| Neo Team MK4-Mini | ||||
|
|
Neo Team MK4-Mini
Introduction The MK4-Mini is a Nopass device created by the Neo Team, the guys behind the original Neoflash kit.
The MK4-Mini
On first glance, the build quality of the MK4-Mini seems great. It's strong and durable and doesn't bend or creak...
The small switch located at the top of the MK4-Mini is just a little too fat for the plastic casing to hold properly. And unfortunately on many MK4-Mini's the tiny piece of plastic that runs along the top of the switch will be broke. Mine was broken when it arrived.
The small piece of plastic that is snapped and bent upwards in the picture above, eventually broke completely off my MK4-Mini and it actually looks better now there's no broken plastic there. The sticker on the back of the cart covers up the gap anyway. And the switch is securely soldered to the PCB and won't be affected by the loss of plastic - it won't move anywhere. The switch is a bit fiddly, but can easily be flicked left and right by using your nail or any small tool/pointy object. The MK4-Mini slots into the DS slot of an old style DS (aka. DS phat) just fine. But feels a tiny bit tighter going into the DS slot on a DS Lite (which I didn't know was actually tighter - but apparently so). It feels a little tight getting in there which is because the MK4-Mini is a tiny bit chubbier than other DS carts. This is due to the large ROM on the PCB and the switch at the top. But doesn't take much effort to insert, and does eject just fine. It's nothing near as bad as the original SuperPass. The MK4-Mini is kitted with a whole 2Mbit on-board flash memory for storing save games on older style flash kit solutions and other software that can take advantage of it. So if you're using an old flash kit to boot DS games and programs, such as a regular GBA flash cart and patcher, then you will have a whole 2Mbit of memory to store save data directly onto the MK4-Mini. This is the largest save type currently used on any commercial NDS game cart, so it's a nice feature to have on-board the MK4-Mini. But most modern flash kits for example the M3 Adapter, Supercard or the EZ IV don't rely on storing save data on the pass card anymore. They have their own methods for holding save data, so unless you know you're knowingly going to use the EEPROM on the MK4-Mini you can ignore it anyway. Using the MK4-Mini Using the MK4-Mini works just fine. And acts just as a passme/nopass should. 
Just pop it into your DS slot with it set to whatever mode you prefer (GBA probably), turn on your NDS, and it boots into the adapter in your GBA slot! As covered above in the 'Hardware and Design' section of this review, if you set the MK4-Mini into NDS mode and boot it up; the MK4-Mini will show as a selection in the DS menu as below... 
The MK4-Mini has no splash screen in either GBA nor NDS mode. And it works just fine on both the original Nintendo DS and the DS Lite. It's also said to be compatible with the iQue DS but I can't test this personally! Also, the MK4-Mini works fine with putting your NDS into sleep mode. I've tested it personally. The MK4-Mini is said to be compatible with any GBA adapter, but keep on eye on Qrayzie's NoPass Comparison Chart for further compatibility tests. Conclusion The MK4-Mini is hard to fault. It's a very nice nopass, with a couple of features that no other pass card can offer, such as the GBA NDS mode switch or the 2Mbit of onboard EEPROM. The only thing that lets it down is its build quality - the broken plastic and it's slight chubbiness. Which is a shame because overall it's a very nice and well thought through passcard and is very similar in price to most other pass cards. With the emergence of slot-1 solutions, it appears that passcards such as this one have become completely obsolete. This device did its job (and did it well) when we needed it, but now for any slot-1 owner it isn't much more useful than a piece of plastic. However if you feel compelled to use a slot-2 flashcart for some reason, you might find this device a good solution. Pros + Same size as a normal DS game cart - doesn't stick out! + Extremely simple to use + No programming required + Compatible with all currently available versions of DS + Compatible with all GBA mode adapters + Supports sleep mode + 2Mbit of onboard memory + GBA/NDS mode switch + Available in a variety of colours Cons - Poor build quality - broken plastic at the top of the cart is a common defect - Fits into the DS Lite slot quite tightly - Consumes battery life the same as any other pass card
Set as favorite
Bookmark
Email This
Hits: 347 Comments (0)
 Write comment
You must be logged in to post a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.
Newer news items:
Older news items:
|
Subscribe to this comment's feed
