M3DS real review! Special thanks to the M3team 9th of March 2008 (minor edit 16th)

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Introduction

A while ago the M3DS real has been released (English version, Chinese was out for a while). The M3DS real is the new DS slot product from the well known M3 team known from the G6DS real, M3DS simply (and R4DS) and of course their both GBA slot series. As a well known player in the scene (as some seem to misunderstand I mean that the M3 is well known and sells quite well) it is always interesting to follow their products. As the M3DS real has been released a while ago there are already several reviews around, but I've found they generally mis 2 things. 2 Rather crucial things if you ask me. One of those things I can fully understand that no review has but the other is rather silly ;).

Of course, now that I've made such a fuss about other reviews missing these 2 points I'll cover them in my review. If you don't feel like reading the full review just for those 2 points click HERE (DS section of review) and HERE (GBA section of review). To make it more clear I've made the sections covering the 2 points green so you can find them more easily. Also as a lot of people have been asking me about FW versions, the one mainly used in this review is 3.0. However I've tested both of the 'features' in 2.42a too which resulted in GBA backups being possible, but homebrew not starting if not in root. I assume that support for that was added in FW version 2.7a when multiple directories was introduced for the NDS menu.

On a side note: I've been sent the new firmware files, dldi patching files and a patching file for use with the DS browser. Naturally I'll share ;). I've only put the DLDI patching file and the DS browser patcher file here as the firmware files are often updated and I don't keep up :).


• Download: DLDI patching files
• Download: DS browser patching files

The DS browser patching files rar includes patching tools so no need for anything but that rar and the dump of the cart. Also remember that the firmware for the M3DS real is the same as that of the G6DS real (meaning you can use these files for your G6DS real 8/16Gbit too)!. By the way, I created the Dutch translation for the M3DS real menu so feel free to contact me if you think anything should be changed.

Now on with the review. The official specifications / feature set of the M3DS real:


• 100% compatibility
• works on any DS.
• Extreme simple to use: just drag and drop files to the M3 Cart .. ..Standard FAT system.
• Supports the Micro SDHC specification, allowing for high capacity memory cards 4GB, 8GB...
• Supports different speed of micro SD card even the low speed SD card .Running programs without any lag or slow down .
• Exclusive Super Cheat Function:
• Fully AR Cheat Code compatible engine
• Special features can be enabled during running: (such as: SlowMotion mode...)
• Software reset function
• Automatically detect save type. (No need to provide save type database file.)
• Battery is not required, directly back up the save data into the micro SD card, never lose your save data.
• Excellent homebrew support. DLDI auto-patcher.
• Upgradeable system. No size limitation of Flash rom.
• Robust & skinnable GUI.
• Built in PassMe (No need to insert TF card, NO need to use with any boot cart/passcard etc. Support booting Slot1-NDS, Slot2-GBA, Slot2-NDS etc�)
• DirectBoot: Support directly booting applications.
• Supports Slot-2 expansions card. (Rumble, Ram , Browser memory and GBA expansion card etc.)
• Includes a fully touch screen & button control operating system /GUI Menu.
• NDS-GBA Linkage works fine.
• The strongest media features: Build-in �Media-Ex� application + �Moonshell � media player. i) Support playing MP3 ,OGG music & DPG /DSM / GBM movies � ii)Super E-book function , support Word/ Txt file directly . III)Super picture viewer function , support *.BMP, *.JPG, *.GIF, *.PNG directly.
• Built in PDA (Worldwide Time ,Memo , Note ,Phone book ,Calculator.)
• Supports Multi-Language France, Germany, Italian, Netherlands, Portuguese, Spanish, Korea, Thai, Japanese...
• Supports DS sleep mode.
• Brightness adjustment within GUI.
Additional features of the (GBA) expansion pack(s):
• Rumble!
• 100% GBA compatibility without slowdown
• Super real time save function (GBA mode)
• Built in NES/SNES/GB/SMS/PCE roms emulator
• Fast loading (10 seconds for 128 Mbit of data)
• GBA cheat functionality
• NDS-GBA linkage

As you can see in the feature set GBA games are included and so is rumble. The rumble mode requires you to either have the official Nintendo rumble pack or buy the M3 team's rumble expansion. For running GBA games you require either the M3's GBA expansion pack or an M3 perfect (slot-2). I'll get back to playing GBA games later in the review. As for getting the expansion packs, I'm unsure if one can purchase them separately however there are 3 versions of the M3DS real according to the M3's website:

• M3 Real + Rumble Ram Pack
• M3 Real + Rumble Pack
• M3 Real + Rumble Pack + GBA expansion Pack (also called the 'perfect' bundle)
My sample is the M3DS real Rumble + GBA expansion pack version so I'll cover both rumble and GBA playing.

The Review

The Packaging

The M3DS real boxing; left the front, middle is the bottom showing a content list and righ is the back showing the feature list.

Similar to my comments on the G6DS real's packaging I am rather saddened by the M3 team. Although the new packaging isn't ugly and it probably is cost-effective I can't help but yearn for the old packaging type with the tin-can. If only for the fact that it adds a bit more class. As with the G6DS real the packaging is now made out of a cardboard box with a plastic container inside. Contents:


• M3DS real
• Rumble Pack
• RAM pack (/GBA expansion pack)
• 2 mini CDs with extra content (generally outdated, but nice non the less)
• Plastic case for the M3DS real and a TF (microSD) card (general quality, nothing very special but not el-cheapo either. The hinge feels rather loose though.)
• USB 2.0 TF (microSD) card reader

Build Quality

The M3DS real. As you can see the main Actel chip sticks out slightly on the front of the cart underneath the sticker.
The unit is mainly held together by clips on the side similar to those of the G6DS real.
On the back however you can see a micro-SD orientation image which naturally the G6DS real didn't have ;).

Here too (unsurprisingly) there are many similarities between the G6DS real and the M3DS real. As with the G6DS real the shell of this unit has quite thick plastic, however has a hole underneath the front sticker where a logic chip sticks out (you feel it when you rub your finger over it). Thankfully this doesn't raise the M3DS's thickness to be (much) more then a normal card. It IS however different then inserting an original game (though slightly easier then inserting the G6DS real). This probably has two causes; The first is that the shell is composed out of a front and a back which are held together by side clips and a small screw underneath the top-left of the sticker (see pictures). The clips rub against the springs on the side of the DS' DS-slot. The second is that the M3team have chosen not to put the guidance strips over the connector pins (see pictures). This means that the "bar" in front of the pins has enough freedom to move around (and come in front of the connector pins). Aside from those two points (and the slightly higher thickness) the M3DS real card matches an original card close to perfectly in shape and color. Also the build quality of oth the GBA ram expansion and the rumble expansion is very good and their finish closely matches that of the original black DS dustcover. However here too the pins are bare which isn't very good. With both the M3DS real and the expansion packs you might need to clean the pins every once in a while due to them getting dirty of normal use.

The exterior of both the GBA/RAM pack and rumble pack are the same, nice finish closely matching my DSL.
The glossy of the case however isn't due to a layer of paint but is incorporated in the plastic.

Something to note however. Recently I've been reading reports online about people complaining about a new batch of M3DS reals frying their DSs. The new batch has a new PCB design but that shouldn't be the problem. What is apparently going wrong for people is pins in the DS slot making a connection (due to the lack of pin guidance strips) which then burns out a fuse inside the DS. Although I am unsure whether it is a recurring problem or only with some DSs it is a good thing to bare in mind for now.


NDS features


The M3DS real inside the DS slot of my DSL. A slightly sticky fit but other then that working nicely.



General + Compatibility (+download play)
On to the main feature of the M3DS real: playing DS games. When you turn on your M3DS real (and have everything set up properly) you are presented with a graphical menu (menu with icons). By the way if the M3 doesn't notice any input (you're not touching buttons or the touchscreen) the backlight turns off. Great feature that saves battery life.



As you can see the menu also shows the backlight strength (on a DS lite, you can then also change it and that setting is remembered), the date and the time set on your DS. The menu options (from left to right, up to down): NDS games, GBA games, file browser, Boot options / NoPass, Media playback, PDAds and settings. I'll cover these items now aside from GBA games which I'll cover later in the review.

Starting/using a DS game is very easy. When you've opened the NDS games menu you are greeted by a selection screen. The screen shows the game's icon, file name and file size. By default games are sorted by their creation dates. You can also sort the files by name or by size by pressing column name similar as in Windows / Linux / etc.. (Nearly) The entire menu system can be operated with both the stylus and the buttons (for example the L+R buttons can be used to scroll). When you've selected a game you are presented with different options: Select file, Cheat switch, Soft-reset key, slowmotion switch and slowmotion level.

Another option is Download-Play mode. By pressing the Y key the NDS game is started with the least amount of patching specifically designed for download-play support. Some games really require that option so it's good that it's there.

Select file and cheat switch are covered in the next section (cheat system). As for soft-reset and slowmotion both are rather clear.

All games I've tested had no problem with any option enabled. It all just worked properly. Also every game I've tested for download play worked fine. For more info on compatibility (feel free to add your own experiences) see the wiki. The menu system also works very well. One thing that I did find annoying is that with a big (and possibly slightly slow) microSD card scrolling through the games is rather slow. Along the same lines I found that certain slowdown-prown games such as CastleVania DoS experience quite heavy slowdown with both my microSD cards.




NDS-GBA linkage also works, but I haven't tested it to detail so I can't write too much about that right now. I have tested Gyakuten Saiban (aka Phoenix Wright) by loading the GBA version of the game and then starting the DS version which worked fine.

A funny thing is that since firmware 3.0 the icon of homebrew is also shown in the NDS/GAME menu instead of a general icon. However when scrolling up the icon changes back to the general icon. Before v3.0 there only was the general icon for homebrew.

Cheat system
The cheat system is the same as that on the G6DS real. As no changes have been made to the cheat system I'll simply quote the G6DS real review here.

Now to the G6DS real's cheat system. As I stated earlier the G6DS real comes with (or is available for download) a cheat database file which contains cheats for several games. To enable cheats you must first select the game you want to cheat in. Once in the game-info screen you must set the cheat file from which you want the G6 unit to load it's cheats. Once set you can choose if you want to have cheats on or not ("Cheat Switch - On/Off"). You can also set if you want and how you want to soft-reset in a game and if you want Slow-motion, what hotkey combo is set to enable/disable slow-motion and what level of slowmotion is enabled.

As for selecting cheats it is quite easy. In the game-info screen there will be two tabs once you have set the cheat file. One is the game-config screen (the one described in the previous paragraph) and the second is the Cheat tab. Inside the cheat tab there are all the cheats available for the game you are going to run which can be selected both via stylus and buttons. This is a nice and simple implementation of a cheat system which works quite easy.

Media playback


Media playback is done by Moonshell in DS mode. Although slight additions have been made (mainly adding a skin / layout and adding their own video codec playback) I won't cover media playback. Moonshell works. The .dsm video format from the M3 team also works but I personally feel the normal Moonshell codec is better.

NoPass
As with the G6DS real the NoPass feature is exactly the same as any other NoPass feature out there. By going to the "Boot" section in the pull down menu you get two options. One is SLOT-2 NDS, which is the normal NoPass action and SLOT-2 GBA which simply starts a GBA card in GBA mode. Not much special here, all works like a charm.

BootIcon (settings)
This is a feature that isn't included in the M3DS real. Unlike with the G6DS real you cannot avoid the auto-start. When the M3DS real is inserted it will ALWAYS start automatically. For some reason however the M3 team did not remove the menu option for this feature. So under settings you have �BootIcon:� which you can only set to OFF. Personally I find this rather annoying.

You can also select skins in the settings menu (one can create skins yourself too).

PDAds
PDAds is funny, but not very practical. Although I have to admit I generally do not use my DS for PDA like features as I simply dislike it (why I don't use DSorganize much) the PDA feature isn't something that makes the M3DS real worth buying over another product. There are several options in the PDA menu: Phone, Note, Units, Calculator and Memo.



Their uses are pretty self explanatory from their names so I won't go into much detail. The interface on the PDAds is rather slow though generally not that user unfriendly. It does lack a 'back' button on screen (start is used for back) which is annoying.




DS homebrew

Yes, here is number one of that which many reviewers (and even the M3 team :)) mis. The official guide / manual of the M3DS real (can be downloaded from the M3 website) states that homebrew can be started from the root of the microSD card. This by selecting your homebrew.nds via the file browser. I can see how this could cause confusion. Certain homebrew applications/games require files to be in specific locations (such as root) of your microSD card (which is why I think the M3 team states homebrew must be in the root --> to avoid confusion). However the M3's firmware is more then capable of opening homebrew from the NDS/GAME menu. Simply put your homebrew file in the folder your games are in (/NDS or /the folder where you browse for games). You can then select it from the game manager menu just as NDS games and are asked if the game should be patched just as it would if it was in root and selected via the file manager.







So just to make it clear: Homebrew can be started from ANYWHERE including the /NDS /whatever_folder_you_are_browsing folders and homebrew CAN be started via the NDS game manager just like retail NDS games!




Homebrew (.nds with or without FATlib/DLDI) works perfectly fine. Naturally old SRAM homebrew won't work. There is auto-DLDI patching which works properly. One thing that can be a bit confusing is that you can choose whether you are going to run your homebrew on an M3 slot-2 or slot-1 (the latter being the M3DS real) device. That means that if you want your homebrew to be patched to run from a slot-2 M3 product you can still start it from the M3DS real. Generally though you will simply let it run via slot-1.


Rumble
Lets get ready to ruuumbleeee (Sorry for the pun :))! Rumble yea! Naturally you need the rumble pack for this (or the official Nintendo rumble pack). We in Europe never got the official pack (AFAIK, I don't have it anyway) so sadly I have nothing to compare the M3's rumble pack with.




A nice touch with the rumble pack is the fact that the PCB and the motor are glued to the case (quite usefull with moving parts).



I can however say that I, although I don't use it often personally as I generally have the RAM expansion inserted, kind of liked the rumble pack. You can feel the rumble and it isn't very noisy. Also when I opened the rumble pack I found that both the rumble motor and the PCB were glued to the back of the casing which is good.


GBA features

A bit more showing the matching color. Also these images show the packs (the packs inserted in the images aren't the same)
neatly fitting the DS lite only slightly sticking out at the top end.

General + Compatibility
This was a highly speculated feature. Although announced very long ago no one was ever sure whether or not the GBA feature would require a slot-2 device (as mixed reports came from both trustworthy source and not so trustworthy ones). In the end the M3 team went for a GBA RAM expansion pack. This has advantages and dis-advantages. One of the advantages is that it is relatively cheap. The second is that by patching the opera DS browser it can be used with the GBA expansion pack rather then the official RAM expansion pack from Nintendo. A downside is however that when the power is no longer on the RAM pack (when the DS is turned off or the GBA expansion pack isn't in the DS) the RAM loses the game data. That means that every time you want to play a game the game needs to be reloaded.




The PCB of the RAM pack, the left image is from the the top of the PCB the right from the bottom.



Now one of the features stated by the box of the M3DS real is being able to load 128Mbit games in 10 seconds. As a test I loaded Zelda Minish Cap which is 128 Mbit in size in both modes available for GBA games (I'll get back to that): Patch and Fast Load. Patch took roughly 40 seconds and Fast Load took approximately 20 seconds. So as you can see the 10 seconds is rather exaggerated. Though it could be that loading 128 Mbit takes 10 seconds one also still needs to patch the games to be able to run which also takes time. For funs I also tested a 256 Mbit game in patch mode which took roughly a minute 25 seconds to load.

Now as to the two patch modes I would get back to. As stated there are two modes 'patch' and 'fast load'. Patch means that the game is fully patched including saves and etc.. Patch mode is required if you want to realtime-save and/or cheat. Fast load only patches reads in the GBA game and normal save functionality which means you can't use any of the extra features of the M3DS real.




Another fun thing to mention is that regardless of your DSs settings regarding GBA games the GBA games loaded with the M3DS real end up on the top screen. Although there is probably an easy software fix for this it isn't included in the M3DS real in v3.0 of the firmware. Personally I don't really find it annoying as I generally use my top screen for GBA games anyway.

As for compatibility, I've found any game I've tested works without problems when using Fast Load or patch mode. The only problems I encountered were that due to the lack of a real time clock some in game events (such as with pokemon) no longer functioned properly and that the real time save feature isn't perfect as it sometimes crashes (parts of) the game or creates a very annoying buzzing sound that doesn't go away.

Real time save
Yes real time save! Although as stated above not all games work with the mode it still works rather well. Patch mode must be enabled and you have to remember the correct button combination (A+B+L+R) during the game though ;).



I've found the feature to be pretty nice especially in for example Gyakuten Saiban (1/2/3) when you are unsure which evidence to produce. Simply save, try and if it was the wrong one load your RTS. The image below pretty much speaks for itself.

Cheat system
The cheat system is very similar to what we've seen before. If you want to enable cheats you first select where to load the cheats from (what database/file). After you've chosen your (.dht, .xml, .txt, .db, .cht) file you can enable cheats by turning on the 'cheat switch'.



Then when you start the game before the actual game starts you will get a list of cheats in your cheat database. You can then either turn on or of the cheats you want. Then hit start to start the game with cheats enabled :).

Built in Emulators
Yes that feature belongs here. I won't cover it any further though as the built in emulators are simply homebrew programs (pocketnes for example) utilized by the M3DS real's firmware. We've seen it before, it works, it's a nice addition. Also you are generally better of using DS homebrew emulators anyway.



Saving, including making backup copies of your original saves!

Now here is where it gets interesting. Number two of what isn't mentioned in other reviews is coming up ;)! Saving GBA games is similar to saving DS games. One major difference is however that the game save isn't written to the microSD card during the game but when the DS is turned on again. Something that works pretty ok although it does mean you need the GBA expansion pack inside the DS the next time you use the M3DS real or you will lose your save. This however also gave me an idea. What if one were to swap the GBA expansion pack for an original GBA game?




First let me explain a little bit about how game saves are stored in normal/official GBA games. There is a total of 5 save types:

• EEPROM

• FeRAM (modern save type used to replace SRAM, works 'nearly' the same)

• Flash (without battery)

• Flash (with battery for RealTimeClock)

• SRAM

What save type was used normally depended on the game. All the Pokemon games for example use a real time clock and have many variables. Because of that they use Flash with a battery for the RTC. To test my theory on swapping the games I tested 4 of the 5 save types (as I do not have any game that has FeRAM).





Save types tested:

• EEPROM (tested games: Zelda 4 swords, Zelda minish Cap, Super Mario Advance 1&2) ---- Doesn't work

• Flash (without battery) (tested games: Mario Kart Super Circuit) --- Works

• Flash (with battery for RealTimeClock) (Tested games: Pokemon Sapphire) --- Works

• SRAM (Tested games: F-Zero Maximum Velocity) --- Works

As you can see save types that can be backed up are: Flash (with/without battery) and SRAM (and thus probably also FeRAM). A game with EEPROM is however out of luck.

In case you want to back up your own save files this is how you do it:

• Turn on your DS and start the GBA game you want to back-up from the M3DS real menu (so start the ROM rather then the original game)

• Get to a save point in the game and save (not sure if this is needed)

• Turn of your DS and remove the RAM expansion pack / M3 slot-2 adapter

• Insert your original GBA game and turn on the DS

• Now open the GBA menu of the M3DS real and wait for 'please wait, processing' to go away

• You should now (if it was a compatible game) have a copy of your original GBA game save on your microSD card

Conclusion

Well, finally written my M3DS real review :). But I guess it was worth holding off the writing seeing as now I've been able to write quite a lot. In the end I have to say I have a good feeling with the M3DS real. Although is has some features that aren't very useful it also has some that are really nice. But what I liked best is what the M3 products generally have, ease of use. The menu system is clear and easy to use. There are however some slowdowns in specific games (CastleVania DoS) with both my microSD cards and scrolling through the game list can also be rather slow when you have a lot of games on your card.

Package content; M3DS real, GBA/RAM and rumble packs, TF-reader (haven't had any problems, but it looks the same as
the R4/M3DS simply one) and not shown but included a driver CD (and possibly example CD with dpg and mp3 files).
As you can see the M3DS real comes with a microSD card + DS cart container for easy travel (nice touch, with SDHC support ;)).

GBA functionality also works quite well. The only thing that is a downside is the lack of a RTC. Being able to back up some of your GBA saves is also very nice though not an official feature.

Overall rating for the M3DS realslot-1 media (adapter) unit
Discription	M3DS real (out of 10)
Design Boxart, manual and product appeal	8
Hardware Hardware design, durability and features	7+
Compatibility Overall Homebrew and NDS game (if applies) compatibility score	9
Product future What this products future looks like	stable
Features (Built in) extra features of the NDS media (adapter) card	microSD (SDHC) Boot slot-2 Cheat GBM/S playback U-Disc funtion "BootIcon Yes/No" more, see list ^

PCB shots

The insides of the M3DS real (opening is mainly done by lifting clips from the sides however the top left of the card seems to be glued/screwed in some units so be carefull when opening)

This is the M3DS real PCB (Chinese) version (the first publically available PCB shots)! The PCBs of the rumble and ram packs are further back in my review for those interested. These pictures are brought to you by both me and BellySM, who graciously provided with the images so a big thank you to him guys :).

To view the images in more detail click on the thumbnails below. By clicking on the thumbnails you will get to see the full uncompressed jpeg images which are around 700kbyte big. As this might be a bit too big on slower connections you can also choose to click on the links underneath the pictures to see slightly compressed images around 300kbyte big.

compressed back | compressed front


I hope you will all enjoy my review and find it useful.

-Simon van de Berg

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