Homebrew How-to: SvSIP for DS phone calls
Homebrew applications for the Nintendo DS continue to surprise us. We have seen impressive games, a cool paint program, and a puzzle collection with tons of replay value. This time we have put together a handy ‘how-to’ guide for VoIP on DS. Using the SvSIP application by Samuel Vinson, you can use your DS to make phone calls to cells and landlines in many countries. The quality is great, and when your free minutes run out you can continue to make free 1-minute calls, perfect for a quick question for your local GameStop or a friendly ‘hello’ to an acquaintance of yours. Continue reading to find out just how to use your DS as a phone!
Want to make phone calls from your DS? Follow these steps and you should be good to go. PLEASE NOTE: These steps are simple, but you must follow them exactly as given to obtain satisfactory results. If you follow every step accurately and you still have problems, leave a comment and we will do our best to help you.
Step One: your DS’s WiFi configuration
For SvSIP to work it must connect to your computer via WiFi. If you have played any DS game online, you are likely ready to move on. All we need is for your DS to have connected successfully to the router or USB WiFi dongle that you will use to make phone calls through your DS. Remember; your DS can have three internet connections assigned to it. By using any of those connections, you will be calling your friends in no time!
Step Two: the SIP provider
Now we need a VoIP / SIP provider for this homebrew application to sync with. If you know you have one, move on to the next step. For those without a current provider, we will use VoIPCheap.com, as it has worked quite well during our tests and it’s free to some extent (more on that later).
To get VoIPCheap:
Step Three: the SvSIP homebrew application
It’s time to get the homebrew application that makes this all possible. There are multiple versions of SvSIP, but we recommend the third version since it worked the best for us.
To set up SvSIP:
Step Four: configuring SvSIP
This is the trickiest part of the process, so be careful. Inside the ‘svsip’ folder you will find a TXT file named ‘config’. Open it up and you will see some ‘code’ that is used by SvSIP to access your VoIP / SIP account. This is what you should be seeing:
We need to make some changes to this text. Take a look at how things should look afterward; the red highlights indicate the parts that were changed:
Use ’sip.voipcheap.com’ as the domain, and you should use your own username and password, the ones you used on step two. One you make the necessary changes, save the text file.
If you would like to use a different SIP provider, find the domain of such provider and use it instead of VoIPCheap. Keep in mind that not all providers work; we tried a few, but not all were successful. VoIPBuster worked, but the quality wasn’t great and our free calls period ran out quite quickly.
Step Five: making a call
It’s time to make some DS calls!
Supposedly, VoIPCheap offers 300 free minutes of calls per week, but we have heard that this is also limited to 1-minute calls. Well, that’s good enough for some quick rings, and you can always buy credit to call for longer or to reach other countries. As far as quality goes, SvSIP works quite well, but since the project is still in development you might encounter some crackled calls. There’s also a consistent but short lag, but nothing too serious.
We hope you enjoyed our handy guide to DS VoIP calling. Again, if you have any questions, leave a comment and we’ll try to help, and check out our ‘how-to’ for video playback on DS and the famous R4 installation guide. We will continue to explore homebrew on DS as time goes by, so keep checking back!
Posted in DS News, Game Culture, Homebrew |
January 3rd, 2008 at 5:05 pm
Sounds pretty garbled on the other end. I’m wondering if this has to do with either my ISP, the VoipCheap people, or maybe the DS’s hardware being too limited…
January 3rd, 2008 at 5:56 pm
We experienced this during testing. It seem to go away on its own; you could say it’s a ‘hit or miss’. Try changing your location, or call different numbers and see if the quality is better on some than on others. If not, just try the call at a later time; this worked for us quite well
January 3rd, 2008 at 9:30 pm
Does this work with Skype?
January 4th, 2008 at 9:42 am
Im interesed but according with Wikipedia Voip are something like evil overlords of VoIp changing terms and rules every second.
it is really the best option?
January 4th, 2008 at 9:43 am
Voip= Voipcheap
January 4th, 2008 at 10:53 am
@ E: Not at the moment; it appears that the guy behind SvSIP needs some approval by Skype to use it for this application, and so far it hasn’t happened.
@ Ertailara: VoipCheap worked the best for us and continues to do so, whereas VoipBuster delivered a garbled transmission and our free minutes went by extremely quickly. If you check the official SvSIP site linked above you can see a list of parameters for other VoIP providers that might work better for you.
January 5th, 2008 at 8:45 am
thanks, i seems that i already have a voipcheap account but for some reason it doesn´t seem to work with my Supercard lite
it just show the splash screen and no text.
I have my Ssid hidden…could that be it ?
the only time it showed more text was when i deleted all my network settings on the Ds…really f´n ironic
January 8th, 2008 at 10:47 am
How about receiving calls on the DS? Can you do that with this app and a VoipCheap connection?
Or what about calling other DS’s is that possible with this set-up?
January 8th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
@ Dartan:
We’ve looked into this several times, and apparently the only way to receive calls is by using certain SIP providers that give you a ‘call back’ number, such as SipGate, which isn’t free and is available for Europe and Australia.
And even so, this is limited to receiving calls from land lines; we haven’t heard anything about DS-to-DS calls. If we find a way to work around this, we’ll let you guys know.
January 27th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
i have a problem
when the select the Svsid application on my top screen it says cannot connect, about 5 secs later i my bottom screen turns on with the numbers…
i dial 001 AREACODE + NUMBER
after sending the message
it says
URI sip: 001 areacode, then number@sip.voipcheap.com
it says it was disonnctd
Error making call Number 001, etc.
is it a port that i have to forward with my router
and i m using a DSTT btw. Thanks
February 9th, 2008 at 10:10 pm
when i start up svsip the top screen starts up but then on the bottom screen it says all of these stuff including cannot connect to arm9wifi.c
what do i do??????????
February 9th, 2008 at 11:38 pm
Are you using the recommended SvSIP version? Newer ones have a Wi-Fi searcher that you probably don’t need and sometimes don’t work as well.
February 10th, 2008 at 11:32 am
yeah i did everyhting that the article told me to do but then i don’t know how to connect
i went to my wfc setting and later on it connects but the says error code 51300 on step 3
unable to connect to access point wat do i do??
February 10th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
This is Nintendo’s online support for that error code:
Error Code: 51300
Our experience has shown that this error message is typically caused by WEP Key issues. Please read the following information:
Check Nintendo’s router info for special notes, if available, for your router.
Click here to go to our Wireless Router Configuration page.
Use the drop-down box on the left to select, if available, your router manufacturer.
Click on your router’s model number, if available.
Read any “special notes” at the top of the router’s page. Many issues can be solved by changing settings described in the “special notes.”
Are you using WEP security on your router?
Log into the router using the default IP (consult your router’s manual for assistance)
If you are using 64-bit encryption, the WEP Key must be a 10-character key consisting of numbers or letters A through F.
If you are using 128-bit encryption, the WEP Key must be a 26-character key consisting of numbers or letters A through F.
The WEP Key must be a Hexadecimal (1-9, A-F, no other special characters or letters).
Verify they are using the WEP Key in the first (#1) slot. Even though their router may have multiple slots, the Nintendo DS is only compatible with the WEP Key in slot #1.
Check to see if your router is using MAC filtering.
Log into the router using the default IP.
Find the section for MAC Filtering (typically under “Security”).
If MAC Filtering is on (”enabled”), enter the Nintendo DS?s MAC address to the list of approved MAC address. For info on locating the DS?s MAC address, click here. (For assistance with locating the MAC Filtering section of your router?s setup tool, please consult the router?s manual or contact the manufacturer.)
Check to see if your router is set to “g only” mode. In order to work with the Nintendo DS, the router must be set to “mixed” or “b and g”.
If you are still unable to connect, please call 1-800-255-3700 in the USA or Canada for more information.
February 10th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
oh ok thanks very much for your help!!
February 11th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
I am having the same problem as solitary.
March 4th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
i can’t load the application on my ds it froze and the green light kept on flashing
can anyone help me
March 8th, 2008 at 8:12 am
help me please how do you connect svsip to the internet with a wifi usb connector? i have an r4.
March 22nd, 2008 at 2:36 pm
Works on my R4.. IM SOO AMAZED.. THANXXX (use version 3 for r4.. v7 donesnt work.. )
March 27th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Yeah, I have the same question as ghjghj, can anyone tell us how to do it with a Nintendo
wi-fi USB connector?
April 4th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Yeah.. i followed everything except for the patching because my DSTT has auto patching anyways.. but i do everything that this article has said, but still i have the same problem as before, which is, When i Run the application on my DS. dial “001″ then area code.. Then i press the call button, And nothing happens… it jus says calling.. and i dont get any kind of Pop up on my computer saying anything that it connected.. can someone please help me!!!. i mean, i usually can play mario kart with my router so i know for a fact that my DS can connect to it..
April 12th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
if you turn your ds into a phone can you still play games?
April 20th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Im using a Supercard One with VoipBuster. I can hear people perfectly but on the other line its all static-y and cuts out? i know its not the mic on my ds because Nitrotracker records me perfect?
April 22nd, 2008 at 5:42 pm
Can someone call your ds? will you be able to have a ds phone number or something or can you just make calls?
May 10th, 2008 at 6:53 am
i know how you can make ds to ds calls, do something with the friend code as the phone number or something like that!!
May 11th, 2008 at 11:26 am
Well I can’t get any further since voipcheap.com isn’t registering my info? I put in my username, password and email but it just sits there at registering and nothing happens…
May 11th, 2008 at 3:51 pm
Can you make a call on your DS without connecting to any phone like your DS is a phone itself?
May 13th, 2008 at 11:36 am
yes, you need to be at a wifi hotspot though, or you need a router
May 28th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
the picture on the ds news page for
“DS sequels hitting Japan soon; NOA’s chance to make up arises” is in a nintendo power issue
June 17th, 2008 at 8:31 am
right iv done all that withsvsip and iv got it going but when i click on it it stays on the loading screen (top screen). i havnt got wifi up so do i have to do this b4 i can even see the numberpad?
July 24th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
i followed all the steps and when i load up the nds file the svsip image comes up on the top screen. but, on the bottom screen there is a lot of text and nothing happens after that. what did i do wrong?
July 24th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
sorry i have to add one thing when the text comes up a thin on my computer comes up and says “there is an ip adress conflict with another system on the network.
July 30th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
can it work on game n’music?
August 3rd, 2008 at 2:23 pm
i’m using games n’ music, but it’s stuck on the loading screen
August 8th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
will it work if you are just using wifi from a modem instead of an usb router or a router
August 13th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
how do you get the domain if you find a different provider like InternetCalls.com?
August 14th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
hey, i tried this svsip ds phone and i dont know wat the area code for canada is!!??? and ive heard frm ppl and they said the u.s is the same area code but it dosent work!???> an1 help me!!!????plz
thx:P
August 16th, 2008 at 1:22 am
I have also the same question as ghjghj and Mailman, I use the nintendo WiFi connector as Softap, I am able to play games online and browse the internet, but SvSIP doesn’t work, it wil not connect
Does anyone know how I can connect?
August 20th, 2008 at 10:47 am
PLEASE HELP!! im using this on my DSTT and everything works fine, but when i make a call, i hit 001, and my number and call, but it connects, and then says diconnected? is it because i need to like buy minutes on the Voip thing?
August 23rd, 2008 at 11:49 am
Great tutorial it worked for me. Took less then 10 mins. but um is there a different free company that allows other members to call you for free. Sort of like if someone has skype on the cpu and so do you they can call for free…is there anything like that?
and is there anything i can do about volume?
August 24th, 2008 at 7:07 am
Let me rephrase that. Is there a way for people to contact me on my DS ( Example my friend has a ds can he call mine so that were both talking on DS?)
August 24th, 2008 at 5:52 pm
I’m having the same problem as Brent, anyone have a solution?