- Introduction –
The last time the M3 Real was reviewed at DSDatabase, it was judged rather
positively. However, soon after, the competitors’ products slowly offered
more and more, and at the same time, the M3 Real’s dated menu was becoming
less and less appealing. Needless to say, the M3 team had to do something
drastic to save their flash cart. The M3 team answered with not only
consistent updates for new features, but also their new firmware the M3
Sakura.
Both the old and the new M3 Real carts support the new firmwares, but all
of the newer carts are labelled with M3 Sakura on the top right corner.
They have definitely succeeded in saving their flash cart. The cart’s name
shows up in practically every thread that demands the best flash cart, and it
is quite a bit cheaper than the other leading flash carts.
A common question is "What is the best flash cart?", and a common answer
is the M3 Real.
I am happy to say that these posts and mentions are well justified. A
shiny new menu and useful features brought this cart back as a leading
contender in the market. The fact that I have plenty of carts and I am using
the M3 Real as my primary flash cart should be an indication of the balance of
features and simplicity the M3 Real has achieved.
Here is the M3 Real peeking out of my DS Lite.
- Design –
Similar to our previous review, the M3DS Real comes in a rather simple
box. I like the design and the look of the box, but in terms of the actual
storage, it does nothing out of the ordinary. Pulling the tray out, you find
that the tray isn’t even moulded to fit all the expansion packs, but instead
holds the M3 Real and a rumble pack, everything else is jammed into the back.
The box is kind of fragile actually, but at least it looks cool.
The endless lists of features are written rather badly but tell you pretty
much everything the cart can do. We already know and expect most of them, and
anything out of the ordinary is summarized on top of the large list and at the
front of the packaging.
The difference of the old and the new box is comprised of Real Time Save,
M3 Sakura and multi language support.
In terms of accessories, the M3 Real is sold in several bundles. The
standard bundle includes the M3 Real and a MicroSD reader, while the Rumble
Pack bundle comes with an extra Rumble Pack. The bundle I currently have on
hand, called the Perfect Bundle comes with a GBA Expansion Pack and extra
shells for the expansion pack as well as all the other accessories.
I am fairly certain that there are more bundles.
The MicroSD reader is rather fast and of decent size. I am a bit worried
because the M3 Team supplied several M3 Real bundles for our site’s giveaways,
and one of the readers was dead on arrival. Furthermore, the one I used for
the review broke after a month of fairly intense usage. It would simply cease
to read anything. On the other hand, the reader from my original look at the
M3 Real is still working just fine. This inconsistency could mean that you
shouldn’t depend on the supplied reader.
Nothing special, I suspect that all MicroSD readers supplied with flash
carts will die eventually.
The rumble pack on the other hand gives a fairly smooth and gentle rumble.
I am extremely happy with the quality of the rumble pack, it isn’t too strong
or too weak, but if you happen to have the Perfect Bundle like I do, you’d
find that the rumble pack is almost never in your DS. This is the last I’ll
speak of the rumble pack, it rumbles as advertised, on any game that supports
rumble, real or on the M3 Real. The feedback is nice, I think that’s all
there is to say about it.
The Rumble Pack is never inside my DS since I am using the GBA Expansion
Pack.
The GBA Expansion Pack’s build is identical to that of the rumble pack,
therefore it is rather strong but has its contacts exposed. I often question
the reason why, but it hasn’t hindered the ability to use the cart or the
quality of the cart. It simply seems a bit odd to me. I guess it makes the
contacts easier to clean in the future. The extra shells also expose the
contacts, but the grey shells are pretty cool colors. One of the shells
allows for the use of the expansion pack in an old DS, which is nice to see.
The M3 team is considerate enough to think about those with older hardware.
The DS Lite shells both stuck out of my DS Lite by about a millimetre, but I
haven’t had the chance to use the large shell on an older DS yet.
Oddly, the smokey-clear shell fits a bit better than the black shell.
The M3 Real cartridge that I received for this review was the new side
loading version of the M3 Real. Compared to the previous one, this one is far
superior. Because of the addition of a side loading MicroSD slot, the number
of clips on the M3 Real has been reduced to 3.
Less clips is one of the best things about the new M3 Real.
Clips have always annoyed me regardless of which flash cart they appear
on. However, after a month’s usage of the M3 Real, these ones look just like
the new ones. Generally I see a tiny hint of wear from carts with clips, even
after careful usage. The M3 Real (as you’ll read further on) has impressed me
so much that it is one of my primary carts. What surprises me is that I have
extensively used the M3 Real, pulling it in and out (just look at all the
recent releases!) and I don’t see the slightest sign of it being used.
Perhaps the plastic is a little stronger or the clips fit much better, but in
either case, I am actually going to say that the clips aren’t actually a
negative for me.
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