[REVIEW] EZ-5 + Expansion pack 3-in-1 Opzioni

[Evrain]

EZ-V + 3-in-1 Expansion Bundle Pack

[ English Version | Versione Italiana ]

Quick Links:
Official Site: http://www.ezflash.cn/en

Ever since the discovery or a way to manufacture flashcards for Nintendo gaming units, many have attempted to enter this business, with mixed results. EZ-Team was one of the first teams, and worked hard to build a strong reputation.

Their lineup includes the most successful flashcard models to date: EZ1, EZ2 and EZ3 are even nowadays rare and in high demand, due to their excellent compatibility and quality. After the launch of the Nintendo DS, the EZ-Team released an updated version of their third model, dubbed EZ4 and specifically aimed at Slot-2 solutions, which managed to reach a consistent market share.

Back in December 2006, the bar was raised with the introduction of Slot-1 designs. These flashcards were aimed at preserving the possibility of running homebrew code whilst taking advantage of the lightweight and compact design of DS cartridges

As such, the flashcard we're going to review is the latest update of EZ-Team's valued product: the EZ-V Bundle Pack.

Introduction & Main Features

We'd like to thank the EZ-Team for their kindness in sending us a sample for reviewing purposes.
It is now time to acquaint ourselves with this flashcard, already reviewed in its previous iteration on this site.
Let's begin by noting how this card is based on a U-Disk Drag&Drop approach: although the files loaded can be preprocessed to some extent, it is generally not necessary to perform any operation prior to copying them to the card's memory. Using a flashcard has never been this simple.

Now, let's take a look at the features list, as provided by the manufacturer:

• Same size of a Nintendo DS cartridge
• TransFlash/microSD storage media
• Direct boot: the card itself functions as a third generation PassMe device, no additional hardware required
• Moonshell integrated within the bootloader: MP3, DPG videos and TXT can be opened and enjoyed on the fly, without external programs
• Open source bootloader, highly customizable and skinnable
• Dual Read mode: Clean and Hybrid: games and homebrews can either be run directly or patched for optimal usage on slower or older media
• Full FAT support, with auto savefile generation and multiple save slots available
• Hardware-stored savegames, no risk of deletion after shutdown
• Upgradeable bootloader
• Full homebrew support, with open source DLDI driver (a guide to the DLDI standard can be found on this site)

hese features, common to many of the Slot 1 solutions, make the EZ-V card a flexible and reliable choice. Simplicity first!

Inside the Box

After so much talking, it's time to open the box and see for ourselves what this is all about.
Shown in this brief photo gallery is an overview of what you'll receive after purchasing the kit:

As we can see, there isn't really much to say: the elegant sobriety of the card's packaging is one of EZ's trademarks.

After opening the small cardboard box, the sense of essentialism of the outside continues on the inside: a simple plastic cradle houses the EZ-V flashcard and its Expansion Pack.

A rear view of the packaging, with the contents laid on top of it for size reference.



Last but not least, a full overview!

As you can see, you will receive the card in a small cardboard box, painted orange and white, with a brief description of its features. Said features are printed on the back: not much of a list, but it's probably a matter of available space... The Bundle being reviewed is marked by a sticker on the front, so pay attention when you purchase it.
As for what's inside, it's only the flashcard and its Expansion Pack, which will be thoroughly examined in this review. No driver disc, no USB card reader, absolutely nothing.

Here's the appearance of the EZ-V card once inserted into a white Nintendo DS Lite: even though the outer casing of the flashcard is only available in black, this doesn't diminish its aesthetics. As you can see, even like this it's quite an elegant sight.

Various Nintendo media and flashcards: the legendary Mortal Kombat II for the Gameboy, followed by Yoshi's Universal Gravitation for the GBA platform, up to Mario Kart DS, one of the most famous kille application for our favorite console. The rest of the hardware pictured should be well known to every hacking enthusiast!

For completion's sake, here's a quick test of the card in operation within the DS Lite's bigger (literally) brother. Nothing worth of notice.

The card is obviously identical to a standard issue Nintendo cartridge: on second thought, it's impressive how the various teams have managed to cram so much hardware in such a compact shell.

Materials: a card's major weak spot, usually, as they're often overlooked to ensure a lower price. An example is the CycloDS unit, reviewed on GbaRL. Units built with poor materials and lower standards are usually prone to malfunctioning and breaking, it's therefore our advice to spend a little mroe on a sturdier model.

Back to out EZ-V: we can say the manufacturing is solid and accurate, with no imperfections whatsoever. By just touching the card you can feel how the ineer mechanisms are protected by most generic accidents and breakings. Probably due to the sample being a newly manufactured one, it's sometimes difficult to extract the microSD; on a few occasion we had to apply considerable effort to actually do that.

Solid manufacturing, there's no doubt: even the expansion pack hasn't revealed any problem during usage and extraction/reinsertion.

[Evrain]

Getting Started

Sure, impatience is quite a common "virtue", yet a few preliminary steps are to be taken, before being able to use your brand new EZ-V unit.

As no additional software is provided via a CD in the package, the required components have to be downloaded from the Internet. The official Italian retailer, Mediadealer.it, along with GbaRL's own File Archive, host copies of the relevant files
You'll be required to fetch: the Shell, the latest Kernel (or Loader, it's the same), Save List and the Hybrid Tool; let's now take a closer look to each one of them.

• Shell:
  It's the unit's Graphical User Interface. It has to be copied to the root folder of your microSD media, else a “can not found shell folder” error message will hinder your progress. It's, essentially, a modified version of MoonShell.
  Its installation is absolutely simple: just unpack the contents of the archive distributed by EZ-Team and you're ready to go.
  
  
• Kernel (or Loader):
  The flashcard' core, it's basically its firmware.
  In order to update it, simply paste the “ez5upldr.bin” file into the storage media's root folder, then hold the R button as you select the EZ-V from the DS' main menu. Hitting R again after the bootstrap menu is displayer starts the update process.
  
  
• Save List:
  To avoit problems related to the save game type (DS games include memory chips of different type and size to store your saves), this database pairs each released game with the relevant save type. Again, all you have to do when the need for an update arises is copying the newest database to the shell folder, overwriting the previous one.
  
  
• Hybrid Tool:
  Older or slower medias often pose a problem, when using them within a flashcard: this is why the Hybrid Tool is an important piece of additional software.A not-working dump, in the general idea, can be patched to attempt having it run at decent speeds: results may vary, although Hybrid ROMs can greatly improve performance on average or less than average microSD's.
  On top of that, the Hybrid Tool includes a swift trimming function, easy to use and not too time consuming.

Once all the files have been downloaded, it's time to start the preliminary update. After copying the “ez5upldr.bin” file and the shell folder to the microSD root folder, start the flashcard using the afrementioned "R button" technique. This will bring you to the in-depth boot manager.

As shown in the images, you will be given three choices: card update by pressing R, third generation PassMe function by pressing L, and normal startup by pressing A. Obviously, this menu is aimed at advanced users, whereas for common usage no button or particular procedure is required to fully enjoy your EZ-V.

GUI

As previously mentioned, the EZ-V's graphical interface is based on Moonshell, the most influential DS homebrew targeted at media files. Fans of this program will be happy to know that the shell is, in fact, a heavily customized version of Moonlight's brainchild.
Video, music, photos, text files won't be a problem anymore: copy them onto your microSD and you're all set. Albeit based on MoonShell, the EZ-V GUI lacks touchscreen support, so navigation has to be performed via good 'ol D-Pad.

Hitting L + R while at the main menu brings up the configuration dialog. At your disposal, an option to switch the Shell language back and forth between chinese and english, as well as speed and safety settings for the media storage. If you experience anomalies while playing, try varying these values, which range from 1 to 12, until you reach a satisfying performance level.

Upon selecting a file, a dialog on the touchscreen will show title, genre, savegame type and size, as well as the internal icon. To start the game/homebrew, simply hit A.

There's something to note about savegames, as 619619 thoroughly explained in our previous review:

Saved data is processed and stored on a dedicated memory chip within the card: the game save is transfered to the internal EEPROM, then copied to the microSD when the console is next switched on, as a *.sav file; in the same way, when a ROM is booted, the corresponding save file is imported to the EEPROM. This allows the EZ-V to avoit the problems due to a direct access of the mass storage unit during gameplay, causing random crashes within certain games.
At the moment of this review, save settings have been updated to ROM 0773, whereas attempts to run untested games can be done by switching back and forth the various save types, by simply pressing L+X o L+Y. Usually, a couple attempts is everything it takes.

Of course, the current save database is much more up-to-date.