G6 lite (Chinese) review, special thanks go to G6flash.com
Introduction
- This is my review of the G6lite flash card.
Special thanks go to G6flash.com.
The G6lite (3d generation G6 flash cards) is a GBA flashcard designed for use with Nintendo DS and GBA (all versions).
It comes in only one size at the moment (22-juli-2006), 4Gbit=512Mbyte.
Because of this this flashcard supports NDS backups, NDS homebrew, GBA backups and GBA homebrew.
It is a 3d generation G6 flash card, but with one small change.
The PCB has been redesigned to fit into a GBA case designed to fit precisely inside a Nintendo DS lite without sticking out.
To make it fit inside a normal DS and in a GBA the G6 team have included a replacement GBA casing in the normal GBA style.
You can quite easily replace your casing to the normal GBA casing to make it fit in a GBA or Nintendo DS original.
But to finish it off, they have also included replacement cases for different color Nintendo DS's.
Sadly however, there was no black casing included in my sample, but I think I will look into modifying the original GBA casing that came with my black DS lite, to see if the G6lite will fit in there.
As with the GBAMP V2 and the SuperCard series, there are 2 different ways of using the product.
In GBA mode, or in NDS mode.
These are two very different things, so I will judge them seperatly.
I will also look at the special features of the G6lite that are not runtime related.
One thing that might also be nice to mention.
I received a PassCard 3 together with my G6lite.
This is the NoPass that is said to be working with the G6/G6lite (which I confirm it does).
However (logically) the SuperKey also works very well (link is to my superkey review).
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Looking at the packaging.
- The Udisk burner, this is the USB adapter you use to "flash" your G6lite with.
- A software (mini-)CD, all needed software is on there, but you should always use the latest software when able.
- A normal sized GBA replacement casing, for when you want to use your G6lite with a GBA or Nintendo DS original.
- A Nintendo DS lite sized GBA replacement casing, for when you want to change the color of your G6lite inside your Nintendo DS lite.
- Playing music
- Watching video
- Viewing pictures
- Reading E-books
- Some PDA software
- Playing games
- PDA software
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The sample I received only had two calculators for GBA PDA functions, which worked very nice, but there is very little to score.
So I will not grant a score to this function.
- Playing games
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Playing GBA games (backups) works quite well with the G6 lite.
I have not noticed any slowdowns.
In GBA mode, I did feel that the loading times were somewhat long.
The real time save function works (I did not try a very large amount of games) very good and so does the normal save function.
It saves like a normal GBA game does without any need to press any extra button combinations.
The compression function works very well too.
There is also a cheat function, and even better you can apply IPS patches via the software that comes with the G6lite.
As for homebrew, the G6lite is a GBA flash card.
This means you can put .gba files on there and run them.
There is now no limitation to the size of the homebrew you run (it will never exceed 4Gbit), so you can use full fledged homebrew such as pocketness for example.
- Playing music
- Watching video
- Viewing pictures
- Reading E-books
- Some PDA software
- Playing games
- PDA software
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The version of the G6lite I received was a Chinese model.
- A phone book
- An alarm clock
- Both a note and scribble pad
- A calculator
- Dictionaries (beta, not finished) English to Chinese, Chinese to English and Chinese
- A password protection lock
- A configuration panel for the PDA software
There is not such a problem with that (not that I can read Chinese) but this means that the PDA software is also in Chinese.
At the moment it seems like the PDA software is still a bit in a beta stage, but the G6lite can be updated.
So I have faith that G6flash.com will get it updated very soon.
Right now (22-juli-2006) there are a few different apps in PDA mode (that I could figure out on a short notice):
This seems quite a promising bit of software.
I really hope that this will be updatable to the English version somewhere in the future, as it will make a lot of people very happy.
- Playing NDS games (backups and homebrew)
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Playing games works very good.
It worked with almost anything I threw at it, BUT not with ScummVM.I need to eat my words as I got ScummVM to work!
See bottom of page for more info.
Seeing as that is one of my favorite homebrew applications/games it did loose some points.
The G6 team would do good to look into getting a version of ScummVM out that works with the G6lite.
Maybe the best idea would be to release a library (modified Chishm?) that supports writing and reading to and from the G6lite for homebrew.
- Changing the casing:
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Changing the casing is very easy, there are only a few steps involved:
- Unscrew screw, you can do this with a normal screwdriver (I used my LeatherMan)
- Slide right side up (side without plastic extension)
- Lift up right side
- Slide left side up without putting right side back in
The top should now come of - take out PCB
- Unscrew the screw, same type of screw as with the other casing
- Slide top side down
- Lift up top side
- Put in the G6lite PCB as pictures below
- Slide top on again (make sure the PCB stays in the same place)
- Screw in the screw (not to far, it can destroy your casing if you screw it in to for)
You should now be able to put the G6lite in your normal DS.
- Unscrew screw, you can do this with a normal screwdriver (I used my LeatherMan)
- 4Gbit, too small for me?
- I have heard a lot of people say that 4Gbit is not enough.
It is 512Mbyte, so I can see why people feel that way.
Personally, I have more then enough room in 512MegaByte.
I can fit all my games on there (eight games + the metroid demo = nine games and about 300~350 Mbyte) and a few of my old GBA games.
When you watch a lot of movies, I can understand that you might want to have some more room, but for NDS backups/homebrew and GBA backups/homebrew, there is really no need.
Of course, that is all a matter of personal taste.
- Menu's with game pictures
- This is a very fun idea, and it works quite nice.
The menu of the G6lite shows you a picture/icon of the games selection you are looking at at that time.
It makes it very easy to select a game when you have a lot of games on your G6lite.
And it makes the menus look very nice.
- True USB disk function
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The True USB disc function means that you can plug in your G6lite card into the USB adapter, and then see it as a regular USB device on your computer.
As is to be expected the speed of the G6lite (read/write) is not very high, but it is still quite a neat function.
This way you can edit everything yourself without being dependent on the software.
The software is very good, but it is still a very nice option.
Especially because now you can edit the .nds files after they have been run through the software.
That way, you can take out game intros and etc. if the trimmer of the software didn't.
The Packaging of the G6 lite can be divided in two items.
One is the box you see at first.
Second is the tin can that holds the G6lite (which I feel is the real boxing).
The box is a very standard product box.
Not very sturdy, but sturdy enough to last one or two plain trips for shipping.
It gives general information about the G6lite, and some of its features in a quick glance.
The English is better then that of for example of the GBAMP V2's box, but still lacks on a few points.
It is a fairly nice, standard box.
Two close up pictures:
But now on to the real boxing, the tin can.
I really like the idea of putting the product in something more sturdy then a cardboard box.
It is also very nice for shipping, as the product does not get damaged quickly.
The fitting is rather strange (all items inside aren't round), but it is all placed rather compact inside the can.
This means that you do not pay more shipping then you would if they made a very small box.
Inside the can there are even shock absorbers, a very nice thought.
Content of the package (my G6lite package, I am unsure whether all packages are the same):
The GBA mode can be divided in different topics:
Music, Video, pictures and reading E-books are the same as the SuperCard and GBAMP V2, and I will not go over them a second time.
However the reading E-book function does have a font switcher, very nice addition.
This makes me adjust my judging of the E-book function to a full 10/10.
You can read about what I thought of the other functions in my GBAMP V2 review.
NDS mode
The NDS mode can also be divided in the same topics:
Playing music, watching video, viewing pictures and reading E-books are generally the same as with the GBAMP V2, but with one very cool change.
When you use the software included (you can also use Moonshell, which is also on the G6lite when it comes out of the box) it uses the full screen of the Nintendo DS!
This means that you can read your E-books with a much larger screen, view your pictures full screen and watch movies converted for use with the original software (Chrystal engine) at full screen too (provided you converted them with a larger X and Y).
Now you can also do that with Moonshell, but the function is still very cool and works very good.
Conclusion: The G6lite is a very nice product for your Nintendo DS/GBA/GBA-SP/GBA-micro.
Because it is a GBA flash card, you can use GBA homebrew to the fullest such as Pocketness which is very nice.
It also means that you are stuck with a fixed size, unlike GBA media adapters.
Although the G6 has good GBA functions (plays GBA backups, let's you play movies and etc.), I think the G6 shines more when used with the NDS.
NDS functionality is very nice, and when it keeps getting developed I believe it will be a very nice addition to your DS's functions, and will get better and better.
You can best use it with your Nintendo DS lite, not that it changes anything to the working of your device but the fact that it does not stick out is very nice.
When you are still shopping for a device, and are looking for a device that will play NDS backups and GBA backups quite well, this could be a device for you.
But when you want more then 512Mbyte, I suggest you look at GBA media adapters.
And when you are into running homebrew, you are best off checking if the homebrew you want to run will work with the G6lite.
If the homebrew is a simple .nds file it will work fine (just let the G6lite add a header), but homebrew like MoonShell need to be aware of the fact that they are in the G6 (need to be compiled for use with G6).
The inside of the G6lite:
ScummVM and G6lite
You can use ScummVM if you use the GBA flash version, and put that no your G6lite via the official software.
The options that worked for me were no changes, and all types (DoFat, normal and Direct copy) work.
I hope you all enjoyed my review and found it useful.
-Simon van de Berg
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