So, the PSP came out today. I preordered mine last week, paid it in full with store credit (less $27.14 USD) and I also pre-ordered Metal Gear Solid Acid. (Also paid in full with store credit)

Went to GameStop about 7:50 (they opened at 8) to pick it up... I also picked up WipeOut: Pure, Need For Speed: Underground: Rivals, and Lumines.

Sadly they gave me two copies of NFS, so I had to go back to get Wipeout... I wound up getting the VERY LAST ONE (I.E. The one in a bag, that they have to put into the display case)

So far I haven't had a lot of time to play it... just kind touched WipeOut and NFS for a few minutes (wretched school). But so far I'm loving it. It's so... shiny... and sleek.... and... sexy.

Not sure if I like it more than the DS though... the screen is a lot better though.

So far I like the DS games a bit better, but only because I've had a lot more time to play them, as opposed to the ~15 -~20 minutes total I've spent playing my PSP games.

Can't wait to get home to play it some more though.

Anyways, so post your thoughts on the PSP or the DS, or any upcoming consoles, or handhelds in general.

<3

Can't believe this hasn't been done yet (at least not that I can see, and I've looked through the first couple pages, and saw nothing)

Use it as a weapon.

I didn't feel like spending $250 on a handheld.

Need more info on battery usage. I play my gba SP for days w/out running out.

Am I the only one that still plays those old-school white Game Boys? (the big bulky ones)

I actually just gave mine to my sister. Had the original Tetris cartridge that came with it, too.

I really like the GBA SP because of the light. Also I have this handle thing that hooks to it and makes it more comfortable. I really hate how there is no standard headphone jack, though, that really, really pisses me off. And I don't want to get a DS because it won't play my old GB and GBC games.

I still prefer the SP, sadly I don't have many games for it

My friend skipped the first part of school to get his, and it's completelly sweet. He was watching Spiderman 2 on it when I first saw him. The image quality is amazing. I couldn't believe it. And I could see the image from the side, and the light created no annoying glare. He let me hold it, and it slipped into my hands so sleekly and simply. A VERY nice product.

The nintendo DS, however... I tried that the other day, loved the games on it, HATED how it felt in my hands (Very unbalanced) and REALLY disliked the 2 screens.

If only the PSP had a library that appealed to me...

JediKirby

I've not had a chance to see either the DS or PSP yet, I like the sound of them though. Shiny!

What will be a true indicator is its durability. Sony is not known for making the best equipment in regards to its consoles - hell I don't know ONE person who has not had to rebuy a PS2 or PS. So hopefully the PSP is better in quality then their consoles.

Interesting, I know only one person who has had to.

I kind of had to as well, but only because I sold my old one, then wanted one again, but I got it from my fiance's brother-in-law.

I've never had to rebuy a playstation or PS2, and I've had both for quite some time. My PS2 gets used more for movies than games, and that's usually left paused for over a day sometimes. Both my playstation and PS2 work perfectly.

Same here.

Never had to rebuy my PS2. Had it for about two years now.

Two years is when they seem to start having the problems...

Ask people on other boards like IGN too how many have had to rebuy them... It's really crazy - some have rebought a PS2 4 times because of problems with it...

Oh well, I guess its a more persoanl experience. Once you've had it happen to you, it definatly becomes a factor....

Ditto, except four years.

umm, get a gba because they can also play those old games. I have a GBA and a DS. this is so I can still connect my old games together using my GBA and GB player.

You see, I don't let mine smack into hard surfaces, like concrete floors. Had mine for about 4 years now.

umm, noone said you have to sell your SP to get a DS. keep it. I kept mine.

I know of people that have had to rebuy, but technically, I don't even know if you could rebuy it 4 times. That's 8 years. the PS2 hasn't even been out that long :p

And the first gen ones were crap. Second gen, not so bad. After that it's gravy.

mabye they just had bad luck. I not needed to rebuy, just go back to the shop and get anj exchange.

I got a secondhand ps2 at EB but when I took it home, the motor that ran the CD tray did not work, so I just went back to the shop with my recipt and they gave me one that worked. It is still working find.

Also, what were the problems that those guy had? how do you know they were not caused by things like third party controlers (webmaster for a series of games on the playstaionand ps2 has seen a number of consoles with burnt out controler ports cuased by third party controlers), or mabye they tried to do something like mod chip it.

or what dj-yoshi said, those ones could have been 1st gen consoles.

(me kisses the pal format ps2 since any faults would hae been corrected.)

my only problem is with the cable that conects to the video/audio in ports of my tv. I occasionaly need to jiggle the ps2 end of the cable around. but that is the fault of the cable, not the console.

I might consider getting it if it gets alot cheaper

I like my 60 dollar Palm m130 better. It plays Tetris, Pong, Breakout, Snake, only needs new batteries every 4 months, and is quite a bit smaller. Plus it's quite nice for jotting down quick ideas and notes.

meh. It's all I need. If I want better games, I'll play on my PC or my Xbox.

My testing for today:

Gaming: Wipeout Pure, almost nonstop for 5 hours. Full brightness, full volume sound. Battery still wasn't keeled over. (System said 8%)

Movies: I played Spiderman 2 twice over without even thinking about the battery. Again, full brightness, full sound. Had about 29% left if I remember correctly.

Music: Haven't had a chance to test yet. With the backlight off, it should last considerably longer.

Note that I have not been able to test thoroughly the wireless functions, but it does indeed work very well, and is VERY easy to set up. In infrastructure mode, it'll scan wireless networks in the area, just like WinXP. Then you just pick one, and enter a WEP code if needed. NOTE THAT THE PSP DOES NOT SUPPORT WPA SECURITY, ONLY WEP. Other than that little problem, seems to work well, and fast. Now to wait for those downloads

The PSP has nice controls, and the screen is unbelievable. It's quite easy to see under any light, and is very, very high res and vivid.

The movie feature is quite awesome, in addition. It literally has all the same functions as a DVD. For example, the Spidey 2 UMD:

English/French audio (English default)
English subtitles (default off)
Has chapter skip, but no menu to pick chapters (At least not on this UMD, I expect this to be available on others, seems pretty easy to do. To skip chapters, you either bring the movie player menu up, or hit L/R.
Pauses and remembers where it stopped. You can go check the battery percentage (more detailed than the bar at the top), mess with settings, play some music, and come back, and it'll remember where you were.
Via the in-play menu, you can pick all these subtitle, audio, and other options easily, and with a slick translucent interface.

Some of the little things that could have made it better:

A. Better speakers. They are a little quiet, quieter than the Gameboy, although the stereo is nice.
B. Some sort of kickstand for watching movies, so you don't have to hold it. Would've been really nice.
C. Move the analog stick in a bit more.
D. OMG WHITE HANDSTRAP AND EARBUDS? WTF
E. Playable demos instead of video previews. (Although the music videos were awesome)
F. Better video support from memory stick. I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but I hear its a bit of a pain to convert videos to the proper format. Standard MPEG or DIVX support would have been good.

Other than that, I am VERY happy with it. Can't wait till Lumines arrives, I'm gettin tired of just Wipeout, no matter how much fun it is

Likewise, and I've never heard of anyone rebuying, let alone even having problems with theirs...

Actually, there's a program that does the conversions for you, Matty.

I've had 2 break on me for no reason, they just stopped reading discs one day..... Thank god for warranty

I've had my PS2 for 3 years and have only once came across a problem. It couldn't read one of my discs once but when I tried it again, it worked perfectly fine.

As for the PSP, I'm gonna hold off for a while(I'm broke right now).

Hmmm. It looks like the PSP is now on my list of "things I want to buy eventually". It should have about as good graphics as a PS2 because of the smaller screen.

Have you tried it? The programs rarely work.

It was hailed by IGN (or was it gamespot?) so it should work well.

Again, I say, they only work rarely. I know, I'm doing it right now :p

does it come with some kind of case to help protect the screen?

also does it come with a memory stick?

Comes with a soft, padded case. I do believe PDA screen protectors are available. Comes with a 32mb (instead of the normal 12mb) memory stick duo.

Has a soft slip cover case (which is useless for anything other than scratches)

And it also has a 32MB card, which is the same as the japanese value pack. (They also had a standalone version with only a 16MB card)

In addition, it has a cleaning cloth, which is VERY good for wiping off fingerprints, which show up pretty well in light.