Hacking CycloDS: Day 1

[GeekyGuy]

Well, my Evolution card arrived a day early -- it's always a welcome surprise when a toy comes before Christmas.

It took me some time and a good bit of help from some of the friendly folks (not least of all iwakura -- many thanks!) around various forums, but I seem to be up & running (for the most part). I was first stumped because my computer locked up everytime I inserted the card reader. Problem? It seems there was some conflict with the Nintendo WiFi USB adapter that I use, and shutting down its software and unplugging the adapter was an instant fix. I put the 1.13 CycloDS firmware update, some games and a few dpg files on the microSD, and then booted it up for the first time.

Everything worked just fine. As an aside, the card wasn't as tight a fit into the DS as I'd feared. Removing the microSD from the card, however, does take a bit of finesse. I am glad, though, that it's not a loose fit. That should help prevent any unwanted mishaps.

Anyway, the games ran smoothly, and when I changed over to the "Enchanced Features" I was able to do a soft reset out of games. The CycloDS did lock up once, however, when doing so, and I have not been able to figure a way to do a soft reset out of Moonshell.

Which brings us to...Moonshell.

These cards might be idiot-proof, but I can be a complete idiot sometimes -- I don't know if Team Cyclops takes folks like me into account

. After several failed attempts to install Moonshell onto my CycloDS, a kind soul (iwakura) directed me to a Evo-exclusive version of the software. Now I've got that up & running as well. However, the videos are flipped -- both horizontally and vertically. Not sure why, but I'll get that figured out. In any case, the Moonshell interface (as well as the CycloDS Evo) is very user-friendly and a breeze to navigate. I only mention that because I'm completely new to all of this type of stuff, so if you're like me this should come as welcome news (which is perhaps old news by now).

And that's about it. I'm becoming more and more aware of the various options that are available for this type of DS usage, but for my needs and desires this device seems to sport everything I'd hoped for. I can't comment past that, of course -- it being day one with the unit -- but I'm very satisfied with my purchase.

One last note: the card reader. Yeah, it definitely looks pretty cheapo, but I called up my local Office Depot and can always replace one for about $7. So far, though, it's working fine. Again, this is my first day with the unit, but I didn't buy it for the reader

.

Tony

 

[h8uthemost]

Mine arrived today, and it is excellent.

And the chip barely sticks. The chip sticks out more on my G6 Real. There's been a lot of people whining about the chip on this cart, and i don't see what the big deal is.

 

[GeekyGuy]

Well, let's see...I made my original post on the 25th, so this is like, what, day five?

Anyway, the unit is holding up quite well, and I'm having a lot of fun with it. Perhaps moreso due to the fact that this is my first time with this type of device, so everything is new to me. I've mostly figured out how to create my own skins; it's a fairly simple process (once you understand the requirements), although I'm having a couple of minor technical issues on my end. It's nice, though, to be able to customize the system to my liking.

On the emulation end, I'm seeing mix results. I put SNEmulDS on the root directory of my microSD and have been tinkering with various SNES games. I had pretty good luck with Donkey Kong Country and Earthworm Jim, but Secret of Mana didn't get on too well.

Homebrews I tried were DSOrganize (seemed to work okay, but not sure it's something I want to venture too far into), ticklegirl (didn't work, which is a real shame

), Loitumagirl (Cute, senseless, and ultimately boring), and the coolest one by far, Comicbook DS. I love that program, and hope to make a lot of use of it. It seems like one of the most polished homebrew applications out right now.

Of course, I do have Moonshell on there, and it seems to be running smoothly. There are a few snags here and there, but nothing that seems to be a reflection of the CycloDS Evolution card -- just video-conversion issues, I'm sure.

The issues I have noticed with the Evo card are:

The card is sometimes not read by my DS, and I have to shut the DS down, take the card out, put it back in and restart. This is likely due to the card size; there is some slight bulging. Of course, I've had this happen with regular game cards, so it's not something that has never happened before. But it does happen frequently, so far, with the Evo.

There's also some consideration with the microSD slot. As most folks probably already know, it's not a spring-loaded slot, so removing the SD is a bit of a hassle. It actually wasn't much of an issue the first day or two. But after removing the SD several times, the little wedge that allows you to latch onto the stick with your fingernail wears down and it becomes a bit more difficult to extract the SD.

Other than those two minor quibbles, I'd have to say that so far it's a pretty darn fine device. I'm able to enjoy my DS on a whole other level now, and it's a lot of fun learning about the various options that are available and how to utilize them.

-Tony

 

[Salamantis]

The card is sometimes not read by my DS, and I have to shut the DS down, take the card out, put it back in and restart. This is likely due to the card size; there is some slight bulging. Of course, I've had this happen with regular game cards, so it's not something that has never happened before. But it does happen frequently, so far, with the Evo.

That happens to me too, sometimes a lot. It can get quite annoying.

 

[h8uthemost]

You guys should have TeamCyclops replace your carts then, if your DS is having trouble reading it.

I actually have no complaints about this cart at all, I love it. And have had not one problem with it. But honestly...I still like my G6 DS Real more. I like the features of it, the menu, and the internal memory.

But definitely the top two slot 1's right now are the CycloDS and the G6 DS Real.

 

[ghettobob]

But definitely the top two slot 1's right now are the CycloDS and the G6 DS Real.

Ha, maybe the CycloDS but not the G6 DS Real. They don't even have DLDI yet, I dont think

.
If anything CycloDS and N-Card clones are the best out

G6 is too overpriced when the N-Card is similar has the same amount of space for around half the price.