I only mentioned the Phat DS in terms of that, if necessary, I could wait out for a slot 2 cart if it doesn't come with whatever slot-1 bundle.
So I guess the Cyclo is the way to go if I have the money, correct? What is Rudolph's Tool and why may it be a hassle with when dealing with this cart? And um, I guess the DSTT is the way to go if I want to go the more cheap route? Is the EZ 3in1 better as a slot 2 with this cart or the Ewin? I guess I should skew away from the R4? I thought it was well received among the community?
Im starting to lean towards the M3 Real and CycloDS now. Now to find a place that has them in stock.
It looks like you need some clarification for slot-2 Expansion packs, I'll address your questions in the order you wrote them:
Yes, if you have the money, the Evolution is the
only way to go, and it really isn't that expensive.
Rudolph's Tool is a piece of homebrew software that you will need to flash GBA games to the EZ flash 3-in-1. It is only considered a hassle because the rumble/RAM aspects of the 3-in-1 are already supported in the Evolution software, but not the GBA side, TeamCyclops has plans for adding GBA support though.
sure, why not, get a DSTT if you go the cheap route.
The EZ Flash 3-in-1 is much better in my opinion, it comes in both GBA and lite sizes, has rumble, and much better game compatibility. You do need to patch the games with GBATA or a similar program with the 3-in-1. the ewin has an automatic patcher, which causes a long loading time. Still, the 3-in-1 has much better game compatibility, notably with Pokemon as it does support real-time clock, which pokemon games need to run events and such.
Skew away from the R4? Not neccessarily, it is a decent cart (great for newbies), but the Evolution is SO much better, and has been receiving quick, constant, and feature rich updates since its launch. The R4 has been lacking in this department for the last several months. Games that need updates with the R4 seem to already be working with the Evolution.
Several games have been corrupting the Evolution firmware actually
but TeamCyclops, being the amazing team they are, released firmware v1.3 beta to fix these issues, and add Real-Time Save capabilities. So yes, the R4 is well-received, but it just isn't as good as the Evolution.
RealHotStuff has some evolutions I believe, or will in a short period of time. I would suggest buying from them. Divineo has the Evolution in stock, but they don't ship you everything, and have inflated the price way beyond the average $50-$53 for one.
Keep the questions coming, I'm liking these long posts...