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Via: Wired.

Last week Nintendo announced a new iteration of their highly successful DS handheld and, while many mainstream outlets had a field day, the response from the gaming community – and, for that matter, the Japanese stock market – was a resounding “huh?!”

With the impending release of this system upgrade being something of an open secret, it wasn’t so much the device itself that seemed to cause the head-scratching as it was the odd specifics of its new features and the strange direction in which Nintendo elected to present it.

This newly christened DSi is an obvious member of the DS family, with its stylus and minimalist clamshell design, but Nintendo would seemingly like us to believe that it is a wholly different animal.

Even amid insistence that the system has a place alongside the DS Lite on American retail shelves, at least for the foreseeable future, I’ll wager that many, like me, can’t help but wonder if this device will prove to be the new face of mobile gaming. And, if so, wouldn’t it be prudent to get onboard early?

Well, I guess that depends on how these new features stack up. Let’s take a look, shall we?

• How about the camera? The most highly touted modification to the DSi is the inclusion of two – count ‘em: two – digital cameras. In addition to the one visible on the exterior of the unit, the DSi also boasts a second camera on the inside of the system continually pointed at the player. Sadly, these cameras weigh in at a scant .3 megapixels, and pictures are saved at a mere 640×480 resolution. So, while it might be fun to warp and scrawl atop your pics via the touch screen, it’s doubtful whether the image quality of your DSi photographs will be superior to those taken with the camera already integrated into your current cell phone. [EDIT: While several sources have reported that the DSi cameras were both 0.3 megapixels and others said 3 megapixels, Electronista has cleared up the confusion: the interior camera is a 0.3 megapixel VGA camera, while the external camera is a 3 megapixel.]

• What about the bigger screens? Of more interest to gamers is the increased screen size of the DSi. Its 3.25 inch diagonal screen width stands out as a noticeable increase from the 3 inches of its predecessor. However, despite this enhanced physical real estate, the screens are virtually indistinguishable from a technical standpoint, as the DSi still boasts twin TFT LCDs of identical resolution to those of the DS Lite. You can, however, expect these bigger screens to burn through your valuable battery charge at an increased rate.

• What about backwards compatibility? While the screens are larger -– requiring an increase in system length and width –- the DSi is slightly thinner than the DS Lite. It is of note that this slim-down comes at a cost: in this case the removal of that old standby the GBA cartridge slot. (Yes, this means add-ons like that the knuckle busting fret board attachment for the recent DS Guitar Hero title will be incompatible.) Instead the DSi features an SD card slot in addition to the standard DS game cartridge slot.

• Will it play MP3s? One purpose of the addition of this SD slot is that the DSi will also act as a music device. Notice that I said music device and not MP3 player. Rather than MP3 playback, the handheld will instead support AAC files. While the AAC file type is often described as having superior sound quality to the ubiquitous MP3, it certainly lacks its familiarity. And while the addition of functionality like speed and pitch control for songs sounds interesting, it’s also doubtful that the machine will be replacing your iPod when it comes to music playback.

• So what can I download? The system also features on-board flash memory for use in storing titles procured from the newly revealed DSi Shop. This little brother of the current Wii Shop channel will likely have both the strengths (the potential for lots of interesting new titles as well as for a backlog of games from earlier systems) and the weaknesses (slow rollout and a lack of sufficient demos) of its older sibling. So, while you’ll be able to play these new offerings as well as your current collection of DS titles on your DSi, all DS/DS Lite owners will really be missing out on is the downloadable love.

All things considered, the DSi seems to be a mixed bag. It certainly adds some functionality, but much of it appears mediocre at best. Picture and music support seem incidental as opposed to integral, and info concerning features like superior sound quality and the promised integrated web browser seem scarce. (And, as anyone who’s used the app can corroborate, saying that the browser will be superior to the original DS Browser cart is dubious praise.)

From Nintendo’s insistence that the system will be the company’s “third platform” –- a role previously filled by the recently abandoned GBA -– to statements like those of NOA’s Cammie Dunaway to our own Game Life blog in which she announced that the DSi would continue in the tradition of Nintendo’s handhelds by not being region locked … maybe … even the Big N seems a little unsure why we should be excited about the product. And yet, for some reason, I am.

In recent years Nintendo has taken to revamping systems with features that should arguably have been integrated from the get-go, and summarily wowing us with their newest flavor of shiny plastic. And, at least with regard to their handheld lineup, the trick has been working. There are gamers out there chomping at the bit to hand the company money for devices that, in one form or another, they already own. I know this to be true because I am such a gamer.

I was an early adopter of both the original DS and the DS Lite, not to mention its forerunner the Gameboy Advance. Hell, I even imported a GBA SP just to get it a few months before the North American release. To my mind, I do this not because I’m a totally rabid Nintendo fanboy (although that’s an accusation I’ve faced in the past) but merely because I’m an avid gamer-on-the-go with a unique love for Nintendo’s robust portables. Even when they’re slightly less robust than I’d like.

So now, after this lengthy diatribe about how the DSi may well not be worth the $180+ they’ll be asking for it on American shores, I will admit to you that I’ll probably buy one anyway.

As a fan of Nintendo, a handheld gamer, and a gadget guy, I simply can’t resist the allure of new plastic.

The SuperCard DS One v3 SDHC is a new Slot-1 solution that does everything the older carts do - but it’s smaller and fits in the top of your DS (both LITE and normal). MicroSD memory is used for your Nintendo DS storage! Also, with the use of expandable memory you are not limited when it comes to space, you can easily swap out your microSD memory card with another. The SuperCard DS One v3 SDHC package allows for more than just gaming. Now you can use watch movies, play music, browse pictures, read E-Books and more!

Features and Details:

Accepts normal, and SDHC Micro SD cards
Plug ‘n Play(No FlashMe, No PassMe, No conversion required).
100% Clean Rom Support. 100% game capatibility.
No PC software required, just Drag ‘n Drop file from PC to flash memory card.
Hardware save support. Easy to backup and exchange saves with other players.
Supports FAT/FAT32 up to 32Gbits flash memory card. Flash memory card can be used on other digital products, save money.
Blue-Light engine included. Supports High speed flash memory card without any slow down.
DS original card size, the perfect solution slot-1 solution.
TFlash/MicroSD slot Push’n Push design, easy to use.
Micro firmware designed, and extended skin which is fully upgradeable.
MoonShell built-in design. Can play MP3, Ogg and DPG2 directly in SuperCard DS system. Compatible with DPG0/DPG1. It also supports eBooks and picture viewing. It’s a real multimedia system.
Standard mode: 100% Capability when copying clear roms into a MicroSD for playing directly
Super mode: support RESET, cheat code, save to flash memory card directly. Included:

• 1x Supercard DS One v3 SDHC Slot-1 card (Green box rather than Blue product image)
• 1x Supercard DS One Software
• 1x USB Card Reader

Not Included: You will need a MicroSd or MicroSdHC card for this.

-=-

By Smiths for Emuholic

From the Company
*Plug ‘n Play (No FlashMe, No PassMe, No convert).
*100% Clean Rom Support. 100% game compatibility.
*No PC software required, just Drag ‘n Drop file from PC to flash memory card.
*Hardware save support. Easy to backup and exchange save with other players.
*Support FAT/FAT32 up to 32Gbits flash memory card. Flash memory card can be used on other digital products, save money.
*Blue-Light engine included. Support High speed flash memory card without any slow down.
*DS original cartridge size, the perfect solution of slot 1.
*TFlash/MicroSD slot Push’n Push design, easy to use.
*Micro firmware designed, and extended skin which is fully upgradeable.
*MoonShell built-in design. Can play MP3, Ogg and DPG2 directly in SuperCard DS system. Compatible with DPG0/DPG1. It also support eBook and view picture. It’s a real multimedia system.
*TWO mode design:
*Standard mode: 100% Capability when copy clear roms into MicroSD for playing directly
*Super mode: support RESET, cheat code, save to flash memory card directly.
*Can be used as a SuperKey.
*Inter-play with GBA slot.
*Support SC Rumble Series as a rumble PAK.
*There is a SuperCard DS software(Super Mode need to use), you do not need to use it at standard mode. But if you use the software, SuperCard DS can support more powerful functions, such as RESET, cheat code, infinity save space etc. (can support save more than 4m in the feature).

Disclaimer

The SuperCard DSOne is a product we have been reluctant to request for reviewing here at Emuholic. All the feedback we have received from developers stated the earliest editions of this card had useless software and buggy hardware. Recently, the SuperCard team updated the hardware, which some feedback claimed resolved a few problems. More recently, version 2.0 of the system software was released. This release finally put the DSOne in the realm of ‘likely purchase’ for many; it entered the same category as the R4DS/M3 Simply. It was at that point we decided the DSOne was fair game for our testing and reviewing. There will be many instances of comparing this product to the M3 Simply and R4 DS, mainly because that’s what I am able to compare it to, and all 3 are the same price at many online shops.

Point of Sale

As with our M3 Simply review, part of my review process is to treat the product as if it was a personal purchase. Handouts from the manufacturers are nice, but they don’t help you, the consumer, out in the end. You have to know where your money can be handled properly and from where your purchase can be received promptly.

http://www.KickGaming.com/

For the SuperCard DSOne, Emuholic again asked Kick Gaming ( http://www.KickGaming.com/ , formerly Kick Trading) for a sample product. Our M3 Simply was sent out on a Friday, and arrived the following Thursday. Could Kick Gaming keep up this service now that they have a shiny new logo?

Our product was requested on a Wednesday, sent out on a Thursday via AIR, and arrived 9 days later on the following Saturday. We were a little disappointed by this increase in transit time; perhaps we were spoiled by the M3 Simply’s rapid transit. I don’t know if one can blame those freak Canadian winds or if the plane our DSOne was on happened to have rolled its way across the border, but I’m never really content with over a week for delivery, unless the product is shipped via Ground. Your experience may be different, but currently Kick Gaming is averaging 7.5 days per delivery.

(Packing tape and air bubbles are too strong for Totoro)
However, once the package was at my door, I am pleased to report those Canadians continued their excellent packaging. Once again, I was forced to take out my Swiss Army Knife to get my SuperCard DSOne out of the package.
So, can we continue to recommend Kick Gaming as a point of purchase? Yes. That’s all.

In the Box

Freed from its bubble-enclosed tomb, the SuperCard DSOne presented itself to me in the form of a small, cardboard clamshell bearing a copyright infringing logo that Jet Li would be glad to get some royalties from.

(It is The One)……………………………..(Read this five times fast)

Inside the clamshell is a Mini CD-Rom, a ‘quickstart’ leaflet, a USB 2.0 MicroSD card reader, and some small cartridge labeled ‘DS One’ that’s probably important. Like the M3 Simply, I give the SuperCard team bonus points for including the USB card reader; it’s nice when a company spends the extra buck or so in order for you to get yourself set up just a little faster.

(Little Totoro approves of the packaging)

The Card

At this stage of the game, Slot-1 cards’ designs can only really be judged on snugness and springiness. They’re all at the 1:1 real cartridge size ratio, and for any team to mess that up at this point would be careless.

(Who put that clam there?)

As you can see, the SuperCard DSOne is the same size as an original cartridge, and only a bit bigger than some stupid Pokemon toy I got out of a vending machine in Japan. Unlike the M3 Simply, there is no ‘groove’ for the MicroSD card. This does make it a little more difficult to remove the MicroSD card, especially if your DSOne is still in your DS. I’ve been using my fingernails to accomplish that.

(Grow your nails long if you want your MicroSD)
Speaking of the MicroSD slot, I’ve found the DSOne’s to not be as smooth as the M3 Simply. You’re not guided on which way to insert the MicroSD card, and it requires a little more force to push it in. Also, the MicroSD card tends to ’stick’ on its way out, requiring a little more of a tug.

On the subject of sticking, the DSOne is a little more ’snug’ in the DS than the M3 Simply. While you’re not going to break your machine or card while inserting or removing the DSOne, it definitely will feel like it’s ‘in there’ than the other Slot-1 cards.
On a side note, the previous paragraph can sound rather dirty if you have a warped mind.

SuperCard DSOne Usage

From encasing to execution, let’s see how the DSOne performs. For this review, I used the Taiwanese Kingston 1GB MicroSD card (FAT16 Formatted) I have been using in my M3 Simply for a month. It’s not the ‘Japanese’ Kingston that seems to turn water into wine, but it’s a good, reliable card that can be purchased inexpensively online.

The CD that comes with the DSOne contains firmware and software for all of SuperCard’s products. Of course, despite this being a pretty blue CD with good labeling, it was out of date with the DSOne’s current software release. The SuperCard team finally updated to 2.0 recently (2.0SP1 as of this review), so I surfed over to http://eng.supercard.cn/soft_scdsone.htm to pick me up those latest files. Like other Slot-1 cards, there is no more reliance on flashing firmware; the basic hardware is designed to locate a file and move on from there. In the DSOne’s case, it’s one NDS file and a directory of files that need to be placed on your MicroSD prior to your first booting.

(1 file, 1 folder - containing a lot of files)
Unlike the R4 and M3 Simply, which include MoonShell as something you can put on the card if you want, the DSOne’s entire OS is a customized MoonShell installation. So right off the bat you’ll be copying 10 megs of files (the ’scshell’ directory) to your MicroSD.
Once all the files are on your tiny plastic chip, just insert it into your DSOne, and put the DSOne in your DS, which can be flashed or unflashed. When you turn on your DS, you’ll be greeted by the SuperCard’s OS, a.k.a. MoonShell. Booting takes anywhere from 8 to 12 seconds, depending on if there’s a save present (more on that later). Compared to the 5 seconds for the M3 Simply, it’s a little bit longer. I can do math, which proves that statement true. In all seriousness, part of the reason I enjoyed my SuperCard MiniSD was due to its fast booting into a simple GUI. Sure, it was missing features its brethren had at the time, but I could turn my DS off and on and be playing a game in less than 5 seconds. On reputation alone, I was disappointed in the waiting required for the DSOne.

(Ignore the red battery light, too much Pokemon)

The OS

I will start off and say MoonShell is an amazing application. It features a lot of control for all its robust implementations. However, as the main GUI for a product, it’s bulky, slow, and requires knowing a lot of button combinations just to get menus to show up where you want them.

For example, in the above screenshot you’ll notice the upper screen has 4 menu options along the top. ‘But Mr. Smiths, how can I access those menus? The top screen isn’t a touch screen,’ I can hear some of you asking. The answer is that you must first hit L+A to make the top and bottom screens switch places, and then you may use those menus.

‘Oh, that makes sense, Smiths-sensei. So next time I play I’ll be able to access the menus immediately,’ your calmed heart continues. I laugh at that and inform you that you’ll have to hit L+A every time if you want to cycle the screens. Despite having a ‘Save Menu Option’ in the ‘Other’ toolbar, the DSOne does not save the screens’ locations. Also, the ROM information is toggled with the Y button, and when you swap the screens it’ll be overlaying your newly bottom-found file browser, requiring you to toggle it off. Then there’s the ‘Patch Mode’ menu (more on ‘Patch Mode’ later), which requires L+X for toggling. All of these menus, mind you, feature small options and checkboxes, so make sure your calibration is spot-on.

Also, skinning is supported, but no one really cares to do an entire MoonShell skin, which requires a lot of bitmaps for everything. The R4 and M3 Simply require 4 bitmap files, which results in a lot of community skinning. It’s hard to find a replacement skin for the DSOne, even months into its life. Bottom line: get used to the blue.

Also, there’s no progress indicator when you’ve selected a game or application to run. The OS simply says ‘Please Wait’ as your DS crunches those bytes. The SuperCard’s other products all had a progress indicator, so this is another upsetting oversight in the GUI.

The Two Modes
Okay, so I’m not the biggest fan of the OS, but what about all those amazing features the company’s boasting? The SuperCard DSOne has two modes of running games: Standard Mode and Super Mode. Standard Mode, which is off by default, does nothing special to a ‘clean’ ROM. You select it, it loads it, whoopee. There’s no In-Game Reset, cheats, etc. It’s a nice way to make the SuperCard team able to brag about ‘100% compatibility’, but you’re buying a card for its features plus its ability to run games. If all consumers wanted to do at this stage was plop in a NDS file and run it, there’s other options out there. The ‘Super Mode’ is actually known as ‘Patch Mode’, and is the default profile. This mode allows In-Game Cheating, In-Game Reset, In-Game Guides, SD Card speed patching, and an option to ‘Patch Saver’. To the DSOne’s credit, it was hard to find any game that didn’t like Patch Mode. However, Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam (THDJ) refused to run past the title screen in Patch Mode. It did run in Standard Mode, though. This means if you want cheats, guides, etc. in THDJ, you’re out of luck with the DSOne.

SD Card Compatibility
This was the issue that kept us at Emuholic from reviewing the DSOne for a long time. Unlike the M3 Simply and R4 DS, which just take the card you give it and play the games you choose, the SuperCard DSOne thinks you’ll enjoy tweaking your speed setting based on the card you’re using. While it’s a nice ‘feature’, it’s also above the heads of many ‘I want to turn on my doohickey and load my ROMamajigs’ consumers, which at times includes myself. There are 5 speed settings, with 3 being the default. I’ve found no reason to change this, but apparently there are better MicroSD cards out there that can benefit from a ‘4′. There’s also an ‘auto-detect’ mode for the MicroSD card’s speed; however, the Taiwanese Kingston returns an ‘It is too slow!! SC DS will not support it!’ error each time. That’s encouraging. With how amazingly the R4/M3 run with any media you throw at it, the SuperCard team’s decision to continue using these ’speed settings’ comes off as unnecessary.

Loading a Game and the Saving
Game launching is as simple as selecting a file and pressing ‘A’. Saving is apparently auto-detected, and if a title’s save is unknown the DSOne will just create a 512KB save file for it. Stupidly, it creates the save files in old DOS 8 character format. I can see absolutely no reason for it, and it’s an unnecessary and ugly choice by the SuperCard team. Get used to backing up your ‘Pokemon Diamond (U)’ save file, which is called ‘POKEMO~1.SAV’. Or is it ‘POKEMO~2.SAV’? After all, you could have ‘Pokemon Pearl (J)’ on your MicroSD as well. Despite the fact I –so far– have yet to lose a save, the naming is still a bad decision by the SuperCard team. Save size compatibility goes up to 4MB, which the SuperCard team claims ‘futureproofs’ the DSOne. Time will tell on that one.
Also, become friendly with the following screen:

(I named this screen Ted, so I don’t hate it as much)
You will see this screen randomly upon loading up your DS, and it will add another 2-4 seconds to your boot time as well. From what I can tell, the SuperCard DSOne handles saves much like PogoShell used to (man, it seems ages ago I was compiling my PogoBridge). When you load a game, it uses a buffer for saving the game data. Then, when you reload your DSOne, it copies that buffer into the .SAV file. This means that should you want to back up a saved game, you must save in-game, restart your DS, wait for the above screen to go away, then turn off your DS and remove the MicroSD card so that you may get the file off of it. Tedious and pointless compared to other cards’ ’save when you save’ methodology? You bet!

However, every game I threw at the DSOne loaded and played properly. Both Castlevania titles’ intros were perfect, and even Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam, when played in Standard Mode, didn’t suffer from as much slowdown as it did on my M3 Simply. There were graphical glitches (tearing in scrolling), though. Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin loaded and didn’t lock up on me for the period I was playing it, but I would not rely on any flash cartridge to play that game ‘flawlessly’. Personally, I believe Konami released a buggy game with so many data reading hacks implemented that it should never have been commercially produced in its released state.

Instead of taking up this beautiful day by loading every DS game onto my MicroSD, I’ll just refer you to the nice community at http://wiki.scorpei.com/index.php/SuperCard_DS(ONE), which seems to be doing a great job keeping up on the DSOne’s compatibility.

Also, WiFi worked just fine in every title, which was expected. Unfortunately, my unflashed DS Original is not with me right now, so I was unable to test Download Play. However, the previously mentioned Wiki seems to be reporting on the status of Download Play, and it looks just like every other Slot-1 Card: hit or miss. If you are basing your purchase of a Slot-1 Card on its reliability with Download Play, it is my honest opinion you’re wasting your breath. Hopefully in the future we’ll see Download Play as a priority for card manufacturers; at this point it seems to be on the backburner.

Homebrew
Get the DLDI file for the SuperCard DSOne from http://chishm.drunkencoders.com/DLDI/, patch your homebrew with whatever tool you use, and play it. It will work. DSOrganize, ScummVM, SNEmulDS, and others all loaded just dandy on the DSOne.

Cheating Uniquely
The big fad now for every card is to appease cheaters, such as myself. While M3/R4 have implemented an Action Replay-compatible cheat system, the DSOne goes one step further with In-Game Cheat Menu support. This is a nice feature, which allows you to press L+R+Up+Start at any point in your game and toggle a cheat menu.

(Resident Evil’s Cheat Menu, displayed while the game was loaded)
The cheat format used by the DSOne is the ‘SuperCard Cheat Format’, which are .CHT files converted to .SCC files. The summary of their creation is this: Find a .CHT file online or make one by downloading a Chinese program for Windows called ‘EmuCheat’, then take that .CHT file and convert it to .SCC through an included (in the 2.0 DSOne update) ‘cht2supercardcheat.exe’ program. Then, you’ll have a usable .SCC file. Tricky enough for you? Thought so.

It’s another ‘good SuperCard idea’ with bad implementation, especially with their competition using the more ‘English-friendly’ Action Replay format off-the-bat.

However, it is my hope this ‘background loading’ method the SuperCard team has initiated leads to real-time saving capabilities. Theoretically, this technology could be used for save states down the road.

Others
There are miscellaneous items to note. One is that the DSOne can use an uncracked Opera Browser, but only if you have a Slot-2 device to use as a RAM pack. Along with the cheat function is an In-Game Guide function, though I have yet to find anyone practically using it. Refine the process a bit and I’m sure we’ll have some nice ‘In-Game FAQ’ creations, SuperCard team. The DSOne also functions as a Passkey, enabling Slot-2 flash device booting on unflashed DS units.

Final Thoughts

This was a tough review to make it through. Had I had no other options and only a DSOne to use, I’m sure it would have come off as a lot better. However, there is competition out there, and with the SuperCard DSOne, M3 Simply, and R4 DS costing the same amount at a store like Kick Gaming, I cannot make the recommendation for a consumer to purchase this card over the others. If the DSOne was cheaper by $10, I could perhaps suggest the purchase of one. However, there is nothing that stands out in this product that would make me decide on it for my daily usage. The SuperCard team has some nice ideas, and with the 2.0 Software the DSOne definitely gained a lot of support from the development community. However, the clunkiness of the device coupled with the slow support and updates from the SuperCard team does not make this a card you should spend your money on. It’s not a bad product, but it’s just not worth your decision.

Score

Pros:
+ In-Game cheat engine a first
+ Compatibility is exceptional
+ Lots of ‘futureproof’ claims in save sizes and card speeds
+ Good packaging with Card Reader included

Cons:
- Snug-fitting hardware with clingy MicroSD slot
- Slow, cumbersome interface with extraneous options
- PogoShell-like save handling with DOS 8.3 naming
- Unique cheat function requires unique ability to know Chinese
- Took a long time for software 2.0’s release, with hardware revision in-between

Final Score: 7.5

Is Nintendo adding copy protection to DS games? Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates for Nintendo DS is in stores today, which of course means that the pirated ROM is all over the Internet. But the underground is getting tripped up by what appears to be a new anti-piracy workaround.Users of certain DS flash cards, like the popular R4 device, are reporting that after twenty minutes of playing Crystal Chronicles, they see the screen below and the game ends — just as if they were playing a demo.

If this was Nintendo and Square Enix’s intent, it’s an interesting way of dealing with piracy. They could have just had a screen come up that says “Sorry, this game won’t play on your filthy pirate system!” Instead, they let people get a taste of the game, and hope they’ll go out and buy the real thing.

Yes, the pirates will undoubtedly figure out a way to crack the ROM and remove this issue. But to trip them up for a while, especially during the game’s crucial release period, is still worth it. It will be interesting if all DS games have this feature going forward.

Crystal Chronicles, by the way, is thus far an excellent game! I hope to have something more substantial to say after I’ve put some more time in.