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Post by PooshhMao on May 5, 2011 13:29:52 GMT -5
Hi,
Sony announced a couple of weeks ago that they stopped marketing the much-maligned PSP Go in Europe and Japan, due to low demand. That was my cue to finally get off the fence and go out and get one. It took me a while to find a nearby shop that still carried them, but I found one pretty cheap (120€). The store owner seemed eager to get rid of their last model, though they had a healthy stock of PSP Slims.
I've had one of those for a year or two, but never made much use of it, due to my dislike of the hardware. The UMD format was always more about Sony owning a proprietary format (with licensing revenue) than it was about consumer convenience, and optical media are just plain wrong as a choice for mobile platforms. Anyone disagree?
It's best asset - somewhat contrary to public opinion - is the lack of a UMD drive, and as a result the Go has a really compact and solid feel compared to previous models. The controls on the unit are excellent, very comfortable to play with for long periods of time. It definitely feels you're holding an expensive, high build quality device, and the improved screen is welcome too. My Slim occasionally shows slight scanline-like artifacts when lots is going on. The PSP Go has none of this - it's crisp, clear and perfectly smooth, all the time.
A few points are lost because of the inclusion of a proprietary USB port, and yet another type of memory card. There's no technical reason whatsoever the PSP couldn't use the established SD standard, but some Sony executive thought that would have been too convenient. Too bad there's so much politics holding back their hardware design.
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Post by Ike on May 5, 2011 14:50:19 GMT -5
Seriously? I had the exact opposite experience. I played with one and it felt brittle and flimsy, like it was going to come apart in my hands at any moment. The screen was also rather smaller if I remember correctly, which would account for the "scanlines" you see (although I have to admit I never experienced anything like this in my 2000 model.) The battery life was pretty good but the thing felt so sorely lacking in every other aspect that the price they were asking for it was downright derogatory.
Plus the whole PSN shutting down for 2 weeks thing.
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Post by wyrdwad on May 5, 2011 16:04:58 GMT -5
I do, wholeheartedly. I *love* the UMD format, and honestly don't understand all the hate it receives. It's cheap to produce (when compared with flash memory), holds a respectable 1.8 GB of data, is relatively fast to access (when games are programmed WELL, anyway!), small enough to be compact, and is designed well (the fact that the disc itself is mostly encased in plastic means it's unlikely to get scratched).
I'm also a big proponent of physical media in general... probably because I'm a collector. I like to display my game collection. I like the visceral, tactile sense of actually holding a physical representation of the game in my hands, and inserting it into my system. Simply downloading is much too iffy -- it doesn't feel like I actually *own* the game.
...Which isn't to say I don't download games from PSN, because I do. But when given the option, I *always* pick UMD over digital. ALWAYS.
(I also disagree on some of the other points you made -- I find the PSPgo far too small and lightweight, for example. It feels like a toy, and my hands don't really fit around it very well. I love the width and the weight of the PSP Slim, and consider it to be pretty much the most comfortable handheld I've ever used -- and despite my pre-PSP dislike for handhelds, I've played around with an original Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Advance SP, Game Gear, WonderSwan Color, DS, DS Lite, DSi, 3DS, and every model of PSP in my time, so I do have a fairly large basis for comparison.)
-Tom
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Post by X-pert74 on May 5, 2011 16:10:45 GMT -5
The PSP Go seems bad to me, if only because not every game is available in digital form. If you have a Go, you are incapable of playing certain titles that companies decide not to release digitally, so you're screwed.
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Post by zellsf on May 5, 2011 16:20:52 GMT -5
You can mod your PSP to play any game from memory stick, so that's not really a huge problem any longer.
I would probably want to replace my Slim with a Go now despite disliking the shape of it and where the controls are located. A better screen and some internal memory sounds really nice.
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Post by wyrdwad on May 5, 2011 16:26:57 GMT -5
Has the PSPgo been cracked? I didn't think it had been. And the problem with modding is that new releases are all required to use the latest firmware, so generally for a week or two after a game's been released, you can't play it on custom firmware *at all*. And that's a big problem when you're a huge PSP fan and an extremely impatient person.  -Tom |
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Post by susanismyalias on May 5, 2011 16:29:02 GMT -5
They can just sign isos and homebrew stuff to work on them, and every psp. It's pretty swell.
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Post by Warchief Onyx on May 5, 2011 16:59:59 GMT -5
Has the PSPgo been cracked? I didn't think it had been. And the problem with modding is that new releases are all required to use the latest firmware, so generally for a week or two after a game's been released, you can't play it on custom firmware *at all*. And that's a big problem when you're a huge PSP fan and an extremely impatient person. -Tom The PSPGo has not only been cracked, but has also become THE piracy system. |
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Post by PooshhMao on May 5, 2011 17:33:32 GMT -5
Yeah, it's cracked alright. Oh boy, is it cracked.
In some cases, it's not even necessary anymore, since some homebrew applications are signed and ready to run straight away.
And that would be, in all honesty, the only real reason you'd want a Go. If PSN would be the only means to get content on the thing, I wouldn't have bothered.
And I'm a bit surprised to see some people actually defend the UMD format. I'll admit that, given the restrictions of optical media, it's fairly well implemented. But it inevitably adds a lot to the bulk and fragility of a PSP. It's portable yes, but not really practical to carry around for everyday use. Also, good luck finding a working, regularly used unit in ten years.
It's obvious Sony sees no future in UMD, since the NGP will use DS-style game cards.
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Post by wyrdwad on May 5, 2011 18:32:30 GMT -5
Not sure why it wouldn't be. I have a GameStop UMD case that's about the size of the PSP itself, and holds 8 games. It's extremely portable, and fits nicely in my backpack's side pouch for when I travel.
Also not sure why this would be an issue. It's no more fragile a drive than the PS1's, and my PS1 still works fine today despite heavy usage, import modding and LOTS of abuse. (: I take good care of my PSP, too. I've never dropped it, it's always in its padded case when it's not in use, and it never gets banged around. I'm pretty confident that mine will still be working just fine in 10 years. (:
I see this more as the result of Sony giving in to pressure from UMD critics, and personally, I blame the UMD critics. The only things that could make the NGP better in my mind would be (A) a UMD drive with full backwards compatibility for PSP games, and (B) confirmed TV-out capability.
I really hate that the format is switching over to flash memory, TBH... but oh well. Small price to pay for all the good things the NGP promises. (:
-Tom
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Post by acidonia on May 5, 2011 18:33:29 GMT -5
Ill get a PSP Go when there like £50 which probally will happen someday do not think there worth more. Due to the fact how sony operate the PSN store in generaly is alot worse than Nintendo or Microsoft do with their online stores imo.
Ive no problem with UMD discs though but is they any reason why Sony region lock saves and DLC no one else does it anymore.
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Post by wyrdwad on May 5, 2011 20:41:23 GMT -5
Actually, it's kind of the opposite: Sony is one of the few companies who DOESN'T region-lock downloaded material. At least, not on the PSP -- and I don't think on the PS3, either! I've played many hours of demos and PS1 classics downloaded from the Japanese PlayStation Store on my American PSP, without any modding or custom firmware or anything. All you need to do is log into PSN, and when it asks what language you speak, select 日本語 instead of English, and bam -- you'll be connected to the Japanese PlayStation Store. Signing up for an account is a slight hassle, since you need to type a valid Japanese mailing address... and you can't use non-Japanese credit cards, so you have to purchase PSN cards from sites like NCSX or Play-Asia to buy games (which actually worked out for the best in the end, since it means I'm not at all at risk of having my credit card number stolen due to the PSN hack!)... but those are the only hurdles.
I can't speak for Microsoft, but I do know that Nintendo region-locks EVERYTHING, downloaded content included. Heck, the DS *wasn't* region-locked... but with the release of the DSi, surprise, now it is! And so is the 3DS, and the Wii!
Compare that with the PSP and PS3, which have no region-locking whatsoever for games (aside from PS1 and PS2 games played on the PS3, anyway).
I just hope Sony is smart enough to leave the NGP region-unlocked.
-Tom
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Post by cj iwakura on May 5, 2011 20:48:46 GMT -5
If the NGP is region free, I will buy it on day one.
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Post by PooshhMao on May 6, 2011 0:57:09 GMT -5
Don't you want to wait for a while first and see what games come out for it?
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Post by wyrdwad on May 6, 2011 1:01:31 GMT -5
Don't you want to wait for a while first and see what games come out for it? Falcom's already stated that they'll be developing for it. That's good enough for me. (: -Tom |
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