[agentcloud]

Originally posted by eklypse
i've been looking into buying a DS too so here's what i've found...

to sum things up... some very smart people have figured out a way to "trick" the DS to running games off of non-nintendo cartridges. they call these cartridges "Flash-Carts" b/c they use flash memory inside to store the games.

They come in two flavors: removable memory, or built in memory. the removable memory kind has a slot in the cartridge for you to fit a MicroSD card, and the built in memory kind has the memory already built in.

Basically, what you do is you download games on the net via newsgroups or Bittorrent and load it onto the MicroSD card or the built in memory on the flashcart (usually via usb cable), and then u plug the device into the DS's cartridge slot and away you go! you can also play movies, use applications and other custom-made "homebrew" applications.

There's lots of different types of to choose from, but the most up-to-date ones are: R4DS, M3 DS Simply, and Supercard DS One (there's others, but i think these 3 are the most popular). These are called "Slot-1" Flash-carts because it fits on the top cartridge slot.

Older Flash-Carts were called "Slot-2" Flash-carts b/c they plugged into the bottom slot that is intended for Gameboy Advance cartridges. The problem with these Flash-Carts is that they only stored the games... you still needed to "trick" the DS into thinking that there's a legit DS game cartridge plugged into Slot 1, so you either needed to reprogram the inside of the DS (which voids your warranty), or you needed to buy a device called a "Passme", which plugs into Slot-1 and makes the DS think that there's a legit cart plugged in.

The newer flash-carts (R4DS, M3, Supercard) are an all-in-one solution because it's just one piece and it both allows you to store games and also tricks the DS.

What you will need are:
1. Nintendo DS
2. Flash Cart (R4DS, M3 DS Simply, Supercard DS One)
3. MicroSD card (1GB recommended)
4. Download games off net.

I think SkinnyPuppy has a deal going on for the Flashcart and 1GB mem card, you might want to ask him for details.

here are some helpful sites.
http://www.dualscene.net/
http://www.ds-scene.net/

there... 1 whole day's worth of research all summed up for you to read in 5 mins :S