Hacking cylo battery life

[tinymonkeyt]

is it just me or does the cyclo eat up a lot of battery?
i can play like a few hours only :[

 

[Salamantis]

Every flashcart reduces the battery time, some by a little, some by a lot.

 

[xCuteBunnyx]

how much battery life would the cyclo suck up? compared to the regular ds lite?

 

[tinymonkeyt]

well usually i play on the lowest backlight for the ds
and id say it went more than 10 hours a time (the manual says about 15-18 hours)
but with the cyclo, (the review says its about 4 hours) i can only play for like 2-3
bites down on my battery a lot :/

 

[CatScam]

I don’t have a Cyclo but I have noticed when I play multi with a friend that has the Cyclo his battery runs dry way faster then my R4 or my other friends SCDS. The Cyclo seems to be a cheaply made card could be the parts they use effects battery life.

 

[Enter260]

well usually i play on the lowest backlight for the ds
and id say it went more than 10 hours a time (the manual says about 15-18 hours)
but with the cyclo, (the review says its about 4 hours) i can only play for like 2-3
bites down on my battery a lot :/

unless you have a brand new ds, those numbers aren't too bad. rechargeable batteries do lose their charge over time.

 

[iisdev]

post deleted by author.
reason: CNET affiliation

 

[Enter260]

hmm which batch do you guys have?

 

[xCuteBunnyx]

How much of a difference between battery life in just single player mode is there?

 

[Sokonomi]

Reading this sites reviews might be a nice idea. :')

Battery Life Results:

Test condition:
* Fully charged European Black Nintendo DS Lite
* CycloDS Evolution 1.12, Japanese 1GB PNY micro SD card (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 CycloDS Evolution = 4 hours 27 minutes
Retail New Super Mario Bros cart = 4 hours 55 minutes

Ofcourse it sucks more power, but nothing seriously worrying if you ask me.

 

[omatic]

The main problem I have with the CycloDS (and flash carts in general) is the standby battery drain. It seems to me that the cart sucks down about as much power as it would while playing during sleep mode, so I end up with no more than about 6 hours of standby / sleep mode. I usually try and save the game before closing the DS, just in case.

Unfortunately, all slot-1 flash carts have this flaw right now.

 

[sk3tch]

The Cyclo seems to be a cheaply made card could be the parts they use effects battery life.

Hardly. The CycloDS simply has more hardware on it.

Check out this thread, which is a comparison of the hardware on the CycloDS to its clone (the EDGE). The CycloDS has recovery flash and firmware flash that the R4 (and most others) do not. That uses more juice, but also allows them to have more features (such as clean loading, hence why Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates worked flawlessly from get-go on CycloDS).

Also, don't forget that microSDHC cards use A LOT more juice than standard microSD cards. Add all of the above up and you have a significant battery disadvantage. That's one reason why I bought an R4 to complement the CycloDS.

 

[cutterjohn]

I get c. 18h with the backlight at the lowest setting and sound maybe at 25% of max volumes and no WiFi. I probably, get about 8-10h using WiFi with the same settings. Seems good to me, and as good as real carts.

The problem with battery consumption really comes with sleep mode, as a user at the official forums tested his, which last v. 31h in sleep mode v. 7-8d with a real cart. I rarely use sleep mode, and never for more than an hour or so, so it doesn't bother me.

 

[tinymonkeyt]

hmm well i shouldnt be complaining anyway :[
its my own fault im using the cyclo
i just hope it doesnt reduce my battery too much if i keep charging so often

 

[sk3tch]

It's $15 to buy a new official battery direct from Nintendo.com...so I wouldn't sweat it.

 

[CJL18]

i have a cyclo and on my DS lite i can play around 6-7hours before recharging

 

[tinymonkeyt]

i have a cyclo and on my DS lite i can play around 6-7hours before recharging

oh really?
i guess it depends for the amount
the games probably use up different amounts
and if you watch videos or play homebrew stuff

 

[CJL18]

it also depends what level of britness you have it on i have my on at 2

 

[tinymonkeyt]

ok now im really surprised
i always keep mine on the lowest
isnt 2 like the second highest level?

 

[CJL18]

do you rehcarge yours teh second it turns red?...because on mine it takes about 3hours to turn red and another 3hours before it's compltely dead and no i'm not lying