I got one NIB last night for free. Got the PSP and memory stick, no discs or cartridges or whatever the thing uses. Also no headphones or USB cable were packed with it. Is that normal?
Now, I am not into electronic devices; so what is this gadget capable of doing? How do I do those things? Can I download games and shit to it (for free!!!) or do I have to buy stuff?
Any help will be greatly appreciated.
You can place it on top of a stack of papers to prevent the wind from blowing them around your office.
You can play games on it – I really like Puzzle Quest, Wipeout: Pure and Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee, and I hear very good things about Sid Meier’s Pirates.
You can play movies on it, either from UMD or off the memory stick. PSPVideo9 is a nice software package for converting files on your hard drive to files that will play back on the PSP and loading them to the PSP. I use mine on flights, either playing games or watching stuff I recorded on Tivo and then copied to my HD using Tivo desktop.
You can browse the internet, although entering URLs is kind of a pain in the ass.
You can play music, again from the memory stick once you have loaded the files.
You can view photos, and there is at least one graphic novel created for the PSP – http://www.nyc2123.com/ – which is pretty cool.
Mine came with headphones and USB cable, but I got one of the original bonus pack models, and I think they now leave that stuff out to reduce cost. I have about a dozen USB Mini-B cables anyway, so it’s not like I would miss it. I think it uses standard headphones as well. I know I have used my PSP headphones with my iPod.
Speaking of iPod, the PSP plays mp4 files, so you can put video podcasts on it if you so desire – I have some Strong Bad Emails on there for fun.
You can send it to me. I have a good use for it.
(in reality, while there are a ton of folks out there that have hacked them, most folks just use them for playing games which you have to buy)
You have to buy stuff.
It’s just like a regular hand held console. It has games available, but you must buy them. There are movies, but I have no idea why you’d buy PSP format movies instead of DVD’s.
I’d sell it on Ebay or give it as a present if you don’t want it.
If I may piggy-back on to this question…
Is their a monthly fee for the internet access?
Also, is it possible to download other documents from a PC via the USB? Word docs, Excel spreadsheets, etc.?
Accessing the internet is done through WiFi.
As far as downloading documents, I don’t think so, at least not right out of the box. There may be a hack for it but I am not aware of any like that.
If you hack it, you can download games for free on it (I suggest googling for psp hacks). You will need to check the firmware version on the PSP as the latest Sony firmware hasn’t been cracked as of yet (give 'em a week or two), but all previous versions have been.
I’ve heard that Loco Roco, Daxter, and Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops are supposed to be good PSP games. There’s a game out there called “Gurumin: A Monsterous Adventure” that looks very adorable, but I haven’t heard anything about it, so I don’t know if it’s any good or not. And there’s a ported version of the PS1 classic, PaRappa the Rapper, due out sometime soon.
Incidentally, while I do believe that Sony had an official games download service, I think it was shut down for not seeing enough traffic.
The PSP is supposed to be pretty good for portable Internet access. It is free, so long as you can find a Wi-Fi hotspot. I haven’t tried it myself, but a pal of mine with a PSP used it to post on message boards a few times. I don’t know what typing on a PSP is like either.
I have a co-worker I always see watching movies on one. Not sure if she buys the needed format discs or just loads them onto a memory card.
The PSP download service is still available (you can download about a dozen “classic” PS1 games at about $5 each), but I think you still need to use a PS3 as a middleman to make the whole thing work. Supposedly they’re working on that.