Which R4/iTouch/AceKard should I get?

[SunnyD]

So far, we've left 1 game at the Auntie's house 900 miles away, 1 game at the godparent's house 600 miles away, and lost several games repeatedly in the car/couch/sister's bedroom/etc. I'm sick of it.

So with that said, I'm perusing DealExtreme, and there's about 40 different "R4" cards, along with a dozen AceKards, a couple of iTouch's, EDGE cards, DSTTs, this and that and everything else. I have no idea what to pick!

Basically, I want something inexpensive, easy to use (think <10yr old kids), and definitely multiplayer capable (one review of one product said multiplayer had issues), and definitely SDHC compatible. Suggestions?

I apologize in advance to the mods if general discussion of these products is frowned upon, but I'm tired of my kids losing $20-$30 game cartridges every other week and then whining about it for days on end.

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: SunnyD
I apologize in advance to the mods if general discussion of these products is frowned upon, but I'm tired of my kids losing $20-$30 game cartridges every other week and then whining about it for days on end.

Discussion of mods - OK.
Discussion of how to illegally obtain ROMs - Not OK


Also, I feel your pain when it comes to kids losing the DS cartridges. I got both my kids DS cases that look like lunchboxes with Mario for him and Peach for her to encourage them to keep their stuff put up. I still have to stay on top of them constantly about it.

 

[FuryofFive]

id have to say im in the same boat as OP..those things are so small. i have to count them after i chose a game.

 

[bl4ckfl4g]

I'm kind of out of the loop. I still have an R4 but I hear Cyclods is the new hotness.

 

[nakedfrog]

realhotstuff.com, $15 for an R4DS w/2GB card, and you'll have it next week instead of next month.

Edit:
Are you SURE you need SDHC compatible? 2GB holds a lot of games, since they're typically 32/64/128MB.

 

[Queasy]

Originally posted by: bl4ckfl4g
I'm kind of out of the loop. I still have an R4 but I hear Cyclods is the new hotness.

Yeah, I just did a quick Google and it is looking like the R4 is no longer being supported? The last update to it was from April, 2008 while CycloDS was last updated in March of this year.

 

[Thraxen]

Cyclo DS if for a DS/DS Lite or Acekard 2i if for a DSi.

 

[Queasy]

Ugh...CycloDS is twice the cost of R4.

Am looking at this for my kids because I think SunnyDS has the right idea. Put your kids' game on something like an R4 or CycloDS and then put the originals up so they don't get lost. But two CycloDS at $51 a pop = sticker shock.

Of course, the kids could still lose the R4 or CycloDS card too.

 

[SunnyD]

Originally posted by: Queasy
Ugh...CycloDS is twice the cost of R4.

Am looking at this for my kids because I think SunnyDS has the right idea. Put your kids' game on something like an R4 or CycloDS and then put the originals up so they don't get lost. But two CycloDS at $51 a pop = sticker shock.

Of course, the kids could still lose the R4 or CycloDS card too.

Not if it stays in the DS 24/7!

CycloDS... yeah, that's the other one. The confusion of DealExtreme is that what appears to be "the same card" has versions ranging from $5 to $30. Since I have 3 DS's to populate, and this is coming out of THEIR allowances... UGH.

I'll look at realhotstuff too. Thing is, I need to get a bunch of parts to fix up my son's DS as well since he has beat it to hell and back (new shell, new digitizer, new top screen). At least he has been saving for the parts - since I told him I wasn't paying to fix it.

 

[R Nilla]

I've been using the Acekard 2i with my DS Lite without any issues. If you're just looking to play NDS backups I would definitely recommend it - I haven't tried anything fancy other than 16-bit console emulators and GBA emulation paired with a slot 2 device (EZFlash V 3-in-1).

I bought my Acekard 2i from DealExtreme - it's currently only $13.76. The standard Acekard 2's are a few bucks cheaper.

More info on Acekard 2i from gbatemp. It appears to work with wifi and is SDHC compatible.

 

[Pheran]

I have a CycloDS, it works great. It is more expensive that some of the alternatives, but the support and firmware updates from Team Cyclops are excellent. I got mine from Real Hot Stuff. Bear in mind that you will need something for slot-2 if you care about GBA compatibility. I have the EZ-Flash 3in1 (original). I'm not sure if the new 3in1 "Plus" version is fully supported yet. I never ever remove the card from my DS unless I'm dumping a new ROM that I bought.

 

[SunnyD]

Originally posted by: Pheran
I have a CycloDS, it works great. It is more expensive that some of the alternatives, but the support and firmware updates from Team Cyclops are excellent. I got mine from Real Hot Stuff. Bear in mind that you will need something for slot-2 if you care about GBA compatibility. I have the EZ-Flash 3in1 (original). I'm not sure if the new 3in1 "Plus" version is fully supported yet. I never ever remove the card from my DS unless I'm dumping a new ROM that I bought.

No way in hell am I paying at least $45 a pop for 3 of these just so my kids can break em! Maybe if it were just for me... but not for them (if you would see what my son has done to his DS over the last couple years, you'd understand).

 

[ric1287]

I just used the R4 when I had one, worked perfectly

 

[snoturtle]

I bought DSTT for my 3 oldest

Got them from Dealextreme
Took a little while but at 10 and change each with 2 gig cards it was worth the wait

 

[Onita]

I have edgeds from realhotstuff. Got it in like 3 days, works great.

 

[Ramma2]

Ordered a Acekard 2i from DealExtreme last week, we'll see how it works! I'll probably hand the M3 down to my oldest boy, I'm looking into dumping his DS games and saves this weekend.

 

[IndieSnob]

Definitely the AceKard 2.1, and use the AK All-In-One firmware for it. I bought a slew of the 8 gig Transcend MicroSDHC cards for cheap off Newegg late last year for all of my electronic gear, and they work perfectly in it.

 

[Cellulose]

Avoid the R4 and R4DS, they are nearly all fakes now anyway.

As mentioned above, get an Acekard, EdgeDS or if you want to spend a little more CycloDS.

 

[nakedfrog]

Originally posted by: Cellulose
Avoid the R4 and R4DS, they are nearly all fakes now anyway.

As mentioned above, get an Acekard, EdgeDS or if you want to spend a little more CycloDS.

Nobody I know that's ordered an R4DS from realhotstuff has had any problems. What exactly happens if it's a fake?