I’m No Electrician | Tech Gadgets & Gizmos

I’d just dug through the askimet spam box and have found 6 comments that were definately not spam. Apologies if you comment was one of those that the filter picked up automatically and i’ll make sure I check in there more often.

Thanks to everyone who reads and comments on the blog.

The R4 chip (also known as the R4DS) is a controversial cartridge for the Nintendo DS Lite. The cartridge is the exact size of a DS game cartridge and fits in SLOT1 of the handheld console. The R4 has a MicroSD card slot in which any size MicroSD card can be added. By copying some operating system files on to the Micro SD card the owner has create a space to copy DS Roms and other multimedia files to the card and having access to play them through the Nintendo DS.

The R4 chip has raised concerns over the piracy of Nintendo DS games and has been blamed for the decline in DS Software sales worldwide. The minimal expense of getting one of these cards, from £20 ($40) and the simplicity of actually using the card only adds to debate as to whether they should be available. Many stores have reported high levels of sales but will not say what the R4 is used for over fears of legal action. The issue of backing up Roms is slightly different from one of sites having illegal downloads of games but both raise different concerns. A great use for me would be to have all my games backed up one one R4 chip to save the hassle of carrying multiple games around with me. This raises the issue of whether you are legally allowed to create a back up ROM of games you have purchased legally. Many users of the chip state that if the DS games were sold at the same price worldwide then many would not go to illegal measure of obtaining illegally downloaded ROMs. The prices of games can range from as low as $10(£5) in India to $50-60(£25-30) in the UK.

Legal Uses
With all the bad press the R4 chip has been getting the totally legal uses of the chip have been overlooked, these range from begin able to play:

• Music (inc. mp3’s)
• Video
• View pictures
• and play homebrew games and software.

What are your views on the R4 chip or other chipping methods that extend the functionality of gaming devices?

Well I guess its down to the luck of the draw!

Tonight I went for a game of poker for the first time in a while. The same game I mentioned here and although the hard drive is still to be fitted tonight’s game I enjoyed. And here’s why:

A friend fetched his automatic card shuffler and every time he used it I ended up with a winning hand.

The shuffler is great, it can take upto 4 pack of cards and if you either can’t shuffle or maybe you want to try and change your luck at the table then why not give the cards a whirl though this.

Although I had a fair few great hands tonight I ended up with a second place which I’d have taken at the beginning of the night but was definitely in a position to win and be over $200 better off than I ended up. With a bit of luck I’ll be playing and fitting a hard drive in 2 weeks time.

I’ll definitely be investing in a poker table, some chips and one of these bad boys in the near future.

I’m all in, who’s with me!

This post came about after I was really struggling to get out of bed this morning. My alarm clock had gone off, been snoozed and snoozed and then turned off and yet 20 minutes later and I was still laid in bed. This is where the flying alarm clock would have really come in handy.

Once the set time is reached the top part of the helicopter takes off from the clock and the alarm starts. To get the alarm to stop you need to get the flying part of the clock and place it back on the clock.

For me this would be a great method to get me up. I can only to an alarm for so long and having something in arms reach is just too easy to turn off. To physically have to get out of bed and catch the flying alarm would deter me from snoozing back down.

Would this work for you? Have you seen any other worthwhile adversaries?

The Nintendo DS Lite has been available since mid 2006 and is the dual screen re-design of the Nintendo DS. The design lets you close the handheld games console like a book (screen to screen) and is both lighter (by 21%) and smaller that the original DS.

The console looks very slick in design and comes in a range of colours including black, white, pink etc. Some of the main features include:

Dual/Touch Screen - The dual screens are used differently depending on the game you are playing. Zelda uses one as a map while the main touch screen is used for navigation and gameplay. The Yoshi game splits the whole game between both screens and you can jump from one to the other. To use the touch screen you use the stylus which is supplied with the console. This adds a whole new feature to the handheld games espeically ones like Brain Training where you have to write the answer on the screen.

WiFi Connection - Use the wireless connection to play against family and friends. Connections allow up to 16 users to connect and some games allow you to use the download feature so that everybody does not need a copy of the game. Connections can be from as far apart as 100 feet.

Built in Mic - Use the microphone in games like Brain Training to shout out the correct colour in sequence or blow into the mic in Zelda to blow out a candle. Some games even included a multiplay chat function while uising the WiFi connection.

Backward compatibility - As well as having the DS cartridge slot the DS Lite also has an extra slot that allows you to play Gameboy Advance games. This is a great feature and saves having 2 handheld machines laying aroudn the house. It also allows people who didn’t have the Gameboy Advance to experience those games on the DS Lite, great move Nintendo.

This is a great console with a lot of very addictive games, I found myself playing Zelda for hour after hour and its always nice to jump on Mario and try and save the princess. The next step for me is to try out some of the many add ons that are available.