Hacking RIP ShopTemp. Where should I buy my DSTwo?

[TreasureCat]

Hopefully this is the right place to be asking this question. I am completely new here, and to DS flash carts as well.

I've been lurking here for a couple of weeks, choosing the ideal cart to pair with a new Mario-Red DSi XL, and finally decided on the DSTwo tonight. It was when I went to ShopTemp that I learned of the great tragedy that has befallen them. It's also when I started kicking myself for not having decided a few days earlier. I know that ShopTemp's inability to sell carts is being reported as "temporary," but I have no idea how temporary that is or if it's even true.

I've read that buying DS flashcarts can be risky business when you don't know your retailer, and I certainly don't. For that matter, I don't know anybody else with a DS, nor do I have one of my own, so I'm pretty sure I need to order from a place that can flash my cart for me. I don't own a MicroSD card even if this isn't the case.

Can anybody point me to a reliable shop that can sell me a quality, pre-flashed card and DSTwo? Preferably as cheaply as possible? I'm afraid that because I am completely new to this scene (hell, I've never even owned a DS) that I have no idea where to turn.

A huge thanks to anybody who can help me out.

 

[zhuzhuchina]

if live in us buy on realhotstuff.com
shipping faster than abroad website

 

[YayMii]

I can recommend ModChipCentral for being reliable. They're based in Winnepeg, MB, Canada, and they promise 3-5 day shipping anywhere in North America (they even have an actual store where locals can buy their stuff AFAIK).

But be warned, though, that they're a bit more expensive than other sites.

 

[geminis076]

Oh no, I just read about ShopTemp! I immediately went to the "other" place I order stuff from and ordered 4 R4DS for the DS Lite, to have as a back up and to share with my little cousins. I had just ordered an item from the "other" place, got it today and arrived pretty quickly to the U.S. considering it was shipped from China, have ordered from "them" before and haven't had any issues.

Anyway, how does anyone reading feel about posting the names of different sites? I'm sure it really doesn't help, they'll be found out eventually but well lets face it, these little carts are a technological money saving miracle and I'm not sure if we should be posting or bringing attention to the few precious and reliable sites that are still around. Maybe share info via PM-ing?

The site I'm referring to I feel is safe and reliable, I've ordered about 3-4 times from them, and their prices are about $2.00 to $3.00 less than ShopTemp. $6.00 for an R4 on ShopTemp, $2.99 lowest price for the R4 cart only with no other stuff from this other site, and $4 something if you want a USB drive included.

 

[jacobbones]

I am/was new to the flashcarts as well. I searched around for place to buy a dstwo and ended up buying it from a site acekard.ca

I had no trouble with the order, paid for it with pay-pal on a thursday and was delivered monday.
They are a canadian shop (toronto I think) but the return address was niagra falls, so it doesnt go through customs.

Seems like most shops are in china etc.. so takes forever to get the product.

They are who I would go with

 

[FireGrey]

I know a good place but it's a ROM site, not a popular one either

 

[TreasureCat]

I appreciate all of the suggestions, now I've got a few options. But I think I might be a little unclear on something.

I did a lot of research on the Acekard 2i and very nearly bought it before changing my mind and looking into the DSTwo. I'd been lead to believe that since I'll be buying a new DSi XL loaded with 1.4.1, I would need another DS that was using an earlier firmware in order to get my flash cart in working order. Or was this just to get AKAIO running on an Acekard 2i? I was thinking I'd need to do this with any cart, in which case I'd need to get my DSTwo with a preflashed card, but I'm guessing I misunderstood.

The tech end of this is still pretty foreign to me, since I have yet to own any of the physical materials required, but I'm no stranger to technology (or even mods/flash carts) so I'm sure once I get a cart, microsd card, and DSi, I'll be able to figure it out.

Again, thanks for the shop suggestions.

 

[ThePowerOutage]

The AceKard you would have to buy pre-flashed but the SCDS2 can update without a DS with lower firmware

 

[TreasureCat]

The AceKard you would have to buy pre-flashed but the SCDS2 can update without a DS with lower firmware

Great, thanks. With that concern taken care of, I can actually buy the thing.

 

[jacobbones]

I have a DSI XL with 1.4.1 and the supercard dstwo worked fine on it.

The acekard has to be updated using another dslite. I Like my dstwo, liking the emulators

 

[RedBaron]

https://www.4coolday.com/
Very good

 

[YayMii]

The Acekard requires an original DS or a DS lite in order to update it to work with 1.4.1 (unless you have the Acekard already updated for 1.4, then you can use a 1.4 DSi to update to 1.4.1).
The Supercard DStwo integrates this update into the EOS, and updates upon insertion into the DS. This allows you to update the DStwo without downloading anything extra, and also allows you to update it to work with 1.4.1 even if you already updated your DSi.

 

[Skiller23]

i recommand to buy from Lightake, look at my signature

 

[nl255]

The 1.4.1 update didn't even require flashing the firmware and should be included as long as you are using EOS 1.08