Hacking Okay I've narrowed down my options to four.

[Jae]

Long story short. Fiance at the time handled everything for me back ups and all the stuff for my hand helds from my phones to my consoles. However, he dumped me and in my desperate attempt to get out of my depression I went and traded my ds lite for a 3ds. I couldn't manage to get the color I wanted since they were out of stock so they told me to just keep it and exchange it within 30 days for a color I did want when it came into stock.

Now what I really need help with is I've been burned in the past ordering flash carts from different sites and it turned out to be fakes. I don't know where to go to get legit ones I was always tired of carrying around my whole collection of games and I'd always end up losing one here and there so that's when he introduced me to this and he did everything for me. I have no idea what I'm doing but hopefully things will start to make sense soon when I start.. but first comes picking the right one!

I've narrowed my choices down to:

Acekard 2i
iSmart MM
CycloDS iEvolution
Supercard DSTwo

To be honest before I came here I didn't even know the bottom three existed let alone the rest. The only ones I ever knew about were Acekard and R4. I've been burned with fakes on both and I think I spent over a total of 150.00 to get a legit one but since then I've long lost the link. I'd love some help in picking one and if it's allowed a recommendation of where to get it.

Thank you!

 

[awssk8er]

Didn't really read the post but I'll sum up the four carts, and pick the best for you.

- Acekard2i - Cheaper, cannot play GBA games.
- DSTWO - A little more expensive, can play GBA and SNES games. Personal favorite.
- iEvo - Inproved CPU (Plays GBA and SNES games) but not as nice as DSTWO. Can play DSi-enhanced games and I believe DSiWare. (I never used the cart, just going what other people say).
- iSmart - Eh, nothing really. I would just eliminate it. Don't know everything about it, but seems like a worse version than the Acekard.

Also, I recommend leetmod.com. They ship from the US (3-5 days shipping for me) and all their carts are good.

 

[Presto99]

you need an Acekard 2i or DSTWO depending on what you want it to do. If you want GBA games and some other nifty stuffs, DSTWO. If you'll mainly be playing DS games, save money and get an Acekard 2i. Both of these cards should work on 3DS, and they can be updated if needed. RealHotStuff.com has insanely fast shipping, and the cards seem to be fine.

Good luck on coping with the break-up..

 

[BloodWolfJW]

From personal experience, if your not having money problems, the SuperCard DSTwo is definetly the best of them all, especially since they have forums

 

[jurassicplayer]

- Acekard2i - Cheaper, cannot play GBA games.
- DSTWO - A little more expensive, can play GBA and SNES games. Personal favorite.
- iEvo - Inproved CPU (Plays GBA and SNES games) but not as nice as DSTWO. Can play DSi-enhanced games and I believe DSiWare. (I never used the cart, just going what other people say).
- iSmart - Eh, nothing really. I would just eliminate it. Don't know everything about it, but seems like a worse version than the Acekard.

:|...
- Acekard2i: Doesn't cost a fortune, and does all of the basic features that a flashcart should have splendidly (in other words, it can play the backups with relatively little problems). Requires a slot2 expansion pack for GBA games.

- DSTWO: Supposedly the current "top flashcart" with an SNES and GBA emulator as well as extra features such as FreeCheat, RealTimeGuide, RealTimeSave, etc. (mostly features to help/cheat/kill the gaming experience and make things easy). Also has high compatibility, quick fixes when something popular is broken, and doesn't require a slot2 expansion for GBA gaming. Both emulators are not spectacular, but are decent enough to pass.

- iEvo: Doesn't have any "improved cpu" and can't play GBA/SNES to the extent that the DSTWO can (SNEmulDS isn't quite as good as the DSTWO's). It does have a small number of features specific to the CycloDS that are more for convenience than anything.

- iSmart: I don't see why you would want to eliminate it...the Multimedia version is more of like a beta DSTWO, and has many of the same features, though no SNES emulator and an older version of the GBA emulator that the DSTWO used as a base. All in all, it' actually isn't that bad of a cart (only slightly cheaper than a DSTWO though).

For the most part, they all do well at what they are supposed to do (play DS games), and it really just depends on if you want some extra features, the possibilities of DSi mode, or just the basic flashcart. The only suggestion I would make is to not just get swept up by DSTWO hype and actually look at whether you really need the extra features and if it is worth the cost.

 

[Terminator02]

The ievo can't run dsiware(nor can any other flashcart), you have to buy all dsiware from the eshop

 

[Jiro2]

The CycloDS ievolution has a problem at the moment: it doesn't seem like the company is updating it any more. This is a problem since it doesn't work on the newest DSi or 3DS firmware and doesn't have updates for newer games (granted, there aren't *that* many new games any more).

Also, the wi-fi doesn't work in DSi mode, because the game that's used for its DSi exploit doesn't have wi-fi in it.

I got one a few months ago but I'd never get one now unless they started putting out updates.

 

[Dangy]

Acekard 2i with a Slot-2 card. Because AKAIO is awesome.

 

[serenade.63]

i would go for scdstwo, i own an acekard2i, the ievo, and the dstwo, and the dstwo is definitely my cart of choice

 

[Jae]

Thanks for your advice everyone! Looks like I'm narrowed down to either the Acekard 2i or the DSTwo. Are there any other things I'll need to get besides the flash cart and sdhc memory? If there are more expensive things I need then I guess I'm going with Acekard 2i however if it's within my budget still I'll go with DSTwo.

Thank you again! I can't wait to start playing games again. Of course that'll have to wait till I settle on what color I really want.

 

[BenRK]

Other then a DS to use it on, no, the only other thing to need to get is an SDHC card. I would recommend at least a 4GB one if you weren't planning on getting something bigger.

 

[Jae]

Have the 3ds in hand just haven't opened it yet debating on whether I want to wait for a different color or not. Aqua blue wasn't my initial choice but it was all they had in stock so they told me to exchange it for black or red when it comes out if I'd like.

Planning on getting something slightly bigger than 4GB. Then again I suppose it depends on the prices I may end up getting multiple 4GB cards rather than one big one. Is there anything wrong with doing that? Thank you for your help!

 

[Terminator02]

There's nothing wrong with that, I've heard of people having different memory cards for different genres of games or whatever else.

 

[Rayder]

I'll say you have properly narrowed it down to the best 2 carts to choose; the Acekard 2i and the DSTWO. There was a time where the iEVO could have been a choice, but as someone said previously, they haven't been updating it lately, so that kinda rules that one out.

Now you have to ask yourself, do you care about playing GBA games at all? If you do, then get the DSTWO, if not, get the AceKard. It's pretty much as simple as that.

As for microSD cards, they both can handle SDHC cards as high as 32GB, so choose whatever size suits you best. It sounds to me that an 8GB would suit you well enough. Sandisk or Kingston in a Class 4 or better are generally the most recommended brands to get.

There is one more minor concern.....the DSTWO, having that extra CPU in it, does consume a little more power than and Acekard would, and since the 3DS battery life ain't the greatest to begin with, you may want to take that into consideration also. I'm not sure how much more power it consumes, but I'm sure the Acekard would be better on battery life than the DSTWO. But you can't play GBA games with an Acekard alone like you can with the DSTWO. So keep that in mind.

 

[Schlupi]

Keep in mind whatever cart you get, you need to update it to work on your 3DS on ANOTHER ds (original, Lite, or old Firmwared DSi).

Yeah, the AK2i or the DSTWO are definitely the way to go. I have both but I use my DSTWO more often; I love the GBA and SNES emulation. And while you're at it, check out NESDS, it's one of the best emulators every made on a handheld (if not THE best) thanks to huiminghao.

 

[Jae]

I haven't played GBA games in well.. forever. I know the desire to do so lurks somewhere but not sure if I'd follow through. I suppose best bet would be to just have the option there in case I do feel like it someday rather than having to buy a whole new flash cart. Then again the battery problem I've never looked into. I haven't even opened my 3ds yet so I don't know what the battery life is like but if it's horrendous I may just give up any hopes on playing GBA games and go with an Acekard 2i.

I play mostly tactics and rpg style games along with other various mini things like I'm a fan of nintendogs yes I'm ashamed to admit it but I just love those cute puppies! Besides being female I can get away with it! Approximately how many games would I be able to store on a 8GB memory card? I'll definitely look into getting a Sandisk or Kingston brand. Although I believe I've been burned with the Sandisk brand before too many fakes out there not sure if that's the same for Kingston these days.

Err.. I need to update it to work on my 3DS on another DS? That part I didn't know. I wish I did otherwise I wouldn't have bothered trading in my ds lite that I worked so hard to customize into a crystal clear case! Guess I shot myself in the foot there. Is there any other way around it? Or am I going to have to go shopping on eBay for a used DS?

 

[koimayeul]

I haven't played GBA games in well.. forever. I know the desire to do so lurks somewhere but not sure if I'd follow through. I suppose best bet would be to just have the option there in case I do feel like it someday rather than having to buy a whole new flash cart. Then again the battery problem I've never looked into. I haven't even opened my 3ds yet so I don't know what the battery life is like but if it's horrendous I may just give up any hopes on playing GBA games and go with an Acekard 2i.

I play mostly tactics and rpg style games along with other various mini things like I'm a fan of nintendogs yes I'm ashamed to admit it but I just love those cute puppies! Besides being female I can get away with it! Approximately how many games would I be able to store on a 8GB memory card? I'll definitely look into getting a Sandisk or Kingston brand. Although I believe I've been burned with the Sandisk brand before too many fakes out there not sure if that's the same for Kingston these days.

Err.. I need to update it to work on my 3DS on another DS? That part I didn't know. I wish I did otherwise I wouldn't have bothered trading in my ds lite that I worked so hard to customize into a crystal clear case! Guess I shot myself in the foot there. Is there any other way around it? Or am I going to have to go shopping on eBay for a used DS?

Hi.. I'm really sorry i wanted to post a constructive reply to your post Jae but, it doesn't make any sense to me even after readin it 3 times.. from the OP up to here

I read about GBA? then, nintendogs, and 3ds? and.. memory stick? then if you gotta eBay a used Ds!?

Here's a good idea of the state of confusion i am now.. yep.. talk about mindfuck

 

[Jae]

I'm sorry Koimayeul! Let me see if I can break everything down simply for you.

Initially my question started with which flash cart I should get everyone here has been super helpful in helping me narrow down to the last two choices. Then I started asking about memory cards to get for the flash cart. Rayder mentioned from the sounds of things that an 8GB should suit me just fine so I wanted to get a better feel for exactly how many games would fit onto a 8GB memory card. I know each game size varies so I explained the kinda games I have and I mostly enjoy playing to get a better approximate count as to how many would fit on an 8GB card.

As far as the ebay DS. Schlupi mentioned that whatever cart I get I need to update it to work on my 3DS by another DS. This part I had no idea about. I traded in my DS lite to get the 3DS so I have no other DS left. So that's why I was asking if there was any other way around updating it to work for 3DS other than by another DS. Or will I need to go shopping on eBay for a used version.

I hope that clears it up.. love that picture by the way!

 

[BenRK]

8GBs? You can hold at least 50 games plus homebrew/emulation/etc with plenty of room left over.

Aka, a lot!

 

[Terminator02]

U could easily fit over 100 games in an 8 gb, storage won't be a problem unless you load a lot of music on there too.

As for updating, with the dstwo you can update with any ds or dsi reguardless of the firmware, and you can ask most retailers to pre flash it with the latest firmware before they ship it if you dont have easy access to a ds.