Hacking Why NOT to buy an R4DS!

[agentgamma]

There are several reasons why this is a bad idea.

1 - Out of production
Real R4DS cards (see 3 for more info about fake R4 cards) are out of production and are increasing in price when there are cheaper cards that are MUCH better than the R4DS.

2 - No firmware updates
The R4 Team (the team who make R4 updates) simply don't make updates anymore.
No updates have been out in months and probably will never come out for it.
So if games don't work, you're screwed!

3 - Too many fake R4s
There are probably more fake R4s then Real R4s being sold.
R4 III, R4 SDHC, N5DS and many other nasty clones exist.
Some clones like N5DS can fry your DS, turning it into a brick and no more than that.

4 - It's just obsolete
It used to be the best card out but now its time is up.
Or to put it simply:
Compare a Gameboy to a Nintendo DS Lite

I actually own an R4DS and I am tempted to buy a newer flashcard.

One card that I see many users recommend is the CycloDS.
It has constant firmware upgrades as well as some nice features like
Real-Time Save and Slow-motion.
It also supports Micro SDHC which are MicroSD cards that have 4gb and 8gb capacities (and soon 16 and 32gb capacities)
So I hope that helped you out and Happy Gaming!

 

[jagerstaffel]

I recommend buying an R4 if it is less than $1. If you pay for shipping, remember, it is scam!

R4's also make perfect x-mas gifts, birthday gifts etc. Nothing like handing it over in goodwill

 

[matteo2005]

i bought an R4 (non-fake) a week ago and i dont see what the problem is with them all of my games work and i have like nearly 40 and it has all the features i want

 

[Tragoedia181]

There are several reasons why this is a bad idea.

1 - Out of production
Real R4DS cards (see 3 for more info about fake R4 cards) are out of production and are increasing in price when there are cheaper cards that are MUCH better than the R4DS.

2 - No firmware updates
The R4 Team (the team who make R4 updates) simply don't make updates anymore.
No updates have been out in months and probably will never come out for it.
So if games don't work, you're screwed!

3 - Too many fake R4s
There are probably more fake R4s then Real R4s being sold.
R4 III, R4 SDHC, N5DS and many other nasty clones exist.
Some clones like N5DS can fry your DS, turning it into a brick and no more than that.

4 - It's just obsolete
It used to be the best card out but now its time is up.
Or to put it simply:
Compare a Gameboy to a Nintendo DS Lite

I actually own an R4DS and I am tempted to buy a newer flashcard.

One card that I see many users recommend is the CycloDS.
It has constant firmware upgrades as well as some nice features like
Real-Time Save and Slow-motion.
It also supports Micro SDHC which are MicroSD cards that have 4gb and 8gb capacities (and soon 16 and 32gb capacities)
So I hope that helped you out and Happy Gaming!

he list ALOT of good reason that r4 suck. do what i did and get a cyclods worth every penny.

 

[SkyintheSea]

Yeah, CycloDS is going to have a bright future.
R4 cards are SIMPLY to risky to get, but if you buy a genuine card it's going to cost you 50$+ and you can get a CycloDS with that money!

 

[AeroHex]

if you can't afford a cyclo go for an edge it meant to surpport 16gb and 32 all ready! not that one even exists yet

edge (around $30 au =) ) cyclo ds (around $70-80 au)

 

[Perseid]

All of those reasons are true and my advice is the same, but I'd like to point out that there are rare reports of pretty much all brands of flash cart, even real ones, blowing DS fuses. The risks probably go up with a shady clone, but the carts are shady to begin with.

 

[Toni Plutonij]

if you can't afford a cyclo go for an edge it meant to surpport 16gb and 32 all ready! not that one even exists yet

edge (around $30 au =) ) cyclo ds (around $70-80 au)

Just to make it sure, all newer carts are SDHC compatible, so that means that all of them support cards up to 32 GB in theory..
Biggest currently available microSD card is 8 GB....But 12 GB and 16 GB are announced soon to be released..

 

[roguetrip]

I still own a Original R4DS, it was a great cart, still is a great cart, but lacks SDHC support, and firmware updates. Usually you can patch the ROM yourself to make it work on the R4DS but most people are too lazy or too stupid to do that and complain that the R4DS sucks.

I recently moved onto a EDGE cart. It is a great budget cart. It has the same type save files. very similar menu system, but has more frequent firmware updates along with SDHC support. So that goes my recommendation for anyone that wants a good cheap cart. If you want the best then you pay for the best (CycloDS) but not everyone can afford that.

 

[signz]

I want to add... Why not buy a Acekard 2?

I heard that it is very very good, but also cheap enough (like €35 with 2GB micro sd card). Well at least in germany

Ah yeah I own a R4 and for me all games work, too. So i cannot complain about it

 

[nl255]

I still own a Original R4DS, it was a great cart, still is a great cart, but lacks SDHC support, and firmware updates. Usually you can patch the ROM yourself to make it work on the R4DS but most people are too lazy or too stupid to do that and complain that the R4DS sucks.

You do realize that patching the ROM will break any Wifi functionality, right?

 

[ENDscape]

I want to add... Why not buy a Acekard 2?

I heard that it is very very good, but also cheap enough (like €35 with 2GB micro sd card). Well at least in germany

Ah yeah I own a R4 and for me all games work, too. So i cannot complain about it

As long as its not a clone of r4 or r4, theyre good to go.

 

[agentgamma]

if you can't afford a cyclo go for an edge it meant to surpport 16gb and 32 all ready! not that one even exists yet

edge (around $30 au =) ) cyclo ds (around $70-80 au)

does the edge support your 'super l33t' custom firmware?

 

[Another World]

its very funny how the cyclods has become the fanboy kit to have. i'd take my acekards (rpg, ak2) over the cyclo anyday.

-another world

 

[Dark^'^Knigh]

if you can't afford a cyclo go for an edge it meant to surpport 16gb and 32 all ready! not that one even exists yet
edge (around $30 au =) ) cyclo ds (around $70-80 au)

does the edge support your 'super l33t' custom firmware?

Tut, tut...no need for that

I hate to be a 'grammar nazi', but geez it hurts trying to read his posts!

@Another World - I tend to agree with your sentiment, well at least the part about the CycloDS. I have 'trialled' the Cyclo for a day and as far as normal gameplay usage goes, I struggled to see any overwhelming reason to buy it over my M3DS Real, or my old (authentic) R4. I admit, however, that my opinion could easily change given further usage of it.

 

[Raestloz]

I still own a Original R4DS, it was a great cart, still is a great cart, but lacks SDHC support, and firmware updates. Usually you can patch the ROM yourself to make it work on the R4DS but most people are too lazy or too stupid to do that and complain that the R4DS sucks.

You do realize that patching the ROM will break any Wifi functionality, right?

Really? You mean the arm7 patch? My Worms is a patched version and the WFC is as good as new


Well, you can still play games with it, so no complaints from me

 

[yabasi]

Well just saying sum stuff the r4 is probably dying but it USED to be the best cart. As i presume CycloDS is becoming the best cart. But... how do u know Cyclo wont turn out to be another R4 =P in a few years cyclo may crash and burn =P you never know ;D Some people are pretty desperate.. soon they'll attempt to make clones and fakes of cyclo for money =P always target the best ... im just saying dont flame me D:

 

[agentgamma]

Some people are pretty desperate.. soon they'll attempt to make clones and fakes of cyclo for money =P always target the best ... im just saying dont flame me D:

They will probably still fake R4s for a while since R4 is the most famous DS flashcard.
When people talk about flashcards, they usually refer to them all as 'R4s' (at least everyone I know)
But then pirates will start producing copies of another card.
And we all know what THAT card would be!

 

[yabasi]

Lol i didnt do some research so i bought an r4 a few weeks back >.> but i find nothing rong with it -.- as long as it works and i can play the games that i want to im good... I dont really care about the fancy stuff O.o although the bricking ds stuff scares me but ya ;D live with what you got =p

 

[Raestloz]

Yeah, even Nintendo uses "R4-like devices" instead of flashcarts

And you don't have to wait, GBATemp says EDGE is a clone of CycloDS EVO, there you go, have a nice clone