Sorry gentlemen, I was away for awhile.
Anyway, I am not running the "New" version. If it provides any insight, here is a proper picture of the cart. Again, please excuse the quality.
So, as you can see, it is not the "New" version. Sorry for the confusion; I should have specified.
As to the other questions, I don't know much about flash carts and R4s. I will try to answer without sounding like an idiot.
I have downloaded the files for my cart from r4isdhc.com in the past. On
this page, you can download from an area "Kernel", but there are no files for "Upgrade Firmware". I downloaded these files before and unzipped them to the root of the micro SD. All that is there is a folder named "_rpg", and a file named "_DS_MENU.dat". There is no .nds update file included in the downloads.
My DSi is running fw 1.4.3U and has not been updated/connected to the interned in eons. The R4i has been running the original files that were on the card's website since I bought it in November. Nothing about the DSi or Card have changed despite me trying to run that dual-boot thing so I could play an unsupported game. Once I ran that, it all went downhill.
Hope all that helps.