View source for E-Reader

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[[File:Ereader.png|thumb|right|A rendering of the e-Reader being used with an original Game Boy Advance]]
The '''e-Reader''' (Japanese: '''カードｅリーダー''' ''Card e Reader'') is a peripheral for the [[Game Boy Advance]] that is used to scan special cards in order to unlock new features in existing games, add new features to games that have e-Reader functionality, or to play minigames on the e-Reader itself.

Developed jointly by [[Creatures, Inc.]], [[HAL Laboratory, Inc.]], and {{wp|Olympus Corporation|Olympus}}, the original Japanese Card e-Reader lacked the [[Game Link Cable]] functionality when it was released in December 2001. A re-release, the Card e Reader+, added a Game Link Cable port, allowing it to connect to a second Game Boy Advance or a [[Nintendo GameCube]] using the same Game Link Cables that the Game Boy Advance system alone would use. This version of the e-Reader was the one that was later released in the West as the e-Reader in September 2002.

Though it was popular in Japan, with e-Cards released until the end of the Game Boy Advance's lifespan, the e-Reader proved to be unpopular in North America, leading to its discontinuation in 2004. e-Reader functionality, included in the Japanese versions of {{game2|FireRed|LeafGreen|Emerald}}, was removed from the English and other translations, as the compatible cards were never planned to be released. Due to this early discontinuation, the e-Reader was only released in North America and Australia, though e-Cards were released in Europe as well.

==Technical specifications==
* "Dot Code Technology" (Optical scanning technology)
* 8 Megabit flash memory
* 64 Megabyte mask ROM
* The long strip on each e-Card holds 2.2 kilobytes of data.
* The short strip holds 1.4 kilobytes of data.
* Passthrough game link port
<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080917112617/http://www.vidgame.net/NINTENDO/e_reader.htm Vidgame.net: Nintendo E-Reader]</ref>

==English release==

To promote the e-Reader prior to its English release, kiosks with built-in Game Boy Advance consoles and e-Reader devices used three placeholder e-Cards to demonstrate its functionality: a "Manhole" card along with [[Pichu (Expedition 58)]] and [[Hoppip (Expedition 112)]]. These three cards, which are slightly thicker than usual Pokémon cards and have a glossy finish, were all hole-punched so they could be attached to the device via a cable to prevent loss or theft whilst allowing enough flexibility for the cards to still be swiped.

It's a common misconception that these cards were the same cards handed out at the E3 convention in 2002, which also featured a Kirby e-Card, but the Pokémon cards from that event are regular thickness cards without a glossy finish and have a Japanese back instead of regular English back.

==Pokémon e-Cards==
* The [[Pokémon Battle e]] card series
* The {{TCG|Sample Set}} demonstration series
* The {{TCG|Expedition Base Set}} {{Trading Card Game}} expansion
* The {{TCG|Aquapolis}} TCG expansion
* The {{TCG|Skyridge}} TCG expansion
* The {{TCG|EX Ruby and Sapphire}} TCG expansion (Pokédex entries only)
* The {{TCG|EX Sandstorm}} TCG expansion (Pokédex entries only)
* The {{TCG|EX Dragon}} TCG expansion (Pokédex entries only)
* The {{TCG|EX Team Magma vs Team Aqua}} TCG expansion (Pokédex entries only, select cards only)
* Select {{TCG|Wizards Black Star Promos}} and [[Nintendo Promotional Cards (TCG)|Nintendo]] promotional {{Trading Card Game}} cards.
* The {{TCG|P Promotional cards}} (Japan)
* The {{TCG|McDonald's Pokémon-e Minimum Pack}} (Japan)
* The {{TCG|Theater Limited VS Pack}} (Japan, select cards only)
* Special cards containing extra features for the [[Smeargle Paint]] minigame in {{g|Channel}}
* Special cards allowing a player to increase the likelihood of special events in {{g|Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire}}
* Two cards distributed with Pokémon Scoop's Winter 2004 magazine containing the Berry Program Update, fixing the [[Berry glitch]] in {{game|Ruby and Sapphire|s}}.

==Trivia==
* The minigame [[Machop At Work]] was included with the purchase of an e-Reader in the United States.
* According to [[Nintendo Power]] v.169, it would take roughly 62,500 e-Reader cards to equal the data on one [[Nintendo GameCube|GameCube]] disc.
** However, this is a gross understatement when checked mathematically. Assuming the cards used have two long strips of 2.2KB each (for 4.4KB per card) it would take 331,819 e-Reader cards.
* The device was originally going to be called the "Pokémon Card-e-Reader", and the only mentioned functionality for it was reading Pokémon TCG cards.<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20010611141753/http://www.nintendo.com/news/news_articles.jsp?articleID=3938 2001 e3 -- POKéMON CARD-E-READER Fact Sheet]</ref>

==Images==
<gallery>
Card e Reader.png|The original Japanese ''Card e Reader''
Card e Reader_Plus.png|The Japanese ''Card e Reader +''
E Reader.png|English language ''e-Reader'', based on the Japanese ''Card e Reader +''
</gallery>

==References==
<references/>

{{EreaderApps}}

[[Category:Nintendo]]
[[Category:Electronic devices]]
[[Category:Peripherals]]

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