Hi,

As I’ve discussed in a few other threads on the forums, I’m working on a HyperFlash32 cart as a replacement for the FlashBoy+.

HyperFlash32 will contain a 32Mbit Flash (enough for the full HF ROM), 32k x 8 nvSRAM (no save battery required), and a new faster 32bit ARM microcontroller (MCU) running at 32MHz, on board SD card slot, and USB port for control using your PC. ROM files are placed on the SD card and programmed to the flash memory using the MCU, with automatic padding. A simple PC based interface will be used to control the programming steps much like my VB programmer. The on board MCU and SD card slot arrangement was chosen to make programming as fast as possible and provide a single integrated programmer and cart solution. The ARM MCU will also have a bootloader to allow future firmware upgrades as functionality is added. It will also have the features of my VB programmer like SRAM save functionality to save your game progress.

Schematics are done and I’m ready to go to layout so I’m taking preorders to help get it across the finish line. You can read more about it here, as well as place your preorder if you’re so interested: http://www.mellottsvrpage.com/index.php/hyperflash32/

Thanks,
Kevin

mellott124 wrote:

malick[ai] wrote:
Are both options sold out now? I got a VB for Christmas and am looking to buy one. I have a donor I can spare too.

Yes all sold out. There should be a second batch in around April or May timeframe.

Wow… that’s great ! I guess I will get in on the second batch.

Oh… FYI… I got the boards you sent out to me before Xmas. Thanks !! I’ll post up once I get my programmer sorted out.

Ahhh been out of the loop and missed out 🙁

I’ll wait for the second batch, already have a Flashboy +, but having the bigger rom size is nice, specially for that Hyper Fighting game, then again, no use if that rom hasn’t been dumped and leaked yet, or has it?

Subscribed to this thread so I don’t miss out on the second batch when it opens.

Like others have already, great job.

xs4all wrote:
no use if that rom hasn’t been dumped and leaked yet, or has it?

it has. it flew by under the radar.

Lester Knight wrote:

it has. it flew by under the radar.

Ahh yes indeed it has 🙂
Now patiently waiting for the next batch.

PCBs have finally shipped for the mechanical for test. Should be here next week.

Glad to hear they finally shipped, I’m guessing it got slightly delayed from the holiday season, looking forward to see the first complete prototype when all the pieces finally come together!

Yippie!

Will you post production / assembly images when you are starting to put these together?

Eagerly awaiting receiving mine as and when.
🙂

mellott124 wrote:
PCBs have finally shipped for the mechanical for test. Should be here next week.

arthur wrote:
Yippie!

Will you post production / assembly images when you are starting to put these together?

Eagerly awaiting receiving mine as and when.
🙂

mellott124 wrote:
PCBs have finally shipped for the mechanical for test. Should be here next week.

Yes, I’ll be posting periodic updates here with pictures as things come together.

The design is coming out so much better than I hoped. Case is super strong. Tweaks needed but this is going to be awesome!

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Breathtaking

“Superbe”
as we say in French

Oh yeah! Awesome!

Somewhere along the line (around page 4 of this topic) I picked up the notion that the HyperFlash 32 was going to have some mechanism for loading new ROMs into the flash slot from the SD card without requiring the use of a PC – just a USB power source. I imagined it would be a button or an input on the touch screen. Is that still the plan?

samson7point1 wrote:
Somewhere along the line (around page 4 of this topic) I picked up the notion that the HyperFlash 32 was going to have some mechanism for loading new ROMs into the flash slot from the SD card without requiring the use of a PC – just a USB power source. I imagined it would be a button or an input on the touch screen. Is that still the plan?

Yes. My understanding is that the eInk display is feasible, and it has at least two buttons on the unit itself, so the final product will be able to, with just a USB power source, let you cycle through games on the SD card and write the selected game to flash–no requirement for software on a PC.

samson7point1 wrote:
Somewhere along the line (around page 4 of this topic) I picked up the notion that the HyperFlash 32 was going to have some mechanism for loading new ROMs into the flash slot from the SD card without requiring the use of a PC – just a USB power source. I imagined it would be a button or an input on the touch screen. Is that still the plan?

Still the plan. Small chance it may not work very well and need to be scrapped, but risk is low. There will still be a lot more functionality exposed through a computer GUI. The on-cart programming will be simple as possible. Like my “auto” command on my current programmer.

Great to hear that, the ability to reprogram from the cart itself is incredible, and I’m pretty sure most if not everyone would still say how incredible that idea was even if it was a little slower at re-flashing the cart. It’s a really unique and innovative idea, and everyone’ll be more than happy with however well the result turns out to be 🙂 (also that design looks sick, the red on black looks as fantastic as the system itself)

Ethan.Snyder98 wrote:
Great to hear that, the ability to reprogram from the cart itself is incredible, and I’m pretty sure most if not everyone would still say how incredible that idea was even if it was a little slower at re-flashing the cart. It’s a really unique and innovative idea, and everyone’ll be more than happy with however well the result turns out to be 🙂 (also that design looks sick, the red on black looks as fantastic as the system itself)

Thanks for the words of support. I’m pushing hard. It’s all doable. If I didn’t have this damn day job I’d be done already! 🙂

I’ve been out of the loop for awhile now too. I knew of the project but only when it was much like the flashboy plus the inkling of the e-ink display.

I like where you’ve taken this, very unique, well above the stock scope everyone looks up to typically someone like krikzz for being saddled to a PC to load up files and all that. This unique choice of having on system buttons to menu pick what you want and then have it flashed being powered off a portable battery or wall jack via USB is genius.

Your device kind of reminds me of my NGPC SD Kit from Saint(RetroHQ) where you have limited storage capacity coupled with the microSD card. His unit has like 20Mbit or so of storage and you can wedge X games into that space, and that’s it, otherwise you re-flash. Yours is just pick one and reflash, a bit simpler but not bad at all. The NGPC by design required it because how the system/game chipset was created. Yours here though seems like a design choice which is fine, but I’m curious how fast is your write routine for say a stock standard 2MB game cart? I know from the NGPC again by the original design it’s slow, flashing it’s smallest games (512kb) takes 30sec from SD to storage, and the 4MB games take 4min each! This is the same range of size the VB has too so I’m curious to compare.

Really need to make sure I get one of these once it’s restocked, looks awesome.

Already got my money set aside and waiting for the restock to happen after the first batch is release. Project looks awesome so far.