test the DS Download Stations?


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## Costello (Jan 2, 2007)

Gameyeeeah is a good reliable website otherwise we wouldn't recommend it 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




download play problem means:
an UNFLASHED DS can not receive download-play games via wifi.
it simply doesnt work (crashes on load)

flashed DS though will receive these games with no problem.


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## Romain (Jan 2, 2007)

Thank you for the details concerning FAT32 abilities shaunj66.

About the Save Conversion Tool, it is available on their website (they called it "archive conversion").
It is very annoying since you can't drag&drop files, and you cannot select multiple files, so you have to convert all your save files one by one.
I checked output files with an hexeditor, it just pad your file to 512KB (G6 .0 files are 256KB only, Supercard .nds.sav files are .0 files renammed to .nds.sav)
It would be easy to write a program or a script to convert saves files from one type to another:
SC/G6 --> R4: pad with 0xFF to 512KB (from 256KB)
R4 --> SC/G6: split the file in two and keep the first half (256KB)


I have a few questions:
Does somebody know if trimming roms breaks download-play compatibility (for games where it normally works)? (there is a trimming tool on their website)
I don't really care about download-play but it's always interesting to know. I'm asking myself the same question concerning the DS-X and other slot-1 featuring download-play.

Another thing that I was thinking about: will the R4 boot without any µSD card inside, to use it as a nopass? or a TFcard is compulsory to see the main menu?

Hey last thing: does somebody exactly know what are the links with the M3 team? Are they the same, are they only friends, or one is copying the other one (I don't think so)?

Thanks a lot


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## killfreak (Jan 2, 2007)

so, does opera browser work with the usual slot 2 cards? also, i assume online wifi play is no problem?

sounds like a great card!


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## Katalyst (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(tetsuya @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> That was a nice review. At the moment I have about 46$ in my paypal. Can someone tell me how much is the shipping at Gameyeeah is?
> Thanks for the good review shaun


Not sure if it changes depending on location, but I'm in the US (Georgia) and they calculated $5.50 (International AIR Mail,12-18 business days Delivery) for me. Pretty long shipping, but I guess you can't expect much. If you could spare a few more bucks, I'd recommend where I ordered my R4 (modchipstore.com). Their R4 is $5 extra, but they've got shipping for just about as cheap and it's DHL 1-5 day (DHL has always shipped damn fast in my past experience). Comes out to about $50-$52 total. But, Gameyeeah is a good choice nonetheless.


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## dazinith (Jan 2, 2007)

can you add to the review what size micro SD cards will work with the R4? I want to know if I can go for a 2GB or a 4GB card? all i have seen so far is people using 1GB cards, will a 4GB work with this?

thanks for the review!

EDIT:

meh, answering my own question, may still be worth adding to the review?

http://www.r4ds.com/product-en.htm
_Q: How many files can I have on the R4?
A: R4 Adapter supports 128MB~4GB TF(MicroSD) card , 4GB=32Gbit_


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## darksavior (Jan 2, 2007)

any US sites selling the r4? besides divineo
EDIT: while i was typing this was answered ill try that modchipstore


that spring loading has had me worried ever since it was mentioned it had it. now that i saw it in action it doesn't seem so bad. but it does seem like someone can accidentally push the microsd out if you stick it in a pocket. so the only logical solution is to take it out when traveling..

also, can someone try and see if that japanese guitar simulator works?


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## Madrigal (Jan 2, 2007)

Awesome. I think this is the cart I will be getting. I'm sure they will re-vamp the GUI soon as they seem to listen to what their customers want so far, and homebrew support will be fixed as the cart gets more popular. So really, it will be almost perfect with very few cons.


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## SynGamer (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(tetsuya @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> That was a nice review. At the moment I have about 46$ in my paypal. Can someone tell me how much is the shipping at Gameyeeah is?
> Thanks for the good review shaun


I paid $45.50 USD so you are set 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




  Granted, this is based on the lowest shipping cost to the U.S.


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## Jeda (Jan 2, 2007)

Looking at the cons it seems like shaun had a hard time finding negative aspects 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	



Card looks like a must buy. And I don't even have a DS...


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## msakmar (Jan 2, 2007)

I know this has already been asked, but could other mico sd cards be tested, like a 1GB A-Data, or PNY.  The R4 is suppose to work with this manufacturer, and its cheap at tigerdirect, but I am still unsure if it would work.  Thank you, and real nice work on the review


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## SoSly (Jan 2, 2007)

nice review, thanks. 

For the 3rd time asked in this thread, just want to confirm if wifi works? 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Also, seeing as how the R4 GUI boots right after the health warning (on unflashed DSL), how can you change the brightness of the screen? I change the brightness on the main DSL menu, and I'm not sure you can change it while playing a game, can you?

SO would you have to load an original flashcart to get to the main DSL menu to change the brightness?

thanks!


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## Katalyst (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(SoSly @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> Also, seeing as how the R4 GUI boots right after the health warning (on unflashed DSL), how can you change the brightness of the screen? I change the brightness on the main DSL menu, and I'm not sure you can change it while playing a game, can you?
> 
> SO would you have to load an original flashcart to get to the main DSL menu to change the brightness?
> 
> thanks!


Can you not just turn on the DS with no cart inserted and change it? I've only had my DS for a few months or so, but I just did it now as I was typing this.


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## sabinraijin (Jan 2, 2007)

Great review. Reviews of this quality are the reason I keep coming back here! Shaunj66 imo is the best reviewer here.

For me, it all comes down to the M3 Simply review. Depending on how well that performs, I'm either going to get the R4 or the M3S. Download play isn't too big a deal with me, but it's all about rom and homebrew compatibility. If the Simply has the same rom compatibility but better homebrew, I'm going with that. If it doesn't have as good rom compatibility, I'm going with the R4. Must have Castlevania and the other problematic games working 100%!


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## AeroZeppelin (Jan 2, 2007)

Sweet review! I'm so glad I chose this over the Supercard One, Ninjapass, and Acecard


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## Philosophy (Jan 2, 2007)

Yessir!  I'm really confident in my purchase now.  Arrived in the US on the 31st.  Should have this week.  Can't wait.


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## Hooya (Jan 2, 2007)

I'm going to wait for the EZF5 review before I decide.  It'll be between those two carts.  Man this looks promising.  If the EZ5 is par on with this card or better I'll go with EZ, just since I know the company is good with updates and such.


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## Kurai (Jan 2, 2007)

Thanks for the Review, Im now positive i made the right choice, Now i cant wiat for my R4DS to arrive in Australia


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(Romain @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Another thing that I was thinking about: will the R4 boot without any µSD card inside, to use it as a nopass? or a TFcard is compulsory to see the main menu?



I thinks it compulsary, seeing as you put the GUI on the actually SD card


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## Deleted User (Jan 2, 2007)

Thank-you for your review. A score of 9/10 is impressive indeed. I'm not to worried about download play but what I am worried about is games locking up. Could you please test a game for me? (I know you're going to get a lot of requests but I'd appreciate it.) It's called 'Rafa Nadel Tennis', all I would like you to do is start a quick match using any character then quit and tell me if it crashes or returns to the title screen. Thank-you in advance.


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## helpme (Jan 2, 2007)

people keep refereeing to the files on the memory card as firmware
i think thats the wrong definition isnt it????


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## lexus-8 (Jan 2, 2007)

i checked nafa nadal tennis and when i quit a quick match it goes back to the menu. no crashing


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## Deleted User (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(lexus-8 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> i checked nafa nadal tennis and when i quit a quick match it goes back to the menu. no crashing


That's sealed it! I'm ordering one now.


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## clanggedin (Jan 2, 2007)

Can someone who has their R4 check and see if the soft reset works? (L+R+Start+Select) I thought I read somewhere that it works.

Thanks.


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## Destructobot (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(helpme @ Jan 1 2007 said:


> people keep refereeing to the files on the memory card as firmware
> i think thats the wrong definition isnt it????


It would probably be more accurate to call it a loader, but whatever you call it, it runs from the memory card. To update the loader you just replace the files on the microSD card with the files for the newer version.


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## jelbo (Jan 2, 2007)

What about Metroid Prime Pinball? That game gives slowdowns on every slot-1 card I know of. I'm very curious how it performs on R4. Excellent review btw.


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## BlueStar (Jan 2, 2007)

OK, I think I'm pretty much sold on this baby. Just two questions - Any way of using my supercard saves on it and any recommendations where to buy one to be shipped to the UK?

EDIT: Should read the thread first, a save converter supplied by the R4 team, nice touch!

I like the support of clean roms, though I would have quite liked a patching software for trim and reset.  

I presume using clean roms means you don't save automatically and have to soft reboot at the end of every game?

EDIT2:  Only £21 from gameyeeah, bloody hell.  Sold.


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## mewchewz (Jan 2, 2007)

excuse my noobness since i'm new to this business about flash cards etc.., but the r4 does not require a flashed ds, right? 

thanks in advance!


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## khan (Jan 2, 2007)

i ordered my R4DS from Gamesyeeah(or whatever its called) last friday and i should receive from them this week.

Glad i ordered as it looks really good.


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## aristo (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(mewchewz @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> excuse my noobness since i'm new to this business about flash cards etc.., but the r4 does not require a flashed ds, right?
> 
> thanks in advance!



No, you don't need flashed DS.


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## kennyboy (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(SoSly @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> nice review, thanks.
> 
> For the 3rd time asked in this thread, just want to confirm if wifi works?
> 
> ...



this is dependent on your ds lite settings. you can set it to boot to the main menu of the ds if you choose to in settings.


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## rest0re (Jan 2, 2007)

does c-64, spectrum and other emulators work?


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## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

4saken said:


> is it possible for a firmware upgrade to fix the problem with download play? Or is it a hardware problem?
> 
> ALSO: I didnt read anything on wifi internet play. Has anybody tested it?


I'm not too sure. It could be a problem that the cart patches the ROM on the fly from within the loader and breaks something... It might be possible to fix in a firmware/loader update. Here's hoping!



IOmega said:


> hi... well i got a micro sd sandisk and well i whas thinking if with this card it will be ok... for the r4.... for the presentations of the castlevania and that stuff.... have someone try the r4 with a sandisk ??? sry for my english :S


We only tested a Sandisk Ultra II 1GB. We don't have any other micro SD cards to test with. Donations are welcome! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	






killfreak said:


> so, does opera browser work with the usual slot 2 cards? also, i assume online wifi play is no problem?
> 
> sounds like a great card!


The Opera browser hack works fine. Wi-Fi internet is fine also.



msakmar said:


> I know this has already been asked, but could other mico sd cards be tested, like a 1GB A-Data, or PNY.Â The R4 is suppose to work with this manufacturer, and its cheap at tigerdirect, but I am still unsure if it would work.Â Thank you, and real nice work on the review


See above.



clanggedin said:


> Can someone who has their R4 check and see if the soft reset works? (L+R+Start+Select) I thought I read somewhere that it works.
> 
> Thanks.


Soft reset, as in resetting to the beginning of a game works (which developers normally assign to L+R+start+select. But a reset to the R4 DS menu doesn't work.



jelbo said:


> What about Metroid Prime Pinball? That game gives slowdowns on every slot-1 card I know of. I'm very curious how it performs on R4. Excellent review btw.


It works absolutely great with zero slow down. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 (I didn't know the menus were supposed to be that fast! 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




)

I'll add it to the ROM Compatibility list.


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## kohkindachi (Jan 2, 2007)

Is Minisd same as microsd?

And can we convert the .SAV from R4 *TO* .0 for G6?
I know there's a way to .0 ---> .SAV


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## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Is Minisd same as microsd?
> 
> And can we convert the .SAV from R4 *TO* .0 for G6?
> I know there's a way to .0 ---> .SAV


Already answered above.

And no, mini SD is much larger than a micro SD (transflash) card.


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## kohkindachi (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(shaunj66 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > Is Minisd same as microsd?
> ...


Oh ok 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




And can we convert the .SAV from R4 *TO* .0 for G6?
I know there's a way to .0 ---> .SAV


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## Killermech (Jan 2, 2007)

My R4DS got shipped today. So unless someone tests it first before mine arrives. I'll be testing it with the regular Sandisk microsd to see if the facts are correct, regarding no slow downs with whatever card you use.

Excellent top notch review shaunj66!


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## ShadowXP (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(Killermech @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> My R4DS got shipped today. So unless someone tests it first before mine arrives. I'll be testing it with the regular Sandisk microsd to see if the facts are correct, regarding no slow downs with whatever card you use.
> 
> Excellent top notch review shaunj66!



Same, mine got shipped today too and I'll be using a normal SanDisk 1GB microSD with it. The race is on Killermech


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## jelbo (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(shaunj66 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(jelbo @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > What about Metroid Prime Pinball? That game gives slowdowns on every slot-1 card I know of. I'm very curious how it performs on R4. Excellent review btw.
> ...


Nice. I'm amazed by the absence of slowdowns really. I'm tempted to buy this one, but I'll wait and see what M3 has to offer with their 'Real' card. The only thing I miss with R4 is soft-reset.

Btw, does LoveLite work?

About the homebrew support; R4 have indeed released their I/O libs, and a DLDI file has been created. If homebrew coders use DLDI R4 should fully support homebrew.


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## Poppu (Jan 2, 2007)

Very nice review, thanks !!!


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## adgloride (Jan 2, 2007)

After reading this review I made up my mind to order the R4.  Ordered it from bamboogaming and its been despatched today.  I've been waiting for the M3 DS simple to be released for a while, just to read the review and a supercard DS (one) review.  I'm a big supercard fan, had one since the beginning and have had the SD, Mini and Lite versions.

I was thinking back to the real reason I got a supercard when they were first released.  The main reason was price.  The supercard DS is more expensive than the M3 simle and R4, it may have a great looking GUI but suffers from slowdowns unless you have a decent microSD card.

The supercard team will fix this but why pay more for a product that doesn't work 100%.  The black case than now comes with the R4 also helped seal the deal for me.  The white case the R4 has doesn't look anything like a real nintendo DS black case.  You can also see the microSD on the card.  I'm looking forward to getting it, hopefully it'll be here in the UK by next week, with no import tax to pay.


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## Destructobot (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> And can we convert the .SAV from R4 *TO* .0 for G6?
> I know there's a way to .0 ---> .SAV


Should be easy enough. According to the info already posted the R4 saves are the same format, but padded to 512 kB. You would either have to chop off the last (unused) half of the .sav file, or in the case of the two games that actually use 512 kB saves probably just rename the file.


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## Destructobot (Jan 2, 2007)

...


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## Devante (Jan 2, 2007)

Hey shaunj, I noticed when you turned on your DSLite with the R4 inserted, it booted immediately to the R4 menu without even showing the DSLite health warning screen.

How did you get it to do that?


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## kohkindachi (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(destructobot @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > And can we convert the .SAV from R4 *TO* .0 for G6?
> ...


Sounds easy, but how we go abt 'chopping off'


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## H8TR (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(DeVante @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Hey shaunj, I noticed when you turned on your DSLite with the R4 inserted, it booted immediately to the R4 menu without even showing the DSLite health warning screen.
> 
> How did you get it to do that?


Possibly flashed.


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## Killermech (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(ShadowXP @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Same, mine got shipped today too and I'll be using a normal SanDisk 1GB microSD with it. The race is on Killermech
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Hes nds has flashme, so it skips the health screen unless you have flashme stealth


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## jelbo (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(destructobot @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> ...


File Trimmer


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## marblearch111 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(tetsuya @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> That was a nice review. At the moment I have about 46$ in my paypal. Can someone tell me how much is the shipping at Gameyeeah is?
> Thanks for the good review shaun



it cost me $45.50, thats was including shipping to UK.


----------



## marblearch111 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(ambitous21 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> yes could someone try a sandisk 1 gig with the r4 and see if everything runs fine?
> 
> just try a few benchmark games like castlevania, animal crossing, etc
> 
> ...



i've got a regular 1gb sandisk, it runs everything perfect


----------



## AceHazard (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(marblearch111 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> i've got a regular 1gb sandisk, it runs everything perfect



Good to hear everything works well on a regualr SanDisk.  I can't wait for mine to arrive!


----------



## ShadowXP (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(marblearch111 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> QUOTE(ambitous21 @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > yes could someone try a sandisk 1 gig with the r4 and see if everything runs fine?
> ...



That's great to hear, the regular SanDisk is gonna be the microSD I use with my R4


----------



## T-hug (Jan 2, 2007)

Excellent review as always!  I think a r4 vs m3 simply review may be needed to define the better card..


----------



## zatelli (Jan 2, 2007)

Heads up shaunj66 for the, as usual, near perfect review. Given that most slot 1 solutions ,at the time being, have, to a certain extent ,quite similar specs, it would be nice to have a rough idea of how this card behaves powerwise.
It would be a great incencitive to buy this card knowing that in addition to being a top of the range product, its power consumption permits extended play sessions.
A power consumption section would be a great addition to this review though.
I think the rating shouldn't suffer from low homebrew compatibility or dated GUI since source files have been released to developpers, while firmware 1.05 should introduce skinning to the masses. 
However something remains unclear concerning clean rom compatibility: since R4 ain't be download play capable for most game, would this mean, it dynamically patches roms, hence , _it might not be future proof_.


----------



## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 2, 2007)

Just orderd my R4 from GameYeeeah 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 £25
and a 1GB SanDisk MicroSD for £15 from eBay

I Cant Wait for this!


----------



## imaginey (Jan 2, 2007)

For those in the UK, can anyone comfirm if gameyeeeah are import friendly (ie. mark items as being worth under £18 or $35-ish)?  Was going to buy from winsunx for $35 but the shipping cost is almost as much on top....


----------



## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(imaginey @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> For those in the UK, can anyone comfirm if gameyeeeah are import friendly (ie. mark items as being worth under £18 or $35-ish)?Â Was going to buy from winsunx for $35 but the shipping cost is almost as much on top....



not too sure what you mean

but you can change the currency and it will the  change all the prices accordingly

£21 for the R4 and £4 for the P+P


----------



## jelbo (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(imaginey @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> For those in the UK, can anyone comfirm if gameyeeeah are import friendly (ie. mark items as being worth under £18 or $35-ish)?Â Was going to buy from winsunx for $35 but the shipping cost is almost as much on top....


Yes, read their FAQ.


----------



## imaginey (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> not too sure what you mean
> 
> but you can change the currency and it will theÂ change all the prices accordingly
> 
> £21 for the R4 and £4 for the P+P



I mean that any item imported into the UK from outside the EU is liable to VAT, import duty, and handling charge if it has a marked value of over £18 (and is not a gift, for which the allowance is £36).  The potential charge on top of the £25 would likely be:

3.5% of £21 (import duty, £0.74)
17.5% of £25 (VAT, £4.37) 
£5-£15 (handling fee, depends on postal carrier)

So it could theoretically cost another £20 on top as well as take a couple of weeks extra to get to you, if customs get hold of it (depending on the carrier, this can be fairly random to be honest so it's not guaranteed you'll be charged by any means).


----------



## imaginey (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(jelbo @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Yes, read their FAQ.



Heh, I thought I had already, christ knows how I missed it I must be going blind - it's not like they could have made it any clearer


----------



## pristinemog (Jan 2, 2007)

Just letting everyone know this: the microSD card reader that came with my R4 today doesn't work. My PC wouldn't recognize it when I plugged it in except in Safe Mode. My other computer would read and write just fine but now the light doesn't even turn on on the reader in either computers.

It was also hot the last time it worked so I think it must have EXPLODED. How cheap. I already have an SD reader in my computer but it's slow to write. The microSD reader from the R4 (when it worked the one time) wrote at the real speed of the Ultra II card.

Oh well.


----------



## Aerquos (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(pristinemog @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Just letting everyone know this: the microSD card reader that came with my R4 today doesn't work. My PC wouldn't recognize it when I plugged it in except in Safe Mode. My other computer would read and write just fine but now the light doesn't even turn on on the reader in either computers.
> 
> It was also hot the last time it worked so I think it must have EXPLODED. How cheap. I already have an SD reader in my computer but it's slow to write. The microSD reader from the R4 (when it worked the one time) wrote at the real speed of the Ultra II card.
> 
> Oh well.


I would suggest you get those regular SD card readers at a local electronics store. They can't be more than $5 USD. Most of them should be USB 2.0 so transfer rates should be fairly fast. 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16820223068http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820223068


----------



## ambitous21 (Jan 2, 2007)

my laptop has a 5-in-1 card reader so i'm fine
but someone else's card reader also doesnt works..

well.. at least they gave one out


----------



## marblearch111 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(imaginey @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> For those in the UK, can anyone comfirm if gameyeeeah are import friendly (ie. mark items as being worth under £18 or $35-ish)?Â Was going to buy from winsunx for $35 but the shipping cost is almost as much on top....



i from UK, i bought from Gameyeeah, they marked it as gift and valued it at $12 (£7-8) on the custom declaration. 

i choose 12-18 airmail which was £3, and it arrived within 9 days, and this was during the busy Christmas & New Year holidays, communication is a bit shit though, they will update you when your item is shipped, but if you have any questions they hadly ever reply.


----------



## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

My card reader doesn't work either! Very strange. I didn't bother testing it as I have my own.

On closer inspection it seems one of the pins on the TF slot is bent up on mine, so nothing is detected. You can fix it by cracking open the casing (you'll need superglue to put it back together) pulling off the TF slot aluminium cover (carefully using the four tabs so you can reattach it) then carefully bending the pin slot back down into position using tweezers. Snap the aluminium cover back on and it should work.


----------



## marblearch111 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Just orderd my R4 from GameYeeeah
> 
> 
> 
> ...



watch out for fake sandisk micro sd on ebay, they are cheap generic with sandisk printed on them. speed, reliablity will be affected, performance on you R4 could be affected. I got fake one before, and then bought one from Amazon, big difference in perfomance & quality.

not all cards are fake on ebay, but i would say the majority are, play.com has it for £18, Amazon.co.uk has it for £15 +  £2 P&P. stick with theswe stores, fake cards are everywhere.


----------



## marblearch111 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(pristinemog @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Just letting everyone know this: the microSD card reader that came with my R4 today doesn't work. My PC wouldn't recognize it when I plugged it in except in Safe Mode. My other computer would read and write just fine but now the light doesn't even turn on on the reader in either computers.



my microsd card reader that come with my r4 works fine


----------



## SpaceJump (Jan 2, 2007)

Great review as usual. I only have one question which I think wasn't answered in the review: How are saves handled? Are they temporarily put into a SRAM/EEPROM and then transferred to MicroSD on next boot? Or are saves directly written to MicroSD?


----------



## MaxThrust (Jan 2, 2007)

Cheapmod.net in the UK are doing r4 + 1gb card for £51.90 + 68p for   1st Class Recorded Signed For (loss upto £32)


----------



## BlueStar (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(MaxThrust @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Cheapmod.net in the UK are doing r4 + 1gb card for £51.90 + 68p forÂ  1st Class Recorded Signed For (loss upto £32)




Looks a pretty good deal, but according to this page all the microSD cards are out of stock.

Just ordered from gameyeeeah.com, similar kind of price.  Not too fussed if the bundled reader works cos I've got an SD card reader already for my trusty old steampowered SCSD.

Now time to get a DS lite


----------



## jelbo (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(pristinemog @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Just letting everyone know this: the microSD card reader that came with my R4 today doesn't work. My PC wouldn't recognize it when I plugged it in except in Safe Mode. My other computer would read and write just fine but now the light doesn't even turn on on the reader in either computers.
> 
> It was also hot the last time it worked so I think it must have EXPLODED. How cheap. I already have an SD reader in my computer but it's slow to write. The microSD reader from the R4 (when it worked the one time) wrote at the real speed of the Ultra II card.
> 
> Oh well.


Yeah, I wouldn't rely on the shipped readers, they're the most cheap-ass one can get. The silver coated one that iirc comes with the M3 Simply is the same one I ordered several weeks ago from eBay for a couple of bucks, and that one got very hot as well and didn't work either. Yet it has a somewhat reliable sturdy look. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I ended up buying a multi card reader from HAMA which has worked fine.


----------



## MaxThrust (Jan 2, 2007)

That page shows no microsd cards.. but on the r4 ordering page you get the option to include a 1gb one


----------



## The Teej (Jan 2, 2007)

Fantastic Review, Shaun 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




I was REALLY impressed with the R4 up until I found out Homebrew support sucks donkey bollocks. Is there any chance that support can be improved via firmware updates?


----------



## shaunj66 (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(The Teej @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Fantastic Review, Shaun
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Homebrew support is really down to developers writing in specific support for the card, or the manufacturer to add some tricks to get it working otherwise.


----------



## mond (Jan 2, 2007)

Homebrew support may suck on the R4, but just use the built-in passme feature to run that stuff off of a slot 2 card. Easy!


----------



## Devante (Jan 2, 2007)

shaunj66, how did you get your DSLite to bypass the health warning screen completely?

I thought there were two FlashMe's. One that showed the screen as normal, and one that showed the screen, then automatically went to the next screen (DSLite menu or DS game).

But yours doesn't even show the warning screen.


----------



## g.crow (Jan 2, 2007)

normal flashme doesnt show the screen at all. flashme stealth does.

when using my passcard3 there is the screen but you dont have to press a button.

mars


----------



## The Teej (Jan 2, 2007)

QUOTE(mond @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Homebrew support may suck on the R4, but just use the built-in passme feature to run that stuff off of a slot 2 card. Easy!



Whoa, I totally never thought of that! Awesome


----------



## ssj4android (Jan 2, 2007)

Sounds good.
How are you testing download play, though? That is, what firmware version is the unflashed DS? The newer firmwares, 4 and up I believe, don't allow first generation passmes, WiFiMe, and can't download play some games that work on older firmware DSs. For example, download play works fine with a SuperCard SD to an unflashed V1 DS in Tetris, both Jump games, Elite Beat Agents, Magnetica, and other. While Tetris at least wouldn't work if the unflashed DS was a DS Lite.


----------



## stinkingbob (Jan 2, 2007)

Yeahhh! 
Finallyther eis a product that can at least give ds-x a run for their money and hopefully prompt the company to make a ds-x with removable memory.
This is great news for everyone. I am going to order one for myself. I really don't care about download play and at $40 its a great price.


----------



## SeanoRLY? (Jan 3, 2007)

great review. Helped me to figure out what the R4 was all about and gave a great in depth look of it! 

Are you guys doing a review on the SC ONE and M3 DS Simply?


- Sean


----------



## mewchewz (Jan 3, 2007)

does phoenix wright 2 and trauma center work on it ?

cheers  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 !


----------



## BlueStar (Jan 3, 2007)

QUOTE(mewchewz @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> does phoenix wright 2 and trauma center work on it ?
> 
> cheersÂ
> 
> ...



Everything seems to work on it  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




  So far...


----------



## k2theman (Jan 3, 2007)

Excellent review, I placed my order for an R4 last night at gamersection.ca.  100% compatibility, no slowdowns, easy as hell to use...sounds like a great product.

I was thinking about waiting for the M3 Simply review, but honestly, there doesn't seem to be anything missing from the R4 that I would hope the M3 to have.

I also ordered a Kingston 1GB microSD card from Buy.com Canada.


----------



## smelialic (Jan 3, 2007)

Great review, really looking forward to the battery life results.


----------



## joedodgy (Jan 3, 2007)

nice review.. as always 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




received a few of the R4DS carts today (from winsunx.com)

totally impressed with it - its definitely faster than the dsx, even with a standard sandisk 1g microsd.

it even plays 'nacho libre' - which i thought most cards refused to play on principle alone


----------



## Killermech (Jan 3, 2007)

They have linked to this review via their product page now 
	

	
	
		
		

		
			




This card will get overwhelming popular in no time!


----------



## kohkindachi (Jan 3, 2007)

Is it possible to modify the 'GAME' page? I dun like to see 'shell' & _DS_MSHL.NDS, is it possible to delete them or whatsoever so that it just shows the game list?

I find it very untidy


----------



## xalphax (Jan 3, 2007)

looks great, exactly what i was hoping for

i think i will buy this card in exchange for my ezflash 4 lite compact


----------



## jelbo (Jan 3, 2007)

Only thing that holds me back is the possibility that M3 Real has the ability of soft-resetting back to the menu - a feature that's a must for me. Well... mainly because I think powering off/on will drain my battery significantly because of the booting up that uses more power than usual. Is that theory correct or can I just forget about that?


----------



## greyhound (Jan 3, 2007)

this card looks great, i think i'll be buying one up in the near future


----------



## jtroye32 (Jan 3, 2007)

FINALLY! A slot 1 card has taken a step forward to at least the boasted 100% compatibility (hopefully). I'm going to keep myself from buying it right away though and wait for the other reviews to see which on comes out to be the best. Even though I can live without download play, it's nice to have since I use it a fair amount with my family/friends, so hopefully newer firmware can bring 100% download play compatibility or one of the other new cards can - I'd say it was wishful thinking.. but I was beginning to think 100% compatibility with no "problems" was. So here's hoping...


----------



## grayswan (Jan 3, 2007)

I have an R4 and a SCDS1 coming. At this point I don't care which as long as one of them gets here... soon.

SCDS1 from supercardstore: $50 with free shipping.
R4 from gameyeeeeaaahhhh: $45.50 after shipping.
1GB Kingston microSD: $22 after shipping. 

Total: $117.50

I've had the microSD for over a week now. I WANT MY TOYS!!!!


----------



## imgod22222 (Jan 3, 2007)

Is this the first DS flashcart to support FAT32? If so, z0mg DS-X now has a rival! Lowered Prices are imminent!


----------



## Darkforce (Jan 3, 2007)

Great review Shaun - the R4 looks like an awesome bit of kit! I don't really need one but I do want to buy one! >_>

Anyone know how much GameYeeeah charge for shipping to the UK/Europe?


----------



## Harsky (Jan 3, 2007)

Getting real tempted to buy this now. Saw one on Bamboo Gaming for £20.... which is WAY less than what I paid for an M3 when it first came out.


----------



## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 3, 2007)

QUOTE(Darkforce @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> Great review Shaun - the R4 looks like an awesome bit of kit! I don't really need one but I do want to buy one! >_>
> 
> Anyone know how much GameYeeeah charge for shipping to the UK/Europe?



I payed about £4


----------



## other (Jan 3, 2007)

QUOTE(Romain @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Thank you for the details concerning FAT32 abilities shaunj66.
> 
> About the Save Conversion Tool, it is available on their website (they called it "archive conversion").
> It is very annoying since you can't drag&drop files, and you cannot select multiple files, so you have to convert all your save files one by one.
> ...



(I changed the tabs to 4 spaces, otherwise the code-tags acted strange)

If you don't have python installed, try this (windows binary, run r4ds.exe), and put the .sav/.0-files in the "sav"-directory. I'm guessing someone else have a better solution (maybe they already posted about it), but whatever. Let me know if it works, I don't have a R4DS.


----------



## MaxThrust (Jan 3, 2007)

Do the prices drop on these things after a few weeks ? I expect there wont be any stock once word gets out, but after a second production run do we expect a price battle between m3 simple, dsx, r4ds ?


----------



## chrishk15 (Jan 3, 2007)

omg..this thing just put DSX out of bussiness.  Expansion is  huge, especially taking into account that you can get this card, with a gig of memory and still be less than the dsx which only has 512mb...wow...and the compatability is rivaled if not better...soooo...just a quick break down...for even cheaper than the dsx..you can pretty much have what it can do with twice as much memory and no gay ass lights....AND have the option go for more with sd micro..alright then...fuck you dsx..thank you R4..awesome review by the way, awesome website.


----------



## kohkindachi (Jan 3, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> Is it possible to modify the 'GAME' page? I dun like to see 'shell' & _DS_MSHL.NDS, is it possible to delete them or whatsoever so that it just shows the game list?
> 
> I find it very untidy


hello?


----------



## Propionation (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > Is it possible to modify the 'GAME' page? I dun like to see 'shell' & _DS_MSHL.NDS, is it possible to delete them or whatsoever so that it just shows the game list?
> ...


No


----------



## oblio211 (Jan 4, 2007)

I know the site says it will work with a 2GB microsd card (up to 4 GB) but has anyone run any tests or had success?  I don't remember seeing anything posted about anyone testing this.  Awesome review!


----------



## ambitous21 (Jan 4, 2007)

and someone tell me how to change the case??
i have an onyx black ds lite. thanks.


----------



## Kikoshi (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > Is it possible to modify the 'GAME' page? I dun like to see 'shell' & _DS_MSHL.NDS, is it possible to delete them or whatsoever so that it just shows the game list?
> ...


[quote
Hey bro it seems that there isnt a mode why. Have you tried making it a Hidden File? But if you're not familiar then forget it


----------



## BlueStar (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > Is it possible to modify the 'GAME' page? I dun like to see 'shell' & _DS_MSHL.NDS, is it possible to delete them or whatsoever so that it just shows the game list?
> ...



Is it me you're looking for?

Well, my payment cleared from gameynneeearrghHH.com yesterday and it seems to be on it's way.

Do you have to soft reset to write the saves to the TF card?


----------



## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> Is it possible to modify the 'GAME' page? I dun like to see 'shell' & _DS_MSHL.NDS, is it possible to delete them or whatsoever so that it just shows the game list?
> 
> I find it very untidy




just create a folder for each rom, that way each rom and its save is in a seperate folder and tidy


----------



## khan (Jan 4, 2007)

Does anyone from UK who has bought R4 DS from Gameyeeeah tell me roughly how many days it takes for the item to arrive after they ship it.


----------



## jpxdude (Jan 4, 2007)

Ordered 2 R4DS on the 29th Dec from gameyeeeah, and I know they've arrived in london today!  I'm expecting either tomorrow or sat.


----------



## shaunj66 (Jan 4, 2007)

*Battery Life Results:*

Test condition:
Fully charged European Black Nintendo DS Lite
R4 DS, Sandisk Ultra II 1GB formatted with FAT32.
New Super Mario Bros. Running Main Menu and movie looping continuously
Screens at max. brightness (level 4)
Sound at 100%
*Results:*

Backup ROM of New Super Mario Bros. on R4 DS = 4 hours 20 minutes
Retail New Super Mario Bros cart =  4 hours 55 minutes


----------



## jpxdude (Jan 4, 2007)

Awesome!! Thanks for the test Shaun!


----------



## khan (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(jpxdude @ Jan 4 2007 said:


> Ordered 2 R4DS on the 29th Dec from gameyeeeah, and I know they've arrived in london today!Â I'm expecting either tomorrow or sat.



I also ordered on 29th Friday night i think it was, BTW in my e-mail it says delivery expected from 12-18 now is that correct because if true that's far too long.


----------



## Katalyst (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 4 2007 said:


> just create a folder for each rom, that way each rom and its save is in a seperate folder and tidy


Yeah, you mentioned that earlier and that's exactly what I'm doing right now. Pretty neat and organized I'd say.

ROOT
>Games
>>XXXX - TEH GAEMZ
>>>XXXX - TEH GAEMZ.nds
>>>XXXX - TEH GAEMZ.sav
>>XXXX - ROFLMAOWTFBBQ
>>>XXXX - ROFLMAOWTFBBQ.nds
>>>XXXX - ROFLMAOWTFBBQ.sav

Definitely works for me.


----------



## BlueStar (Jan 4, 2007)

QUOTE(khan @ Jan 4 2007 said:


> Does anyone from UK who has bought R4 DS from Gameyeeeah tell me roughly how many days it takes for the item to arrive after they ship it.



I ordered on Tuesday night (with paypal) and picked the only shipping option available.  It left Shenzhen at 12:10 local time today (About 7am our time).  I think so anyway, it says "operation completed" but I think that means it's been sent on it's merry way from Chinatown not that it's actually arrived in my nearest city.

I'll let you know when it gets here. Hope it doesn't come tomorrow when I'm at work, cos courier company's depots are always on industrial estates in the middle of nowhere so I'll have to go on a trek to pick it up.


----------



## The Teej (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(Harsky @ Jan 3 2007 said:


> Getting real tempted to buy this now. Saw one on Bamboo Gaming for £20.... which is WAY less than what I paid for an M3 when it first came out.



Is Bamboo Gaming good shipping to UK, then?


----------



## zelph (Jan 5, 2007)

Thanks for the review. After reading this im going to buy one


----------



## mgfcortez (Jan 5, 2007)

this is great
only like $50 bucks and better that the $130 one.
but i hope the MicroSD card don't cost to much
but i have a 64mb card i got to move stuff from pc to pc.(i know it's so small)but maybe i can use it until i get a bigger one
what brand's are best to get and cheapst,thanks for any help
also what's the best slot 2, gba card to get.
one that will load up most gba games and save.
i've been reading alot about this stuff,but still don't get it all
help me if you don't mind
thank you for your reply and time!!!!!!!!!


----------



## SpaceJump (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(SpaceJump @ Jan 2 2007 said:


> Great review as usual. I only have one question which I think wasn't answered in the review: How are saves handled? Are they temporarily put into a SRAM/EEPROM and then transferred to MicroSD on next boot? Or are saves directly written to MicroSD?



Could someone please answer my question?


----------



## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(SpaceJump @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> QUOTE(SpaceJump @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > Great review as usual. I only have one question which I think wasn't answered in the review: How are saves handled? Are they temporarily put into a SRAM/EEPROM and then transferred to MicroSD on next boot? Or are saves directly written to MicroSD?
> ...


Saves are actually saved to the microSD card in the same directory as the rom, with the same filename as the rom. You don't have to find out the save size for certain roms because all save files for the R4 are 512KB, so it doesn't matter. Any rom should work. It'll ask you if you want the .sav created the first time you load the rom. After that, it'll automatically load. Should answer that question.


----------



## BlueStar (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> QUOTE(SpaceJump @ Jan 5 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > QUOTE(SpaceJump @ Jan 2 2007 said:
> ...



What he's asking is does it save _directly_ to the microsd or do you have to soft reboot when you've finished playing to write it from the eeprom.


----------



## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(BlueStar @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> What he's asking is does it save _directly_ to the microsd or do you have to soft reboot when you've finished playing to write it from the eeprom.
> 
> Did I not answer that?
> 
> ...


Perhaps a little longwinded, but it answers the question and in the long run, the whole save system is explained in full there so he/she shouldn't have anymore questions about it :/


----------



## SpaceJump (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> QUOTE(BlueStar @ Jan 5 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > What he's asking is does it save _directly_ to the microsd or do you have to soft reboot when you've finished playing to write it from the eeprom.
> ...



I'm afraid my question is not answered. I know saves are written to the MicroSD. What I want to know is if there is a step in between, where saves are stored in a SRAM/EEPROM, and on next boot written to the MicroSD.


----------



## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

lawl, I guess that's not a "straight-forward enough" answer. Yes the saves are saved to the microSD card. No the saves aren't stored SRAM/EEPROM. No it does not write to the microSD card on next boot. The first time you load a rom, if there is not a save, it asks you do you want to create a .sav file. You've got the option to create it, cancel, or ignore it. If you do happen to create it, it creates the save file right then. You'll see a progress bar. After that, it'll load the save file and the rom. If you take a look on the SD card, in the same folder as the rom will be a .sav file with the same name. The next time you boot that rom, it'll automatically load the save file. You should only ever have to see the prompt to create a save file if it hasn't been done and the .sav (with the same filename as the rom) is not in that folder. Lawday lawdz. If I haven't answered whatever question you have with *that*, all I say is this.


----------



## BlueStar (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> the whole save system is explained in full there



Apart from the bit he asked about


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## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(BlueStar @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > the whole save system is explained in full there
> ...


Well, I assumed from the "Saves are saved to the microSD card" and the "saves are created the first time you load the rom" it could be deducted. But I see with these things they have to be laid out in black and white. Hence previous post^^


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## kohkindachi (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 4 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > just create a folder for each rom, that way each rom and its save is in a seperate folder and tidy
> ...


Do you have the 'Shell' folder?

Can we delete it?

BTW i tried to make it a hidden folder, but not wrking


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## Killermech (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 4 2007 said:
> ...



The shell folder is used by moonshell, so keep it. In the newer versions of moonshell, its named /moonshl.
Update to the latest ver 1.05, the folders / .sav etc files will be hidden by default. Press 'select' to show them or to hide them again.


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## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> Do you have the 'Shell' folder?
> 
> Can we delete it?
> 
> BTW i tried to make it a hidden folder, but not wrking


Setting the folder to the hidden attribute doesn't do a thing in the R4 menu 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 In moonshell (assuming you've got it set up in the options, which I think it is by default) it won't show any hidden folders. Although, with the 1.05 firmware, the shell folder (or moonshl) as well as the system files (moonshell nds, menu.dat) are all hidden with select as KM said.


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## kohkindachi (Jan 5, 2007)

Oh thx Killermech & Katalyst 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




And also iF i'M Not using moonshell, can i delete the 'shell' folder?


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## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(kohkindachi @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> Oh thx Killermech & Katalyst
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Sure, but that renders your multimedia button useless. Unless of course you put in another .nds and name it "_DS_MSHL.NDS" Then it'll boot whatever that nds is.


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## tehcamel (Jan 5, 2007)

u can delete the shell folder and _ds_mshl.nds

if u try to load it from the main menu it will give u an error.  if u rename one of ur favorite homebrew apps to _ds_mshl.nds and throw it on your microsd, that app will load from the multimedia icon on the main menu.


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## BlueStar (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(Katalyst @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> Well, I assumed from the "Saves are saved to the microSD card" and the "saves are created the first time you load the rom" it could be deducted.



Both of those things could apply to a solution where you have to soft reboot tho


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## Katalyst (Jan 5, 2007)

QUOTE(BlueStar @ Jan 5 2007 said:


> Both of those things could apply to a solution where you have to soft reboot thoÂ


...What are we talking about again? I'm confused  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Tell those kids to get the hell off my front lawn!


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## kiscyn (Jan 5, 2007)

i've read someone's comment on your review and came to register an account. about to read that superb review before buying that card


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## Killermech (Jan 5, 2007)

SpaceJump said:
			
		

> Great review as usual. I only have one question which I think wasn't answered in the review: How are saves handled? Are they temporarily put into a SRAM/EEPROM and then transferred to MicroSD on next boot? Or are saves directly written to MicroSD?



It writes to the card directly.
I saved in the game, turned it off and replaced the sav file with another one (same game, different time). In theory, now when I would boot up, the save from the SRAM/EEPROM should overwrite this file, making it the new sav file. But it didn't, instead the save from the point I saved in the replaced save file loaded.


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## SpaceJump (Jan 5, 2007)

Thanks Killermech. I wonder how they make it directly save to MicroSD without patching 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Anyway, this is good news.


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## bwfc0907 (Jan 6, 2007)

Hi guys I'm new to all this so sorry for the poor questions.  Have read through the thread but need these answering in simple mans terms

Fantastic Site and Great Review.

1)  Both me and my daughter have a DS Lite.  If we both had an R4 and installed a copy of Mario Kart would we be able to play against each other.  I understand the download feature where only 1 of us has the original, i.e. Super Mario doesn't work, but can we actually play against each other R4 vs R4. (Sorry don't know a better way of asking the question).

2) Do you have to buy a seperate SD card to use the R4 or does it come with one?

Hope you guys can help and please be patient whilst I get up to speed with all this.


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## shaunj66 (Jan 6, 2007)

QUOTE(bwfc0907 @ Jan 6 2007 said:


> Hi guys I'm new to all this so sorry for the poor questions.Â Have read through the thread but need these answering in simple mans terms
> 
> Fantastic Site and Great Review.
> 
> ...


Welcome to GBAtemp 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Thanks for the compliments!

1) Yes local multiplayer will work just fine. It does on any flash kit and not just the R4 DS. As you said, it's only download play that ever causes problems.

2) The R4 isn't supplied with an SD card. You need to pickup a Micro SD card. Check this site out for cheap micro SD cards.


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## bwfc0907 (Jan 6, 2007)

1) Yes local multiplayer will work just fine. It does on any flash kit and not just the R4 DS. As you said, it's only download play that ever causes problems.

Will wifi multiplayer over the net work or is there no such thing.  Am thinking mario kart in infrastructure mode against people I don't know?

Thanks for the response.


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## shaunj66 (Jan 6, 2007)

Wi-Fi play in games that support it works just fine too.


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## bwfc0907 (Jan 6, 2007)

QUOTE(shaunj66 @ Jan 6 2007 said:


> Wi-Fi play in games that support it works just fine too.



Thanks Shaun.

One last one, what type of SD card would you recommend, so many different types, ultra,etc and how many backups fit on a 1gb card?


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## darkzagi (Jan 6, 2007)

Dear R4 gurus,
I just got my R4, I do have a couple of questions though...

1 ) Do I have to create a GAME folder at the root for ALL my .nds files? Or just drag and drop them in the root?

Hope to hear from you soon.

Many thanks!


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## Killermech (Jan 6, 2007)

QUOTE(darkzagi @ Jan 6 2007 said:


> Dear R4 gurus,
> I just got my R4, I do have a couple of questions though...
> 
> 1 ) Do I have to create a GAME folder at the root for ALL my .nds files? Or just drag and drop them in the root?
> ...



Drag 'em over wherever you want to. If you want to keep it in the root, or organized in a 'GAME' folder is up to you.
Either way, it will work.


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## eilegz (Jan 6, 2007)

very intesresting after reading this i want more this, supercard ds one screw it up this time and its more expensive than m3 simply the choice its obvious.

i wonder what other good reliable place i can get the m3 simply or r4 at us.

i usually ask my friend to get stuff from www.realhotstuff.com


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## darkzagi (Jan 6, 2007)

OOoooOOOOoo!

COOL dude! Much appreciated!


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## rtype88 (Jan 6, 2007)

I can't decide! This or the SC DSone?

Decisions decisions.


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## Darkwhat (Jan 6, 2007)

Hi to all of you,

I am new to this board and I really appreciate reading all of you posts.

I will prensent myself before asking some questions.

First, I just got my DS for Christmas.  So, I must say that I am really a newbie on all this.  (DS or R4DS).

Before asking questions, I have taking the time 5-6 hours to read all the topics that I have fund about this.  First, I begun with the superkey + supercard.  For me, it was difficult to understand.  You needed to many things to work it out + patched the game.  

Now, I see that the R4DS is really interrresting for me.  I have read the review on this board and I have find it very, very complete.  Bravo to the writer.  It was excellent.

Now with my questions.  Like I said before, I havent fund the answer to this questions before.  Sorry if it was already said but I didnt fund nothing.

1- I want to buy a Sandisk SDmicro card ultra.  However, on amazon.com, I see that they got two versions.
a) Sandisk 1GB Ultra II Mobile MicroSD Card at 54$ US
b) SanDisk 1 GB Ultra II MicroSD Card (SDSDQU-1024-A10M, Retail Package) at 72.95$ US

What is the difference between the 2?  What card do I need to get?


2- Is there a big difference between a normal Sandisk microcard and a ultra?  Worth the difference?

3-  Does the R4DS can play GBA roms?  I dont think so but I to be sure.

4- My DS is new.  Does using R4DS can end my warranty?

thanks a lot guys.  I would really appreciate if someone could answer these questions.

Happy new year to all

DarkWhat


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 6, 2007)

I can answer 3 and 4

R4 doesnt play GBA games, but i heard something that i can play them if under 32mb?
Some1 will have to confirm that

and it wont invalidate your warranty, dont worry


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## jelbo (Jan 6, 2007)

QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 6 2007 said:


> I can answer 3 and 4
> 
> R4 doesnt play GBA games, but i heard something that i can play them if under 32mb?
> Some1 will have to confirm that
> ...


R4DS absolutely won't play any GBA ROMs, same for any current slot-1 card. Because of the lower speed of slot-1, GBA support will most likely be nonexistant, unless an emulator is written, wich is also very unlikely. The 32Mbit thing is related to the M3 Lite, that dropped GBA support, but supposedly plays GBA ROMs that are 32Mbit or smaller. The same was said for the similar SuperCard Lite Rumble, but that one refuses to even display .gba files, let alone play them.


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## Darkwhat (Jan 6, 2007)

Thanks guys for this help.

If anyone can answer questions 1-2, would be great.

thanks


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 6, 2007)

QUOTE(jelbo @ Jan 6 2007 said:


> QUOTE(mr_blonde_88 @ Jan 6 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > I can answer 3 and 4
> ...



ahhh ok, my bad
cheers for the correction


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## oblio211 (Jan 7, 2007)

Hey, has anyone actually tested a 2GB microsd card yet?  Thinking of buying a 2GB card but want to make sure she will work.


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## Armadillo (Jan 7, 2007)

Probably gonna order one tomorrow now and retire my g6 to gba games , it looks so good 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




. Just one thing , it does support sleep mode right? , I'm guessing it does , but it aint mentioned anywhere so thought I'd check.


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## darkzagi (Jan 7, 2007)

oops I know its a stoopid question, but how do you make an NDS lite sleep?

thanks!


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## Deleted User (Jan 7, 2007)

Close it while it's on.


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## Darkwhat (Jan 7, 2007)

Nobody know If I must take the microsd Mobile memory card or the ordinary one?


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## Killermech (Jan 7, 2007)

QUOTE(Darkwhat @ Jan 7 2007 said:


> Nobody know If I must take the microsd Mobile memory card or the ordinary one?



There shouldn't be a difference. Maybe the microSD mobile is better optimized for mobiles than the ordinary one. As the ordinary one would probably work on a mobile as well. Or the other card was marketed before they decided to include the 'mobile card' thing and is in reality the same card with different package.
On the package to the Sandisk microSD I bought, there was a 'mobile card' mark as well.

My guess would be that either one of those will work properly on your R4.


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## iamwhoiam (Jan 7, 2007)

microSD/transflash are designed for mobile phones, not GBA flashcarts (lawl). thats why most of them come with "mobile" somewhere on the packaging.


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## Killermech (Jan 7, 2007)

QUOTE(iamwhoiam @ Jan 7 2007 said:


> microSD/transflash are designed for mobile phones, not GBA flashcarts (lawl). thats why most of them come with "mobile" somewhere on the packaging.



They should change that and have the text 'NDS Slot-1 Memory card' instead. Now that would make my day


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## Darkwhat (Jan 7, 2007)

Sorry  iamwhoiam but my english is not very good and i am not sure to understand.

What must I take?


a) Sandisk 1GB Ultra II Mobile MicroSD Card 

b) SanDisk 1 GB Ultra II MicroSD Card (SDSDQU-1024-A10M, Retail Package) 



Just tell me A or B and I will understand it better.

Sorry about that.  I try my best....


Darkwhat


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 7, 2007)

QUOTE(Darkwhat @ Jan 7 2007 said:


> SorryÂ iamwhoiam but my english is not very good and i am not sure to understand.
> 
> What must I take?
> 
> ...



A or B


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## darkzagi (Jan 7, 2007)

If i'm not mistaken it should be
b) SanDisk 1 GB Ultra II MicroSD Card (SDSDQU-1024-A10M, Retail Package) 

but why not get a 1GB Kingston MicroSD card with lifetime warranty?


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## digital_sin (Jan 7, 2007)

i'm guessing they're both the same thing. maybe one of them is retail and the other is OEM...

BTW: IMHO too go for kingston.


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## Darkwhat (Jan 7, 2007)

Is the 1GB Kingston MicroSD card as fast that the Sandisk Ultra?  Will I see a difference in gameplay?


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## qtrinh (Jan 7, 2007)

Just bought mine today, hopefully will arrive by end of this week *fingers crossed*

***
Does anyone have an opinion on the A-Data 2GB Micro SD card?  It's about $90USD locally, or I can get it on sale for $50USD from Newegg, based in California, seems quite reputable:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/CustRatingRe...agesize=&Page=2

so, what you think of A-DATA?  had 13 decent reviews as well (can be viewed in the same page as the link above)

thanks in advance, as this is the only 2GB card i can reasonably get without resorting to ebay.


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## leetdude_007 (Jan 7, 2007)

I got a 1GB A-DATA coming soon from a shady yahoo shopping site. That's the thrill of bargains - who knows when I'm going to lose my debit account!


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## tehcamel (Jan 7, 2007)

QUOTE(qtrinh @ Jan 7 2007 said:


> Just bought mine today, hopefully will arrive by end of this week *fingers crossed*
> 
> ***
> Does anyone have an opinion on the A-Data 2GB Micro SD card?Â It's about $90USD locally, or I can get it on sale for $50USD from Newegg, based in California, seems quite reputable:
> ...




if you're going to spend $90 on a 2gb card mind as well opt for the sandisk ultra II.  that way you're guarenteed 2gb+10mbps transfer speed.  their access times are also damn spiffy.


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## qtrinh (Jan 7, 2007)

Well, it's $90 local, but i can get it for $50 from Newegg.com
as for transfer speeds, i'm not picky since i'd likely flash like 30 games and not transfer anything for a long while.

and regarding the shady yahoo shopping... aren't you at least cautious of all the counterfeit cards out there!??  
	

	
	
		
		

		
			





  pls be careful and check for authenticity.

PS, there are no 2GB micro sd Sandisk locally for me for some reason (toronto, canada)



QUOTE(tehcamel @ Jan 7 2007 said:


> QUOTE(qtrinh @ Jan 7 2007 said:
> 
> 
> > Just bought mine today, hopefully will arrive by end of this week *fingers crossed*
> ...


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## darkzagi (Jan 8, 2007)

Hi guys and gals,
I do have a question or two I hope you could explain in regards to R4.

1 ) How do I use the Pictochat with R4 running? Do I have to remove the R4 first?
2 ) Do I have to power ON/OFF to play different ROM games. (since this is the industry standard) OR is there a function whereby you can quit the game and select from the Memory card?


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## mr_blonde_88 (Jan 8, 2007)

On the R4 website, with the previous firmware, it gave u for possible options, depending on the skin you want

Now firmware 1.5 is available, i can only find 1 skin
Im i being blind and missing them?


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## BlueStar (Jan 8, 2007)

Well my R4 is in the UK!  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Tracking status has changed to "Heathrow: Awaiting pick up by recipient as requested"

Better not mean me when they say "Recipient", I'm not going down the other end of the country!


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## qtrinh (Jan 8, 2007)

bluestar, eek.... good idea to check with them... cuz it sounds like it really is for pickup by you!


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## BlueStar (Jan 8, 2007)

Surely not, must be DHL or whichever UK based company is going to take over from ChackerExpress.  How would I even go about picking it up from Heathrow?

They can't even give people their luggage back right  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




Anyway, destination still says my hometown (or nearest city rather) So I'm not worried.  Hopefully it'll come tomorrow before I go to work and then I'll pick up a DS lite on the way in.


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## tehcamel (Jan 8, 2007)

the transfer speeds are not nearly as important as the random access time of the card.  the adata super edition cards are susposed to have a .07ms access time.  the 1gb super card i bought from newegg however had a 2.0ms access time and i experienced some slowdown as well as minor glitches.  needless to say i sent it back for a refund.  those over at maxconsole and homwbrewcast forums that did buy the adata 2gb microsd from newegg did confirm with hd tach test that it was the super edition.  i would say go for it.  2gb with a fast access time for $50 is a good freakin deal.  just run an hd tach test on it once it's delivered to confirm the access time of the card for that is what matters the most when it comes to performance.  if not you can always send it back.  newegg is the bomb when it comes to customer satisfaction.



QUOTE(qtrinh @ Jan 7 2007 said:


> Well, it's $90 local, but i can get it for $50 from Newegg.com
> as for transfer speeds, i'm not picky since i'd likely flash like 30 games and not transfer anything for a long while.
> 
> and regarding the shady yahoo shopping... aren't you at least cautious of all the counterfeit cards out there!??Â
> ...


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## BlueStar (Jan 9, 2007)

Right, for ages all that was on my order tracking page was


			
				QUOTE said:
			
		

> Jan 04,2007 08:26 SHENZHEN-CHINA -Shipment arrived at facility
> Jan 04,2007 12:10 SHENZHEN-CHINA - Shipment operation completedThen all of yesterday it said:
> 
> 
> ...


Wonder where this "Hub 2" is






EDIT:  It's here!  
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Nearly had a heart attack, thought the card wasn't in there but it was hiding in the free keyring thing


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## darkzagi (Jan 9, 2007)

I'm not mistaken, there should be 2 R4 cards in there... a Black and a White


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## Killermech (Jan 9, 2007)

QUOTE(darkzagi @ Jan 9 2007 said:


> I'm not mistaken, there should be 2 R4 cards in there... a Black and a White


The black one is just a shell. So don't get your hopes up


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## BlueStar (Jan 9, 2007)

Yeah.  Put I tore off the 5 different chinese, European and British packages it was in, opened it up, install disc, cool, free keyring, excellent, transflash usb deely and last but not least.... WTF?!

Was quite relieved when I realised I was an idiot


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## fwah23 (Jan 10, 2007)

Here's a R4 compatibility list I found online, since lots of people here have R4s now, it would be good if people here could update this list for everyone's benefit! i'm still waiting on mine....

http://wiki.scorpei.com/index.php/R4_compatibility_list


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## Deleted User (Jan 11, 2007)

My chipboard looks a little different than the ones posted here. The main chip is covered in a resin of some sort. Maybe they upated the board design or something.


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## Nocturno (Jan 11, 2007)

sorry if it has been asked before, 
do I need any driver to use the USB reader?,

I bought 3 R4 and windows says it doesn´t recognize any of them, and the black chip gets really hot so I put it out quickly..


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## Deleted User (Jan 11, 2007)

The reader/writer is not the greastest quality. You'd be better of buying an SD card reader/writer from a computer shop and using the adapter that came with the microSD instead. Hope this helps.


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## greyhound (Jan 14, 2007)

ordered my R4 today


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