Sony PlayStation Portable/PSP hands-on review

 

 
We got our dirty mitts on a PlayStation Portable! Read on for a nice long review with plenty of pics:

Introduction

Ever since the Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) was announced at E3 in May 2004, we have been eagerly anticipating the hottest console launch (sorry Nintendo DS) this year, even if it is only for the Japanese market right now. We were fortunate enough to get a unit to test a mere five days after the Japanese release date and have been playing with it all weekend. The Sony PSP features a large 4.3-inch 16:9 widescreen LCD TFT screen with a 480x272 resolution, button layout similar to the PlayStation with a digital control pad, an analog stick, circle, square, triangle, x, and 2 shoulder buttons, USB 2.0 connectivity (via mini-USB), a Memory Stick Duo media slot, and 802.11b WiFi support. It uses Sony's proprietary Universal Media Disc, which stores up to 1.8GB in a format reminiscent of MiniDiscs. The Japanese launch release date was December 12th and the first shipment of PSPs quickly sold out. 

The Box

We got the Standard edition PSP, which comes with the PSP itself, a battery, an AC adapter, and a manual, along with Ridge Racers and Minna No Golf Portable. (The Value Pack adds a 32MB Memory Stick Duo, a soft carrying case, and headphones with an in-line remote.) The box does not come with a sticker seal of any sort, which we weren't quite used to considering anything and everything comes with some sort of factory seal here in the US.

When we shook the product box, we could hear some rattling around. We weren't too thrilled about that, since the unit did come a long ways from Japan. Luckily, when we opened the package, the PSP fits snugly into the surrounding cardboard, the rattling we heard was mostly likely the power adapter cables. We noticed a lack of any type of demo disc included with the unit. Some PSP Value Packs apparently do come with a UMD Demo Disc, but we've also heard from a few people that got Value Packs without any demo discs inside as well.

The Unit Itself

When you first lay your hands on the PSP, you immediately notice the screen. The 4.3-inch display dominates the device, it looks like it takes up two-thirds of the real estate on the front fascia. In other words, massive. The unit feels expensive, and exudes sexiness, much like Apple's iPods (and you know how big of a fan we are of iPods). The unit feels perfectly balanced when held with both hands. It does not feel like a $200 console (Japan MSRP for console only) at all. We're sure Sony is losing a few hundred bucks off each unit sold as the PSP easily feels like it's worth $400 of gadgetry (when compared to portable video and audio players and the DS). We feel Sony could have gotten away with a $300 sticker price, but in an effort to destroy Nintendo's firm grasp of the handheld gaming market, they've set the price just $50 more than the Nintendo DS (which was released in both Japan and US markets just last month). It feels like an extreme bargain for two bills. The screen is immersive, drawing you in when playing videos or games and so big that you may not need your glasses to play. The black color fits well and matches the Playstation 2's color. The dimples across the top row of the screen reminded us of carbon fiber, currently the rage in import tuner cars.

When you pay for a new console, you expect it to be perfect. Alas, ours was not. We noticed two lit pixels (always-on pixels), one in the middle of the screen, about one-fourth of the way down, and one near the very right edge of the screen. So out of 130,560 pixels on the LCD screen, we got two defective ones. It's actually not too noticeable unless you look for it and we didn't notice until we played with the PSP in pitch black darkness. We could make a big fuss, but we'll just deal with it, and hope that Sony will be as honorable as Nintendo when fixing units with dead pixels for their customers.

Another complaint of the PSP so far has been the ejecting UMD problem in which the user in the video appears to flex the PSP quite a bit to get it to eject spontaneously. We're happy to report that we didn't have such problems with any self-ejecting discs and that our PSP is built rather solidly, though we didn't dare to twist the unit as hard as we could. We initially had some light squeaking noises when we pressed right on the directional pad, but after a weekend of use, the annoying sound has disappeared.

The PSP, with battery, Memory Stick Pro Duo, and UMD inserted, weighs 10.3 ounces, making it fine to put in a jacket pocket (with case or cover of course), but not exactly friendly in a pants pocket with its long form factor. We've heard of some Japanese folks wearing the PSP like a necklace (there is a strap handle at the bottom left section of the PSP), but as cool as that may make them look, we didn't think our necks could take the strain.

Unfortunately, with the fine glossy screen comes the problem of fingerprints and smudges. While we didn't use latex gloves while handling the unit, we were very careful to try and handle it with the utmost of care. That said, there were smudges around the control buttons within seconds. It's pretty much unavoidable to smudge the smooth front cover, so we recommend a very soft cloth to wipe off smudges and smears, but make sure the cloth doesn't scratch up the LCD. The back of the unit is textured plastic and does not smudge. Within an hour of playing some games on the PSP and constantly wiping off smudges, there were some light scratches on the screen. We're hoping that Sony will sell replacement PSP faceplates at a reasonable price.

The front of the PSP unit has the directional pad on the left side, and the analog thumb stick (looks like speaker mesh) below that. The analog thumb stick is quite a burden to use since it's so far down, as there is no thumb support from the unit when you use it. It was fine to play Ridge Racers with it, but after 15 minutes, we felt as if we were getting thumbitis with a sore thumb joint. To the right of the LCD is the standard circle, square, triangle, and x buttons any Playstation junkie has become accustomed to. The left and right trigger buttons are at the top of the unit and are clear, looking a bit like jewelry. All buttons on our review unit were easy to press and click fast if necessary.

 

The bottom edge of the PSP is raised ever so slightly, with buttons for Home, lowering and raising the volume, brightness, sound settings for various music genres, and Select and Start buttons. While Home, Select, and Start are quite easy to press since the size of the buttons are a good size, the volume and brightness and music buttons take quite a bit of effort to depress as the buttons are half the size of the other ones and further away if you use your thumbs to depress. Since you may use the volume buttons quite a bit, it's a bit of a pain and there seems to be enough room on the left bottom side to put in larger buttons for volume. But at least the volume buttons are not essential for quick pressing during gaming. For brightness, there are three settings, from Dim to Bright to Brightest (our wording), we found Bright to be the adequate enough. Since there's still not much sun in Seattle this time of year, we were unable to test the PSP in direct sunlight.

 

The left side of the unit has the WiFi switch, a quick flip up and the WiFi mode is set to on.

At the top edge is an infrared transmitter, a mini-USB connector and the Eject button for loading UMDs. Sony is planning an infrared remote controller for the PSP, and it looks like any future PSP add-ons will be plugged in up top, as there's two locking holes on each side of the mini-USB port.

The combined power and hold switch is on the lower right side, you can push the switch down for hold, and pushing the slider up turns it on. The button always returns to the middle after pushing it up, which we found a bit annoying. A simple On/Off/Hold switch would have been easier to handle. When you power it on, the PSP returns you to where you left off (like returning from a hibernation state in Windows XP, but without any delays at all). When you toggle hold during a game, the PSP buttons become disabled, and the game just continues. Hold is probably most useful when playing a video or a music album and you don't want any accidental button presses to interfere.

 

The bottom right is where the AC adapter plug goes in, which we find is quite an odd placement for it. When gaming with the power line plugged in, your right hand will feel the cord and plug. While it doesn't interfere per se, it would have been much neater if the power port was placed on the top edge of the unit. Not a huge knock, just a slight inconvenience. The left side is where the headphones plug in. When used, the headphone plug doesn't interfere with our movement as much as the AC adapter one because the headphones plug is on the bottom half of the PSP. Also at the bottom edge a sticker in a recessed area, with the product number and serial number in the middle. We don't we see it lasting after a few months of hardcore use nor do we see the point of this sticker, as there is actually an etched serial number in the battery compartment.

USB Connectivity

In USB Mode, if you have a Memory Stick Duo or Pro Duo inserted, you can connect a mini-USB cable to the top of the PSP, and it acts like a USB drive, allowing you to access any folders or content on the Memory Stick. Windows XP immediately recognized the device as a Removable Disk after we plugged in the cable. File transfers both ways were incredibly fast thanks to the USB 2.0 support.

Universal Media Discs

The Sony PSP uses a proprietary 1.8GB Universal Media Disc (UMD) format, in part an effort to thwart piracy and so they can control what gets released for their system. They are much like MiniDiscs (the actual disc just slightly smaller), but with one serious drawback, a gaping hole in the back of the plastic case (no doubt for the PSP to read in data). While we know some of you are very meticulous and careful when handling your disc-based media, we also know quite a few people that have scratched up DVDs and games. We just don't get why Sony didn't put a metal faceplate over the hole like they do for MiniDiscs.

UMD games are packaged in a plastic section which the UMD fits snugly into. But there is no small plastic case for UMDs (ala Gameboy carts) and one can not reasonably be expected to carry around the full game box when transporting extra games with the system. We're sure third party UMD plastic cases will be out soon enough, but for now, you'll have to resort to carrying the whole game box, as we don't recommend just putting a UMD in your pocket to carry around.

The UMD drive makes a whirring noise at times when loading games or levels (but not while actually playing). It's not too obnoxious and sort of sounds like a hard drive spinning up, but you do hear it. After living with solid state handheld games (cartridges), we had to get used to load times again. The original Playstation 1 had horrid load times for some games, but it did improve over time as programmers got to know the system. We hope the same will be true for the PSP as it took 19 seconds after selecting UMD to get to the Namco logo on Ridge Racers. During the game, it took 10 seconds to load the course after selecting all the options. For Minna No Golf, it took 25 seconds to get to the intro screen and 16 seconds to start playing from the menu. It's tolerable but an aspect that could use some improvement.

Targeting the Adult Market

While kids will surely be begging their parents for the PSP (my 4 year-old nephew asked his father for one immediately after seeing it), Sony is targeting a more mature audience. We don't see younger kids handling the UMDs with the open area well and we can just picture screen scratches within a day after little Jimmy has their hands on one. As a friend pointed out, this system is perfect for the Japanese audience, a country where they are known for cleanliness, neatness, and taking care of their electronics well. That, sadly, can not be said for the American audience (in general), we are just more rough with our gear. It will be interesting to see if Sony changes the PSP at all for the American audience and we're thinking the USA warranty should be at least a year.  This may be one of those times where you will actually want to purchase the extended warranty program.

 

First Bootup

At first bootup we were greeted with the option to choose between Japanese and English. Next you can give your PSP a nickname (for network play) via cellphone type text entry (press 2 three times for the letter C, etc). Seeing how the PSP has plenty of room for a keyboard layout on the screen, we would have much preferred that. The Japanese are used to the phone keypad text entry system, so I'm sure it's not a big deal to them, but for the US release, we hope they change it. Another annoying interface aspect was when we entered our IP address for the PSP. We had to scroll up and down through 256 numbers (0 to 255), rather than manually entering numerals. It's not very fun to scroll for 16 sets of numbers.

After setting it to English the menus are pretty self-explanatory, the main options are Settings, Photo, Music, Video, and Game. Some of the options may not be available if you don't have a Memory Stick Pro Duo inserted.

Japanese Differences

As was the case with the Japanese versions of the PlayStation 1 and 2, the button you choose to select with is the Circle button not the X button (like in the US versions). The X button thus becomes the back or cancel option. When you're used to using X to select everything, there will be times you forget and accidentally hit the wrong button. The manual is in Japanese, not that we needed it at all for anything. Other than those two things, the PSP itself is very English-speaker friendly.

Battery Life

The PSP is powered by a 100-240V (5A) universal power adapter, which means you can use it anywhere in the world practically. There have been reports of a weak two hours of battery life when playing complex 3D games. We fully charged up our PSP battery and popped in Ridge Racers for non-stop gaming. We set the brightness to the middle level and set the volume to 15 button presses from 0 (the max volume is 30). That level of brightness and volume is adequate for the average gamer during gameplay. With no breaks in between, we played non-stop for 3 hours and 35 minutes. We also tried another Ridge Racers test, playing one game, then letting the system run through the replay in an infinite loop. That test also resulted in a similar playtime of 3 hours and 31 minutes.

While not superb, 3.5 hours is acceptable and you can always buy a spare battery (~$45) if you need it. Cheaper third party batteries will show up sooner or later as well. We had really hoped the PSP could be charged via mini-USB, but unfortunately Sony did not include that support. But to be fair, our mini-USB cable was not able to charge our Motorola RAZR V3 cellphone either, though the phone is supposedly capable of doing so. So it may be that we have a bunk USB cable. If anyone has gotten their PSP to charge via USB, let us know. We'd also like to see a cigarette lighter power adapter for long road trips.

After 3.5 hours of nonstop gaming, the unit is just barely warm to the touch. I ejected the UMD and the disc felt just the tiniest bit warm too. So hopefully that's a sign of no overheating problems (which plagued the first-generation Sony Playstations, anyone remember turning it upside down to alleviate the problem?).

Memory Stick Duo

The Sony is hoping that the PSP will help make the Memory Stick Pro Duo a viable memory card format, especially since the PSP does not take any of the older Memory Stick formats like the Memory Stick Pro. It only takes the tiny Duo flash memory card, which is about 85% of the size of a Secure Digital (SD) card. We believe the highest current available size is 512MB, retailing for $130 at stores (or about $85 shipped on eBay), and we have not seen the 1GB version in stock anywhere. You will need a Memory Stick to save your games or if you want to play MP3s or videos on it. The Ridge Racers save game takes up about 700K and Minna No Golf Portable needs about 769K.

After formatting your Memory Stick Duo or Pro Duo in the PSP, you get a PSP directory, and GAME, MUSIC, PHOTO, SAVEDATA folders within that. The game folder will eventually house downloadable games or demos from the Internet, music is for your MP3s, photo for your JPGs, and save data for your saved games. Video files need to go in a different folder which we will get into later this week.

Photos

For photo viewing, GIF, BMP, and PNG files aren't supported by the PSP, but standard JPG ones are. When you have a full-sized 4 or 5 megapixel JPG file, the PSP takes a bit of time for it to load, about 3 seconds for a 1.8MB JPG file. It automatically crops the photo (most photos are in the 4:3 format), leaving white space on the sides of the picture when it is displayed (see above).

For photos that you have cropped or Photoshopped to the PSP's native 480x272 resolution (say hi to my Yorkshire terrier, Yoda), the picture loads immediately and looks sharp with excellent detail. You can get file information (filename and file date), do a slideshow, or zoom in to certain parts of the picture. The photo gallery works much like Windows Explorer, showing a thumbnail of the picture, the filename, and date. You can also create folders within the \PSP\Photo directory in Windows Explorer to organize your photos. In the Photo section, when you press the Triangle button, you can delete folders or pictures, or get more information about a picture, including its full resolution and which camera took the shot by accessing the EXIF information within the JPG file itself.

Playing Music

The biggest knock on Sony in the past has been their insistence of using the ATRAC format, forcing you to convert your beloved MP3s to their proprietary format before their players could play it. They have finally listened to their users and done away with ATRAC only with native MP3 support in the PSP. Just drop files into your PSP/Music folder and your PSP can play them directly. The speakers are at the bottom of the unit, and the two little holes on the bottom produce good sound. We played a variety of MP3s just fine, including some variable bit rate ones, but we're sorry to report that we didn't have any ATRAC files to test out.

Playing Videos

Videos look amazing on the widescreen. The picture is sharp and detailed, and colors are vibrant. While it's fine to hold the PSP in your hands when playing games or watching short clips, it gets a bit tiresome if you're watching something an hour or more in length (rest assured that Sony will be putting out a stand for the PSP).

 

WiFi Setup

Setting up the 802.11b WiFi is easy. Just name your connection (Home, Work, etc), put in the SSID access point name, a WEP key if any, and then setup IP and DNS addresses (or choose automatic if using DHCP). There's a network test when you are done, telling you your current signal strength and whether your Internet connection succeeded or not. Taking a page from Microsoft, you can also update the PSP OS via a Network Update. Our tech geekiness led us to try to update the system (it's less than a week old) before even playing games. Our system already had the latest version, as there were no updates from Sony.

The PSP in Public

Not that we expected anyone to,  but no one noticed when we whipped out the PSP to wait in line at the post office (for a lousy 30 minutes!) to mail a package. But we were surprised when we started playing while standing in line at Best Buy (to get a Sandisk 512MB Memory Stick Pro Duo for a whopping $130) and got no attention, either (though we were only in line for about 10 minutes). The checkout droids didn't say anything either.

But when we took the PSP to the mall for a little tour (just outside a game shop), it was a different story. Within a few minutes a bunch of kids who looked to be aged 10 to 12 were asking questions about it, mainly where we got ours from and how much. (Kids these days must be on a different allowance scale than when we were kids, because when we said it would be just $200 come March or so, they were all over it and said they were sure that they'd get one.) Within 10 minutes we had gathered a small crowd of ten, all drooling over the gorgeous screen. With the Nintendo DS anyone looking over your shoulder may have a hard time to see what's going on, while the PSP is also a watch-while-I-play kind of system, and the people that were looking over our shoulders at the mall didn't have any problem seeing what was going on. We didn't stay too long, fearing a mob scene as people started calling their friends over.

PlayStation Portable vs. the Nintendo DS

We love the Nintendo DS, but it is bulky and feels and looks like a child's toy from the 1980s compared to the PSP, which is definitely one well-designed, slick little handheld. The DS weighs exactly 10 ounces with the thumb strap, battery, and DS game inserted (10.4 ounces if you add in a GBA cart), just slightly less than the PSP's 10.3 ounces. But two 3-inch screens does not beat one 4.3-inch one, at least not in this case.

 

The DS has a touchscreen on the lower LCD, which makes for more interactivity than the PSP, and the PSP would make for a great PDA if it had touchscreen functionality. While Nintendo is planning to add music and video to the DS for $50, the PSP has both features already, and video just won't be the same on a 3-inch DS screen, especially when compared to the PSP's 4.3-inch one. When we consider that the primary purpose of the PSP is to play games, the graphics of the PSP just blow away the Nintendo offering. The two powerful 32-bit MIPS R4000 CPUs overwhelms the Nintendo DS ARM7 and ARM9 processors. One direct comparison would be Ridge Racer DS vs Ridge Racers for the PSP, both created by Namco. The DS version has some chunky pixelated graphics (see above picture courtesy of GameSpot) and the lower touchscreen looks rather useless in terms of gameplay usage. The PSP's Ridge Racers is Playstation 2-like, with smoother graphics and more detail in the cars. The one redeeming factor of Ridge Racer DS is that only one copy of the game is needed for up to 6-player wireless multiplayer action.

 

PlayStation Portable vs. Creative's Zen Portable Media Center

The Creative Zen Portable Media Center (PMC) is a portable media player with a 3.8-inch 4:3 screen and a 20GB hard drive, but beyond the hard drive (and perhaps 7 hour video battery life and TV output), it does not compare too favorably with the PSP. Since we do not yet have the Sony Image Converter software, it is easier to transcode video files to the PMC. But the PMC is a lot thicker and uses the 4:3 screen format, which in the current age of HDTV is going the way of the dodo bird. Interestingly enough the Sony PSP AC adapter can actually charge the PMC as well since the plug fits and both units use the same voltage power. Watching standard 4:3 size videos is okay on the PMC, but when you go to 16:9 format shows or movies, you definitely notice the annoying black bars on the PMC. In direct video comparisons, the PMC picture looks washed out (as you can tell in the pictures) and much grainier. I'm not sure why the 4:3 video on the PSP wasn't bigger, but it's still more clear and detailed. In the 16:9 Shark Tale trailer, I have no idea why the PMC didn't set the video to 16:9 format, as the original source was widescreen, but again, the PSP handily wins that comparo as well. 

The PMC has only one speaker (at the bottom right corner of the screen) for mono sound, whereas the PSP has two little speakers for stereo sound. The PMC has slightly better sound (even with only one speaker) and has a higher maximum volume, but when using a pair of Shure E3C earbuds to listen to some MP3s, we found audio fidelity to be great in both devices, with no noticeable quality difference.

PlayStation Portable vs. Apple's iPod photo

Apple's iPod photo handily beats the PSP in terms of the MP3 interface, ease of use, playlist creation, and storage space. We didn't have an standard iPod or iPod photo to do direct comparisons with, but we did do a listening test with an iPod mini. Again using Shure E3C earbuds, we found no discernable difference in audio quality between the PSP and the iPod mini, as both were equally superb with a variable bit rate MP3. When viewing JPGs, the 2-inch iPod Photo screen size just doesn't bode well for viewing pictures, plus you need to use iTunes to convert any JPGs into a format the iPod Photo can read. The PSP can directly read any JPG file (and fits the JPG onto the screen) and the pictures look gorgeous on the 4.3-inch screen, but the only downside of the PSP is that you can not listen to an MP3 file while browsing photos and it doesn't output the picture to a TV.

Is the PSP an iPod (or iPod Photo) killer? No, but could it be an iPod video killer (when and if that finally comes out)? Perhaps, but only if Memory Stick prices go down in price and storage sizes go way up. Or if Sony opens up the UMD format (we can hope, can't we?) and lets people write to their own 1.8GB UMD discs. We're not sure what Apple has in store in terms of a video iPod player, but obviously they'd have to make the screen at least somewhat comparable to the one on the PSP and loads better than the iPod Photo's 2-inch screen.

Games

Ridge Racers is definitely a hit, and we've yet to hear anyone buy the PSP without buying RR too. Just like the original Ridge Racer was a success when the Sony PlayStation came out, Ridge Racers is a system seller. The intro CG looks amazing, and when you play the game, you get a sense of speed, which you need in a racing title. There were no graphic pop-ups, but you can notice jagged edges (jaggies) if you look close enough, namely the edge of the course (the bottom of the side walls) as you are driving. It may be a little distracting to some, but we aren't that critical to count it as a major flaw. The game itself has some intentional motion blur (we hope intentional at least) when you see the computer controlled cars turning in corners, their brake lights will blur a bit on the screen. There is some Japanese language in Ridge Racers, but overall, there's plenty of English and one can navigate through it reasonably well without knowledge of Japanese. We had to tear the PSP unit away from our test group of gamers to even try our other game.

 

Minna No Golf Portable (Everybody's Golf, or Hot Shots Golf in the US) is a good golf title. The graphics are solid, but it is golf, and we didn't experience anything spectacular from this one. We do find it weird that our character runs at hyperspeed immediately after striking the ball, and waits at the spot for the next swing, even as the ball is rolling to that point. You can put topspin or underspin on the ball, and you can also hook and slice the ball around trees. It uses the familiar old three click method for the golf swing, click once to start your swing, once to set the power, and once for accuracy. It's the same method that's been used since Links for PC has been around. The menus are heavily in Japanese, and while we were able to start a game by pressing the Circle button a few times, we had no idea what we chose. There may be guides or FAQs at GameFAQs by the time you read this.

 

Conclusion

The Sony PSP is a great handheld gaming console, one that could prove to be as revolutionary as the original Nintendo Gameboy was, not only because it's basically a handheld PlayStation 2 with powerful graphics, but because of all the other value-added features it comes with, namely the photo viewer, the audio player, and video player. The most amazing thing, hands-down about the PSP is the large 4.3-inch widescreen LCD, which is simply amazing to see in person, and at two hundred bucks retail, it's definitely a good value. There is no handheld gaming competitor that comes close to it right now in terms of gaming power, and if weren't for the low storage capacity and high price of the Memory Stick Pro Duo, it might even hold its own as a portable audio and video player. The photo viewer is superb and sharp and the sound quality of the audio player is at least on par with the iPod mini. The videos when played back from Memory Sticks are superb, there's no doubt that movies on UMD will look just as great on the widescreen.

Now maybe the time to put in your pre-orders for the February or March 2005 US PSP launch, that is if you can resist importing a system (around $500+ right now, check our PSP price watch). We really hope Sony holds to their word of no region coding on PSP games (we don't mind so much if UMD movies are region encoded), because we'd rather not have to rip apart our PSP to install a region-free modchip (which will surely come if there is region coding for games). You will pay a bit of a premium for a PSP now, unless you know someone in Japan that can get you one. The question of worth is of course dependant on what your income level is and how much you value having the latest system.

Sony PlayStation Portable Price Watch

Dead or lit pixels will continue to be an issue for any PSP buyer (as it is for any sort of LCD screen) and it's the only main gripe of our system. We're more forgiving than most for the slow load times, as it is the first generation of software, so this should get better over time. The battery life isn't amazing, so another battery is a necessity if you plan on playing the PSP more than four hours a day away from an AC outlet, and we do wish that it could be charged via USB. Other issues: it'd be nice if Sony made text input in the menus a little easier, and we would have loved to have found an Internet browser within the OS, seeing how easy the WiFi was to setup and get working. Greater Memory Stick Pro Duo storage sizes at more affordable rates should come as the system matures, as the PSP would an amazing powerhouse with a cheap 4GB of storage.

A special thanks goes out to Siu-Wai Ho of Kicks Hobby in Seattle, WA for providing the Sony Playstation Portable unit to us a mere 5 days after it's Japanese release. Thanks!

 

 

Dan Wu's personal reviews and commentaries can be read on his personal site, http://www.wooba.com.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I must say that a lot of people here are saying that you're being unfair to the Nintendo DS. Obviously these people are plainly bitter that they have now bought the DS without even thinking about investing in a piece of equipment as tasty as the PSP. Jealousy Jealousy.

I'm from the UK and have one and compared with the DS the PSP has style, it has portability and very good engineering in its design to incorporate all that it offers. The DS is a classic Nintendo soon-to-flop product. Nintendo has through time offered us its new products only to be faced with liquidation after 2 or 3 years. No one wants a Gamecube anymore, or a Nintendo 64. They're very much dead. The DS will probably by the trend of estimates be the same.

Shame on you all.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

The UK huh??? well that means nobody is going to take you seriously and you should go have tea time. The gamecube is far from dead. The nintendo 64 may be phased out but that dosent make it not fun. PSP is the classic "same thing you already have but smaller and less resolution" Id rather have a ps2, mp3 player, and photos than the psp. Well than matty how about that? G'bye old chap!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

At this point I think its about time I throw my 2-cents into this interesting and continuosly fun topic.

The Nintendo Dual Screen and the Sony PlayStation Portable: Both are incredibly wonderful machines that showcase what our God given knowledge of technology can do. Both were officially anounced at E3 2004 and ever since the fanboys took there sides and got ready for
war. Lets look at the origins of these handheld.

The first Nintendo handheld system, which needs no introduction but for sensible purposes I'll name it, The Game Boy was released in 1989. The system was a wonderful idea, take games wherever you are. Sort of the precursor to downloadable cell phone. But alot of critics point out that the systems main success was largely in part of the Soviet puzzle game, Tetris, and that if it wasn't for that game, the Game Boy would have been a failure.

Once other companies saw the success of the Game Boy, NEC, Atari, and Sega all tried to thwart the Game Boys market dominance with Color graphics, backlit screens, and bigger screens. In the end, the high prices and the low battery life killed the system's one by one. Ever since then, the Game Boy saw some incarnations. In 1998, it gave us color. in 2001, we were given Super Nintendo-like graphics in our hands. Then in 2004, Nintendo wanted to experiment with more handheld capabilities again, maybe to get more success than Nintendo's only commercial failure, the Virtual Boy. They decided "whats better than one screen? Two!" and for kicks, they threw in Touch screen capabilities and done away with link cables in favor for wireless abilities. But another company was planning to hit Nintendo where it hurts the most.

Sony released the PlayStation to combat the Sega Saturn and succeded in 1998. But it still garnered alot of competition from the Nintendo 64 and Sega's other incarnation, the Dreamcast. In the end PlayStation claimed winner when it came to sales and what better way to celebrate success by reincarnating it into something much stronger and put a 2 at the end of its name, Nintendo and Sony released their consoles and, with newcomer, Microsoft, The consoles battled for sales. For years its been the same story: Sony Leading while Microsoft and Nintendo go neck in neck. as 2004 rolled around, Sony decided to launch a full scale assault on the handheld market to safely secure its stranglehold on the video game market. And thus the PSP was born.

Alot of people argue that Nintendo, along with their systems, are more family orientated and based on a 5-12 age demographic, mostly due to Nintendo's cartoony mascots (which, despite this fact, holds a very mature cult following) and an event which happened back in the SNES days where the release of the Ultra gory and controversial Mortal Kombat was dumbed down for console audiences, in which blood was replaced with gray "Sweat". What many fail to realize is that Nintendo also produces and licenses just as much mature content as its competiors. (Perfect Dark and Conkers Bad Fur Day anyone? And isn't Resident Evil 4 gonna be out tommarow?) Nintendo stresses Games out of all, in which Sony adds the whole she-bang, Movies, MP3's and Photo's, oh and games too! While the PSP provides graphics and a whole lot of other goodies, Nintendo offers Innovation over something that hasn't been done. The PSP offers games and other abilities, the DS offers more innovation in games, it's just a question of what does a person want in a handheld console. As a DS owner, I must say that I am satisfied with it and the only complaint I have with it is weak game library. I do plan in investing in a PSP for collective purposes and I look forward to it. But I believe Sony shouldnt be messing in a field their not qualified in but, in retrospect, thats how the got to where they were in the first place.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I just read an artical on ign and rockstar games is going to relese a PSP version of grnad theft auto that is completly new, lets see the DS compete with that!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

And as personal comment to the person who was named simply "Hi" who said that Nintendo would fail and go bankrupt because people are tired of the same old gimmick that they've been using since 1985. The reason that Mario has been put through so many spin offs is simply this. MARIO SELLS! Simply that. To say Mario is a failure is an Idiocy on your part. You are a simple minded person who found gaming through Doom and GTA and can't imagine any game unlike it to sell or be successful. I enjoy my ultra violence just like the rest of you but I have to give credit where credit is due.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

does it have any PDA features, like calnder, or ability to read word files? id love ot know- ill only buy one if it has some pda type features, and reviews tend to focus on the the gaming aspect of the thing

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Gunnar, I am just saying that GTA is a good game and you don't need an hours session to have fun. I myself have a ps2 an x-box a pc and a gba and own over 150 games. By the way the first game I spent more than an hour sitting with was mario for the nes!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

HAve one from LikSang, awesome bit of kit, and only about �40 more than the suspected launch proce in teh UK.

Ridge Racers is awesome.

Screen is awesome, this is one serious bit of kit.

Sony deserve world domination if this is what it gets us. Thanks Sony, i'm lovin this new toy.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Hi,

Just wanted to give you guys my opinions.
I will make it fairly short and sweet.
I have just about every system that has been released. PS2, XBOX, Gamecube, GB, GBA, GBASP, Neogeo, etc, etc, all the way back to Intellivision (many many years ago).
I recently got both my DS and PSP, and in my opinion you just cannot compare the 2, the DS is more of the same from Nintendo, the GB was tops, the GBA superb and the DS so far is good.
However the PSP is a totally different level, it makes the DS look about 5 years older, the style, design, graphics etc are so much better.
It has obviously been designed for an older market, people who would benefit from the movie and music functionality.
I think the DS is aimed at anyone upto 16, and the PSP is aimed at people over 16.

Oh one other thing, I now really only use the XBOX and the PSP. My PS2 is covered in dust, my Gamecube only got used the weekend i bought it. And the DS doesn't allow me to watch my favorite TV shows whilst travelling on the train.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Hi, i ahve a ds and i think it is great. I alkso love the song psp, I am askign 4 it 4 my birthday. This system is great but one thing: could u add more information about atarting up the psp for the first time and add more on how to make the Wi-Fi connection? thanks

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

As far as the comment on Nintendo bankrupting posted by a poster, I have one thing to say...
Last year Nintendo sold the most copy of console game titles in Japan out of ALL console game companies, both first and third license.
Second place was Squre/Enix (surprise, surprise.)

Sure, handheld market is difinitly one of their biggest money pot, but what people fails to realize is that Nintendo makes tons of profit on GC also.

Many would wonder "how? GC has the smallest market share of the three major console systems."

True.

However, they are also publisher of most all big selling titles on GC.
For example, when a Grand Theft Auto title comes out on PS2, and sells 4 million copies.
Sony gets a small percentage share of that sale for licensing.
When a Mario or Zelda title comes out and sells 1 million copies, Nintendo gets full profit for itself.

That's why they're always in the black, and not in the red.

Just wanted to clearify the man's mind. :)

That being said, I'm looking forward more for PSP than DS, for gaming of course, but also simply because of music, slideshows, and perhaps movie playback features.
It's nice to be able to cut down my handheld devices, I don't have too many pockets you know.
It'd be nice if it doubled as a phone and PDA too.

However, when a Gyakuten Saiban game comes out on DS, I'll end up buying it.... that series was the only reason I bought my SP for.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

DUDES/DUDETTES!!! DOES THE PSP HAVE MULTIPLAYER???? did they mention multiplayer? i want multiplayer!! i have friends!!! (unlike u) btw i skipped most of the forumy things so w/e.. but anyway... wtf is that wifi ting? like connect to the net? WHY?!!! I WANT MULTIPLAYER?? IS WIFI MULTIPLAYER!! DO U HAVE TO HAVE A COMPUTER TO PLAY MULTIPLAYER?!!! AHHHHH

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Wireless Fidelity - Otherwise known as Wireless Networking, commonly using the 802.11b protocol. Hardware that displays the WiFi logo claims 802.11b compliance should interconnect seamlessly - gotta luv google.

Does this mean multiplayer?!!!!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Lots of games are multiplayer. Ridge Racers supports up to 8 players. I have personally played a 2 player game wireless. It worked very well.

Most games will have multiplayer support.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

jesus people, give the wifi a break

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

hi
i totaly agree with PDraven above i also have a ds and a psp
the ds is for kids and the psp is for proper misters as i have proven by giving the ds to my 7 year old son
the psp is in a totaly different league the performance is something else and has to be seen to be believed

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I have been a big fan of Nintendo for quite some time now, since the days of the NES. I had a GBA, an SP, and now a DS as far as portable gaming goes. The DS rocks. Nintendo's game is innovation, the touch screen will change gaming and the way people think and play games. The first time I used the DS, it was as if I was engaged by gameplay in a whole different way. It really makes sense. First Person Shooters have always sucked on consoles due to lack of a mouse (IMHO), but with the thumb strap on the DS with Metroid, I was intuitively playing a FPS within 2 minutes, it was that good. I've only played Mario, Metroid, and Ridge Racer but the potential is there for the DS to be a revolutionary system, so revolutionary that the next generation consoles may have touch pads integrated into their controllers. The problem is getting it to that point. Mario does some interesting things with it's mini games (quite addictive) and the use of the touch screen as an analog controller works very well once you get use to it. Ridge Racer doesn't utilize the touch screen well at all, the control stinks with the touch screen and the bottom screen only shows a steering wheel + track which isn't the best use of the real-estate. It's going to take time for Nintendo's novel idea to take root. Lots of development time for the truly innovative games and this cycle may be the downfall of the big N as this is how Nintendo lost console dominance in the first place.

History repeats itself and even though Nintendo claims they're not threatened by PSP, only a naive fool would believe them.

I personally am into portable gaming because it's the only platform that affords me the opportunity to game as I no longer have time to sit with a console for contiguous amounts of time. I'm in for my quick game fix when and where I can it's on with my day. With this in mind, the DS is perfect as Nintendo's mantra for the system is for quick game fixes for busy adults who yearn for their old gaming days. Sony is bringing a tried and true formula to a portable format, they're putting the console experience in your hand.

Now the pre-emptive question is who will win the portable war? No one can say, but Nintendo has a serious battle on their hands. They can�t afford to lose.

Nintendo has the portable market cornered, no doubt about it. The current Gameboy base is astounding and this can only feed into DS sales. Reverse compatibility is golden. Nintendo needs to totally rethink their marketing campaign though. This is where Sony shines. Two screens is a novel idea but Nintendo using it as a gimmick is all wrong. I would imagine most people are like, 2 screens? � So what�. What they need to be doing is showing game play using the touch screen. I have multiple stories of friends and family who have no interest in games whatsoever but when they saw me using the stylus to launch cannonballs from a rubber band slingshot to shoot down parachuting bomb guys, their eyes widen and they often mutter �Wow, that�s cool�. If the touch screen can have this kind of impact on totally disinterested gamers, than skies the limit on the casual to avid gamer. The same can be said for the whole Pictochat functionality. This is great in targeting a possibly older audience, but it�s not going to drive home sales, it�s a catchy ad, but just totally off as far as reaching its target audience in my opinion. Nintendo really dropped the ball by not including built in PDA functionality into the DS. This could of been a real novel application that would make planning your day entertaining with added sprites, animations, and little quick games within the planner for added value. It isn�t too late, this PDA functionality can come out in the form of a cart, but having it onboard is preferable as those carts are tiny. Can we all say �Firmware update�?

Nintendo needs to drive home the touch screen and its innovative new way to interact and engage with a game, it�s that simple. And I might add, Nintendo may have a serious winner here with the female audience. The female market is vast, and though the market penetration has improved in the last few years, it is still untouched. Enter the DS, my wife has no interest in video games at all. Since I got my DS, I often find her playing the Luigi card games. This is true for many of my other female friends as well. I believe the interactive touch element is the engaging element needed to attract the female audience and Nintendo is sitting right on it. Now this doesn�t mean go and make Barbie games and all of that stereotypical gender crap, I�m just pointing out some of my own observations.

Now Sony is going to give Nintendo a good fight. They are using a tried and true formula. Awesome graphics, sexy console design, multi-function, great 3rd party support. Ports will be easy and in no time Sony will have a very impressive library, probably in time for the US launch. Console gaming in your hands. The question it though, how many people in Sony�s camp who already own a PS2 will get a PSP to play games that they can already play at home for far cheaper? There will be many, myself included who are gadget junkies or hardcore gamers who will pick one up. I�ll get a PSP for the same reason I got a DS, for portable gaming as my console home gaming is non-existent. But the dilemma lies in the vast majority of gamers. Can the PSP offer an experience that the PS2 can�t at a greater price to those who already have one? Chances are no. Why would anybody play 3-5 hours on a small PSP screen in there bedroom when they can play the same thing on their television with better sound in the next room? Pose the same question to the DS and something emerges, the DS provides something different. This very thing is what they need to push on and push exceptionally hard on.

Given the aforementioned arguments, its seems obvious that Nintendo will win hands down with their DS, but enter the consumer. If a consumer is in the market for a portable game system, it�s going to come down to three variables: Price, games, and versatility. There are many sub variables that can be classified under the main three, for example graphics can fall under games. I�ve been playing Ridge Racer for the DS and it is quite enjoyable, but when I saw a video clip of Ridge Racers on the PSP, my jaw dropped. Side by side, there is no comparison. The touch screen does little if nothing for the DS version. The one thing that makes the DS unique and innovative doesn�t even apply in this scenario. How can the DS compete? It can�t, not on this playing field. The key being �playing field�, the rules need to change. Nintendo must create compelling titles with their new ideology or that�s all it will be, ideals. Innovation has always been the big N�s cornerstone, but their implementation needs work. Sony is the exact opposite, not very innovative, but strong in implementation. Nintendo�s resiliency to embrace device versatility and Sony�s open arms to the concept may be the deciding factor for consumers, regardless of how innovative the games on the DS are. Rumors have it that the PSP launch in the US may have a price tag lower than Japan�s $189 US, side by side, we have:




DS

-Innovative Touch Screen that has the potential to change gaming entirely
-The best exclusive game library available (being Nintendo�s lineup)
-Reverse compatibility with 500+ GBA games
-Clam Shell design to protect the dual screens + more comfortable viewing angle
-New added media cartridge for MP3 and Movie playback (only 256MB with SD cards?)
-Wireless game play
-Cheaper games at $29.99
-Superior Battery Life (but by how much?)


PSP

-Gorgeous 16x9 wide screen
-Console Quality Graphics
-Multipurpose: Games, Music, Movies, + apps
-Memory slot for up to 512 MB memory stick (1 GB+ next year)
-Analog (emulated) control
-Sleek design
-Wireless Gameplay


So it all comes back to if somebody is in the market for a portable ga

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

U know what??? Get over the PSP and DS people! Live ur lives! isn't there a life outside the virtual world??? And u counterstrike addicted freaks "I'm talkin to u geeks" Go live ur life and stop arguing about the DS and PSP! Before u know it U'll be programing ur own virtual girl friends.... Losers

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I love the design on the PSP and for 200.00 bucks. I don't think you could find a better looking product for even three times the price.
i don't see why every body was making such a big deal about the price any way even if sony was seeling it for 300.00 or even 400.00 Im sure people would still buy it. Look at the apple iPod when they came it was selling for 300.00 for the base model and we all have seen how the ipod has taken off. Im sure that if Sony plays its cards right this will be "THE" must have gadget for years to come.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Can anyone confirm if you can connect to the Software update outside of Japan? I just got my PSP yesterday and no matter what I try, the unit connects to my AP but no internet connection... I've verified my WEP like a dozen of times, but still no software update connection...

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

For the guy that said the Gamecube was "better technically" then the PS2: dipshit.

The PS2 and Xbox offer much more power in graphics and CPU speed then the Gamecube. Check out any game that's released on both Gamecube and one of the others, and you'll see the difference.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

ya but gamecube is way more fun

dipshit

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

This may be off the subject, but I'm not sure where to post this:

Could the PSP be used as a PS3 controller? That's what I was thinking while I was grocery shopping yesterday. Since the moment we heard of rumors about the PS3 having wireless capabilities and seeing the PSP with its own wireless joy, the speculation was there that the PSP and the PS3 could interact ala Gameboy Advance and Gamecube. Could it happen? Let's discuss.

To recap previous events here some of what we know about the PSP.

1. It has an apparently standard compliant implementation of 802.11b wireless technology.

2. It can play stored games, music, and movies off of its memory stick.

3. The number of buttons and analog sticks on the PSP are fewer that what can be found on a PS2 controller.

As for the PS3, given Sony's recent history of over-promising (PSX anyone?) I don't think anything besides the enormous investment already made and Cell-based infrastructure is certain. But if the rumor of PS3's wireless capabilities are correct its likely that they would implement the PS3's wireless similar to the PSP's wireless. If so, it pretty clear that some kind of interaction, whether intentional or not will happen.

If game makers don't intend for interactions to take place, it still would happen. Enthusiasts could figure out how to copy in-game video footage to their PSP's or computers to spread around to their friends. They could download music tracks from games to convert in the proper music format so that they can play it in whatever app they want. If no conversion program exists for whatever proprietary music format they use, someone could code one. Art assets or screenshots from the PS3's memory card could be copied and viewed as a slideshow.

But if they intend for interactions between the two to occur they have a lot of cool things they could do. In addition to making all of the above ideas much easier to pull off, they could push a download of mini-games to the PSP. Party games like super monkey ball or any Mario Party-like game that starts a mini-game and then compares the results of all the players, would readily take advantage of this idea.

And if it can be used at controller, say hello to the new Sony DS. Does anyone want to use the PSP as one screen and your fancy schmancy TV as the other? I do. Remember the football games where you could be certain that you're opponent had no clue what play you picked until you got to the line? That was because you could pick the play on your controller. The PSP could do that if the proper code was loaded.

You could have another iteration of a game like the recent Zelda game that was out where players could play together without being on the same screen. How interesting would a GTAuto game be with this idea implemented?

Games like Fight Night could have a First-Person view of the fight on the PSP while showing the third person view on the TV. Basketball could show incrementing statistics of the game being played and/or possible quick plays to call. Fighting games could display the combat sequences currently executed. Games could push a replay-editing program that allows you to manipulate the saved replay files that you copied from your favorite game. Other ideas, such as true multiplayer capabilities beyond 2 players for a Sony console, mini-game trading, episodic content, and expansion of currently released games also come to mind. The ideas keep coming and I'm not even employed to think of them.

And is it really wild speculation to say that if PS3 and PSP can interact wirelessly that this will happen. Remember the last time you played a PS2 game online. I remember mine, it was Madden and I had dial-up connection. The game still was awesome and I didn't notice any slow down. 802.11b is at best over 200x faster than the best dial-up speeds (11 Mb/s divided by 56 kb/s). It is easy to believe that I can have the same response times if 8 people were playing the same game with that much faster of a connection. But that's beside the point. The point is the network traffic, whether it comes from an ethernet cable or a wireless connection is same once it arrives. So if a game works well online right now, you can be safe to assume that it will work well wirelessly.

I think this is a great opportunity for PS3 games. And if things go well, meaning strong PSP sales, and great execution of this idea by PS3 programmers, it could be the killer app of the next generation of consoles.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

let me get you a towel.............

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

First off let me say that I haev been a loyal Nintendo Gameboy follower I have had and extensivlewy played all of there sysytems from the original to the DS. But as a frequent traveler I must say that playing games on a gameboy of any sorts including the DS is more of something to pass the time rather than because I like the games so much. Having to be away from my ps2 and xbox these games get the job done but I don't think that any body can honestly say that the gaming on DS is anywhere as fun as it is on a PS2 or Xbox.

Too many people are complaining about the PSP not being as inovative as the DS, but if you look back most of the products that have taken off aren't the most inovative they are the ones that do a task better than the rest. Take the iPod for example, the only inovative part of the iPod is it's control wheel. The reason it has done as well as it has is not because it did anything new, but because it is simply a better music device, from the controls to the the design, the idea wasn't inovative it was simply that it did it's job the way it was supposed to. The same goes for the PSP, who cares if it doesn't do anything new, it does what it is supposed to which is play games, not only does it do that better than Nintendo who has been in the market for over 15 years, but it does things that other more expansive gadgets can't even do.

I don't see why so many people where freakin out over the price, even at $300.00 or $400.00 it would still not be an outragious amount to ask for such a versitile device. Again take the iPod, when it was first released the base 15 gig model sold for $300.00 and all it did was play music, and I don't have to remind of how well the iPod has done. There are millions of people out there who had never owned any type of gadget other than a cell phone who were suddenly usding there computers to down;pad MP3's and putting them on there iPods. I beleive the same will happen with the PSP, I think there will be many people have nver played games other than pong and tetris who will sudddenly be on planes and sub-ways playing Gran tourismo

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

so did you have a point there or..............

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

To Joe who posted about the Gamecube vs PS2...

You are a dipshit. Compare the GC and PS2 versions of Splinter Cell and Prince of Persia... the PS2 is graphically the worst of the 3 consoles. People are saying Resident Evil 4 shouldn't even be ported to the PS2 since it will look like crap (even runs in 480p on the cube). Get an education and a clue and try posting back.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Joe, I wouldn't bother posting anymore as no one will take you seriously after showing your ignorance by saying the PS2 is graphically better than the Gamecube: Dipshit.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

WTF is wrong with you idiots, why do you guys want one consol to win and the other to loose. If that happens either way, psp or ds wins then we are fucked. We would fuck ourselves over, continuing this competition free market, were currently nintendo is free to produce bad games and repeats. While I think the psp is the better system 9have used DS hated the touch screen) Having other company completly knockout the other companies attempt just screw the consumer over.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I am from Japan and I'd just like to say that this 'dig dug' obviously has no idea whatsoever about both the ds and the psp.I own both handhelds and they both have their strength and weaknesses.I will not get into them as you probably all know what they are after reading the almost-endless list of posts on this topic.As for you dig dug,I think your time would be better spent keeping your mom company rather than annoying people on the internet

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I can't wait for PSP to come to the Philippines!
Piracy is very rampant here, a PS2 or Xbox game retails for USD2.00 bucks with no gameplay roblems whatsoever. GBA cartridges go for USD10.00 bucks per game, PC games for a buck. You won't beleive the number of foreigners (American & British, especially) who come here just to buy these products. When PSP comes I am very sure bootleg copies will follow very shortly. Would you believe I have a 300-disc collection of Playstation games, all pirated? That's how cheap it is here. If you're interested to import i could help you out in the purchase & shipment. E-mail me. Awesome review you have here. More power!!!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

haha, dig dug is a moron, he has no substance to back up any of what he's saying so he uses retarded ass 1 sentences replies to try to piss everyone off. Dig dug, give us some solid information on ur stance against the PSP, if you cant than just fuck off, ur lame ass, 10 year old mentality has no place here; if you hate it then elaborate, other wise go play your pokemon games and watch your yu-gi-oh epidsodes.

DumbFuck

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I am from the Philippines and I just got my PSP yesterday and I have to say that it is great!!! =) I played RR on it for about an hour and the graphics on the PSP is spectacular. I have a Gamecube and a PS2 and I love them both but for portable gaming I think Ill stick w/ the PSP and give my GBA sp to my cousins. =)

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

PSP lovers and DS lovers need to stop arguing about this stupid pathetic waste of time. Can't you all just see that this is all about OPINIONS? Everyone has different views on whats fun and whats not fun, whats a good idea, and whats not. Screaming your opinion at someone over and over and over is not going to change their opinion at all.

Besides, I'm sure if you people had the money, each person writing something would buy both the Nintendo DS and the Playstation Portable.

Accept the truth.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I haven't bothered reading all of the above info, so my qeustion was probably answered. Anyways, I just ordered a psp off ebay, and was wondering if I made a huge mistake. It will play english games right? I had just planned on showing it off and listening to mp3s until the march U.S release.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Yea it should be able to play english games, but correct me if i'm wrong, but I dont think it'll be able to play enlgish mp3s?
But why pay all that money when you can wait a few months and get it form 100-200 dollars cheaper?

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Stop with the politically correct bullshit Stupidasses. If someone is willing to spend their money on an item, they wanna know what they're getting themselves into. I love criticism and debates, it's a great filter for the substance vs. the bullshit in our lives (books, music, movies, etc). Take your "over anylitical chocking the monkey ass" back to ur mommas room where u can watch some illegal cable 'til she kicks u out 'cause it's time for her sleep.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

thank you for the best review i've read. ur the best -t

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

I totally agree, mike is gay

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

i got my psp, i love it, people love it

multiplayer is great, and people who say ds is better have not spent enough time playing the psp

u want gameplay? u want really cool games? okay, go pick up your neo geo color and play it, not the ds

dont like handhelds? still go for gameplay and not graphics? ok go play snes because it is the best for gameplay

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

lol, you talking to yourself there Omilio DaCosta?

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

If arguing over the internet about two handhelds is how you get over the "substance vs. bullshit in our lives" or in your life, then maybe you should try getting one.

Stupidass!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

oo dig dug then i guess we both have sumthin in common;););)

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

Shouldn't we know by now that all PSP Reviews are all great? :-)

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

The PSP is cool, but so is the Nintendo DS. I must say, the DS is impressive. I'm sure the PSP will be great too when it is released. :)

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

ok, heres the scoop... i work in Vegas, at the largest casino in this town. i see all the latest gadgets "Hands on".
i've seen players wifes sitting behind the tables- playing the PSP while hubby was playing cards... she was getting more attention than the cardplayers were!
---------------------------
now,
when i went on break, i noticed a blackjack dealer (age aprox. 28?) in the corner, playing his DS... all alone in a booth. -even though he's a nice guy- with that "thing" in his hand- it just SCREAMED "LOSER!"

....i walked passed him hoping not to make eye contact...

i sat at the "grown-up" table (we're all over 30) and 1 lady was showing her kids pics off of her phone... the other was emailing her boyfriend (over her NEW phone!)
--------------------------------------
when i bring my portable mp3/dvd player in, it always draws the ladies over to see what i'm doing...

the potential for REAL "Babes" with these PSP's are astronomical.
if you get caught with a DS around here- you can forget getting laid anytime soon!
------------------------
as for me- i still play the PS1. i couldn't see spending over $100 on a gaming unit- then $50 a game...
i have a nice FAST computer for all games that i cant get on PS1- but no portability.
i didn't fall for the "Gotta get a PDA" fad...
ive played my kids GB,GBC, and GBA... other than "Track and Feild" it sucks. even that cant hold my interest for more than an hour!

PSP is PERFECT FOR ME!
1. i'll have a unit that ATTRACTS people my age- not 20 years younger than i!
2. i'll have a handheld that plays 10-20x better than my PS1!
3. i'll have the built in MP3-MPEG-ETC... Ready to show off all kinds of (grown-up!)stuff to friends at work!
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my kids Touch it- they get a spanking! :) (j/k!)

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

PSP has one mjor thing over the DS and its graphics, other wise there is nothing better. If you want to show people pictures and listen to music get an mp3 player. Im looking forward to getting a Ds i played it and the touch screen works wonders. When they come out with games that take advantage of the touch screen(starcraft) (splintercell...i dout it but any kind of first person shooters) it will be great. I was going to get a PSP BUT!! i heard MGA was a card game.
the PSP looks cool but its just not for me

just my opinion

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

oh and one more thing "your_dad" you only want to buy it cause it makes you look cool if you want to "show off" buy a nice suit

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

My my, so much bashing already. Ah well, that's good, me on the other hand is APATHETIC about all this. I just like games. And this gadget looks good and seem to have the features I wanted. Those are, games with good graphics, big screen, cell phone, internet browser w/Wifi, pictures, and movies. I did however dislike how everyone keeps talking about the price of $200 as too low as if we are all rich. Shoot, I gotta start saving to get this at the end of the year.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 19th 2005 1:48AM]

hmm whats the deal here, everyone says "i might get both" well I HAVE BOTH there is no argument here, each is better for a different scenario, this ds battery crap and psp battery crap is annoying me now, look my ds has a really really good battery, but my psp's battery lasts quite a while too, i got like 6 hours but i never totally drained it, plus it charges faster than my ds's, as for scenario, ds is better if ur ot playing for a long time and u can just close it and let it sleep, open it and be back in ur game easy, also its way more durable, wait, WAY WAY more durable than my psp, graphics arent that bad on the ds but the sound is very good, also the fact that psp loads is VERY ANNOYING on a handleld, if ur on an airplane, go psp, if ur on a bus or subway or just walking around and stuff, go ds....this shouldnt be a contest, it should be a realization that each has its place and considering how my psp gets fingerprinted SO EASILY i would not recomend it for anyone under 14, (actually i think i might not have taken excellent care of it if i was 14 and had it lol) its not durable and dont let anyone tell you it is, besides my little kid siblings get a kick out of the mini games in mario 64 ds and they all love the touch screen, i just wish nintendo would get rid of this kid crap they've been doing, i love nintendo makes great stuff but they need to realize, even the little kids dont really like the kiddy games (but the ds is not a kiddy system dont get me wrong) GET BOTH you will be pleased with your decision and than you can act like a jack@$$ on the forums like me lol :)