Does anyone have one of these yet? Or perhaps an M3 Lite Perfect? Or just some experience with such things in general? I'm considering getting one for much SCUMM lovin and SNES emulatoring but I've some reservations. I don't have an XP machine and I'm not so sure the M3 Lite is quite as simple as the plug-and-play drag-and-drop featured DS-Xtreme, yet the M3 is cheaper and more flexible (micro-SD cards).
Don't have any experience with the M3 or DS-Extreme, but I do have a SuperCard (Lite). Fantastic bit of kit! tbh, the DS-Xtreme seems a little pricey considering the low storage size. You're probably better off going for something that uses some form of SD card. The M3 and the SuperCard are pretty similar - they both have their pro's and cons. I went for the SuperCard based purely on the fact it was easier to get hold of at the time. But alas, the SuperCard software is Windows only...I'm assuming "don't own an XP machine" means you're running Linux, or you're a Mac user? iirc, all slot 2 based carts (ie, GBA carts) have Windows based patching software. If you're planning on running backups, all ROMs need to be patched (I'm not sure, but I think certain homebrew apps need patching too). Also, don't forget that you'll need some form of 'passme' device in order to use slot 2 flash carts. I went for a 2nd hand SuperPass, and only ever used it twice (to flash the firmware on my DS Lite, and my brothers DS phat). If you're considering having the firmware flashed, but don't know anyone locally that does it, I can do this for you, if you like? However, it looks like the DS-Xtreme is the only option for non-Windows users at the moment.
Woah, thanks for the thorough and detailed reply riggs! Mac user, yes yes. Although I do have access to my girlfriend's PC if I really needed to... But to patch every ROM I'd wanna play? Ahhhh... And this flashing of the firmware? Sounds less and less appealing. I might just hold on a bit longer til the DS-X drops in price a little, increases in storage or something better comes along. I mean, the DS-X can't even do GBA backups... And that really kinda sucks.
since the DS-X is a DS cart, it never will do GBA... unless some kind of reverse passme (fool the DS into booting GBA code from slot 1) device is developed.
Had another quick look into this, and it seems there are a few other slot 1 carts around that use microSD for storage. However, compared to the DS-Xtreme, they're pretty dire (incompatibility with certain games, slow-down depending on the brand of media you use etc). Currently, the DS-Xtreme retails at around the £70 mark for the 512MB (4GBit) version. That'll hold roughly 10 commercial games (size dependant)... That price actually isn't too bad - I think they've dropped in price a little since I last looked. I mean, a SuperCard + (fast) 512MB microSD would set you back just under £50. So it's really a case of deciding whether the extra £20 is worth it for the convenience of not having to patch ROMs, having a card that'll work on any OS, but losing GBA support. Saying that though, £70 would get you a SuperCard & a 1GB microSD - double the storage, with the option of expanding if you so wish. Download Play is another thing to consider. With slot 2 based carts, Download Play (1 cart, 2 systems) will only work when sending data to another flashed /PassMe'd DS. When ROMs are patched, the digital signature gets removed, and a non-flashed DS can't accept unsigned code. As the DS-Xtreme is drag-and-drop (ie, it can handle unpatched, 'clean' dumps), Download Play should, in theory, work with any game, on any system. imo, the only problem with the DS-Xtreme is it's limited, non-expandable storage. I think the largest DS ROM to date weighs in at 128MB (1GBit), so in a worst case scenario, you'll be able to fit 4 games on the cart. Also, if you're planning on running the 'talkie' versions of the SCUMM-based games, you can pretty much forget it. AFAIK, the DS version of SCUMM doesn't currently support compress audio data, so game sizes would range from around 200Mb (Sam & Max) to 500Mb (Full Throttle). Of course, non-talkie games would be fine at around 50Mb a pop, but it's so much more impressive seeing a DS running the talkie version of Day of the Tentacle! It's a bit of a bitch that the 'perfect' flashcart solution has yet to be released. If only it was as easy as PSP homebrew!
Supercard lite + superkey + 1GB SDmicro = way forward I'm not entirely sure on the current rules regarding posting retailers' URLs, so I'll just say I got mine from "consoleplus". Came within a day. There's a newer one called a supercard lite rumble which is even cheaper, but apparently can't do GBA stuff. Everything works on this combination so far... and when it doesn't, the team behind it are generally pretty quick to release updates. The M3 team seem to be a bit slower. Also, I think getting a superkey is better than flashing your DS - nice to keep things standard if you can, no?
