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Introduction
The EZ-Flash IV is the long awaited Nintendo DS cart from the EZ-Flash team, known for their quality products with excellent compatibility in the GBA arena. How will they fare with their first NDS product? Keep reading to find out.
Specifications
The EZ-Flash IV (I will be calling it the EZ4 from here on out) is very similar to the EZ-Flash III - except it sports a mini-SD card slot, rather than internal NAND flash memory. As such it requires no external linker device, just a mini-SD card, which of course means that your storage space is limited only by the size of your card.
One thing that sets the EZ4 apart from its competitors is the inclusion of 128 Mbits of PSRAM for Game Boy Advance games to be loaded into, as well as 256 Mbits of internal NOR memory - much the same as the EZ3.
The other notable difference to the EZ3 is the fact that there is no longer a real time clock (RTC) built in - whether it be for size or cost reasons - or simply because it is built primarily for running NDS games, which use the DS's internal clock, and was therefore deemed unnecessary
Packaging
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The EZ4 comes in a rather nice cardboard box, even if the colour looks a bit icky. It is labelled nice and simply, athough the check boxes on the side with the different sizes next to them are a tad obsolete, and I'm guessing this is because the EZ4 changed from being an internal memory based cart to a mini-SD based one part way through the development cycle.
Inside, a similarly coloured, moulded plastic tray (one of those furry ones) sits which houses the cart, as well as a SD card reader and a USB extension cable, which would be useful if your USB port was in an unhandy place. Noticable is a lack of documentation or even a website address, meaning the customer must do their own online research - something that certainly shouldn't be the case.
The SD reader itself only actually supports normal sized SD cards, but as most mini-SDs come with an adapter to make them fit into a normal SD slot, this shouldn't be a problem for too many people. One other thing people should be aware of is the fact that the reader is a USB 2.0 device, but does not seem to be backward compatible with USB 1.0 and 1.1 ports when it comes to writing - as I found out the hard way (ok, maybe it wasn't that hard tongue.gif).
Hardware
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The cart itself is a nice translucent white, which I would imagine would match a 'Crystal White' DS Lite quite nicely. The size of the cart is almost exactly the same as a standard GBA cart (perhaps less than a millimetre taller), and sits nice and flush in both my DS and my GBA SP. I don't own a DS Lite, but being the same size as a GBA cart it's easy to imagine the EZ4 would stick out the same amount (soon to be rectified when the EZ4 Lite is released).
The mini-SD slot is situated on the side of the cart, and the card slides all the way in quite nicely, similar to like it would into a normal card reader, rather than using a spring-based mechanism like other products. To insert it correctly, the writing on the mini-SD should face the same way as the sticker on the EZ4. Getting the mini-SD out, on the other hand, can be quite difficult. I actually thought I had done something wrong the first time I inserted it, because I couldn't figure out how to remove it again. Turns out all it needed was a little bit of force and a fingernail to hook on to the edge with. tongue.gif
Setup
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My testing setup consists of a standard DS already flashed with Flashme V7, as well as a Samsung 512 MB mini-SD card, rated at the nice slow speed of 60X tongue.gif
The very first thing I did was download the latest software (the 15th of May 2006 version at the time of writing) which can be obtained here or here. There are two packages, one for the client, and one to update the loader on the device itself. Updating the loader couldn't have been simpler - well almost, because this is where I found out I couldn't use the included SD reader to write to my card (as mentioned earlier). No problems though, because I had another reader that worked just fine. Anyway, like I said, updating the loader couldn't have been simpler. First off make sure your mini-SD card is formatted with the FAT16 file system, or just plain "FAT" as Windows XP reports it - mine came preformatted like that anyway, as I imagine the majority of cards would. Next what you need to do is copy the unzipped loader onto the root your mini-SD, renaming it to "ezfla_up.bin" if it isn't already. Once that is done, load the mini-SD into your EZ4, then your EZ4 into the DS (not forgetting your passthrough device if it isn't flashed), then turn on the DS while holding the R button down. I'll just mention now that if you intend to use a Passme 2 or similar device, the .sav file goes into a folder called 'SAVER' on the root of the mini-SD card. Anyway, the loader should begin to update, and when it is finished you can turn off your DS. Easy as pie.
Client Software
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The EZ4 client is very simple and extremely easy to use. Default, it has a nice looking Mac OS style, but the interface skin can be changed should the glossy buttons not float your boat. One thing to mention is that anything stated here is in no way final, as both the PC software and the loader software are frequently updated, and features and fixes are bound to be added in future revisions.
First off, the config needs to be changed so that "Send Path" points to your mini-SD card, and your language and preferred skin can also be selected. At this point you will probably want to restart the client, as when I set the path, the drive on the right hand side of the window did not change until I had done so. Using the 'Explorer' section of the window you can then create subfolders to organise your files as you wish, or rename and delete files.
Loading a rom on to your card, once again, couldn't be easier. Clicking the "Open" button opens a file dialog, which allows you to select your file. A nice touch is the fact that it supports ZIP and RAR archives, so there is no need to unzip your rom before selecting it. After your PC has processed the file, it should show a name and file size if you have selected a NDS rom, and if it is a GBA rom the rest of the options will also become available, so the below paragraph applies only to GBA.
Save type and save size are self explanatory, and should be auto detected by the client. As yet there has been no word on what the 'Add Save Patch' checkbox does, and my testing of it proved inconclusive, however I guess it either patches the rom to allow an 'instant save' feature, or else it just patches the default rom save so it is compatible with the cart, similar to what GBATA and other applications do. The 'Reset' checkbox will allow you to use a button combination (more specifically Up + L + A + B) to soft reset back to the loader, however on the NDS this has the interesting side effect that it resets to the GBA loader rather than the NDS one, since it is in GBA mode. Cheats allow you to use a cheat file (extension .cht) for your GBA roms, and more information on the .cht format, as well as applications that can help you out, can be found here.
One minor annoyance is that fact that the client only recognizes roms included in the data files that come with it, because these can potentially be out of date since new releases are added manually, and so are only updated with a new version of the client. If you try to open a rom it does not recognise, you will be presented with this message:
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Nice English biggrin.gif Don't let this put you off however, as the game is more likely to run perfectly than not. The side effect though, is the fact that the "ROM Name" does not appear (couldn't they just detect the internal name?) on these games, and when transferred to the card, the file will simply be called ".nds" or ".gba" The most annoying part however, is the fact that the rom will not run unless renamed to something more suitable (i.e. anything with letters or numbers). Luckily you can do this straight from the client after the file has been transferred.
Before you send your rom to the mini-SD, you can select a subfolder on the right hand side to send it to, this way you can keep everything organised. To send the rom to the mini-SD, just click 'Send' and the progress bar will count up until your file is transferred.
Loader Software
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The EZ4 has a dual loader system, where if you use it in your DS you will be presented with the NDS loader, and if you use it in your GBA (or your DS in GBA mode) you will get the GBA loader.
Like everything else, the NDS loader is very simple. A list of files and folders will be displayed, and you can select a subfolder to open it, or a file to run it. The downside is that fact that, as yet, the loader only supports short filenames, which can get confusing at times, unless you rename the files in Explorer from your PC beforehand. The good news, however, is that the EZ-Flash team have promised support for long filenames very soon. The interface is fully touch capable, so if for some reason you can't be bothered pressing buttons, you can use the stylus to select stuff. One thing to note is the fact the software is still supposedly in 'alpha' phase, and is therefore not complete, so at the moment the icons other than the disk and film reel do nothing when you select them.
NDS games are run directly from the mini-SD, and there is only an extremely brief pause before they load. GBA roms, however, must first be loaded into the PSRAM (with the exception of 256 Mbit roms, which will be discussed later), and the loader appears to freeze while doing so until the game is executed. Times for this vary depending on the size of the rom, and for me were approximately 7 seconds for a 32 Mbit rom, all the way up to 27 seconds for a 128 Mbit rom. A plus for running GBA roms is the fact that the EZ4 boots into true GBA mode, unlike some products which leave the unused screen on. Unfortunately however, it doesn't detect your screen preference from your DS's settings, and GBA games will always run on the top screen (unless of course you boot the loader in GBA mode). Writing the save file, for both NDS and GBA games, is done when the system is turned back on, much the same as other products, and can be skipped by quickly tapping the touch screen if so desired. Saves are stored in the "SAVER" subfolder (which will be created the first time it attempts to write a save), and can be backed up to your PC easily by copying them to your hard drive in Explorer.
The GBA loader appears to be a variation on the EZPDA software from the EZ3, sporting a Darth Vader theme (Noooooooooooooooooooo!). It features a file manager, a 'Txt Saver', which will allow you to view the .txt files you opened last (the loader supports native viewing of text files), a homebrew minesweeper game (which has aptly been titled "Star Mine" tongue.gif), a settings menu where you can change the language, and a help option, which opens small text document detailing a few of the features and a couple of shortcuts. The only real difference between the NDS loader and the GBA file manager, is of course the fact that the GBA manager can't run NDS roms, but also that you actually have a percentage indicator while the game is being loaded into the PSRAM.
Compatibility/Performance
For the start of its lifespan, the NDS compatibility for the EZ4 is excellent. I tested a variety of games, including some of the most popular ones, and others that have or had issues in the past with other products. All except for a few worked perfectly, and could be played over Wi-Fi, saved just fine, and I didn't notice any slowdowns, apart maybe from some very brief pauses when navigating the menus in Metroid Prime Hunters, which is likely the fault of my slow/cheap mini-SD card. The ones that were unplayable for me were Pokemon Dash and Ultimate Spiderman, and there is really no surprise there, as these games have always been problematic with other products. Pokemon Dash failed to run whatsoever, and Ultimate Spiderman was unplayable due to simply locking up every time I attempted to get in game (it even locked up a couple of times prior to that). The only other game I had any minor issue at all with was Castlevania, with the FMV being slow and jerky, and that was almost certainly due once again to my mini-SD, as the FMV is often used as a benchmark test for memory cards, so investing in a quality, fast mini-SD might be a good decision. An excellent compatibility list is maintained over here, and granted, there are a small amount of games I didn't mention that have issues, but I wouldn't be surprised to see almost every game in that list be fully compatible in the near future, given the regularity of updates to the software.
A much touted feature of the EZ4 is its GBA compatibility, and is obviously marketed as one of the advantages it has over other products. First to clear a common misconception, which I myself fell prey to. While the PSRAM is limited to 128 Mbits, 256 Mbit GBA roms are still able to run using the NOR memory - but only if they are executed from the GBA loader, rather than the NDS one. This process, however, takse a lot longer than running a smaller sized game, as the 256 Mbit games I tested all took around 5 and a half minutes to copy and run. However, once a rom is loaded in the NOR, it does not have to copied again unless overwritten, and can be loaded instantly from the both the NDS loader (select the movie real icon to view the NOR) and the GBA loader (within the File Manager). A small matter to is that because a real time clock is absent from the EZ4, it can potentially cause problems for games that use one, but unless you intend to play the Pokemon RPGs (which can operate without one anyway, there just won't be any time-based events), there is once again only a small minority of games which utilize it.
Other than those points, GBA compatibility is excellent. I tested games of all sizes and all save types, and all ran perfectly and saved fine. This is definitely a major advantage over other products, which have slowdowns, bugs and incompatibility issues with a lot of GBA games.
As far as homebrew goes, the news isn't quite so good. I tested a small selection of homebrew, and applications with the ".ds.gba" extension (formatted for GBA flash carts) work just fine, but I was unable to get any ".nds" homebrew to run - this may because most of these files are designed for hardware similar to the GBAMP, and the EZ4 doesn't seem to fall into that category. Of course, this could potentially be rectified with software updates in the future.
Multimedia
Hang on, we're not done yet, as included with the EZ4 client is a modified version of Moonshell for use with your EZ4, meaning you can play videos, listen to music, and view pictures and other documents all from your DS. Since videos have to be converted for viewing on your DS, you'll need to the easy-to-use Moonshell DPG tools which can be obtained here. Other supported files can be played/viewed as is (eg. MP3, JPG, etc.)
To install Moonshell, copy the 'moonshell.ds.gba' file included with the client to your card, using either Explorer or the client. Just a note though, if you do decide to use the client to copy it, it exhibits the 'not recognised' bug mentioned earlier, and you will have to rename the file after it has been transferred. Also copy your media files onto the card using Explorer (the client doesn't like them) - I decided to put mine in a folder called 'MEDIA'.
To run Moonshell, you just select it like any other file in the loader (DS only), and you will then be presented with the Moonshell interface with which you can browse and play/view your media files. A small matter to note here is the fact that I experienced choppiness in some videos, and once again this is likely due to my mini-SD card, though reducing the frame rate a little bit in Moonshell DPG Tools can usually fix the problem.
Conclusion
Overall, this is definitely a great piece of equipment, and I highly recommend it to people on virtue of its price, performance and size, as well as the excellent support the EZ-Flash Team is giving this product. While NDS compatibility is not perfect, software updates look sure to make this a viable contender in the compatibility stakes in the future. GBA support is one thing that is sure to have a lot of pulling power for the EZ4, and the inclusion of internal memory in the cart ensures that compatibility is top notch - apart from the lack of a real time clock for GBA games, which is a minor disappointment, but as it is in no way integral, the majority of customers are unlikely to notice its absence. As it stands though, the EZ4 has a little bit of catching up to do in the software department, mainly with respect to the NDS side of things, despite being a quality piece of hardware. If things improve significantly, look for a revised score in the future.
Pros:
+Nice value for price
+Size of a GBA cart
+Regular software updates
+NDS compatibility constantly being improved
+Excellent GBA support with the exception of games which utilize the real time clock
+Simple to use
+Multimedia capabilities
Cons:
-No real time clock
-NDS compatiblity needs improvement
-Lack of proper documentation or directions
Overall:
8/10
here comes the REVIEW FROM "GUAI LOH "~
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Apr 22 2006, 11:52 AM, updated 20y ago
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