Looking on Amazon (UK, at least) it seems that there is a lot of fake cards around. There are fake R4 companies around. I can't remember where legit R4s come from - but I think it's simply R4DS.
Known Fakes
Cards that support 4GB and 8GB, advertised as "for DS Lite"
Cards that support SDHC
Cards from NDLSR4
Cards supporting a "new kernel", IE: 1.19 or 1.21 - 1.18 is the latest and final kernel as R4DS have stopped development and production on the R4.
Cards advertised as "Version 3" and "Version 2"
White cards, although a white card is featured on r4ds.com
Links to Known Fakes
Note: DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM THIS LIST UNLESS YOU WANT TO WASTE MONEY!!
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.16929
http://tinyurl.com/65dvqz
http://tinyurl.com/5fddrq
http://www.amazon.co.uk/R4-Revolution-R ... d_sim_ce_3
http://www.amazon.co.uk/R4-SDHC-same-DS ... im_vg_h__6
If you know any more fakes - let me know.
LEGIT R4s ONLY SUPPORT 2GB AND LOWER CARDS!!
FAKE CARDS CAN BRICK YOUR DS
http://r4ds.com IS THE ONLY REAL R4 SITE
WARNING: Fake Homebrew Cards!!
Moderator: ScummVM Team
WARNING: Fake Homebrew Cards!!
Last edited by iPwnzorz on Tue Nov 04, 2008 3:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I ordered my R4 directly from China. The box contained everything seen on the first picture here, plus a mini CD with Moonshell, kernel [1.18] and some other soft that I didn't check out.
The site I bought it from sells R4 carts only, and lately they started selling the new version with SDHC card support. My cart is black, and everything I tested on it worked fine, both homebrew and legit DS code [official NDS demo dumps].
I've had it for some time now and I can't complain. What's the risk when you buy a "fake"? If mine is a fake, I couldn't care less, since it works and I haven't had any problems with it.
The site I bought it from sells R4 carts only, and lately they started selling the new version with SDHC card support. My cart is black, and everything I tested on it worked fine, both homebrew and legit DS code [official NDS demo dumps].
I've had it for some time now and I can't complain. What's the risk when you buy a "fake"? If mine is a fake, I couldn't care less, since it works and I haven't had any problems with it.
-
Forget_the_Rest
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Tue Jul 15, 2008 9:11 pm
The original R4 came in a white variety but all 2nd generation models (those without the spring) are black.
There are many, many clones of the R4. You can find a fairly detailed list here & sites that have been reported to sell them.
Although r4ds.com was the official site, for a few months now this has been dead & set to redirect to http://r4ds.cn
Although the general consensus is that the official R4DS has ceased production, I have yet to read any official statement. This isn't to say that I don't believe it, just that it has not been confirmed.
There are many, many clones of the R4. You can find a fairly detailed list here & sites that have been reported to sell them.
Although r4ds.com was the official site, for a few months now this has been dead & set to redirect to http://r4ds.cn
Although the general consensus is that the official R4DS has ceased production, I have yet to read any official statement. This isn't to say that I don't believe it, just that it has not been confirmed.
-
Forget_the_Rest
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Tue Jul 15, 2008 9:11 pm
Some of the clones have been reported to be of poor build quality & have been known to "brick" the DS by shorting the internal fuses. This is only a possibility rather than a certainty & could happen at any time from the first use to years down the line.Morden wrote: I've had it for some time now and I can't complain. What's the risk when you buy a "fake"? If mine is a fake, I couldn't care less, since it works and I haven't had any problems with it.
Look at what you can see of the board on the back, if it's light green with visible labelling it's probably real. However if it's dark green with no labelling at all it's a fake.Morden wrote:I ordered my R4 directly from China. The box contained everything seen on the first picture here, plus a mini CD with Moonshell, kernel [1.18] and some other soft that I didn't check out.
The site I bought it from sells R4 carts only, and lately they started selling the new version with SDHC card support. My cart is black, and everything I tested on it worked fine, both homebrew and legit DS code [official NDS demo dumps].
I've had it for some time now and I can't complain. What's the risk when you buy a "fake"? If mine is a fake, I couldn't care less, since it works and I haven't had any problems with it.
This was the case with my Sister's R4 which broke after 2 weeks.
When I look at the visible part of the PCB without removing the casing, I can see some white letters. I can't read them though, as they are covered by the case. And I'd say the PCB is light green, rather than dark.iPwnzorz wrote:Look at what you can see of the board on the back, if it's light green with visible labelling it's probably real. However if it's dark green with no labelling at all it's a fake.
Dont get the R4 
the cyclo evo is much better
i hate to think people fear being scammed and getting a "bricked" DS... but people should check out the Cyclo forums (located in my signature) very user-friendly DS cart that offers a HUGE message board full of helpful users. These carts even support 8GB SDHC (and i think 16GB is going to be available soon)
the cyclo evo is much betteri hate to think people fear being scammed and getting a "bricked" DS... but people should check out the Cyclo forums (located in my signature) very user-friendly DS cart that offers a HUGE message board full of helpful users. These carts even support 8GB SDHC (and i think 16GB is going to be available soon)
As you can see, I already got the R4 and I am actually pretty happy with it. Is there anything that Cyclo can do that R4 can't? Aside from SDHC support that is.
Anyways, I'm not interested in buying another one since this one works with anything I throw at it. I'm just wondering if there is any kind of an advantage over other cards in Cyclo's case.
I mean, high capacity aside, if everything runs on R4, I can't really see how any other cart can be better if the compatibility is the same.
Besides, this is not the place to discuss which flash device is better. We were talking about knock offs.
Anyways, I'm not interested in buying another one since this one works with anything I throw at it. I'm just wondering if there is any kind of an advantage over other cards in Cyclo's case.
I mean, high capacity aside, if everything runs on R4, I can't really see how any other cart can be better if the compatibility is the same.
Besides, this is not the place to discuss which flash device is better. We were talking about knock offs.
-
another world
- Posts: 116
- Joined: Sat Feb 23, 2008 4:05 am
as team r4 has officially closed their doors the r4 loader will never be updated again. most of the roms released after #2500 are hit or miss. somtimes a header swap or arm7 patch will fix issues, other times it won't. so one major advantage is that the cyclo is still updated. the card costs as much as it does because they have great support and a paid team behind the loader/firmware. the cyclo also features slow motion, real time saves and some other gimmicks.
i have been beta testing stuff for the acekard and doing a few projects for team acekard. the new ak2.1 (they kindly supplied me with) is such a great kit. you can pick them up at dealextreme for 12.99-13.99. i know it sounds to inexpensive to be true, but honestly its a great flash kit. the open source firmware and cross loader support almost guarantee that the card will outlive others.
although rumors are that neo flash (eww) are the only team who have a flash kit running on the dsi, so time will tell which kits move up and which don't
i owned an r4, loved it, had fun with it, passed it on to someone else to enjoy. if you are serious about more than homebrew you will need to upgrade. if you just stick with homebrew you should be fine =).
THE ONLY WAY to tell for sure if an r4 is fake is to open it up and look at the pcb. i orderd one from realhotstuff and was shipped a clone so good it that the box was legit, the case was legit, even the wrist strap and msd reader were the same. but the kit had a fake pcb inside it. if you need more info please PM me and i'll link you to a site that shows you what to look for. depending on when you purchased it, it is probably real. anything shipped after jun/jul is a clone because they stopped producing them.
the only real risk of a fake is that it will have shoddy build which may brick your nds. look at the n5 which is a direct clone of the r4. the msd power cycle design was poorly implemented and the kit can blow a fuse on power up. while the fuse is easy to replace, if you don't know what to do you have a bricked nds. also the clone loaders for the clone kits are decrypted versions of the official 1.18 (final released official firmware). they contain hacked verions of yasu's ysmenu with narin's cheat updates and calls to allow the sdhc to function.
cheers,
-another world
i have been beta testing stuff for the acekard and doing a few projects for team acekard. the new ak2.1 (they kindly supplied me with) is such a great kit. you can pick them up at dealextreme for 12.99-13.99. i know it sounds to inexpensive to be true, but honestly its a great flash kit. the open source firmware and cross loader support almost guarantee that the card will outlive others.
although rumors are that neo flash (eww) are the only team who have a flash kit running on the dsi, so time will tell which kits move up and which don't
i owned an r4, loved it, had fun with it, passed it on to someone else to enjoy. if you are serious about more than homebrew you will need to upgrade. if you just stick with homebrew you should be fine =).
THE ONLY WAY to tell for sure if an r4 is fake is to open it up and look at the pcb. i orderd one from realhotstuff and was shipped a clone so good it that the box was legit, the case was legit, even the wrist strap and msd reader were the same. but the kit had a fake pcb inside it. if you need more info please PM me and i'll link you to a site that shows you what to look for. depending on when you purchased it, it is probably real. anything shipped after jun/jul is a clone because they stopped producing them.
the only real risk of a fake is that it will have shoddy build which may brick your nds. look at the n5 which is a direct clone of the r4. the msd power cycle design was poorly implemented and the kit can blow a fuse on power up. while the fuse is easy to replace, if you don't know what to do you have a bricked nds. also the clone loaders for the clone kits are decrypted versions of the official 1.18 (final released official firmware). they contain hacked verions of yasu's ysmenu with narin's cheat updates and calls to allow the sdhc to function.
cheers,
-another world
Looks identical to mine, I think you're safe.Morden wrote:Sure. Here's the PCB shot I described. As you can see, there are some white letters on it, visible at an angle, but you can't really read anything.iPwnzorz wrote:Sounds real to me. If you can get any clear pictures, I can tell you for sure.
First of all, thanks for the detailed reply. Second, I'll post a shot of the PCB later and we can have it as an example of what a real [or fake] PCB should look like.another world wrote:also the clone loaders for the clone kits are decrypted versions of the official 1.18 (final released official firmware). they contain hacked verions of yasu's ysmenu with narin's cheat updates and calls to allow the sdhc to function.
As for the firmware, mine is 1.18, but I can't really tell if the firmware is the real deal or not. My cart does not feature SDHC support. I've tested it with an 8 gigabyte HC card and it wouldn't boot.
It won't accept any firmware above the 1.18 either. I tried "upgrading" to 1.2X just to see if it would work. It didn't.
So, even though I'm stuck with the no longer supported R4, I think I'll be ok. I use the cart for homebrew and official game demos [whenever I can find some - it's much better to have the demos in ROM form. You don't have to download them over and over and over again]. As long as ScummVM and other apps work, I won't complain.
Here's my R4 without the casing. Now if only Another World would be kind enough to post some links to the photos of legit R4s.
*EDIT* I checked out GBATemp.net site and their review of the R4. They had a white cartridge and the PCB differed a bit from mine, but the key components used were the same. One other thing - The GBATemp.net cart had the plastic blades protecting the connector edge. Mine does not have that, which can be seen on the previous photo.
*EDIT* I checked out GBATemp.net site and their review of the R4. They had a white cartridge and the PCB differed a bit from mine, but the key components used were the same. One other thing - The GBATemp.net cart had the plastic blades protecting the connector edge. Mine does not have that, which can be seen on the previous photo.