ok so i finally got package numero dos from deal extreme. it was slightly more crushed than the first, but i noticed inside the actual box that the plastic shell which holds the bits has been altered since the last failed unit i received. the cord you use to do the flashing of the kernel was actually in a more form-fitting hole in the plastic. the previous package, the thing was jammed into a rectangular hole. in this one, the USB-head was sitting in a USB-head sized opening, with a canal for the cord, leading in a U shape to an impression the same size/shape as the other end of the cord. which is good, as it seemed that the cord was not able to move at all during shipping, meaning the frail little bit that goes into the actual m3i device was secured.
so since i dont normally bring my DS to work everday, i thought i'd just plug it into the USB power to see if it lights up (cause it should do that at least). and it did. so that's good. i'll try and install the firmware/kernel stuff this evening and hopefully will be reporting back saying that everything is good.