R4 for Nintendo DS & DSi

Well I’m not going to tell you who’s winning exactly but I can give you some clues. If you haven’t seen already, the first 25 of the 111 votes we’ve received so far are now available for you to see on the R4 Revolution Top 10 Voting post.

Since the first 25 votes, there are 3 new entries in the top 10 including one which is now at number two. There are just two points separating positions 2 and 3 and first place isn’t far ahead of them. One vote can change the outcome! Almost all the entries have received some votes, which mean someone loves just about every one of our entries.

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04/10 UPDATE: See the top 10 best DS Homebrew results. There you can read an interview with the developers of each of the 10 top. I’ve also provided links so you can download and install all the best DS homebrew games on your Nintendo DSi console today

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Nintendo’s new console may come with its own built in card reader, but unfortunately it’s very limited it what it lets you do. You can’t play mp3 files or run homebrew software for example. The good news is that you can unlock the ability to do just about anything with your new console for a fraction of the cost of the DSi. R4 is now available on your new system.

When you are looking for a R4 DSi (R4i to give it its proper name), you are likely to come across a few fakes that are being sold for a cheaper price. Buying these units usually isn’t going to cause any problems but some claim that it may leave you with a strange clone that doesn’t have all the features that you wanted to enjoy. With first party accessories it is easy to spot if they are real simply by looking for the Nintendo Logo.

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This summer sees the launch of our Top 10 R4 DS Homebrew Contest. A competition to crown the world’s most popular R4 DS Homebrew and the next 9 in-line to the throne.

10 developers will win a share of $500 (USD, yes we’re a British site but US dollars are a more internationally accepted currency) as well the incredible accolade of being the developer of (one of) the world’s most popular DS Homebrew. The contest is open now and is open to any Nintendo DS/DSi homebrew, old and new, from anywhere in the world.

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Buying an R4i can be tricky since there are no well known retailers selling them. All but a handful of stores have no reputation at all. We’ve gathered as much information as we could find on those that sell the R4i in the UK to compile a customer satisfaction table. This can be used as a guide to who sells good quality reliable models and who are more likely to supply dodgy alternatives.

Why You Need an R4i (R4 DSi) Card

The Nintendo DSi surpassed all expectations and is the fastest selling handheld console of all time. It has a number of nifty features that aren’t found in the previous versions, but unfortunately it still lacks some features that you might have expected like the ability to run homebrew games through the SD card reader. This is why you need an R4 DSi. The R4 for DSi is cleverly named the R4i.

The R4DSi is a cartridge that is roughly the same size as a standard cartridge for the DSi. The cartridge has a small slot where you can insert a MicroSD card which is required to take advantage of many of its features. Nothing is installed or modified in the Nintendo DSi so it is completely safe to use and all the action is done within the cartridge.

Enhance Your experience with an DSi R4

If you’ve had the luxury of playing video games on the latest Nintendo console, you may want to enhance your experience with an R4 DSi. We’ll go into details momentarily, but first it’s important to understand how you can change the way you use that hand held console of yours. To be frank, with an R4 for DSi you’ll have the opportunity to transform it into a high-tech device.

Playing Homebrew Games with an R4i
If you haven’t had a chance to see our DS Homebrew Top 20 poll which was carried out in 2009, I really suggest you check it out. There are so many great homebrew games that people simply aren’t aware of. They can be played on any variation of the DS, personally I play them on a pink DSI (my daughter picked the colour). Even if you’re experienced with DS homebrew, you’ll probably find a few you’ve missed in the chart. With over 200 votes the poll gives a really good impression of what is the best available.

MP3 Players
Annoyingly for many the console won’t let you play every type of audio file. With an R4 NDSi that’s no longer a problem. We’ve always thought that music can change a person’s personality in just a few minutes, and this cartridge does the trick. If you have a set of tiny headphones you can change your console into an instant music player that you can take on your next run. Whatever the case may be you have to realize you’re not just going to be able to get a few titles, but hundreds on your R4DSi.

The Internet
Many once simple devices are now capable of doing many of the tasks once reserved for home PCs. With an R4 DSi you will find yourself with the ability to use the Internet just as you would at home or in a library. This means when you need to keep up with MySpace, Facebook, or Twitter, you can scan them throughout the day with your R4i wherever you are at that time. Plus, college students are finding the R4i very useful (they can pretend they are researching topics on the Internet while really just playing games).

Other Options Available
We don’t want to spoil all the excitement of the R4 DSi, but there several different ways you can use the two of these together to make one great product. Whether it be for school, work, or play, just having the opportunity at your fingertips with an R4i is a great benefit. Other options available are anything from a Word Processor or video player, to even using it as a mobile phone.

So the next time you take out your DSi R4DS have a look online for some of the free to download homebrew applications available.

An R4 DSi is the Answer

An R4 DSi is the answer many people have been looking for, for a long time. The reason you need this device is because it is much cheaper than you would pay for an original DS game, and it lets your Nintendo DSi do some amazing things! Some of these include that it can be used as a Web Browser, PDA, MP3 Player, Word Processor and Video Player. Last but not least, with the R4NDSi you can play free homebrew games too.

There is one thing though that you will have to be careful of, and that is fake R4i. Many people have come across R4 NDSi but they do not perform as they should, which means they are not the original ones and you have probably been scammed. Be sure of your source when you are looking into investing in something like this, because it is very easy to be given something that looks the same but doesn’t perform the same. It is difficult to get the correct item from the same place once you have been sold a dud, so it is advised to avoid places like this in the first place.

Nintendo DS games are sometimes difficult to keep track of, especially if the kids have had a hold of them. Have you ever had a time when all you feel like doing is relaxing and playing your favourite game, only to be looking for it for an hour? Then once you find it you really don’t feel like playing any more… or what about when the dog has gotten hold of your favourite game? The list of things that go wrong with Nintendo games is almost endless! With the DSi R4, which is a 2GB SD memory card, you can save all your games and you only have one item to look after and keep away from dogs and kids!

An R4 DSi is a great invest for any gaming family to have. Even if you don’t play games as often as others do, it is nice to know that you have all your games safe and sound for that rainy day when you feel like doing nothing but sitting under a blanket and playing games on your Nintendo. Or the kids Nintendo…

The R4 DS is one of the most popular add-ons to any Nintendo DS, DS Lite, or DSi. The only tough part is finding a genuine R4 card. In order to track these down, you need to know the characteristics of a genuine R4 card and other traits that separate it from the rest.

It helps a lot to know the history of the R4 DS to better understand why there is no real “Genuine R4 card”. What stores tend to mean if they state that the R4 card is genuine, is that it was developed by one of the original members of the R4 team. It all started with a team successfully producing the first R4 in China where it achieved success. Shortly after, the R4 DS company disassembled with each of the owners continuing the success of the R4 by themselves. Basically, each owner put up their own factories to create their own version of the R4 DS sporting improvements like the support for SDHC cards.

The problem is that these units coming from the different factories are all being called the R4 DS with most of them claiming to be genuine. Because different factories are used, the quality of the exterior and interior could vary.

Because the R4 is such a popular name, many other developers are trying to cash in by making their own versions. These are the ones you should ignore as they look different slightly on the outside and look noticeably different on the inside. You can easily recognize these R4 products if they have other labels such as “Version 3” or “V3”. There might be other newer models that may attempt to fool people by putting other convincing labels. A real R4 DS is called an “R4” and nothing more than that.

An easy to spot R4 DS imitation.

Since finding an R4 in stores is close to impossible, people often look online using their trusty search engines. “R4” is an extremely short keyword that can lead to millions of results and a large percent include online stores while another portion includes dedicated R4 sites. Some websites that feature the R4 DS may look as if that website is the original website. But since owners split up early in the 2008, no true website can represent the R4 sold in shops today. The original official R4 DS website is still online but hasn’t been updated since the company broke up.

These websites that are disguised as original manufacturers often link to stores with some of them having scam intentions so try to stay away from these sites unless you only want to get more information about the R4. Be sure to check out the labels too because any pictures of fake R4 units may display fake information as well.

Check Reviews Before Buying an R4 DS!

Before buying from any store who’s reputation is not well known, make sure you seek customer feedback for the business to make sure they are not supplying you with the lowest quality R4 DS models availed in order to sell more units. Anything with a customer satisfaction rate of less than 90% isn’t really a well managed business and is more than likely to provide you with cheap imitations.

While there is no way really to determine whether an R4 card is genuine, there are definitely units out there that actually work. The many people that own and enjoy the R4 features are proof that these useful DS companions are still in production.

How to get a Genuine R4 DS Revolution

I’ve done a lot of research and there really is no way to guarantee you’re getting a genuine card. In fact what a genuine R4 DS Revolution is, is not clear any more since there are several separate companies who produce it and each seems to be entitled to use the name.

As you may have read on this site, the original R4 team have split up and have been working in their own factories producing their own version of R4 DS for a long time now. This means that there are no more original units on the market. That doesn’t mean you can’t still get a good quality R4 Revolution though.

It just means you have to be a bit more careful about where you get your R4 DS from. Have a look at our customer feedback table to get a better idea of where you can get a good quality R4.

Once you have picked where you want to buy your R4DS you need to chose what size of SD memory card you would like to go with it. If you already have one then you may not need to buy a new SD card but you will probably want a fairly large storage capacity to keeps all your homebrew in one place.

How to Tell if Your R4 DS Revolution is Fake

If you bought an R4 DS before April 2008 then it probably is real and an original model. Most units of R4 DS Revolution that have been sold since (unless it was old stock) are not made by the original team. Don’t worry though, it will likely not cause too much trouble but it could be meaning you don’t get the best out of your games if you’re not buying from a reliable source.

The best advice is simply to order from a reliable seller in the first place. Alternatively you can buy an M3 DS Real. The M3 DS Real does not have lots of imitations and includes all the same features so you can safely buy an M3 DS Real.

I would not recommend buying your DS R4 Revolution from anywhere that does not have any evidence of good customer feedback (and “customer feedback” on their own site doesn’t count, it can easily be made up). The reason for this is that as there seems to be a lot of fakes on the Internet. The fakes often work if you install the right firmware but they do tend to cause a lot more hassle than the real R4 DS Revolution. Definitely not worth the risk to save a few pound. You might end up just completely wasting your money with no chance of a refund if the business is not reputable.

The Nintendo DS is currently one of the best selling handhelds in modern gaming currently with 2 variations selling over 100 million units worldwide when all combined. The latest variation, which is the Nintendo DSi, has seen success right from its launch breaking record sales in the UK. Although the DSi is highly praised with the new features that the original DS and DS Lite lack, people are still coming up with good reasons to look for a 3rd party device that would unlock the DSi to its full potential.

The DSi is being viewed by DS enthusiasts as “more than a handheld gaming device”. It physically has the potential to store multimedia files and play them and the only thing that is missing is special software that Nintendo fails to include. It also lacks the ability to play any homebrew games that are developed by fans and indie developers.

Doing a simple search for a solution to this problem reveals plenty of results regarding this certain “R4DS” device that is supposed used to enhance the Nintendo DS and recently DSi’s capabilities. With people praising the R4DS, this could be the device that solves your problems. But before buying the R4, consider these 4 things first.

1. Understand what the R4DS Does and what you Need

Because of its complicated past, it is very difficult to get any decent information on the R4DS. The R4 is a cartridge with an SD slot that enables homebrew games and applications to be played. It also comes with useful 3rd party applications that turn the DS or DSi into a more “PDA-like” device capable of reading many formats including audio and video. All of this is accomplished without modifying any of the DS or DSi’s internal components.

For this to be of any use to you, you should have homebrew games or applications that you are want to run. You can find these homebrew titles just by searching online or visiting the different communities and forums detected to DS homebrew. If the R4DS that you are getting doesn’t come with an SD or SDHC card, be sure to get one of those too as it is needed to play homebrew games or play any files on demand. If are going to stick with playing the original retail games and not using the DSi for anything else, the R4 isn’t worth the purchase.

2. Get the Right Version for your Console

If you’ve got a Nintendo DSi then you will need a different version of the R4 to the one you would use with a DS or DS Lite. If you have a DSi, make sure you are buying an “R4i”. The R4i box looks very similar to the standard version but by the white “R4” characters (on the bottom half of the front of the box), there is a small “i” in a white circle. The standard R4 as well as the R4i are both compatible with the original DS and DS Lite so it doesn’t matter which version you buy.

3. Watch out for Fakes

Once you start looking for places to buy the R4, you will be overwhelmed with results and stores selling R4s that are claimed to be genuine. Claims of genuine R4DS units should be taken with a pinch of salt because of the split of the original R4 team in 2008 that resulted to former team members creating their own version of the R4 each varying in quality. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t buy a “genuine R4”, you should just check that customers are happy with the quality of the R4DS units being sold by a particular retailer.

Also ignore R4DS units that have other names associated to it like “V3” or “Version 3”. Even labels like “R6”, “E7”, and other short codes give hints that it is a fake or poorly made clone. It’s not easy to know what a genuine R4 DS is but follow the advice here and you can at least improve your chances of getting a good quality R4.

Look out for fake R4DS cards

4. Don’t get ripped off

Don’t get ripped off with a cheap, low quality R4 DS which fails to work. Simply have a look at our R4 DS Customer Satisfaction Comparison before making a purchase.

As long as you have checked each of the 4 things off, you can buy an R4 with confidence. Your reward for taking your time to purchase with care will be enjoying the best experience from your DS or DSi.

The NDS R4 is one of the best value products on the market since paracetamol. Paracetamol will cure a headache which has to be worth at least £9 without a second thought. Despite that, each pill costs less than 1 penny. The R4 on the other hand opens endless possibilities for DS owners for less than the cost of a single games. This isn’t as good value as paracetamol, but it still great value.

NDS R4 lets people use their DS in many different ways which Nintendo had never intended when they designed the DS. For example the R4 can be used to turn your DS into a calculator. It can change your console into a word processor. The R4 could be used to convert your DS into a ebook reader so you can read your favourite books while you’re on the move (which you could do with a normal book but the R4 lets you takes loads of books with you inside the DS (so they aren’t as heavy)).

Another example of the type of software available is DSOrganise for NDS R4. This application lets people use their DS as a basic office suite. It includes a file browser, web browser, text editor, picture editor, calculator, calendar, contact list amongst other useful features.

While researching where to get the best quality R4 Revolution in the UK I came across a large number of people selling the device. All but a handful of these were small businesses. Most of these did not have much of an online reputation which could be found on business review websites.

This means that you are taking a risk when you order an R4 Revolution from most places. There is no way to know about delivery times or what happens if there is a problem with the order. More importantly, when buying an R4 it is good to know that quality of the units being supplied high as it really does vary from one retailer to the next.

This isn’t a problem with most products because usually one product is only produced by one company, but because of the messy break-up of the original R4 team, there is no way to be sure of the products quality by looking at a retailer’s site alone. This is why I created the R4 Revolution retailers comparison table based on customer feedback.

R4 Revolution Negative Buyer Feedback

You can learn more about a company from reading a few negative comments about them than you can from dozens of positive ones. That’s why this section is going to get some examples of what negative things have been said about the highest rated R4 Revolution retailers in the UK.

Memory Card Zoo

These are one of only two retailers in our survey who sell through Amazon.co.uk. They have an impressive 97% satisfaction rate of over 3800 customers (far more than any others reviews we found, therefore probably the most accurate account of how well the company manages its customer service. Let’s have a look at what upset the 3% of buyers.

The first less than positive feedback refers to the fact that a wireless Wii Nunchuck they sell not holding it’s charge for very long. This of course doesn’t say anything negative about Memory Card Zoo, but is an issue with the producer of the Wireless Nunchuck.

There are 125 positive comments before the first negative comment on Amazon. This comment states that it took 11 days for delivery to arrive. Memory Card Zoo replies with, “Please accept our apologies for the late delivery of your order. We can confirm that your order was processed and dispatched on the same day it was placed which is our standard practise. On occasion the postal system can suffer delays which we understand is frustrating however this is outside of our control.”

The final two negative comments stated: “order was cancelled as no stock was available. so unable to rate” and “too long delivery time for in-stock item. I go abroad on 16 May.”

I didn’t find any negative comments about the R4 Revolution itself and 97% is a very high customer satisfaction rate. Click here to buy from Memory Card Zoo

My Memory

The next highest rated site in our survey is My Memory. These also sell through Amazon. On there they have had an even more impressive number of reviews with over 54000. However the percentage of satisfied customers is down to 94%. Let’s see what the a 6% of dissatisfied customers are complaining about:

The fist page of results shows two negative comments: “item marked as new but opened and 2 day delivery despite a rather hefty 5 quid P&P charge. ordered at same time as another with Amazon and that was delivered a day after postage for free so whats the 5 quid for?” and “once again very efficient”. The second comment doesn’t seem that negative does it? The low rating was probably an error. Two pages later there is this comment “they supplied a memory card which didnt work and then replaced it with another card which doesnt work.” Well, at least they tried. Finally there was this natural comment “Product s a bit more flimsy than I hoped but at this price you get what you pay for.”

My Memory still have fairly good feedback and if you wish to buy your R4 Revolution from them, you can do so here

Memory Bits/R4i.co.uk/R4DS.co.uk (all the same company)

Unfortunately there are not so many reviews of this retailer and no they do not sell on Amazon so it isn’t possible to make a direct comparison with the first two websites. They have just 9 reviews on pricerunner with a current average score of 2.4 out of 5 (or 48%). Price Runner lets us see where they are getting their positive and negative marks from. The majority of the positive marks come from them having a good website, the majority of negative marks come from their standards of service and warranty.

The reviews on pricerunner are much longer so I’ll just show you highlights of every comment they have on the site, negative ones and the positive one.

• “the number they give on the website is unobtainable, so i got it via Trading Standards”
• “Waited 4 months for my refund”
• “warehouse problem, took 8 days & the second 5 days… I had been very concerned having read some of the reports on Ciao & PriceRunner. Glad to say my experience was good.”
• “it was delivered quickly… that was in 2007, over 18 months ago, and ever since then I’ve been receiving promotional emails from them, every single day, seven days a week”
• “What a total joke this company are, they don’t act in accordance with their own policy of protocol and they don’t comply with UK law.”
• “They have effectively stolen my money.”
• “fast delivery – free delivery – cheap prices”
• “customer service didn’t seem to care two hoots”
• “A truely hopeless company!”
• “They blatantly lie about stock levels and when you do receive an item it is most likely to be damaged.”

If you want to order from Memory Bits, good luck.

A quick post to introduce people who don’t know already what the R4DS does. It is an all in one piece of hardware that add new applications such as photo viewers and video and mp3 players. Playing homebrew games through the R4DS means you don’t need to worry about swapping game carts all the time. You simply pick which game you want to play from the menu.

These homebrew applications can be downloaded to play on the DS via the R4 Revolution. By downloading a couple of these, you can be listening to mp3s, watching videos and showing off your photo collection on your Nintendo DS.

So now you know what they are, you’re ready to buy one, just make sure you check the R4DS customer satisfaction feedback we’ve collected before you buy one. If you’re interested in why this is so important, have a read of What is a Genuine R4 DS Card?

The R4DS is the same shape and size as a DS game cartridge.