[Naruto]

Movies, HQ digital audio, portable PS2 games... mmmmm me like. Hopefully they pair nicely with some Grados and put me into a euphoric coma.

 

[ChicagoPhil]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naruto Movies, HQ digital audio, portable PS2 games... mmmmm me like. Hopefully they pair nicely with some Grados and put me into a euphoric coma.

it was reviewed in the wsj today. i had originally pasted the text below, but i was alerted that the forum rules say that i'm not supposed to post verbetim articles. so, here's a synopsis and some pictures:

Our verdict: The PSP is an impressive hand-held game player with great graphics, good game controls and strong multiplayer capabilities. But its added multimedia capabilities, while potentially strong, are hobbled by design and cost issues, at least at launch. The PSP isn't likely to replace the iPod or the portable DVD player anytime soon.

 

[Ic3Floe]

Good review I think. thank you for posting it. Too bad the psp has such abysmal battery life. 3 hours max when using it at full power to play games? Thats awful.

It sure looks pretty though.

 

[gsferrari]

Im not gonna tell on you but posting reviews like this is against the rules of the forums.

But I enjoyed it and saved it already for future reference

LOL

gs

 

[funnytimes]

can videos be stored on the memory stick pros? In what formats?

 

[sethk]

although UMD (disc) videos that you buy in a store can run upto the full resolution of the screen (480x272 I think), there is a restriction on movies stored on memory sticks that limits the resolution to 320x240 in MPEG-4 format (simple profile, no B frames.) Some people have found it also supports oddball resolutions like 412x240 off the memory card- which is closer in aspect ratio to the native 16:9 aspect ratio of the screen and of anamorphic video on dvds.
Based on it's CPU, it could support full MPEG-4 at it's native resolution with no restrictions - which is exactly what the UMD video is.
MPEG-2 is even easier, but at lower bitrates MPEG-4 is clearly superior at a higher processing cost.
I suspect (in fact I have seen screenshots of) improved firmware but I think it will be a few months (or longer) before better music and video software comes along. At this time it looks like it was almost an afterthought. What would REALLY be nice is user made applications, similar to the media player available for modded xboxes. Eventually this is inevitable, but we'll have to see about the timeframe. Flash prices have been in a freefall, 1GB flash in other formats is below $70 already, I bet within a year it'll be 2GB - 4GB for under a hundred bucks, at which point its usefulness as a music player (and media player) might be more practical.

 

[soupy]

great little machine, been using mine for over a month. still best for games tho..the media stuff is just extra selling points for sony. Tho I have been watching some videos on mine...pretty useful on the bus..but it won't be replacing my ipod as a mp3 player.

and yeah...wrong forum

 

[Edwood]

Yep, going to be adding a PSP or two to the gaming stable.

-Ed

 

[Naruto]

it was reviewed in the wsj today. i had originally pasted the text below, but i was alerted that the forum rules say that i'm not supposed to post verbetim articles. so, here's a synopsis and some pictures:

Our verdict: The PSP is an impressive hand-held game player with great graphics, good game controls and strong multiplayer capabilities. But its added multimedia capabilities, while potentially strong, are hobbled by design and cost issues, at least at launch. The PSP isn't likely to replace the iPod or the portable DVD player anytime soon.

I got a feeling that as time goes on and the machine matures a bit with firmware updates and people write those nifty little "underground programs" for it, the true potential of this machine will be realized 8 ) Just look what can be done with the Xbox nowadays.. it's truly incredible.

Sorry for wrong forum placement..Woopsie!

 

[EyEPoD]

Have they fixed the quality control issues yet? Ive owned 5 different units since it was released in japan and all have had over 3 dead pixels. The first unit I owned did not have a functioning analog control which is pretty bad.

The system itself is pretty nice. The controls feel great, just like a PS2 controller with respect to button feel and response. The screen is huge compared to other portables and is quite shocking the first time you use it.

Ultimately though I find myself using my gba sp or ds far more than the psp. The unit is just to big and fragile for my normal on the go use. If they work out the quality control issues I have no doubt it will be incredibly successful, I just dont plan on buying a domestic version.

 

[Kirosia]

I'm personally begun to show interest in the PSP. Although I can't afford it atm, it does seem really cool. But the launch games don't appear to be that spectacular (normal I figure), and the lack of true porta-media use is a b**ch. The few rpgs seem too Snes/Psx-like in the graphics dept. Not that I have anything against that, but I want more for the $40 there charging for games. Need for speed underground looks awesome though. Steep IMO. Plus, I hear the US isn't gonna sell the simple pack of just the PSP/ac adapt./battery. I don't wanna to pay an extra $50 for some crappy accessories. (One side gave a quick review of them, not worth it all)

Well, my cousin pre-ordered one, so I'll see how it is in realtime. And honestly, I couldn't really care less for the sond quality. As long as it doesn't sound worse than my 6yr old pc's integrated card.

 

[GoRedwings19]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kirosia I'm personally begun to show interest in the PSP. Although I can't afford it atm, it does seem really cool. But the launch games don't appear to be that spectacular (normal I figure), and the lack of true porta-media use is a b**ch. The few rpgs seem too Snes/Psx-like in the graphics dept. Not that I have anything against that, but I want more for the $40 there charging for games. Need for speed underground looks awesome though. Steep IMO. Plus, I hear the US isn't gonna sell the simple pack of just the PSP/ac adapt./battery. I don't wanna to pay an extra $50 for some crappy accessories. (One side gave a quick review of them, not worth it all) Well, my cousin pre-ordered one, so I'll see how it is in realtime. And honestly, I couldn't really care less for the sond quality. As long as it doesn't sound worse than my 6yr old pc's integrated card.

need for speed sux balls. Ridge racer is better IMO

 

[Kirosia]

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoRedwings19 need for speed sux balls. Ridge racer is better IMO

Well, I haven't played many other racing games other than NFS (my brother used to buy the games a lot and let me play) , so I really don't know. Besides, most of my friends are ghetto rice-rocket-type guys, and we like the whole similarity thing.

 

[nismo96]

I saw a PSP in the flesh today, and I was very impressed. Until today I had no interest in the PSP, but I saw a demo clip of the upcoming Wipeout Pure game for the PSP, and now I'm sold.

I can't really get a PSP at launch this week, but watch out. I'll have one soon and I'll be rocking the portable gaming goodness.