Hacking What exactly IS a GBA Flashcart?

[Feenix]

Okay, I've browsed the internet and this forum for an explanation on this. I know you put it in your game slot, and it has memory on it. But what EXACTLY are its capabilities? Does it differ depending on the make? Any help is appreciated.

EDIT: Just found out it can play ROMS and Homebrew, but is there any possible way of utilizing it more? Media player, Files, etc.

 

[Maktub]

Funny. When I came to gbatemp the question would've been "What exactly IS a DS Flashcart?".

on topic: depending on which flashcart, the capabilities differ. Some can be used to play gba games, as a RAM expansion pack for Opera browser and homebrew programs, etc.

 

[DanTheManMS]

EDIT: Just found out it can play ROMS and Homebrew, but is there any possible way of utilizing it more? Media player, Files, etc.

Usually media playing is done through the homebrew itself. Look into GBA JPEG viewer and GSM Player for instance. On the DS, there's more horsepower, so you have native mp3 players like Moonshell.

One thing to keep in mind is that on the GBA, you usually don't have an actual filesystem. Files are stored inside the *.gba file itself. On the DS, you store stuff on your microSD card, and the homebrew program can access the files on the microSD card and use those. Even if you get a GBA flash cart that uses SD cards, very very few GBA homebrew programs can access and modify the files on the card. Chishm's save backup program and the DLDI-compatible version of PocketNES are the only ones that come to mind.