DSlink review, special thanks go to DS-link.net

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Introduction

This is my review of the Dslink. Special thanks go to the DSlink developers at www.DS-link.net. DSlink is not the first available slot-1 solution for the DS, and not the first removable media DS card as we all remember the MK2 and 3, but this is the first one that does not stick out and the first to use microSD. The card has been released only recently and only in China. But some stores already stock/sell it, among which BamBooGaming.com.

The review

What's in the box

So you go order a DSlink, what do you get?
• DSlink itself obviously
• A mini-CD containing the drivers and skins
• SD/MMC/RS-MMC to USB adapter. And

• A (Chinese) first-use-manual is included, something I find very nice as it saves you and other people time if you are just starting out.


The looks

Packaging: My sample came in the same packaging as any normal order would. The is a cartboard cover which holds a nice tin can (like the G6 but square this time).




What I found very good of Ediy was that they included a small paper stating that the English version is not being put out yet and thus only the Chinese packaging is being sent out. The box (though Chinese) looks very good and sturdy, and also very professional. As the box was Chinese I can't really tell what all the features and etc. are from it, but it seems like this is all shown pretty clear. As you can see one can see that it uses MicroSD, has 4M flash memory, is capable of GBA link using a zip file and logically also the normal GBA link and it probably also states that you will need to flash your DS.



The product: DSlink looks very professional. The front sticker is very nice and tells you in a glance all you need to know about the product. The text on the back of the PCB is also clearly readable. What was a very nice surprise was that the DSlink fits flush in the slot-1 opening and does not stick out.



The SD/MMC/RS-MMC adapter: Though this isn't really why you buy DSlink, it's a very nice addition. As it saves you the trouble to buy one. And seeing the price of DSlink it's not something they should leave out in my opinion. The looks of it are nice as it is made from see through plastic. Something I like :).





Build Quality

The packaging: The packaging is quite professional and sturdy. The thickness of the tin can is slightly less then that of the G6lite, but it is still very high. Something very nice for shipping.

The product: DSlink is of high quality. Even though Ediy somehow fitted a microSD slot inside a DS card the plastic is quite thick. It also fits very good inside my DS and my DSlite (though the DSlink is somewhat thicker then a normal card). The microSD slot also seems to be of good quality and is placed nicely so it's very easy to insert your tiny microSD card.



The SD/MMC/-RS-MMC adapter: The Build quality of the adapter also seems very good. Though I do not recommend handling it rough, it seems like a good adapter. What I liked about it in particular is that you can insert your SD-microSD adapter into it, and put the cover on the SD slot. Meaning that you never have to take the SD-microSD adapter out again.



Using DSlink






PC software: The PC software is very straight forward. When you put in the mini-CD and start the installer (automatically is possible) the software installer is Chinese. As only the Chinese version of the DSlink has been released this is not surprising. I was however pleasantly surprised when I had installed the patcher I could choose the English language. From that point it is a simple task of pointing the software to your microSD card (or any other location you want) and adding a game.

The patcher will then patch the game (or homebrew application/game) and put it on the directory you told it to including a .sav file in a ./sav directory. And as can also put files on the microSD card yourself you can add skins and etc. by simply putting them on your microSD card as stated in the readme files.





DSlink “software”: The DSlink software is very nice and looks similar to that of the G6lite. When you start your DS DSlink automatically backs up the game save that currently resides in his 4M eeprom to the appropriate .sav file. While the top screen shows the DSlink logo and the current installed DSlink OS version. Once it is done it lists all files and folders on the microSD card on the bottom screen. Games get icons like with the G6lite matching those as originally in the game (homebrew also gets icons if those are included), folders get a folder icon, unknown items get general icon and .gba files get a nice GBA icon. On the bottom screen the current time is also shown, which I find a good eye for detail. But what I liked very much was that your path was shown (when you open a folder, for example /DSlink, this is shown on the bottom screen, for example [/DSlink/]). Once you start a game the current save file is read and the appropriate save file is written if needed. The game then boots nicely.



Note: DSlink only plays DS games, not GBA! But .gba files are detected, probably because of the GBA link function.




Compatibility

I haven't tried all the games, but everything I have tried (not the Opera browser as I do not have the RAM expansion) worked very smooth. Generally there were no slowdowns, and if there were any I wasn't able to notice them ;). As for homebrew, most homebrew I tried worked flawlessly. Among those homebrew apps are things like Moonshell (modified). In general I can say that (partially) FAT_lib homebrew and (fully) .nds homebrew will work with DSlink. And possibly if you were to change SRAM homebrew to write to the DS-slot instead of the GBA slot SRAM homebrew would work too.



What about having to flash your DS?

Personally I could not care less. Flashing makes your DS boot faster, and even makes it a bit safer to run homebrew. If you really don't want to flash your DS you can buy an MK4-mini and swap that with the DSlink when booting. though it will cost you some money.

Conclusion: The DSlink is a very nice product that I can safely recommend. Even though Flashing your DS may be somewhat risky. Compatibility is already very high, both homebrew and backups. Build quality and boxart is good. The use of the device is also very straightforward and for those who are interested in skinning, the menu is quite easy to change. If you do not have any Nintendo DS homebrew/backup equipment yet, or if you do and want a DS slot solution :), this might be the device for you. The two downsides I could find were that there is no scroll bar in the menu on the DS and that the is no fat_lib patcher (but maybe there will be a new fat_lib soon that supports DSlink).

Overall rating for the DSlink slot-1 media adapter
Discription	Rating (out of 10)
Design Boxart, manual and product appeal	9
Hardware Hardware design, durability and features	8
Compatibility Overall Homebrew and NDS game (if applies) compatibility score	8
Product future What this products future looks like	very good
Features Scoring of extra features of the product	none

I hope you all enjoyed my review and found it useful.

-Simon van de Berg

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