1. Q. How do I upgrade my Harmony Cartridge?


Send us an email and you will get a return ticket. Then mail your cartridge back to us with the return ticket enclosed so we can track your cartridge. Once your cartridge is received, we will examine your cartridge to determine whether it is upgradeable or not. At that time we will notify you of your upgrade charge or trade-in allowance toward a new Harmony Encore, and you will receive an invoice for the amount you need to pay.



  1. Q. What happens to cartridges that I send in?


If your cartridge is upgradeable, we will simply attach the additional chips and other components needed to turn your cartridge into a Harmony Encore. Then your cartridge will be reflashed with the latest BIOS, tested, relabeled, then mailed back to you after you have paid the fees.

If your cartridge is not upgradeable, you will receive a new Harmony Encore. The returned cartridge will be cleaned, updated to the lastest firmware, and tested before we resell it. These returned cartridges will be sold as used or refurbished, and will be available for less than a new Harmony cartridge.



  1. Q. Do you need my old manual, USB cable, or SD card?


No, please keep those. We can keep shipping costs lower if we don't have to send them back. Even the old manual is still relevant - we will include a manual addendum page with your Harmony Encore.



  1. Q. What are the fees for upgrading or trading in?


If your cartridge is upgradeable, the fee is $25, plus any shipping charges ($4.00 in the USA, $8.00 to Canada, or $10.00 elsewhere.) If your cartridge is not upgradeable, the fee is $40, plus the same shipping fees above. In either case, the buyer also pays the shipping charges to return the old cartridge to us.



  1. Q. How long does the upgrade or trade-in process take?


The total time depends mostly on how long it takes to ship a cartridge to the USA and back to your location. Usually, we will ship your Harmony Encore to you within one week of receiving your returned cartridge. If you live in the USA, total time should be about two weeks. Outside the USA, the total time may be 1-3 months.



  1. Q. Will I always be able to upgrade my Harmony Cartridge, or do you plan to ever discontinue this service?


As long as the Harmony Encore is available, so will upgrades be available, provided your Harmony cartridge is upgradeable. However, trade-ins may be discontinued if we find ourselves with too many used cartridges to resell. However, because we offer used cartridges for a reduced price compared to new cartridges, we hope these will continue to sell.



  1. Q. I am good at soldering. Can I upgrade my Harmony myself?


The parts that need to be soldered are all surface-mount, one of which is an ultra-fine-pitch component; this has 0.5mm pin spacing, and should only be attempted by an expert. If you don't have countless hours of experience soldering such parts, we strongly advise against doing this yourself. However, if you can convince us that you are competent enough for the task, we can tell you where to find the parts. Please note that if you damage your board, we can't honor any warranties or upgrades.



  1. Q.How do I contact someone for more information?


A. Send a PM to batari on Atariage or send an email to c9r over at hotmail. Please use "harmony" somewhere in the subject line.