QJ.net Reviews M3 Lite

The M3 Lite is, without a doubt, the best flashcart I have ever laid eyes on right now. It stands out from the crowd of previous generation flashcart adapters, and even beats all of the competition in my personal opinion. The M3 Lite was released on the 25th of last month and is available for purchase at various online retailers. Even with a rather high price point compared to the competition, the extra few bucks pays off in the end with several advantages over other adapters. You can read my review of this great product after the jump!

PS: The product was sent to me over a week from release so, sorry for the delay.

Purchase: [M3 Lite Retailers]
Info: [M3 Lite English Webpage]

The M3 Lite is, without a doubt, the best flashcart I have ever laid eyes on right now. It stands out from the crowd of previous generation flashcart adapters, and even beats all of the competition in my personal opinion. The M3 Lite was released on the 25th of last month and is available for purchase at various online retailers. Even with a rather high price point compared to the competition, the extra few bucks pays off in the end with several advantages over other adapters. You can read my review of this great product after the jump!

PS: The product was sent to me over a week from release and I have taken the time to write this extensive review on it. 

—– Review —–

The M3 Lite was announced a few months ago and not many believed that the team could pull it off. In the past, their devices have failed to fit flush with the “Phat” NDS and as time progressed we noticed that these new flash adapters for the NDSL stuck out slightly. However, contrary to early pictures (possibly preview copies), the M3 Lite fits completely flush with the system. It also has a glossy top to it to help blend in better, making it look a lot like the filler cart that came with the NDSL.

The device has to be, the most beautiful adapter I have ever seen M3 produce. Their past adapters have not been very high on the cosmetic side of “things”, but this adapter definitely killed two birds with one stone. The M3 team was able to make it fit flush and make it match the NDSL filler cart, which ultimately led to this clean design of the product. The Supercard Lite is a top-loader, meaning that you do not see the “flush” look of the cartridge, however with M3 being a side-loader, the microSD card is no where to be seen unless you take out the device.

The MicroSD card goes into the right-hand side of the cartridge (when looked at when in NDSL) and blends in with the shell very nicely. The microSD card (I purchased a 256mb Kingston microSD from newegg.com), clicked right in when I inserted it – much better than my Razr‘s microSD slot which does not have a spring-loader. It was very easy to pop in and out, risking no damage to the memory card. Upon taking the entire flashcart out of the GBA slot seemed troublesome to me. It was not easy to take out like the G6L, but it is tolerable.

Out of the Box —

Aside from receiving the adapter, you are also given two other cases (white and blue) that will match the various NDSL colors (except that beautiful pink one of course). I had to exchange the black case for the white one to match my NDSL. Upon doing so, it was very easy – take off the screw and place the chip in the case of your choice. It only took me about a minute to do and the installation doesn’t even require instructions because it is so simple!

Aside from the carts/shells, you also get the usual CD that contains a software update for the M3, however it is most likely out of date. I would recommend downloading the newest update from HERE UPDATE DOWNLOAD. I grabbed the newest one and installed the PC software and updated my M3’s firmware. This is a very simple process, even for those who have not done it before.

The only issue is that you will have to supply your own memory card reader that accepts microSD cards (or SD cards if you have an adatper). These will only run you 10-20$ depending on the number of cards the reader accepts. Just move the SD firmware update to your memory stick and launch the M3L in which you will be prompted to update or click A to continue to the menu.

The PC Software, M3 Game Manager, is extremely easy to use – just navigate to your memory card directory and then find the necessary NDS/GBA file using Write NDS or Write GBA. You are then given a handful of options to use, most of which can remain default for everything to work properly.

Performance —

There have been several discussions on the web about microSD cards + flashcarts and the resulting read speeds. As stated earlier, I have been using a 256mb microSD by Kingston, and from what I can tell – it runs full speed on everything. For pure speed comparison, I dumped my Animal Crossing ROM and ran it off of the M3L (do not pirate games). The load times were ranging from 2 seconds (load house) to 4 seconds (load outside). Other flashcarts such as the EZLite loads a second longer and the SCL runs about the same speed as the M3L (thanks Yee for the info!).

Compatibility —

The performance is well backed up by the device’s excellent compatibility with homebrew and other “games” (pirating is against the law, so be careful what you use this device for). I’ve tested a number of homebrew games and applications and all of which ran without a problem –

DSOrganize v2.2

A Touch of War v0.8d

MegaETk (My favorite homebrew game)

GameBoxDS

Acromage

Giosio

No Place to Hide

Zelda Homebrew Demo

So far all that I have tested have worked without any problems and if you would like me to test any games for compatibility wise (homebrew), feel free to send a Private Message to FrozenIpaq (me) on the forums and I’ll be happy to respond to your request with an answer. Or, you could leave a comment in the comments section and I will answer it promptly as well.

Interface —

The one thing that has remained the same throughout the M3 series is the menu. The menu is the same M3 menu many have been accustomed to, and something of which I have as well. Out of all the flashcart menus I’ve seen and tried, the M3 interface is the best without a doubt. It’s simple and easy to use with built-in a built-in Moonshell extension allowing you to switch to Moonshell in an instant rather than navigating to the Moonshell file through the “GAME” menu.

Another great aspect is the skinning ability. Since this uses the same M3 menu as before, you are able to locate, find, and install all current M3 skins that are compatible with the recent M3 firmwares. When I downloaded the software update for my M3 (full package), there were also two fancy skins that came with it – one of which I’m using now (New Super Mario Brothers skin).

You can also play music, movies (both of which need converting) and pictures directly from the M3 interface. Although, if you aren’t one who enjoys converting, you can also “plop” in the original file and Moonshell might just play it if it is a compatible codec!

However, many complain that the interface is slow and clunky – I’d have to agree on one aspect. Navigating is not super fast and is slightly slow, but I’ve gotten use to this over the year for owning a M3 device for such a time.

Pros –

Great Compatibility with Homebrew and “other” stuff

Flush Fit!

Fast load times on standard cards

Frequent Software Updates + Fixes

Skinnable Menu

Built-in Moonshell

Side-Loading slot (Protects card + keeps flush look)

Black + Blue + White cases

Easy to take apart + reassemble

Cons –

More Expensive than competing carts

Hard to take out of DSL

No GBA case for usage in GBA

Overall – Best adapter out on the market at this point in time. If you are looking for a GBA flashcart (NDSL only) that has expandable memory, I strongly suggest this one (no lies!).

Purchase: [M3 Lite Retailers]
Info: [M3 Lite English Webpage]