1. Either a slot-1 or slot-2 card. Slot-2 cards are currently more supported by homebrew.
Examples of slot-1 cards: R4, M3 Simply, DS-Xtreme, Supercard DS
Examples of slot-2 cards: M3, Supercard, G6
2. If you get a slot-2 card, you will need a slot-1 passthrough device to let DS code run from the GBA slot. Recommended ones are NoPass devices like the Max Media Launcher, Superkey, or PassCard 3. Alternatively, the Action Replay DS will also function as a NoPass if you hold Select.
If you get a slot-1 card, it will most likely have NoPass functionality built-in.
3. A media card. Some devices like the DS-X have built-in memory, but others use removeable storage. Slot-2 cards can come in Compact Flash versions plus 3 varieties of Secure Digital - SD, miniSD, and microSD. Slot-1 devices that use removeable storage typically use microSD cards.
4. If you get a media card, you will need a card reader. These are usually cheap and connect to a USB connector on your computer.
I personally would recommend a slot-2 device if you are into homebrew, and make sure you get one that has GBA compatibility. The cards with GBA compatibility have 32 MB of RAM that they copy GBA binaries to before running. Some DS homebrew can also use this 32 MB for additional features. DSLinux uses it extensively to prevent crashes, especially when browsing the web in it (the only two homebrew web browsers are in DSLinux). Also, SnezziDS, the best of the three SNES emulators for the DS, requires that RAM to be present or it won't run. Moonshell uses the RAM to speed up image processing for large JPEG files.
Slot-2 cards have also been out much longer and enjoy higher homebrew compatibility.
I have a Supercard miniSD myself.
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