I have the DS phat and the M3 DS Real and right now I can't stop wondering how exactly does this consume a hell lot more battery juice than a standard NDS slot-1 game.
I noticed that when the battery starts going into the red zone, it does so differently than with a standard game (the red light starts blinking only when loading a part of the game, saving to the micro sd or scrolling through your game list). SO, apparently, accessing the micro SD card for any purpose (loading/saving) does take more battery juice. Of course that when the battery is almost running out entirely, the light is always red.
Another thing that has been bugging me is that I always used the GUI brightness setting in the top (4th) level (well, the DS phat isn't that bright...). But perhaps a standard DS game on a DS phat (that can not natively change brightness levels other than on/off) runs on a less bright level... say 2 or 3? I've tried running New Super Mario Bros. on brightness-level 2 but it feels so washed out...
Perhaps brightness level would be the major cause for battery life discrepancy.
Do you know what is the default brightness setting for a NDS slot 1-game so that I try to set it on the M3 GUI and check if the battery would then last the *same* as with a standard game? Level 1 isn't for sure (too much washed out...) and Level 4, according to this hypothesis, wouldn't be the one due to the differences in battery life.
Thanks guys!