cherry~

In anticipation of the new DSi, I decided to hedge my bets and pick up a "known" DSi compatible slot 1 card. My choices were slim - and acekard 2i (AK from now on) was first, so I figured I would give it a whirl.

People who know me know that I'm all about the cyclods Evolution card. They have been on the forefront of slot 1 technology and have always come through with excellent tech support and bleeding edge features. Unfortunately, it's a standard I hold ALL slot 1 cards to, so there WILL be comparisons throughout this review.

There are three major fields that I look at with regards to slot 1 card: compatibility, UI/features and technical support.


As a new user to the acekard 2i, tech support is still an area I don't have experience in. I do know the cyclods Evo has had the best technical support I've ever seen (although I'm told it hasn't been as good as of this update than it has in the past), so it will be hard for anyone to match or even exceed it. However, it's worth noting that releases on the AK appear to be VERY fast, handling issues with the latest games quickly. There is a huge community supporting the development. So while "commercial" support may not be up to the cyclods, the "community" might make up for it. Some people prefer one over the other - your mileage may vary. If you want a pure commercial entity as your support vassal, the AK may not be your best choice in this area.

So let's look at compatibility and features.

Compatibility is sort of a "field of the past". Most slot 1 solutions are now 99.9 to 100% compatible with all current games, homebrew - and even FUTURE games. Compatibility is now about "how fast can Game X (that doesn't work right now) get supported by the flash cart company". In a recent example, the game Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars was incompatible with all slot 1 cards. AK was one of the first carts to play the game - while the cyclods trailed by about 48 hours (it was over a weekend, when TC is notoriously know for not working). acekard 2i and the community aspect made the grade this time, getting a fix out faster. So, if "compatibility" is what you're looking for, this card (so far) is kicking ass and taking names. Now, what if it had been "My Pony Lovers" instead of a high profile game like GTA? Hard to say. Suffice to say, it would appear that AK folks are in good hands with regards to compatibility. Time will tell.

So, if compatibility is good to great and the support for development is there - we're down to discussing features.

There are a few "hot items" when it comes to features, and cyclods Evo has been on the bleeding edge. Features of note include: real time save, in-game utility menus, built in file management, text reader, 3 in 1 Expansion Card support/GBA playback and media playback.

The golden chalice, of course, is real time save. The ability to freeze a game, anywhere, save the game state, shut off the DS and return at any time to that state. So far, only two carts have it - cyclods is one of them, and acekard 2i isn't the other one. For some people (including myself) this feature alone is WORTH the $10-$15 premium. The cyclods is also the better of the two with regards to speed and compatibility of the real time saves - which means if this is the must have feature, then the AK isn't your card and the cyclods is. Pay the extra $15 and get it.

The "in game menu" is a very important feature to any real enthusiast. The ability to PAUSE a game anywhere, read a text file (like a walkthrough), change the brightness of the screens, etc. is critical to some folks. Again, theacekard 2i doesn't have this. While you CAN do an "In Game Reset" to return to the menu at any time, there is no "freeze" menu. For me personally, I NEED the ability to change brightness levels DURING a game - and I'll tell you why. Because I constantly use SLEEP mode on the DS. If I'm playing in bed at night, I'll have the light on 0 to save batteries. When I wake it up the next day to play, I might be playing in full daylight. I need to be able to pause, shift brightness, and resume playing. This isn't possible with the AK. May not be important to you, but I've learned to just accept it as a part of every day life. Note: DSi allows games to change brightness anytime by holding down SELECT and hitting the VOL -+ buttons.

One of the latest "crazes" has been in-game text reading. I personally don't use it, but a lot of cyclods users do. Right in the middle of a game, you can freeze and open a text file and read it while paused, then unpause and return to the game. Perfect for FAQs and walkthroughs. The acekard 2i doesn't support this - however you can read text files from the main UI, which is actually MORE useful to me than "just" in-game txt files. The AK also uses "book mode" to show a wider screen than tall (i.e. landscape mode).

So far in this review, I've shown how the cyclods basically kicks the AK's ass. Now, let me flip the coin - and tell you how the AK stomps on the cyclods.

I'm using the AK "All In One" community written firmware (aka "AKAIO" - it's an acronym, not some japanese chick's name).

The additional features the AKAIO provides is stunning. Not JUST basic file management built in (Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete), but even more stuff for the "power user". The options might even be too much for "basic" users.

The file management is a seriously welcome edition. Being able to move files around, get rid of games I'm done with, etc. It's easy to use, and better than the homebrew file managers that you can run on other cards.

You can get properties of the rom image and actually change settings on a game by game basis. Turn on rumble for one game, but back off for another game. Cheats on one game, but not another. A very useful feature.

You also have the ability to use multiple save slots, copy one save slot to another, etc. This is a feature that has been asked for many times on the cyclods - and I can DEFINITELY see the usefulness of this feature - especially in the absence of real time save.

There is even a browser to allow you to launch and view stuff from a slot 2 flash cart (untested - as I don't have anything laying around to test it with).

The AK will even auto-trim roms for you if you're too lazy to do it yourself (which I often am). Now, if it would rename the rom and save file to the built in game name stored in the ROM itself, it would be even more glorious.

If all that weren't enough - get this; onboard updating ... that's right ... you can update loader, firmware and even cheat files without ever plugging the card into a PC - as long as you can hit a wifi access point. Very impressive.

All in all, quite a bit of good stuff under the hood that does offer a different experience than other cards like the cyclods Evolution. This good stuff comes with a price - on-disc loaders and firmware means that you'll have to "prep" any microSD card that goes in there, and if the card starts to corrupt, you could be completely without a usable card. Part of that extra $15 you pay for the cyclods is for 2MB of onboard flash memory that contains the entire firmware and loader - meaning you can stick a blank microSD card into a cyclods and it will prep it for you. A file corrupts, you can rebuild it without a PC. There is some security in this methodology. It also keeps the reigns tight as a commercial product - not really programmable by the community. Again, for some people, the turnkey commercial solution (like the cyclods) is much more comforting than a community-driven open source scenario. This is a personal choice on a per user basis.

The last thing we need to talk about is DSi compatibility. I can't test it - yet. But I truly believe that the AK's compatibility with the DSi will last exactly as long as it takes for Nintendo to prep and deploy a new firmware. At that point, it will have to be seen if the community can code around it - and, how long it will take (which means for that period of time, you're using real carts or you're changing back to your DS Lite).

So, what is the final word? Which is a better choice? The bottom line is - can you live without real time save and an in-game freeze menu (complete with in game text reader, brightness control, etc.? I can't. I've had a taste, and I like it. For a little more, you can have it.

That doesn't take the acekard 2i off the table. It has a SLEW of useful tools in its own right - and if you can live without the above mentioned features, you can save yourself $ and get a card that shines just as bright with compatibility and support (remember, support is community driven - which is double edged sword). You'll get a pleasant, easy to use interface (even if the options might be too much for real basic users). You'll get more control over the experience with the AK - if this is important to you.

In anticipation of the new DSi, I decided to hedge my bets and pick up a "known" DSi compatible slot 1 card. My choices were slim - and acekard 2i (AK from now on) was first, so I figured I would give it a whirl.

People who know me know that I'm all about the cyclods Evolution card. They have been on the forefront of slot 1 technology and have always come through with excellent tech support and bleeding edge features. Unfortunately, it's a standard I hold ALL slot 1 cards to, so there WILL be comparisons throughout this review.

There are three major fields that I look at with regards to slot 1 card: compatibility, UI/features and technical support.


As a new user to the acekard 2i, tech support is still an area I don't have experience in. I do know the cyclods Evo has had the best technical support I've ever seen (although I'm told it hasn't been as good as of this update than it has in the past), so it will be hard for anyone to match or even exceed it. However, it's worth noting that releases on the AK appear to be VERY fast, handling issues with the latest games quickly. There is a huge community supporting the development. So while "commercial" support may not be up to the cyclods, the "community" might make up for it. Some people prefer one over the other - your mileage may vary. If you want a pure commercial entity as your support vassal, the AK may not be your best choice in this area.

So let's look at compatibility and features.

Compatibility is sort of a "field of the past". Most slot 1 solutions are now 99.9 to 100% compatible with all current games, homebrew - and even FUTURE games. Compatibility is now about "how fast can Game X (that doesn't work right now) get supported by the flash cart company". In a recent example, the game Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars was incompatible with all slot 1 cards. AK was one of the first carts to play the game - while the cyclods trailed by about 48 hours (it was over a weekend, when TC is notoriously know for not working). acekard 2i and the community aspect made the grade this time, getting a fix out faster. So, if "compatibility" is what you're looking for, this card (so far) is kicking ass and taking names. Now, what if it had been "My Pony Lovers" instead of a high profile game like GTA? Hard to say. Suffice to say, it would appear that AK folks are in good hands with regards to compatibility. Time will tell.

So, if compatibility is good to great and the support for development is there - we're down to discussing features.

There are a few "hot items" when it comes to features, and cyclods Evo has been on the bleeding edge. Features of note include: real time save, in-game utility menus, built in file management, text reader, 3 in 1 Expansion Card support/GBA playback and media playback.

The golden chalice, of course, is real time save. The ability to freeze a game, anywhere, save the game state, shut off the DS and return at any time to that state. So far, only two carts have it - cyclods is one of them, and acekard 2i isn't the other one. For some people (including myself) this feature alone is WORTH the $10-$15 premium. The cyclods is also the better of the two with regards to speed and compatibility of the real time saves - which means if this is the must have feature, then the AK isn't your card and the cyclods is. Pay the extra $15 and get it.

The "in game menu" is a very important feature to any real enthusiast. The ability to PAUSE a game anywhere, read a text file (like a walkthrough), change the brightness of the screens, etc. is critical to some folks. Again, theacekard 2i doesn't have this. While you CAN do an "In Game Reset" to return to the menu at any time, there is no "freeze" menu. For me personally, I NEED the ability to change brightness levels DURING a game - and I'll tell you why. Because I constantly use SLEEP mode on the DS. If I'm playing in bed at night, I'll have the light on 0 to save batteries. When I wake it up the next day to play, I might be playing in full daylight. I need to be able to pause, shift brightness, and resume playing. This isn't possible with the AK. May not be important to you, but I've learned to just accept it as a part of every day life. Note: DSi allows games to change brightness anytime by holding down SELECT and hitting the VOL -+ buttons.

One of the latest "crazes" has been in-game text reading. I personally don't use it, but a lot of cyclods users do. Right in the middle of a game, you can freeze and open a text file and read it while paused, then unpause and return to the game. Perfect for FAQs and walkthroughs. The acekard 2i doesn't support this - however you can read text files from the main UI, which is actually MORE useful to me than "just" in-game txt files. The AK also uses "book mode" to show a wider screen than tall (i.e. landscape mode).

So far in this review, I've shown how the cyclods basically kicks the AK's ass. Now, let me flip the coin - and tell you how the AK stomps on the cyclods.

I'm using the AK "All In One" community written firmware (aka "AKAIO" - it's an acronym, not some japanese chick's name).

The additional features the AKAIO provides is stunning. Not JUST basic file management built in (Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete), but even more stuff for the "power user". The options might even be too much for "basic" users.

The file management is a seriously welcome edition. Being able to move files around, get rid of games I'm done with, etc. It's easy to use, and better than the homebrew file managers that you can run on other cards.

You can get properties of the rom image and actually change settings on a game by game basis. Turn on rumble for one game, but back off for another game. Cheats on one game, but not another. A very useful feature.

You also have the ability to use multiple save slots, copy one save slot to another, etc. This is a feature that has been asked for many times on the cyclods - and I can DEFINITELY see the usefulness of this feature - especially in the absence of real time save.

There is even a browser to allow you to launch and view stuff from a slot 2 flash cart (untested - as I don't have anything laying around to test it with).

The AK will even auto-trim roms for you if you're too lazy to do it yourself (which I often am). Now, if it would rename the rom and save file to the built in game name stored in the ROM itself, it would be even more glorious.

If all that weren't enough - get this; onboard updating ... that's right ... you can update loader, firmware and even cheat files without ever plugging the card into a PC - as long as you can hit a wifi access point. Very impressive.

All in all, quite a bit of good stuff under the hood that does offer a different experience than other cards like the cyclods Evolution. This good stuff comes with a price - on-disc loaders and firmware means that you'll have to "prep" any microSD card that goes in there, and if the card starts to corrupt, you could be completely without a usable card. Part of that extra $15 you pay for the cyclods is for 2MB of onboard flash memory that contains the entire firmware and loader - meaning you can stick a blank microSD card into a cyclods and it will prep it for you. A file corrupts, you can rebuild it without a PC. There is some security in this methodology. It also keeps the reigns tight as a commercial product - not really programmable by the community. Again, for some people, the turnkey commercial solution (like the cyclods) is much more comforting than a community-driven open source scenario. This is a personal choice on a per user basis.

The last thing we need to talk about is DSi compatibility. I can't test it - yet. But I truly believe that the AK's compatibility with the DSi will last exactly as long as it takes for Nintendo to prep and deploy a new firmware. At that point, it will have to be seen if the community can code around it - and, how long it will take (which means for that period of time, you're using real carts or you're changing back to your DS Lite).

So, what is the final word? Which is a better choice? The bottom line is - can you live without real time save and an in-game freeze menu (complete with in game text reader, brightness control, etc.? I can't. I've had a taste, and I like it. For a little more, you can have it.

That doesn't take the acekard 2i off the table. It has a SLEW of useful tools in its own right - and if you can live without the above mentioned features, you can save yourself $ and get a card that shines just as bright with compatibility and support (remember, support is community driven - which is double edged sword). You'll get a pleasant, easy to use interface (even if the options might be too much for real basic users). You'll get more control over the experience with the AK - if this is important to you.