Review: N-Card 16Gbit SLOT-1 (2GB)

Printable View

June 2nd, 2007, 20:37
bandit

3 Attachment(s)

Review: N-Card 16Gbit SLOT-1 (2GB)
N-Card 16Gbit SLOT-1 (2GB)
Manufacturer: N-Card (Chinese)
Site: Buy from SuperCardNDS
Price: $57.99

Overview : N-Card is a slot 1 device (no passcard required). It does not use any external storage cards such as microSD. There is a 1GB and 2GB versions.

Features :
- Same size as the Original DS Card. Same Manufacturing technology. Colours of case to choose.
- No FlashMe, No PassMe, No conversion anymore.
- Support clean rom, no transfer software need.
- NAND chip inside,provides your same experience of Original DS Card. Internal memory and comes with 8Gbit/16Gbit memory card (16 Giga bit = 2048MB).
- Low power consuming and long sustaining time.
- Support Moonshell and lots of homebrew which could patched with DLDI.
- Firelinke exclusive, your DS could be a Mouse or a game controller.
Quality/Usability : There have been a lot NAND memory Slot-1 flash carts such as DS Linker, DS Fire, Express Card, Ultra Flash Pro EX, MK5 GIGA, etc., but each has its own limitation as the internal memory is not upgradeable.

The packaging is pretty much similar with a cardboard box and inner plastic tray. The tray holds the Slot-1 N-Card, Slot-2 N-Card Flash Linker, USB cable and manual underneath the tray. No software CD was included but you can download the latest files from their website. Another alternative download location would be here. The manual is in Chinese so if you cant read Chinese, it would do you no good. Whats also weird is that the images they used in the instructions, they are either backwards or upside down.

Like all Slot-1 flash cards, it is identical is size to the original Nintendo game cards. It fits flush in the DS. Whats awkward is that the Slot-2 says NDS/NDS Lite but the design of the cartridge will only fit on a NDS Lite. But when placed in to Slot-2 of a NDS Lite, it fits flush with with the DS. The included USB cable is short. So if you have a USB port that is not close to you, you may either have to stretch or walk back and forth.

To transfer files to the N-Card, you will need to connect the USB cable to the flash linker. Once connected, turn on your DS. Your PC will not recognize it and you will be able to drag and drop files.

The GUI isnt the prettiest of things. The top screen displays the games information such as file name, file save, etc. The bottom screen displays icons of the games you have loaded onto the N-Card. If you dont like the background images, you can simply change them just like all other Slot-1 flash carts.

Every game loaded has worked fine. I did not notice any slowdowns or lags. I did however have problems with some homebrew. Hopefully the DLDI support would be better when new updates are released.

Conclusion : Overall, the N-Card 16Gbit SLOT-1 (2GB) is a decent product but falls short in some areas. The short length of the USB cable can be a turn off for some. Although it says NDS, the Slot-2 flash linker will only work with NDS Lites. Would of been nice if they included the GBA flash linker size but this would probably raise the price due to manufacturing costs. Transferring of files takes a little longer than any of the other flash carts. The upside is that it works with all if not most of the games available on the market. Considering this is a 2GB version, I would think this is enough space...for me that is. But for some, it may be too small and would prefer a flash cart with removable memory. But for the price of a N-Card, its fairly reasonable in price.

Please note that none of the "upgrade" products listed in this site are endorsed by Nintendo, Sony and/or Microsoft. DCEmu Reviews and DCEmu Network does not condone piracy. The primary functions of a "modchip" and/or "flashcart" are to allow you to play imported games and homebrew software that you legally own or simply just for experimenting with hardware. We in no way endorse piracy, and encourage all users to do the right thing and support the developers/manufacturers that support them. We do not take any responsibilities for any use outside of these parameters or where the use of such a device is illegal.

Images via comments
June 2nd, 2007, 20:59
Veskgar

Another MicroSD slot 1 device huh? And from China? Stuff like this from China has been of poor quality in the past so I don't think I'll be getting this particular slot 1 device.

From what I have seen, it appears that the M3 simply is the best slot 1 solution currently.

I wanted a DS-Xtreme but they are too expensive and I think I'd prefer using a MicroSD memory card.

I'm in the market for one of these slot 1 solutions so if anyone can recommend their opinion of the BEST. I'd love to hear.
June 2nd, 2007, 21:15
bandit

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veskgar

Another MicroSD slot 1 device huh? And from China? Stuff like this from China has been of poor quality in the past so I don't think I'll be getting this particular slot 1 device.

From what I have seen, it appears that the M3 simply is the best slot 1 solution currently.

I wanted a DS-Xtreme but they are too expensive and I think I'd prefer using a MicroSD memory card.

I'm in the market for one of these slot 1 solutions so if anyone can recommend their opinion of the BEST. I'd love to hear.

This does not use microSD. It uses internal NAND memory to store all data.

I do hope you know that all flash carts and stuff are made in Asia whether it be Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Philippines, etc. Just because the site is in Chinese doesnt mean its made in China specifically. M3 Simply, DS-Xtreme, R4DS, MK5 are all made in Asia. So if you dont purchase the N-Card because its made in China or Asia, and purchased a different brand, you're still buying from Asia. All these backup devices originated from Asia (probably from China) and still does.

The M3 Simply and R4DS are both the same just different packaging and name. The G6DS Real has been getting some play time on my DS lately. I'm waiting for my CycloDS Evolution to see how that competes.
June 2nd, 2007, 23:52
Veskgar

Thanks for clearing all that up for me Bandit. I will be reading your reviews that you linked to above to learn more about these.

I'm just so used to hearing about garbage memory sticks coming from Asia and thought that there may be similar problems with certain flash carts.

Also, just looked into that CycloDS and that looks like it could be a winner also. The in-game brightness adjustment and stuff is definitely convenient.
June 3rd, 2007, 16:58
Tennisgy

CycloDS just uses an AR cheat hook to do the ingame brightness, nothing special. Also, they have a 2GByte clone of this (DS-Fire card) at dealextreme for 42 bucks, and free shipping
June 6th, 2007, 20:38
FEG

A couple things I'd like to point out, if nobody minds:

The slow writing and short USB problems are easily fixed by switching to a different USB cord; it's a generic one used by a lot of mp3 players and some mobile phones.

Also, you can still use the linker with the old DS', but it requires that you take off the front of the cartridge.
June 12th, 2007, 02:15
dragonplus.cn

Tks
July 21st, 2007, 10:31
Xgen001

Quote:

Originally Posted by Veskgar

Another MicroSD slot 1 device huh? And from China? Stuff like this from China has been of poor quality in the past so I don't think I'll be getting this particular slot 1 device.

From what I have seen, it appears that the M3 simply is the best slot 1 solution currently.

I wanted a DS-Xtreme but they are too expensive and I think I'd prefer using a MicroSD memory card.

I'm in the market for one of these slot 1 solutions so if anyone can recommend their opinion of the BEST. I'd love to hear.

m3 simply is the same as an r4 and r4 is also from china. so basically, if you want anything pirated, china is the only way to go.
August 22nd, 2007, 07:38
Hazee

Saving

Regrading the N card Save funtion i can't seem to get it to work everytime i save one game and play a differnt game one of the game files gets erased any ideas =\
August 22nd, 2007, 07:41
Hazee

Btw i have the 1GB N card so i dunno if it is differnt, on the top is just a load screen on the bottom is the save screen from 1-6 and after you pick a slot loads the games you have uploaded soo help please =\
August 24th, 2007, 14:27
Chris2404

If it seems like i've no idea what i'm talking about, then that's probably the case.

Since I accidentally bought an n-card on eBay (with ROMs already on it) I've spent a few hours looking into the whole homebrew thing (for my DS) and come up with not a whole lot.

My main question is: is the n-card I've already got fine for adding ROMs (that I've since downloaded) to, or do I need Slot-2 equipment as well? Also, does a ROM like this support multiplayer well? and finally, is there any particular reason why when I load a game (in this case Mario Kart :D )all i get is a black screen?

Apologies if these questions are awy too over-specific, just wondered if I could get a few answers and save myself a couple of quid ;)
August 30th, 2007, 17:18
FEG

If you bought an actual N-card(and not some other Slot-1 based card) then you definitely need a gba sized linker to write to it- if it didn't come with one, you'd better contact the guy you bought it from.

Multiplayer is only supported with the latest firmware; and if a game doesn't boot then you've either got a bad rom or you may have accidentally switched the save type(this can be changed by preeing left or right while holding select).

Last, but not least, how do you accidentally buy something on eBay? I can't even find backup devices there, except the time a guy sold a used DS Lite and an R4 with 20 games on it for over $300 USD.
October 26th, 2007, 04:08
userme

I am using NCARD version1.45 now. It works fine. However, there is a little trouble with my little experience about how to use it properly, right now.

I only know pressing the POWER button off if I want to reset the game system. But I know this method will cause some damages. What should we do to exit one game that we are playing and then select playing another game without turning off the system?

What are other tricks and tips you have? Please help and share!!! Thank you!
March 26th, 2008, 06:18
ntappin

I have the 1gb version and it seems to freeze up in two different versions of pokemon, both pearl and diamond. In diamond it does it when I try and enter the mine and in pearl it does it on the first battle right after I pick which pokemon I want.

Is there a force reset? I found an explanation for what looks like a force reset but it didn't work, any other ideas or help would be great.
May 24th, 2008, 00:21
nomisy

using n-card stable 2.53 version.

Speed Racer (both U and E version) works on NO_GBA emulator, but cannot write data on DS Lite with N-Card.

Can anybody with n-card try it out and confirm, please.
Any suggestion for work around would be even better.

Thanks!

Quote:

Originally Posted by ntappin

I have the 1gb version and it seems to freeze up in two different versions of pokemon, both pearl and diamond. In diamond it does it when I try and enter the mine and in pearl it does it on the first battle right after I pick which pokemon I want.

Is there a force reset? I found an explanation for what looks like a force reset but it didn't work, any other ideas or help would be great.

I just installed Pokemon Diamond v1.13, it seems work fine, where you get caught freeze? I didn't see any mine, only wondering around in city

Quote:

Originally Posted by userme

I am using NCARD version1.45 now. It works fine. However, there is a little trouble with my little experience about how to use it properly, right now.

I only know pressing the POWER button off if I want to reset the game system. But I know this method will cause some damages. What should we do to exit one game that we are playing and then select playing another game without turning off the system?

What are other tricks and tips you have? Please help and share!!! Thank you!

my kids says the only way is to turn off the power...

The other thing about N-Card is you can NOT play gameboy roms.. too bad!
August 11th, 2008, 08:39
gazbag

hi. i am very new to this. one quick question my adapter uses this card and i was wondering if i can just buy the card on its own without the adapter and lead. thanks gary