GBAtemp: AceKard in house!

[boomerz]

Thank you for your replies, shaunj66! Can't wait to read your review.

Have fun testing it!

 

[shaunj66]

Have fun testing it!

Yeah right! "Fun".

 

[Monkey01]

I figure the AceKard will sell for around $80 then.
If the software and manual can be xlated(which I am sure someone will do) into English, then will the Acekard give the ds-x a run for its money?
Personally, I like the drag and drop feature of the DS-X. 3-5 seconds and you are done. Now, to go back to the days of the gba flashcarts where you have to use software to xfer a rom onto a cart and wait and wait for it to happen, I don't know. Plus, where is the customer support? Who do you go to if you have problems and questions?
ds-x has great customer support and you can even get a response back from the lead engineers. Lastly, acekard may be cheap, but when you figure in that extra $14- $20 for international shipping, plus, you have to buy your own mini-sd card, the question is: is it really better than the ds-x?
Lets see about the slot 1 ninja.....
B.
Edit: I just read Shauns post on the speed of the xfer, so scratch my coment about waiting.

$80 dollar would be far to expensive for what it is imo, @bamboogaming.com it's $48.88, note that you don't get the packaging though.

Personally I think I'll go for the DS-X anyway though, I like it having single card download play support to non-flashed ds's, too bad other slot1 solutions aren't able to do so too? First I thought the feauture dropped when you patched the rom, but NinjaDS and AceKard both support clean roms, but don't support download play?

 

[deathspawn999]

so the acekard is a bust.

not being able to do the download to nonflashed SUCKS, and i was already against there AKFS thing anyways. lets see how the new ninja works.

 

[Costello]

Some said that the Acekard "didn't patch the roms". I request evidence regarding this statement

AFAIK there's no way to know... the same people said that "roms weren't patched, proof is the acekard will support download play".
So let me ask you something: knowing it doesn't support download play, what makes you think roms aren't patched?

The NinjaDS does patch the roms on-the-fly, I don't think they ever said it doesn't. The point is, it does support drag & drop.

 

[deathspawn999]

if you have to have your own file structure, and you have to have software to move rom from point a to point b, that would be patching. if not, you tell me what is.

i really hope the new ninja is atleast on par with the ds-x. so far, that is the best solution for people who just want to play games, and enjoy ease of use.

 

[monkeymachine]

Claims from the Acekard team re clean roms:

Is it true that AK supports all clean rom,no matter it’s old or new?

??????????????????????????????????????????????????DS?????????????????AK???????????????? ????????????????????????????????
We can support all games unless Nintendo wanna their DS can’t run games.There is no patch needed.

???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????FAT???TF????????
Second of all,copying files to TF with AKFS will be very rapid as copying files in Windows.

????????????16??????Winhex??TF???????????clean rom????Winhex?????????
Grrrr…you can also use Winhex to compare files in TF with the originl clean rom.

AceKard FAQ here: http://www.acekard.com/archives/5.htm

 

[hirusho]

Hi shaun666, just wondering what micro card you going to test with acekard? there's a micro card compability list put up on acekard website and it seems the following micro cards are ideal choice:

PNY microSD 1GB
Kingston microSD 1GB(PNY oem)
PNY microSD 512MB
Apacer microSD 512MB(PNY oem)
Kingmax microSD 512MB
AData microSD 512MB(Kingmax oem)

here's the link acekard

Acekard claims if you use the above micro cards won't come across any lag issue, can you try any card above and prove their statement?

 

[[M]artin]

WTF, no Sandisk?

 

[shaunj66]

Hi shaun666, just wondering what micro card you going to test with acekard? there's a micro card compability list put up on acekard website and it seems the following micro cards are ideal choice:

PNY microSD 1GB
Kingston microSD 1GB(PNY oem)
PNY microSD 512MB
Apacer microSD 512MB(PNY oem)
Kingmax microSD 512MB
AData microSD 512MB(Kingmax oem)

here's the link acekard

Acekard claims if you use the above micro cards won't come across any lag issue, can you try any card above and prove their statement?

The name's shaunj66

And I'm going to be testing the AceKard with a Sandisk Ultra II 1GB microSD.

 

[Costello]

Apparently the Acekard doesn't detect save types automatically.
There is a "savelist.bin" file in the client folder, it seems to contain the save types of each game.
Meaning what?
- Meaning you have to manually enter the save type of a game each time you run it (it doesnt "remember" the save type)
- Meaning you'll have to update the list (from where? chinese websites?)
- Meaning some games seem to be non-working unless you choose the right save type. We just tried Final Fantasy and it wasnt working - but it turned out we had picked up the wrong save type.

WTF, no Sandisk? frown.gif

Yes Sandisk memory cards are supported... ours seems to be working fine so far.

 

[hirusho]

this is complete list

KingMax 512MB 4
KingMax 256MB 4
PNY 1GB 3
PNY 512MB 3
PNY 256MB 4
Kingston 1GB 3
Kingston 256MB 4
Sandisk 2GB 14
Sandisk 1GB 13
Sandisk 512MB 13
Sandisk Ultra II 1GB 7
Apacer 512MB 3
Apacer 256MB 4
AData 512MB 4
Kingston 512MB (not supported yet)

according to acekard website they will be adding more compability list

Also, note those numbers after brand name. It indicates how fast a micro card is running. Under most games speed 13 will be fine, but in some cases like castlemania: potrait of ruin you will need a speed greater than 4 otherwise you'll run into some lag/problem issue.

Those cards I just post are recomended by acekard.

Anyway, i just like to see if shaun will be able to test any suggested cards by acekard (personally i'd like to see kingston 1GB micro card, that's the card i have)

 

[[M]artin]

Yes Sandisk memory cards are supported... ours seems to be working fine so far.

Sweet! Thanks for the clarification!

 

[ChowMein]

Just one question: Does it work with the DS Browser patch set up (Slot-1 DS Flash Card + Slot-2 DS Flash Cart)? Since if it does, it could technically be a slightly more expensive ($10 or so) alternative to just buying the DS Browser, while providing some extras (such as the indicated "complete compatibility")

 

[shaunj66]

Just one question: Does it work with the DS Browser patch set up (Slot-1 DS Flash Card + Slot-2 DS Flash Cart)? Since if it does, it could technically be a slightly more expensive ($10 or so) alternative to just buying the DS Browser, while providing some extras (such as the indicated "complete compatibility")

Yes it works fine with the DS Browser hack patch (thanks Triforce!) using the M3 or Supercard.

 

[flai]

All I want to know is if FFIII, Jump Super Stars and Ultimate Stars, Mario Kart, NSMB, Metroid Prime and Elite Beat Agents work. And how the menu is. I like a good GUI

 

[Costello]

The games list doesn't show the rom icons.
If you want to see the icon of a game, you have to highlight (select) it.
More generally the OS is not fantastic, just decent.
Also you can't boot the Acekard if you don't have a microSD in, meaning it won't work as a passme if you don't have a microSD card in.

flai, all these games should be compatible, but the major drawback is the fact that you have to know the save type of the game you want to play.
We tried Final Fantasy III with a random save type and the game didn't work.
Then we tried different settings and finally got it to work. Very annoying.

 

[zatelli]

To what extent is it power saving? Does it have a similar power consumption compared to the DS-X? Power wise, does it compare to a genuine DS cart ?
Those are the questions I currently have on the top of my head. Definately looking forward to the review.

 

[stinkingbob]

"The games list doesn't show the rom icons.
If you want to see the icon of a game, you have to highlight (select) it.
More generally the OS is not fantastic, just decent.
Also you can't boot the Acekard if you don't have a microSD in, meaning it won't work as a passme if you don't have a microSD card in.

flai, all these games should be compatible, but the major drawback is the fact that you have to know the save type of the game you want to play.
We tried Final Fantasy III with a random save type and the game didn't work.
Then we tried different settings and finally got it to work. Very annoying."


You know, I really don't have to wait until the final review is published to know that the AceKard is too much trouble and too time consuming to be used as a viable slot 1 solution. It doesn't know how to choose the correct save game file for wach game??!!!! OMG. That's pretty bad.
It seems like you are going to spend 15 minutes going from point A to point B.
The money is still on ds-x guys. Lets see if ninja's slot 1 can do better or equal to the ds-x (I doubt it). Of course, if you want too wait until the ninja finally omes out (maybe like what, 1 to 2 months), you uwill be missing out. Get the ds-x. Period.
BTW, if it seems like I am biased towrds ds-x, I am not. I call it like I see it. So far, ds-x does an excellent job. User interface is simple (drag and drop). Don't have to worry about icons not showing up or save game files. 512Mb is enopugh space for a few games.
But still, I am curious about what Shaun has to say about Acekard in his final review. I am going to guess and say he will give it a 4.5 out of 10.
B.

 

[dice]

Q. Is that tape a recording of the bill?