Hacking Which flash cart is the best combo for low-maintaince & batt?

[nintendough]

So I just got a new Mario DSi XL (already have a DS Lite with M3 Real + GBA Adapter). I mainly want to take my dozens of DS games (from which I have ripped most of the saves and was using with the M3) and just play them on the XL (no GBA, no video, none of that fancy stuff). Mainly I want something that doesn't suck much more battery life (since I know flash carts use more battery since they have additional chips on 'em) and is reliable in terms of updates and ease of use (I don't want to have to worry about patching games if I can avoid it).

Also, I am planning on buying DSiWare games and dunno if that factors into which carts are good to use but I've been out of things for a while and would appreciate input from more experience users which cart would be best for me.
Thank!

 

[ShadowSoldier]

Acekard 2i. It's cheap, has great battery life. Supports are top notch. You just might have to do the paper trick, depending on the card.

Acekard 2i @ www.shoptemp.com

I got one for my DSi XL and am not looking back. It's great if you just want to play games.

But if you want all the features and bang for your buck, the DSTWO is another great option. It has real time save, real time cheats, .txt walkthrough, movie player, GBA and SNES emulation, bypasses any anti-piracy, the only thing though is the extra processor or whatever thats in it, it makes the battery life last around PSP time.. so around the 8 hour mark.

DSTWO @ www.shoptemp.com

Either of those cards you can't go wrong, and those are the most recommended ones among people.

Just don't go near the R4's. You can never go wrong with Acekard 2i though. It's great and it gets the job done perfectly.

 

[Rydian]

The DSTwo is a cart that uses more battery life because it has more onboard parts than normal flash carts.

Thus your only real option is the acekard 2i.

 

[ShadowSoldier]

The DSTwo is a cart that uses more battery life because it has more onboard parts than normal flash carts.

Thus your only real option is the acekard 2i.

Only reason why I included it was because, my Acekard 2i for my XL, get's me about 10 hours of gameplay.. and I didn't think 1-2 hours lost was a big deal.

But I do recommend the Acekard 2i over all else.

 

[Rydian]

If it's an XL the battery life usage isn't so bad, but since his concern is battery life the 2i's the real suggestion here (otherwise as normal I'd push the dstwo).

 

[exangel]

Also, I am planning on buying DSiWare games and dunno if that factors into which carts are good to use but I've been out of things for a while and would appreciate input from more experience users which cart would be best for me.
Thank!

I play with DSiWare on my XL myself. Just know that you will likely have to update the Acekard 2i depending on the vendor. Since you do own a DS Lite you won't need to pay extra to have it done in advance (which is offered for a small, optional fee when ordering the cart from Shoptemp). If you didn't own a DS Lite you would have to be more cautious about updating. I haven't owned a DS Lite for a while, and the DSi Firmware update in September (which blocked almost all DSi compatible flashcarts on the market) kept me out of the DSi Shop for a little while (can't remember, maybe a week) until an AK2i firmware update was introduced to make it compatible with DSi 1.4.1. (An update that was independent of AKAIO, btw)

As far as I know, and correct me if I'm wrong, access to the DSi Shop is the only thing inaccessible if you choose not to keep updated.

I do agree that the Acekard 2i is the best you will get for what you're after. Just know that you may have to make a little adjustment to it in addition to the firmware update, the paper thing that Shadow mentioned. If you experience occasional or frequent freezing during games, or if you have trouble seeing the cart in the DSi XL, you may need to check out http://gbatemp.net/t218103-updated-n00b-gu...up-your-acekard for detailed information/pictures to fix it.
However, there are some DSi XL owners out there who say they have no contact issues with the AK2i in their XL and never have. When I first got it, I didn't notice it, except when I'd accidentally flex the bottom half of the XL during gameplay (I could actually hear a little creak) and it would freeze. I duplicated the problem in the DSi main menu seeing the icon appear/disappear, so I came here to find out how to fix it and I've been happy with the cart since April or May.

edit: clarity

 

[ShadowSoldier]

I'm one of those users who bought an Acekard 2i off of shoptemp, popped it in my XL, and haven't had a single Contact Issue. It's worked perfectly.

 

[Rydian]

Correct, the shop is the only thing blocked off if you don't update.

I've got an Acekard 2i on a DSi, and I only have contact issues when I shake it or it gets bumped (so I did the paper trick just in case).

If you're ordering the 2i make sure to get the flashing service.

 

[RoMee]

I've got an Acekard 2i on a DSi, and I only have contact issues when I shake it or it gets bumped (so I did the paper trick just in case).

yeah, not a good idea if you have kids
my son use to alway run to me telling me it froze
that is why my acekard is my back up to my back up

 

[nintendough]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I'm not aware of the paper trick but I assume this is where you add some paper into the slot since the cart isn't manufactured to the exact specs of original carts?

I have a few more questions since I realize MOST (90+%) of my DS XL use is at home, on the couch (and my bed) where I could plug my DSi XL in (my charging adapter is actually next to the couch). So how much more battery would I lose with the DSTwo compared to Acekard and overall how much worse is either card compared to original carts?

Is the contact pin issue a big one and are any of the extra (non-gaming) features of either card worth it if I already have a iPhone 4? I wonder about GBA support since I know the DSiXL doesn't have any hardware like the Lite did. And while I'm thinking about the Lite, why does the Acekard 2 need a second (Lite) to update firmware?

Thanks a lot for all the help guys, I really appreciate it!

 

[ShadowSoldier]

Contact issue isn't a big one. I bought my Acekard 2i and use it in an XL, and don't need to do the paper trick.

The DSTWO only loses 2.. maybe 3 hours of gametime. So it could be around 7-8 hours of gametime in total, depending on your brightness.

No idea why the Acekard 2i needs a DSL to flash the card. You could also use a DSi that's... below 1.4 I believe.

 

[nintendough]

So I ended up giving my Lite (and M3) to my bro over Christmas, lost my XL and found it last week. Been killing Silver but was gonna order a cart over the weekend since I wanna try some of my old games. I guess the SuperCard is my only real option now (although I do have a friend whose Lite I could borrow)?

Also, has GBA improved on the DsTwo?

 

[zizer]

so so , but dstwo is best

 

[nintendough]

I mainly want to play some first party games I transferred my saves for and Mother 3. Does the DSTwo handle Advance wars and Nintendo games okay?

 

[CannonFoddr]

The DSTWO only loses 2.. maybe 3 hours of gametime. So it could be around 7-8 hours of gametime in total, depending on your brightness.

Does it ??? not having a XL I wouldn't know that but on my DSi I only had ~50min less time with the DSTwo ( & ~42mins with the AK2i) when I did my tests on them...
admittingly they were not Real 'game play time' tests, but I wouldn't think the results would've been that much different

 

[zizer]

my tests

wow , this is interesting information

 

[ars25]

I mainly want to play some first party games I transferred my saves for and Mother 3. Does the DSTwo handle Advance wars and Nintendo games okay?

gba emulation compatability
http://gbatemp.net/t226964-supercard-dstwo...mulator-details
faq
http://gbatemp.net/t234082-the-supercard-dstwo-faq
plugins
http://gbatemp.net/t229551-supercard-dstwo-plug-ins
Q&A
http://gbatemp.net/t229126-supercard-dstwo...ssion-questions
and prety much those might help you out