First PSP defect reports

Yeah, we know no product launch—especially an initial product launch—is without its fair share of problems, but if these reports of major PSP defects coming in over the wires have any truth to them (no comment) there are going to be some eager Japanese gamers out there in for a surprise or two. Like, say, numerous dead pixels, dead drives, analog sticks not working and even falling off, and even screens with dust and "air bubbles" (whatever that means). Apparently some people can even make the UMD drive eject by twisting the unit in a particular way (again, no comment). No word yet what the exact defect rate is right now, but we're going to take a wild guess that it's probably very low.

[Thanks, Brandon]

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Well, I'm going to take a wild guess that the PSP is built like most Sony products. I mean they're not exactly known for durability and toughness. I don't know how big of a deal it is but I think people might have had some unrealistic expectations for how well this thing is put together. It's a cheap piece of ill-fitting plastic with a lot of moving parts, not some sort of precisely machined anodized titanium.

[macstibs @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I don't think you can anodize titanium. ;-)

[_ @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I'm pretty sure you can.
http://mrtitanium.com/anodizing.html

[Jake @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

How stupid are some people? Hmmm if I take a product and twist it and turn it and almost crack the plastic through sheer force, I can make something happen that isn't normally suppose to happen! Idiots. It's like complaining that my car door opens up a bit if I drive another car into my fender...

[michael @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

these are people who've been brought up on the nigh indestructability of gameboys.

and why even report this stuff if the defect rate is "very low."

[Brandon Campbell @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

yay, my first contribution gets posted, thanks philip ****anxiously awaits next Podcast****

[Kamalot @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I don't think the unit should pop open while in use, even if you twist the unit. Twisting it mild compared to what a portable game system will go through. It will be dropped, tossed into a bag, squished by someone's butt on the sofa.

Think about how these things are used by gamers. Controllers should be sturdy and durable. The PSP is nothing more than a controller with a game system built inside.

Based on the build quality of the PS2, I have to admit, I'm not shocked though.

[Lynxplus @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

"Yeah, we know no product launch�especially an initial product launch�is without its fair share of problems"

-I havent heard any problems having to do with the DS's hardware/software... Am I wrong here?

-So I guess this is what sony is doing with their now defunked Clie Department, creating more poor portable products. I was gonna have DS/PSP the more and more I read the less I feel like making the costly investment that it will take to get everything I need for the PSP to live up to the fantasy I have created.

[adam @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I'll tell you guys something about the Japanese market, and why they get this stuff first.

They are very eager to get the latest, newest tech. toys out. They want it now, and will accept defects much more quickly than people from North America will.

This is exactly why they delay the release for North America, and exactly why we typically have a revision or two done before it hits our shores.

To report on it like this -- while it may all hold true, is a bit harsh; without this disclaimer about how the different markets are, it's impossible to tell the difference between 'oh no, i shoudln't buy this', to, 'oh ok, it's not quite done yet'.

[Kamalot @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

You should really watch this video...

http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~cf6y-oot/umd/fly_004.avi

[mike @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

well the DS has the screen defects, like any screen.. those damn red dots etc do occur.. and there was that weird thing where it was screwing up ppl's TV's

also.. a huge misstep in the DS launch is that.. you can't find one ;)

they're pretty much sold out.. damn Nintendo for making a great product that has already sold about 1.5M units...

[raulr @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Just saw the video on Kamalot's post. Pretty funny. It seemed like completly normal game play when the disc went flying. I could see if it was somewhat abusive, but it didn't look like it took much for that disc to go flying.

[Vance @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

The UMD drive eject thing was a real disappointment for me. I wanted to love my friend's PSP. (The screen is just gorgeous.) But in the middle of playing Ridge Racer, the machine tossed the disk on the floor. (Kind of funny for me, actually, since I hadn't sunk the money into it.)

So, I guess for slow puzzle games or something, it wouldn't be a big deal, but for games where you are really into the action--like in a high-speed driving game--you need to be very careful with the unit. The amount of twisting required is not much--certainly what can accidentally happen in a tense game.

What a shame. Such a pretty screen...

[Zer0cool @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

thats why i can't play raceing games in the car cause i'd end up hitinng people why i move with the gameboy

[kamalot @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Can people confirm that this happens with all units or is it a defect with some but not all units?

From what I am reading, it sounds like the flying UMD experience is just a result of a shoddy design and weak latch that comes undone when the case bends. I wanna know for sure though if this will happen to any PSP though.

Anyone have a PSP unit that does not do the unexpected, freeform flying UMD trick?

[Richard Bae @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Perhaps thats why UMD's are in a caddy so that when it gets ejected it doesn't shatter he he he. . . Gotta admit then Sony had some foresight in this.

[G1975 @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I'll be amazed if this turns out to be a common fault, surely Sony R&D are gonna flex the unit especially for gaming use, when Im stuck on games I often twist the controller out of frustration and I cant be the only one to do this, but hey its brand new and anyone that likes their gadgets know s,if you want em to work perfect stay away from launch day

[Kai Cherry @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Wow...you guys are suckers....then again you haven't seen/held the actual hardware so you wouldn't know the following:

The PSP was pointing down (towards that pillow) and look at dudes finger on the right hand side: its *past* the trigger buttons on the top.

he makes a "twisting" motion on the *left* side, and a sliding motion to the right with his finger on the right side...
RIGHT ON THE DAMNED OPEN BUTTON for the UMD door.

Anyone with a PSP will know *exactly* what I'm talking about.

The thing is *solid*...I'm not really sure why someone would hoax in this way...but your chain is definately being yanked, kids :)

-K

[Ben @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I just picked up a PSP and it's solid. The only complaint I have is that it's real easy to smudge up the screen so buy a nice polishing cloth to keep it clean. The video that shows the disk flying out is due to twisting the unit like wringing out a washcloth, and if you do that you are a friggin idiot and should be bashed on the head with said PSP.
One thing about the games, with Ridge racers, some parts noticeably the game menus are all in Japanese, even with all of the system settings set to english.

[falseXenophanes @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Concerning " dirt and/or air bubbles" on the new PSP. The reason first gen PSP's might have them is the way the front of the device is laminated ( ie. no " edge" where the screen starts ). If not done just right , dirt and or air pockets become trapped just sub-surface giving impression of air bubbles

[Eric @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

The Disk Eject Issue is very true.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/12/17/news_6115293.html

It happen to game spots' unit. Here is a quote from them.

"As to the flying-disc glitch, we were brave enough to use one of our precious PSP units to test the theory. We stabilized the unit with our left hand, turned forward ever so slightly with our right and--SHAZAM!--out the disc popped."

[Stephen @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

This whole situation is halarious. The PSP has been getting hyped up for so long and although it is true that the Japenese market on this one proves to be the "test dummies" once again, does it make it right that they get all this crappy defective hardware.

Sony is trying their best to lower the price of their precious new handheld so that they can hang with Nintendo who is well known for killing other companies hopes and dreams... look at the Sega GameGear that was way ahead of Nintendo at the time it came out and still got shot down.

Everyone was ready to turn their back on Nintendo and jump all over sony. I dont know why people love to hate Nintendo but I am personally a big fan and got my DS on launch day... it is a great piece of hardware and I am looking forward to what they can pull out of it.

I was really starting to admire the psp but then here comes Sony again with their problem plagued launch... doubts are starting to form once again in my head...

[T Roy @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I've only played the DS a couple of times at EB Games and never touched a PSP. For those of you who think there's only going to be one survivor in this you are wrong. Both of them might end up being as boring as that dust collecting GBA on your desk because developers won't put out a good game or they could bring up new changes and help gaming in general. For those of you who obiviously lie and say you have a PSP, quit acting a fool.

[Bryan @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

A couple comments here....

I bought two DS's on release day, one of them came with two dead pixels. Also, the touch screens seem to scratch exceptionally easily using the Nintendo stylus playing Metroid. I'm no kid and am very careful with my stuff, but still quite a few scratches accrued just over a week. Same happened with the other unit I bought for my wife.

I also just picked up a PSP two days before Xmas from a local import shop. My unit came out of the box with several defects in the LCD. First, there is a TON of dust accumilated under the faceplate. Second, there are two nicks/chips in the LCD's surface, under the faceplate. Third, while I wouldn't characterize it as an 'air bubble' there is definately something wrong with the LCD... which I can best describe as this: it looks like there is some kind of film applied directly over the LCD... and in mine, it looks like this film was either warped, or not applied correctly, giving a shimmery rainbow effect whenever the screen is viewed in bright light (outdoors).

Nintendo took care of my dead pixel problem gratis, already sent me a new DS.

For the PSP, it would seem I'm screwed, and out quite a bit of money on a unit that is only bearable in a dimly lit room.

I have not been able to get my UMD to pop out thru normal play, and am not gonna try twisting it.

[Bryan @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I forgot to mention, the shimmery rainbow effect I get viewing the screen in bright light, only happens over approximately the middle third of the screen. It's very blotchy and almost looks like someone spilled some oily liquid on the middle section of the screen.

[defect @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Here are more videos of actual normal gameplay and the UMD pops out. Also the PSP is turned on and nothing happens. One last thing is a pic of the square button look at it carefully the inside isnt matched up. http://overclockers.at/showthread.php?s=c49542e429fd2d585fec4cea2cc10e39&postid=1722715#post1722715

[gamer @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

as for the DS touch screen scratching. you are being misled.the stylus leaves marks. but they are easily removed with a soft damp cloth. the screen only scratches if you violently run the stylus along the screen. i have one scratch from my mother playing the snowball race minigame in super mario 64 DS. she stabbed it(accidentally mind you) i told her that you were supposed to go really fast but she incorperated fast with uncareful. and i have tryed to bend my DS. solid as a rock. even the thinner top part of the DS is solid as a rock.

[dig dug @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Ok now the ds touch screen dosent scratch.
if you touch it with your thumb than grease gets on the screen. Those "scratches" are the stylus wiping away the grease so it looks scratchy

[Jim @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Well, a friend and I went over to J&L gaming in Chinatown (Elizabeth ave, right off Canal) and we got PSP's shortly after they came out.

The UMD pops out with VERY LITTLE TORQUE! I'm not talking about grabbing it and twisting the damn thing, I'm talking you're holding in in your hands and press a button or the control pad a little too hard and pop goes the UMD.

We didn't have problems with our screens, but they are much more sensitive to cold than the DS's screens. The square button is freaking horrible. It doesn't work half the time, and it gets stuck other times.

Battery life is atrocious! I work on an ambulance third shift, and I have to recharge the thing 3 times a night! It doesn't seem to keep a charge when it's off either.

The games are horrible...so are most of the DS's as of late, but the PSP games are truly horrible.

Bottom line, at least I can play my GBA games on my DS while I wait for new games to come out...the DS works, perfectly. The PSP is a train wreck, and you would have to be a blind follower to not see it. To be honest, I can't wait till all these idiots that don't own one and defend the hell out of it finally buy one on the 24th. I'm gonna laugh my a$$ off when they experience these problems too. Why do I feel that way? Because I see a lot fo ignorant posts defending this piece of crap from people that don't even own one, and you have to have a very low IQ to defend that wich you have not experienced yourself.

[Jim @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

BAH! Typos are the work of the devil!!

[jj @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

The PSP is the suckiest thing ever. For all these defects. They are stupid. And the DS touch screen does not scratch!!! It's called drawing a line through dust...

[cpuhog @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Hi. I'm not a hardcore gamer but I was very excited about getting my PSP yesterday. I went to my local CircuitCity and got the very first one to be sold. BUT the unit had groups of three indentations on the screen (air bubbles or something clearly visible -- again indentations in groups of three) ... I returned it and the customer-rep and a manager opened three more units which had the same defect.

I'm not crazy neither are they ... I went to an EBGames and check one of their units and it was perfect (no defects as the ones I saw at Circuit City).

Now, such indentantions may become more evident if you put a screen guard .. or may worsen with time. Not sure; however, the defects were real and it seems that CC received a batch of PSPs with quality issues.

[LiLhOcKeYbOy @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Posted Dec 14, 2004, 11:14 PM ET by kamalot

Can people confirm that this happens with all units or is it a defect with some but not all units?

From what I am reading, it sounds like the flying UMD experience is just a result of a shoddy design and weak latch that comes undone when the case bends. I wanna know for sure though if this will happen to any PSP though.

Anyone have a PSP unit that does not do the unexpected, freeform flying UMD trick?


I got one, and i've tried to twis it to check. Mine isn't fine though. For veryone who doen';t no, the air bubbles look like little dents in the screen. The dust is annoying as heck too. I love my psp, and i dont like the DS, but sony wont say that they have problems.
I've returned it once, and it hase the same problems. I might return it today, and pray to God that i get a good one.

[LiLhOcKeYbOy @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

oh, and i got one with no air bubbles, but i satrted to play nfu rivals, and there they go. Its rally weird

[dino valentini @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

has anyone had a problem with the memory stick compartment popping open during play?

[balubear235 @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

i got my psp about 3 weeks ago. I don't have any problems with the UMD popping out of it. But 3 days ago I found out about an "air bubble/dirt/shadow" the size of my thumb on the screen. it is visible when the machine is on but it disappears when the PSP is off!. It is still annoying though.

[kevin @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

About the PSP's flying UMD: NOT TRUE. I bought the PSP about a month after it's US release. I haven't had any problems with it yet. I just tried to twist the right side and absolutely nothing happened. My screen is beautiful, with the exception of one pixel the size of a grain of sand being white during game play. It is almost invisible, though, and I have to concentrate to see it. The PSP, in my opinion, is a very high-quality machine that does it's intended job superbly. The movies are DVD quality, if you are alone and have nice earphones on. The audio is 5.1-ish, and I cannot tell the difference between PS2 graphics and the PSP games. Sony hit the mark with the UMD, I am just hoping that they come out with a player/remote/RCA jack output machine that can be hooked up to my television. I will then be in heaven. The PSP is rugged and defect free....at least mine is. The DS; I don't think so. It still looks like cheap Nintendo crap to me. I have no idea why they are still around. Mario World was fun but the PSP eats all of their system's combined for breakfast. One fault: The PSP's Media card cover does open during gameplay. But for such a serene screen and wide array of media I/O, that is acceptable.

[shyheim69 @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

i bought a psp awhile ago and it had a bunch of dead pixels so i took it back i had to do this 3 times b4 i got one that was dead pixel free. when u got home and started using taht one it was fine till i noticed that there was these little dents in the screen in about 6 places. they look like someone took a pin and pricked it. also i have this shadow under the screen like when u get out of the shower and the morror gets all foggy looks like that im gonna take it back to best buy on tuesday and try and get a different one.

[Matt @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

why can't i see my screen when i go outside help me!!!

[Matt @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

another thing, my battery cover sticks very slightly. and it feels uncomfortable when i play. does ne1 else have this problem??

[4 PSPs!!!! @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Ok guys,

After reading all of your complaints I just had to comment. I have gone through the same horror stories as the rest of you. I got a PSP with one dead pixel in the center and two air bubbles on the screen's plastic surface just above the LCD. I tried to like it but I just couldn't. I then took it back to Fry's and ended up going through 3 more. Each one was worse than my original. One had 8-10 dead pixels. Unacceptable for the size of the screen. I am now PSP less...

Beyond just the dead pixels are the air bubbles I have seen in the plastic covering of the LCD itself. I think this problem is even worse than the dead pixels. I have not encountered a PSP that doesn't have these. If you run your finger over the screen they will appear as small pot marks or dents in the screen. If you want to see if you have them hold your screen in a bright location (room with lights on or outside) and tilt the PSP and look at the screen from a 30 degree angle.

There are a lot of people saying that 1-2 dead pixels is ok for the PSP and you should live with it. Well, you shouldn't. I buy and use a lot of LCD's and most have no more than 2 dead pixels. The most common LCD resolution is probably around 1280x1024. Thats a total of 1,310,720 pixels. Now take the PSP into account. It has a resolution of 480x272, which is only 130,560 pixels. There is no reason we should be seeing PSP's with dead pixels in the range of 2-8. Especially when the PSP's main attraction is the supposed quality of its display. From my experience if you got a perfect screen you should consider yourself very very very very very lucky. Since 5 may be the number it takes me to get a good one :-P. I would love to continue to hear peoples responses to these posts and if you have any info on what Sony is doing about it I would love to know. That will be a factor in determining when I buy a new one. Thanks.

[Emily @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I have two PSPs at my house, none are defective. No dead pixels, the UMD stay where they are suposed to, and no air bubbles. I know another person with a PSP and theirs is just fine also. I don't know where you people are getting your PSPs, but I think you should look some place else. Maybe the stores are ruff with them or something.

[Feross @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I have a PSP, and it is perfectly 100% fine. It has NO DEFECTS and is perfect. All this talk of defects and problems is stupid.

Feross
[spam deleted]

[dontcare4urshyt @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I have a PSP. Had it for a while.. No problems. screens good. Id like the sound to be louder. And the screen is no good when your outside on a sunny day. Its like looking in a mirror. I like the PSP and use it a lot. since getting it the PS2 and Xbox have been retired. Battery life is awesome (Almost 6 hours). actually. i do have another complaint. the left button on the directional controller is way to close to the edge of the unit and when you use it a lot it crampos your thumb. the analog button is too low to use also.

[TriggerFX @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

I bought a psp , played like 4 hours on it and tried to recharge the battery , IT DOESNT WORK.
It keeps saying that the battery is already recharged while it is empty.
I dont know what this means...

UPDATE: I replaced the battery with a new one and after that battery went dead , i got the same prob AGAIN.

Damn..what could this be...

HELP!!!?!

[KOOBAZI @ Dec 19th 2005 1:03AM]

Dude the psp sux in my opinion i returned 15 of them and had the same prob i think that sony really needs to redesign the psp and make the psp with less problems i had everythin go wrong with the psp dead pixles (like 20 of them) broken l button broken square button broken directional buttons broken umd drive broken analog stick i could go on and on SONY NEEDS TO GET THESE PROBS FIXED