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[manji]

My buddies got me the Datel 4GB PSP HDD for my birthday...

I really like it...it comes with an extended battery, and the "bumps" on the back, while making my PSP substantially thicker, actually make the system easier to hold.

Installation was a breeze, although I had to put my 512mb stick back in to update to v2.50.
(the HDD displayed the update file as "Corrupt Data"..fitting description, I know, I know...)

Anyway,
One major problem has come up:
Video playback is fine, but MP3 playback stutters every 15-20 sec's or so. the "memstick access" light flashes on real quick, and the music pauses for a half-sec.
Needless to say, this is *very* annoying.

Anyone have any suggestions, aside from "Take it back and get a 2GB stick"?

Is there a software driver update I can find somewhere?

p.s. I actually REALLY like the current size, the two additions on the back don't bug me at all (plus, it stands at a lil' angle all by itself, perfect for viewing)

 

[manji]

...there's no frackin' way I'm the only person on GAF with this thing...anyone?

 

[BlueTsunami]

:lol

 

[Wario64]

other gaffers that do have it probably aren't using it to play mp3s...

 

[Crazymoogle]

I was going to buy one at one point, but then memory stick prices dropped again. Having an extended battery I can agree with the extension actually helping grip, but the microdrive is slow-ass and provides a serious battery life hit, so there really isn't much of a point now.

There are allusions to performance issues on Lik-Sang, which - combined with the transfer rate performance - wouldn't surprise me that the PSP just can't handle larger bitstreams per second for MP3 streaming. I'd be very surprised if there would be a software update to fix that.

 

[EGM92]

I have this, I don't have any problems with any playback, whether it be MP3/Video (PORN!) pictures do lag a bit when loading for some reason, but other then that no problems here. I suggest getting it exchanged, the microdirve could be damaged.

 

[Crazymoogle]

I have this, I don't have any problems with any playback, whether it be MP3/Video (PORN!) pictures do lag a bit when loading for some reason, but other then that no problems here. I suggest getting it exchanged, the microdirve could be damaged.

What sort of encode rate on the MP3? Have you tried 320kbps CBR or VBR?

 

[manji]

Mine are all highest quality VBR rips, off of my own discs.

Crazymoogle: Are you thinkin' I might have to downgrade my rip to get a clean playback?

EMG92: I might try and exchange it, after a few more tests, thx for the heads-up.


...it sounds minor, but once you've got this much space (and battery life), using my PSP as an MP3 player is kind of a nice feature to keep.

 

[shuri]

My friend's unit died in about a week of very light use

 

[Crazymoogle]

Mine are all highest quality VBR rips, off of my own discs.

Crazymoogle: Are you thinkin' I might have to downgrade my rip to get a clean playback?

EMG92: I might try and exchange it, after a few more tests, thx for the heads-up.


...it sounds minor, but once you've got this much space (and battery life), using my PSP as an MP3 player is kind of a nice feature to keep.

It's not a minor problem if you're trying to play MP3s.

Either:

-There is a problem with the microdrive
-There is a problem with the connector
-The connector isn't inserted properly
-It can't handle high bitrate MP3s (based on posted evidence of transfer rate issues)

The first two mean a return, the third would be up to you to fix - maybe some tweaking of the connector? - and the fourth would be very easy to test. You might want to test the easy stuff before going for the RMA.

 

[Agent X]

I was going to buy one at one point, but then memory stick prices dropped again. Having an extended battery I can agree with the extension actually helping grip, but the microdrive is slow-ass and provides a serious battery life hit, so there really isn't much of a point now.

Those are problems which could really affect the viability of this product (Datel's 4 GB hard drive attachment). This is also a reason why you don't see too many handhelds in general using Microdrives. They were a pretty big deal a few years ago when they were 340 MB and most CompactFlash cards at the time were still in the 16 to 32 MB range--the increase in price was substantial, but so was the increase in capacity.

However, with the situation today, Microdrives are only 2-4 times the capacity of the largest available flash memory cards, and it's just not worth the performance hit anymore. If the PSP Microdrive was 10-20 GB for about the same price as the current 4 GB drive, and utilized some kind of RAM buffer to act as a cache to mitigate potential transfer rate issues, then it would be much more appealing.

There are allusions to performance issues on Lik-Sang, which - combined with the transfer rate performance - wouldn't surprise me that the PSP just can't handle larger bitstreams per second for MP3 streaming. I'd be very surprised if there would be a software update to fix that.

So would I. Since the Datel peripheral is unlicensed, Sony won't even attempt to provide any level of official support for it.

Question for manji: Have you tried playing MP3 files that use a lower bitrate? The sound quality would decrease but the files would have better compression, which means they might be able to stream it without interruption. I realize this sort of goes against one of the main benefits of having a portable hard drive (having more available storage space so you would not have to compress the files), but I'd like to know if that might make a difference.

 

[manji]

Question for manji: Have you tried playing MP3 files that use a lower bitrate? The sound quality would decrease but the files would have better compression, which means they might be able to stream it without interruption. I realize this sort of goes against one of the main benefits of having a portable hard drive (having more available storage space so you would not have to compress the files), but I'd like to know if that might make a difference.

Gonna try that out in a bit...I'll re-encode the same file in all of the usual bitrates, and see if any play better than the others.

I appreciate the help-out with this, guys...thanks

 

[Crazymoogle]

Those are problems which could really affect the viability of this product (Datel's 4 GB hard drive attachment). This is also a reason why you don't see too many handhelds in general using Microdrives. They were a pretty big deal a few years ago when they were 340 MB and most CompactFlash cards at the time were still in the 16 to 32 MB range--the increase in price was substantial, but so was the increase in capacity.

I agree. I have to wonder if peripendicular recording might boost capacity further going forward, but in the 2-4GB range flash is quickly becoming the champ (even outside of the Samsung/Apple deal). And even Pro Duo formats are dropping in price at a pretty respectable pace. (I own 4+GB worth of the stuff right now, but I digress)

CF is still antiquated in many ways but the bigger packaging spurs quicker adoption of competitive sizes which then trickle down to SD/Pro as density is dealt with.

 

[Vince]

Those are problems which could really affect the viability of this product (Datel's 4 GB hard drive attachment). This is also a reason why you don't see too many handhelds in general using Microdrives. They were a pretty big deal a few years ago when they were 340 MB and most CompactFlash cards at the time were still in the 16 to 32 MB range--the increase in price was substantial, but so was the increase in capacity.

However, with the situation today, Microdrives are only 2-4 times the capacity of the largest available flash memory cards, and it's just not worth the performance hit anymore. If the PSP Microdrive was 10-20 GB for about the same price as the current 4 GB drive, and utilized some kind of RAM buffer to act as a cache to mitigate potential transfer rate issues, then it would be much more appealing.

Most Definitly. Especially, as you stated, after considering it's size it just becomes instantly unattractive to me; it's far too big and unattractive for me. On the other hand, Sony just announced a 5GB microdrive that's small enough to fit into a CF slot. Sell something like this which connects seemlessly and without altering the form factor with their media kit and I'd be interested.

Sony's Microvault

 

[master_shake_05]

Kinda OT, but what are the major upgrades between using a mem stick and a HDD? Does it affect loading times, etc. or is it just the storage concerns?

 

[Crazymoogle]

Kinda OT, but what are the major upgrades between using a mem stick and a HDD? Does it affect loading times, etc. or is it just the storage concerns?

Lik-Sang did a comparison; when put up against a memory stick, the HDD reduces battery life for video playback by over an hour, and increases load times from 1s to 8s when accessing data from that slot (it doesn't affect UMD load time, obviously). Transferring a file to the HDD takes roughly twice as long as to memory stick.

 

[master_shake_05]

Great! So its slow and clunky, what a great peice of tech!

Eh, wtf do I care. I'm getting a (free) unit to review anyway, so at least now I'll have a good junk drive (erm, only for the PSP)......

 

[master_shake_05]

Holy shit, look how fucken huge this makes your innocent little PSP look:

Fuck that. Even Sasquatch's hands couldn't fit comfortably around that thing....