The R4 team was generous enough to send me their newest (and only flashcart under this name), the R4 DS which seemed to come out of nowhere. However, this little device delivers everything a homebrew fan would wish for (or a pirate for that matter..). The R4 delivers on all major bases for the DS, homebrew and multimedia support. With competitors being priced much higher and offering some different features (highest at 125$ for dancing LED's and an insane chipset), the R4 DS still comes out on top, or close to top in my opinion. This is one flashcart that I can strongly recommend due to its remarkably low price-point.

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Many of you may be aware of the controversy over R4 and M3 being the same team, much like M3 and G6, however both products are different in there own way (M3 DS Simply and R4 DS). Both these products will receive their own reviews unqiue to each product. The only noticeable differences are in the system's OS, the frequency of updates and the way they look (hardware). I personally like both stickers that are on the products, M3 DS Simply looks nice with the white casing while the R4 seems to look nice in both white and black.

The entire concept of a slot-1 DS flashcart is the "ease of use" part and allows for new entries into the DS homebrew scene with little effort. The DS-Xtreme was one of the first of this new generation to offer full homebrew support and NDS support, while adding a few unnecessary (but impressive features). The DS-Xtreme's core "chipset" is more powerful than the NDS theoretically, however the R4 team has gone basic with all features - making it cheap for the consumer (45$). With a keychain holder (holds two cartridges), you are able to hold your R4 DS and the accompanied black/white case that you can swap with the aid of a screwdriver.

The R4 DS uses MicroSD memory cards as the memory medium, and with 512mb being found at 10$-20$, this product offers the most space for the least amount of money (half the price of the DS-Xtreme). Also, like more modern slot-1 flashcarts, no-passme functionality is built-in so you can use this flashcart on any NDS that is out on the market.

Ease-of-use is definitely expressed in this device, with just a few files required to be placed on your memory stick to get up and going. You can even select from several skins to begin with (on CD that is packaged with the units). The R4 DS fully delievers with NDS homebrew support and NDS game support (won't be discussed). The ability to click an drag homebrew and other files has become natural to me, eliminating the needed conversion of some NDS files as Slot-2 flashcarts required. After using this device, I don't think it will be possible for anyone to go back to using a slot-2 flashcart. However, some software can still be used with the R4 DS with such functions as ROM trimming and save converting (something of which most slot-1 flashcart miss out on).

Speed is always a concern with some picky users, and the R4 DS delievers on speed as well with fast game loads and no noticeable slowdowns. Everyone seems to live by the fact that if Castlevania doesn't work, then the flashcart isn't worth it. Well, Castlevania does work so this flashcart is worth it. The games load up much faster than the DS-Xtreme it seems (even with using MicroSD's as the storage medium opposed to internal).

Multimedia support is the same as it always has been with M3 devices, using Moonshell as their main source of multimedia execution. Moonshell is hands-down the greatest multimedia application for the Nintendo DS, and when coupled with the R4 DS, makes a perfect multimedia device.

With updates coming out frequently (2 major updates since launch), the R4 DS is a great competitor and is the flashcart the I recommend to all NDS-owners looking to get into the "scene" (The most recent update of which adds support for soft-reset and hiding unnecessary files from being shown in the game menu). Consumer support seems to be on their mind, something of which a consumer really benefits from, specially after investing their money into a new product.

Quick Specs -

Drag-and-Drop support

Frequent Updates

Multimedia Support

Skin Support

Cheap Price

Memory Card Expansion

Fast and Responsive Interface

High Build Quality

Interchangable Cases