None support overclocking, however. Typically, hardware from insideGadgets or RetroStage or the like are designed to emulate OEM in hardware functionality and compatibility, however, most bootlegs work a little bit differently. Bootleg carts are built down to a price and to get them as cheap as possible, most use salvaged memory components or parts that otherwise are not suitable for this kind of use.
One such example is that most bootleg Game Boy and Game Boy Color carts are built using parts designed for 3. While this does not offer an risk of permanent damage to the console itself, this does make the cart use significantly more battery than it would otherwise.
Additionally, this will reduce the usable life of the cart itself. As you know, SRAM requires power, either from the system itself, or from an internal battery, to maintain save data. The bootleg carts that ship with batteries typically have very poor life and last only a few months, even on a brand new battery. To overcome this issue, some carts have the game even further modified to copy the SRAM data to and from the flash chip that the ROM is stored on.
This method does allow one to use SRAM without having to have a battery in the game but it is not without drawbacks. Because of hardware limitations, the the flash chip with the ROM cannot be read and written to simultaneously, so the game is designed to stop execution while saving so that the hardware may then read the contents of the SRAM and write to the flash chip.
In most cases, this looks like the game itself is freezing when you save. There are two more considerations. This write operation to the flash chip takes even more power than just running the game and is extremely sensitive to interruptions.
That means, if you save your game on low battery, there is a high chance of corrupting the write. Because the game is writing to the chip that the ROM data is stored on, a corrupt write will not just mean you lose your save data, it means you lose the entire game.
And last, this modification is done on a per game and per cart basis so every game is going to be different. That means that these carts cannot be reflashed if you want to retain this functionality. You cannot dump one bootleg for flashing on to another unless they use the exact same version PCB with the same make and model flash and SRAM chips. Because of the behavior mentioned above, this also makes save data manipulation rather difficult.
To back up a save on these carts, you would have to dump the entire ROM and then boot that dump in an emulator, load the game in that emulator, and then back up that save and if you try and save while playing the dumped game in an emulator, the game will likely crash and not recover.
Restoring save files is even more difficult as it requires dumping the ROM, rooting around in a hex editor until you find where the save is stored, and then overwriting the save within the ROM itself. Once overwritten, you then have to flash this modified ROM back to the cart. Saving will work as expected on a normal cart as long as your bootleg game has a working save battery installed. These are carts that use an external memory card, usually Micro SD, for the game and save storage.
The hardware is not at all reminiscent of OEM games but it allows you to build and coordinate a library of all the games you want to play and is much more reliable than the internal memory versions. These carts are the easist to use, offer the greatest compatibility, and the most features. They are, however, more expensive and can use quite a bit more battery life compared to playing the original game on original hardware.
These carts imitate OEM carts in both form and function. They can only hold one game at a time, normally. With battery life, there are a few things to mention. So, What GBA flash cart should you buy? For me, the EZ Flash Omega is a must-have.
It performs similarly to the Everdrive X5 mini but will drain your battery quicker. That said, if battery life is a real pain for you and you have a little more money to burn, then get the Everdrive X5 mini. The build quality of the Everdrive is ever so slightly higher than that of the EZ Flash Omega, however, the EZ Flash Omega has no cartridge sticker to worry about and slightly more functionality.
So, ultimately the choice is up to you. Everdrive GBA X5 mini. EZ Flash Omega. Thanks a lot for the comparison! Everdrive needs to be a little bit cheaper imo, but their quality is outstanding so you indeed get what you pay for I had a non-mini X5 before. I completely agree! Your email address will not be published. Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
Notify me of new posts by email. What is the best GBA flash cart? Everdrive X5 Mini. Features: -. Loading Speed: Games load quite fast. Save State Support: You cannot make save states with the X5 mini.
GUI: Nice simple menu system, with added functionality via custom firmware. Drawbacks: -. In Conclusion:. I hope this helps!
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