Hacking Another confused R4i-Gold 3DS User

[infinitysend]

Hi there,
My 3DS is Ver. 2.1.0-4U.

I recently purchased an R4i-Gold 3DS. When I first got it, I put the official kernel on it and it booted up on my 3DS perfectly. For whatever reason, I decided to not follow the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" rule, and update the firmware. I ran the 1.4.3 update located here and it seemed to go through smoothly. However, when I started my 3DS back up, the system wouldn't recognize the cart at all. So I try putting it into my DSLite and it still does the same thing - card is unrecognized. Did I brick my brand new R4i-Gold card?

I saw that there is still hope - there is apparently a "Wood" Patch that I can use - it was recently released 11/21, version , but do I have to find another flash cart to do it? Might as well just buy a new one, right? I don't know anyone else with another flash cart... -_-;

So am I just screwed? Is there ANY way out of this? Or should I just try to return this or get a new one?

Thanks for any and all help in advance.

 

[tranfeer]

You should tell us the website on the sticker of your card.Is it www.r4ids.cn?
Only this can support WOOD.

 

[infinitysend]

Sorry about that. The box and card both say www.r4i-gold.com (which I linked to in my post).

 

[tranfeer]

Your card can not run the kernel downloaded from www.r4ids.cn.

 

[infinitysend]

Your card can not run the kernel downloaded from www.r4ids.cn.

Ok, since this is the case, forget I said anything about Wood or the patch.
Since I "updated" this cart to 1.4.3 using this file on this OFFICIAL site, why does it seem that it is now bricked? I just don't get it.

EDIT: the kernel version I am using is also from the official site: 1.69b. Since it also won't even load up on my DSLite I'm thinking it's totally broken. :/

 

[s4mid4re]

Your card can not run the kernel downloaded from www.r4ids.cn.

Ok, since this is the case, forget I said anything about Wood or the patch.
Since I "updated" this cart to 1.4.3 using this file on this OFFICIAL site, why does it seem that it is now bricked? I just don't get it.

EDIT: the kernel version I am using is also from the official site: 1.69b. Since it also won't even load up on my DSLite I'm thinking it's totally broken. :/

Does your cart give you an option to swap carts before going through the update process? If so, you can run the updater on another cart, swap the cart to your bricked cart (when prompted to do so), and reflash your bricked cart. This might solve your brick. If it's not working on the 1.4.3 update, you can try to do the swap reflash using an older firmware update in hopes to unbrick.

 

[infinitysend]

Thanks for replying, s4mid4re. I don't know anyone else with a flash cart, so I feel like I'm screwed at the moment. The people I bought it from told me they'd ship me a new cart on Monday, but I'm not sure I have to send this one back to them as well. If I don't, and they send me a new one, then I'd definitely have 2 and the possibility to un-brick my current one. I just don't understand why the "official" firmware update would cause it to brick?! Does this mean it's a bootleg of the "real" R4i-Gold 3DS? Another thing I should mention is the cart is yellow, not black.

 

[lamfp]

Thanks for replying, s4mid4re. I don't know anyone else with a flash cart, so I feel like I'm screwed at the moment. The people I bought it from told me they'd ship me a new cart on Monday, but I'm not sure I have to send this one back to them as well. If I don't, and they send me a new one, then I'd definitely have 2 and the possibility to un-brick my current one. I just don't understand why the "official" firmware update would cause it to brick?! Does this mean it's a bootleg of the "real" R4i-Gold 3DS? Another thing I should mention is the cart is yellow, not black.

There are tons and tons and tons of fake R4 carts out there, you probably have a fake one. Screwed for now, yes, but if you want a good flash cart I recommend m3i zero. But if you get m3i zero, do NOT get the sakura OS, it's awful. Get the touchpod. Most games that don't work on m3i have patches, you don't have to DLDI patch homebrew, so it's pretty much a win-win situation, if you ask me.

 

[exangel]

Does this mean it's a bootleg of the "real" R4i-Gold 3DS? Another thing I should mention is the cart is yellow, not black.

Every R4i cart is a knockoff of the original R4 brand and not developed by the original R4 team, but doesn't mean there isn't a good R4i Gold 3DS out there. But because there are dozens upon dozens of clones, and probably at least 2 dozen clones called R4i Gold (heck, that was what my first flashcart was called) -- you made an easy mistake to make.
There are only two officially Wood compatible "Gold" R4i (SDHC compatible, firmware update flashable) flash carts. They are made by R4iDS.cn & R4iDSN.com but they don't look identical. Any cart that bears similarity to those two carts but doesn't have either of those URLs is a knockoff of the Gold cart, most likely because since gaining Wood kernel support, they've become extremely popular.

The real carts dont have yellow plastic, they have black plastic shell with red PCB.

If the cart replacement you get is unsatisfactory, I would not recommend getting an m3i cart either, not because they are bad but because there are better-supported options.

Spoiler: if you want to replace it in the future..

Before I discuss my own recommendations I want to throw this out there:
The Official "Which Flashcart Should I Get?" Chart Thread

First off, since you own a DSLite, I would recommend getting a 1:1 (identical reproduction) of the "original" R4 Revolution DS flash cart (these are very cheap but they only support 2GB MicroSD max) - the cheapness would be some insurance for you in the future if you accidentally brick a cart again, they're about $3 at various China sites, and will only work on your DS Lite. But that doesn't matter if it's just for backup, for testing Wood, or for running the unbricking version of firmware flashers on other cart brands.

Second, I actually like the R4iDS.cn/R4iDSN.com carts a lot, I own and use both, and they are every bit as good as the original R4 software-wise, but with MicroSDHC up to 32GB support, DSi/3DS compatibility, & their hardware teams have been REALLY fast about releasing firmware updates to get around 3DS System updates. These typically run $10.50-$12.00 at various China shipping sites. If this interests you, I can hook you up with verified item links (where I got my own carts from) since there are so many different ones out there.

Third, if you are willing to spend more for quality and reliability, I'd recommend getting a Supercard DStwo. It is typically around $35 but has the most active official dev/support team and has extra hardware capability.