New flash cart in development

Official support and feedback forum for DITTO mini and older flash carts like PokéCard512.
zoranc
Posts: 298
Joined: August 13th, 2010, 18:13
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Re: New flash cart in development

Post by zoranc »

Here is update on the flash carts. Mostly good news.

So the carts work. FINALLY! I have 3 of them with me - one from the first revision and two from the second. They all work. Also I have two flashers. Tried all combinations and did lot of tests. The C code (on the PC) has some problem during the initialization of the flasher. I strongly believe it is a software problem only, as a similar code in Delphi works with no errors at all.

So we decided to proceed with the production. Last few changes were made on the cart PCB, and I believe it is perfect now. The PCBs were ordered yesterday. Also the parts for them and the flashers are ordered. So it is not entirely out of question to have them on sale even this year.

Stay tuneds!
Metaknight
Posts: 7
Joined: April 3rd, 2018, 20:51

Re: New flash cart in development

Post by Metaknight »

That's some great news! Do you know or at least estimate how much it will cost for a set of a cartridge with a programmer? Also how much the shipping will cost?
scyther
Posts: 55
Joined: November 5th, 2013, 14:25

Re: New flash cart in development

Post by scyther »

Did you in the end add an ability to manage the internal saves?
zoranc
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Re: New flash cart in development

Post by zoranc »

scyther wrote:Did you in the end add an ability to manage the internal saves?
What do you mean by "internal save"? There is no need for such thing for Pokemon Mini, because the saves are kept in the console's flash memory.
scyther
Posts: 55
Joined: November 5th, 2013, 14:25

Re: New flash cart in development

Post by scyther »

That's what I mean, is it possible to load and save data from the flash memory through the cart?
PMOoze
Posts: 11
Joined: December 4th, 2010, 00:46

Re: New flash cart in development

Post by PMOoze »

Metaknight wrote:That's some great news! Do you know or at least estimate how much it will cost for a set of a cartridge with a programmer? Also how much the shipping will cost?
I am interested in the price too, might ask for one for Christmas. Also anyone know how much Pokemon Mini's go for these days?

PMOoze
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RazorLeafAttack
PM.net Staff
Posts: 145
Joined: May 9th, 2017, 00:58

Re: New flash cart in development

Post by RazorLeafAttack »

PMOoze wrote:I am interested in the price too, might ask for one for Christmas. Also anyone know how much Pokemon Mini's go for these days.
I know it’s been said by Zoranc before that the price is ultimately determined by the guy who’s manufacturing them. And i don’t think that guy has even given an estimate yet.

Hopefully Zoranc can get us an aproximate price sometime soon.

The Pokémon Mini system itself has been climbing in price lately. Perhaps the backlight panels from Hand Held Legend have drawn greater attention to the system’s existence.

On eBay they typically go for around $50-80 (loose) but can be found cheaper. Take a look at the Sold listings. Occasionally somebody lists one in poor cosmetic condition, with yellowed plastic or a scratched up shell, that will be less. If you’re handy with small electronics (complexity similar to Game Boy Advance) you might be able to repair one that’s sold as-is. Sometimes they just need to be opened up and cleaned. I got one really cheap that way. Unfortunately I couldn’t get the up or right directions to work. Thankfully it ended up being put to good use by the guy at HHL as the Mini used to develop and test the previously mentioned backlight panels.
zoranc
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Joined: August 13th, 2010, 18:13
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Re: New flash cart in development

Post by zoranc »

scyther wrote:That's what I mean, is it possible to load and save data from the flash memory through the cart?
Yes, it is.

I took your idea seriously, tried it (with a lot of modifications on the VHDL side with the help of the hardware guy), and it worked. We have spent most of the weekend working on it but it was worth it!
scyther
Posts: 55
Joined: November 5th, 2013, 14:25

Re: New flash cart in development

Post by scyther »

Wow, great, that's cool! Glad you were able to figure it out :)
zoranc
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Joined: August 13th, 2010, 18:13
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Re: New flash cart in development

Post by zoranc »

News. The carts PCBs are supposed to be ready, all the parts did arrive too, so we hope to have them populated next week or so.

Flashers are produced. Also the casing for them. This is how it looks:
flasher.jpg
Flasher GUI client is ready.

Testing firmware for the carts is also ready. Onto the next features for the cart release.
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