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←Created page with 'thumbThe '''NDEV''' ('''RVL-001''') is a fully-fledged development kit for the Wii. It does not have a disc drive or internal hard drive, so all...'
[[File:Ndevlarge.jpg|thumb]]The '''NDEV''' ('''RVL-001''') is a fully-fledged development kit for the [[Wii]]. It does not have a disc drive or internal hard drive, so all software is read from NAND or the host system. The NDEV cannot boot without an attached host system, and can only launch disc titles if they are given to the NDEV through an optical disc emulator on the host system. The NDEV thus, uses a special system menu that is designed for purposes of debugging and development.
Compared to regular hardware, the NDEV features all the ports found on a retail system. The NDEV has a mains power switch, and an actual power switch both located on the front of the unit. All GameCube controller ports, SD reader, and GameCube memory card ports have been moved up to the front of the unit. There is also a dipswitch located on the front. On the back of the NDEV, there are two USB Type A ports as found on a retail systems, however, there is also three USB Type B ports not seen on retail systems. One of these is labeled as a debug port, used for collecting the debug output of games running. One is labeled as COM, used to send commands to the unit. Finally, one is labeled DI. There is also one serial (DB9) 115200-baud port.
Unlike the Wii, the NDEV has a built-in power supply, whereas retail models have an externally placed power supply. The NDEV has 192MB of RAM, whereas a regular Wii system would only have 88MB. The GDDR3 RAM has also been upgraded from 64MB to 128MB.
Development on the NDEV is done using the "ndrun" command in the Revolution SDK to launch the optical disc emulator to create a simulated optical disc image. This runs the associated ELF directly from a filesystem on the host PC.
== Versions ==
=== NDEV 1.x ===
The NDEV 1.x units were the first NDEV units that have seen usage during February 2006 to around June 2006 for internal usage and (potentially limited) third-party game development. Internal documentation refers to version 2 of the NDEV as the 'main system for game developers' with NDEV 1.x being a bare board intended only for internal usage in Nintendo, but it is known that some 1.x NDEV units and their associated Revolution SDK (1.0) were briefly distributed to third-party developers. It is also known that there were also enclosed NDEV 1.x units.
NDEV 1.x had a number of features not present in 2.0 units and later, including, but not limited to:
*Variable clock frequency for Broadway & Hollywood (controlled with DIP switches or an external clock connected over BNC)
*JTAG ports for Broadway & Hollywood
*Additional power supply testing features
*2 external SD slots in addition to the internal Wi-Fi SDIO slot (all versions of IOS support having 2 external SD slots, but it is unclear if this feature was meant for the final product)
*Wii and GameCube drive ports
Some NDEV 1.x units also included [[Hollywood]] chips with blank eFuses. It is unknown what the exact difference between the NDEV 1.x revisions (known to be NDEV 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2) are, but it is most likely just the revisions to the Hollywood processor.
=== NDEV 2.x ===
NDEV 2.0 includes mostly-final hardware seen on retail units, aside from a few minor bugs as well as the inclusion of four wired Wii Remote controller ports via coaxial cables. The production 2.1 decreases this to only one port. The initial release of the 2.0 did not include wireless controller support, but the "2.01(ES)" revision added it. Pre-production NDEV 2.1 units also exist. These units are known to have a different serial number sticker on the back as well as having four wired controller ports like the 2.0. One such unit is known to have a port for WiFi over RF, but it is unknown if this applies to every unit as the sticker contains a checkbox for if this feature is included or not.
The NDEV 2.1 is the most common and effectively final revision of the NDEV.
=== NDEV 3.x ===
Later versions of the SDK OS library also have OSGetConsoleType strings mentioning a "NDEV 3.0" and "NDEV 3.1", possibly for development for the Wii U. These units were most likely not released to third-party developers.
== See also ==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QysCxJhllnU A video demonstrating the NDEV's optical disc emulator.]
Compared to regular hardware, the NDEV features all the ports found on a retail system. The NDEV has a mains power switch, and an actual power switch both located on the front of the unit. All GameCube controller ports, SD reader, and GameCube memory card ports have been moved up to the front of the unit. There is also a dipswitch located on the front. On the back of the NDEV, there are two USB Type A ports as found on a retail systems, however, there is also three USB Type B ports not seen on retail systems. One of these is labeled as a debug port, used for collecting the debug output of games running. One is labeled as COM, used to send commands to the unit. Finally, one is labeled DI. There is also one serial (DB9) 115200-baud port.
Unlike the Wii, the NDEV has a built-in power supply, whereas retail models have an externally placed power supply. The NDEV has 192MB of RAM, whereas a regular Wii system would only have 88MB. The GDDR3 RAM has also been upgraded from 64MB to 128MB.
Development on the NDEV is done using the "ndrun" command in the Revolution SDK to launch the optical disc emulator to create a simulated optical disc image. This runs the associated ELF directly from a filesystem on the host PC.
== Versions ==
=== NDEV 1.x ===
The NDEV 1.x units were the first NDEV units that have seen usage during February 2006 to around June 2006 for internal usage and (potentially limited) third-party game development. Internal documentation refers to version 2 of the NDEV as the 'main system for game developers' with NDEV 1.x being a bare board intended only for internal usage in Nintendo, but it is known that some 1.x NDEV units and their associated Revolution SDK (1.0) were briefly distributed to third-party developers. It is also known that there were also enclosed NDEV 1.x units.
NDEV 1.x had a number of features not present in 2.0 units and later, including, but not limited to:
*Variable clock frequency for Broadway & Hollywood (controlled with DIP switches or an external clock connected over BNC)
*JTAG ports for Broadway & Hollywood
*Additional power supply testing features
*2 external SD slots in addition to the internal Wi-Fi SDIO slot (all versions of IOS support having 2 external SD slots, but it is unclear if this feature was meant for the final product)
*Wii and GameCube drive ports
Some NDEV 1.x units also included [[Hollywood]] chips with blank eFuses. It is unknown what the exact difference between the NDEV 1.x revisions (known to be NDEV 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2) are, but it is most likely just the revisions to the Hollywood processor.
=== NDEV 2.x ===
NDEV 2.0 includes mostly-final hardware seen on retail units, aside from a few minor bugs as well as the inclusion of four wired Wii Remote controller ports via coaxial cables. The production 2.1 decreases this to only one port. The initial release of the 2.0 did not include wireless controller support, but the "2.01(ES)" revision added it. Pre-production NDEV 2.1 units also exist. These units are known to have a different serial number sticker on the back as well as having four wired controller ports like the 2.0. One such unit is known to have a port for WiFi over RF, but it is unknown if this applies to every unit as the sticker contains a checkbox for if this feature is included or not.
The NDEV 2.1 is the most common and effectively final revision of the NDEV.
=== NDEV 3.x ===
Later versions of the SDK OS library also have OSGetConsoleType strings mentioning a "NDEV 3.0" and "NDEV 3.1", possibly for development for the Wii U. These units were most likely not released to third-party developers.
== See also ==
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QysCxJhllnU A video demonstrating the NDEV's optical disc emulator.]