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The US PSP Launch
- Thread starter Amir0x
- Start date
Woo. I was planning on heading out to Best Buy at like 3:30 am and waiting it out, until luckily I read from people online in the east coast who had no trouble getting a PSP from Walmart at the stroke of midnight. So needless to say, I just came home from Walmart about and hour or two ago with PSP and Lumines in hand. 
I was dissapointed to find out that Walmart didn't offer any kind of replacement plan, but they told me that Walmart does supposedly offer replacement for 90 days after purchase, apparently. I just pray my unit works like a dream and has no dead pixels and what not.
Anyway, I've unpacked everything, and have spanking new copies of Lumines and Wipeout Pure, as well as the Spiderman 2 UMD and sampler disc all sitting cozily side by side on my desk, waiting very impatiently for the little orange light on my PSP to dim.
I must say, however, even without playing anything yet, the PSP is quite certainly the sexiest and most downright fantastical piece of machinery ever to be created by mortal hands. Kaz Hirai, I humbly salute you, for you are the architect and craftsman of the very essense of all that is good and beautiful. All who deny your vision are heathens.
I was dissapointed to find out that Walmart didn't offer any kind of replacement plan, but they told me that Walmart does supposedly offer replacement for 90 days after purchase, apparently. I just pray my unit works like a dream and has no dead pixels and what not.Anyway, I've unpacked everything, and have spanking new copies of Lumines and Wipeout Pure, as well as the Spiderman 2 UMD and sampler disc all sitting cozily side by side on my desk, waiting very impatiently for the little orange light on my PSP to dim.
I must say, however, even without playing anything yet, the PSP is quite certainly the sexiest and most downright fantastical piece of machinery ever to be created by mortal hands. Kaz Hirai, I humbly salute you, for you are the architect and craftsman of the very essense of all that is good and beautiful. All who deny your vision are heathens.
Just got back from Target which opened at 8am here on the East Coast. There were only two other people besides me waiting to get one, and one was a security guard. No one anywhere should have to deal with big lines based on my experience. I live in a heavily populated area just outside of Washington D.C. for the record. Now I'm off to open my beauty. ***crosses fingers for no dead pixels***
Planet Comics (Gamestop) got a second shipment in, so they had a few to spare, I paid in full last nite for one, and got Lumines and Wipeout... so my brother should be picking his up at Funcoland and picking mine up at the mall right around now. Lucky people in the tri-State area won't have to deal with many old people/soccer moms picking up a PSP for little Johnny - if there's anything that keeps them at bay it's crappy weather, and it's slushy as hell out here. All I need to do is get through this day of work... then off to play for a nice 3 day weekend... it's gonna be the longest day ever.
I have:
Lumines, Wipeout
My brother got:
Lumines, Wipeout, and Metal Gear Acid
I have:
Lumines, Wipeout
My brother got:
Lumines, Wipeout, and Metal Gear Acid
KeithFranklin
Banned
Hmmm...
I may pick one up on the way to the office this morning if Target has one.
I have 5 1/2 hours of flying tomorrow. What game(s) would you suggest.
By the way I am not a Sony fan, but PSP does look good.
I may pick one up on the way to the office this morning if Target has one.
I have 5 1/2 hours of flying tomorrow. What game(s) would you suggest.
By the way I am not a Sony fan, but PSP does look good.
KeithFranklin said:
Do you travel alot? I do and I always dreamed of something like this. The price seems high but then you experience it and you wonder how it only costs $250. I'm just blown away by it. As far as games go try lumines, thug2 and wipeout. You won't be disappointed at all.
Picked mine up at EB at 8am and there was about 7 people in the store with more filing in. I didn't play anything yet but I did turn it on and OMG. You read about the screen size and beauty but when I saw it turned on ... wow. This is coming from someone who has about 5 PDA's with what I thought was a nice screen.
No dead pixels, square button feels like the others, analog pad feels cool.
Happy Happy Joy Joy
Now get charging damnit!!!
No dead pixels, square button feels like the others, analog pad feels cool.
Happy Happy Joy Joy
Now get charging damnit!!!
aparisi2274
Member
Welcome all new PSP owners. It will be nice to play someone, since I have had this thing since Dec. 04 and I had no one to play against.
So does anyone have any pics of like midnight launch parties? Or pics from that Sony Style event in the city last night?
So does anyone have any pics of like midnight launch parties? Or pics from that Sony Style event in the city last night?
SolidSnakex
Member
CNN is about to be doing a story on the PSP for those interested.
SuperPac
Member
No real lines here either. I bought mine at a well-trafficked Best Buy in Houston (Galleria) and I was #15 in line, and I got there at 7:30. Maybe 4 more people got there after me before the place opened at 8. They apparently have 280 systems.
Man, they were REALLY trying to get me to join GameFly. I was like, "what part of 'I'm not interested' don't you get?" "But you can try all the gamez!"
Man, they were REALLY trying to get me to join GameFly. I was like, "what part of 'I'm not interested' don't you get?" "But you can try all the gamez!"
heavy liquid
Member
Got the system at Gamerush last night. Bought Lumines, Ridge Racer and Wipeout Pure at Best Buy this morning (to get my $20 gift card). I've only played Wipeout and watched a bit of Spider-Man so far, but it is truly a thing of beauty.
Has anyone put a screen protector on theirs, yet?
Has anyone put a screen protector on theirs, yet?
Dr. Zoidberg
Member
My experience.
I had already had a unit pre-ordered at Gamerush but I had become more and more paranoid about pixel problems and wanted a comprehensive extended warranty with my unit. Therefore I showed up at Best Buy this morning at 8AM to pick up my unit. There was already about 25-30 customers in the store and people were buying PSPs and games, etc. They gave me a flyer with coupons and explained that you got a Reward Zone card and account free with the system. I then got the info on the 2-Year warranty, and it expressly says that it covers pixel defects. I was sold. I picked up the system, 2-Year plan, and Ridge Racer. I'm also a reward-zone member now.
They had a good selection of games, but Untold Legends was "delayed" according to them. That's okay because I have it paid for at GameRush. For some reason, they only had about 6 copies of RR compared to about 25 of everything else. I'm glad I picked it up because by the time I left they had no Ridge Racer whatsoever. Everything appeared to be selling except the sports games. They had the Sandisk Pro Duos but only up to 512MB. The 1GB cards were nowhere to be found.
I got my system out to the car and immediately performed the pixel check. One dead, black pixel right in the middle of the screen. I promptly walked back in the store, showed the clerk, and got an exchange. No hassle. They encouraged me to open the second system right there and I did. Perfect, no defects I could see. I left happy.
Kudos to Best Buy for a great launch and pixel policy. Oh, and the PSP rocks.
I had already had a unit pre-ordered at Gamerush but I had become more and more paranoid about pixel problems and wanted a comprehensive extended warranty with my unit. Therefore I showed up at Best Buy this morning at 8AM to pick up my unit. There was already about 25-30 customers in the store and people were buying PSPs and games, etc. They gave me a flyer with coupons and explained that you got a Reward Zone card and account free with the system. I then got the info on the 2-Year warranty, and it expressly says that it covers pixel defects. I was sold. I picked up the system, 2-Year plan, and Ridge Racer. I'm also a reward-zone member now.
They had a good selection of games, but Untold Legends was "delayed" according to them. That's okay because I have it paid for at GameRush. For some reason, they only had about 6 copies of RR compared to about 25 of everything else. I'm glad I picked it up because by the time I left they had no Ridge Racer whatsoever. Everything appeared to be selling except the sports games. They had the Sandisk Pro Duos but only up to 512MB. The 1GB cards were nowhere to be found.
I got my system out to the car and immediately performed the pixel check. One dead, black pixel right in the middle of the screen. I promptly walked back in the store, showed the clerk, and got an exchange. No hassle. They encouraged me to open the second system right there and I did. Perfect, no defects I could see. I left happy.
Kudos to Best Buy for a great launch and pixel policy. Oh, and the PSP rocks.
Slayven said:
Well I'd love to use fucking unbelievable or jesus fucking christ, but half are going to hate the language and the other half are going to claim hyperbole.
I kept seeing pics of the nub and wondered how it would work or if it pops up and now that I've used it I'm just floored again by the design of the system.
sonycowboy
Member
Got mine. Now I just need to make it through 7 more hours of work
No dead pixels, but I did get the warranty. There was a pretty decent line at the store and it actually opened before thier 9:00AM time (around 8:30am). They had 80 preorders and there were probably 20 of them there this morning.
I'm going to check out TRU & Circuit City this afternoon just to see if I can see how much stock they have.
No dead pixels, but I did get the warranty. There was a pretty decent line at the store and it actually opened before thier 9:00AM time (around 8:30am). They had 80 preorders and there were probably 20 of them there this morning.
I'm going to check out TRU & Circuit City this afternoon just to see if I can see how much stock they have.
I got mine at around 8am, but only now had a chance to post about it. I'm happy as fuck but check out my bad karma.
I get a perfect PSP, no dead pixels, no sticky buttons, no dust or scratches. You know what it doesn't have as well? The Spider-Man 2 disc or the wrist strap. I call back to EB and they said that I can only exchange it if it's defective, but to tell you the truth I wouldn't want to exchange it and run the risk of getting a PSP with dead pixels.
So my question is, if I contact SCEA will they send me a replacement Spidey 2 movie and wrist strap?
I get a perfect PSP, no dead pixels, no sticky buttons, no dust or scratches. You know what it doesn't have as well? The Spider-Man 2 disc or the wrist strap. I call back to EB and they said that I can only exchange it if it's defective, but to tell you the truth I wouldn't want to exchange it and run the risk of getting a PSP with dead pixels.
So my question is, if I contact SCEA will they send me a replacement Spidey 2 movie and wrist strap?
Heh. Sitting here in the computer lab reading the forum when I noticed the kid next to me is reading PSP.IGN. Being slightly bored, I opted to pull out my PSP and let him have a go on Wipeout. He seemed to enjoy it, we ended up talking about the other games and such.
Now I feel like a viral marketer
If you don't feel like hassling EB into resolving the problem, Sony should get you all straightened out.
Now I feel like a viral marketer
In theory, your EB could pull Spidey 2 and the wrist strap out of another unit and just toss that one in the defective bin, allowing you to keep the PSP unit you have now, but they probably won't want to do that.evil ways said:
If you don't feel like hassling EB into resolving the problem, Sony should get you all straightened out.
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
You can find a lot of pictures and the report from an event here:
http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000840037403/
Brofist
Member
gamergirly
Member
funcojoe said:
Makes me shudder
This is just a general question, but I'm a bit concerned. Anyway, I'm fucking loving the PSP, utterly fantastic hardware, and Lumines is amazing, but is it my unit, or does the LCD display inherently cause some motion blur on things? I know with PC's, a lot of PC gamers prefer CRTs over LCDs because the refresh rate or whatever causes some motion blur. I mean, the clarity is still amazing, but for example a lot of times, the image kind of looks like a low res movie file, case in point (and I realize the first example is a movie ), in the Wipeout Pure, the intro video has a reletively choppy, low resolution look to it, which is in stark contrast to the version of the same thing on wipeoutpure.com. Another example, is that text without borders on solid, bright colored backgrounds makes the text seem a little fuzzy/blurry, like Wipeout's menus.
And also, am I the only one that actually has a hard time focusing on the movies? I mean, it's not constant, and it's not severe or anything, but perhaps they just look too clear, and combined with the small size it just for some reason is occasionally hard to focus on. I realize I am being very nitpicky with these things, but I'm just trying to make sure I'm not seeing things. Now, all that said, this thing is still absolute fucking sex.
), in the Wipeout Pure, the intro video has a reletively choppy, low resolution look to it, which is in stark contrast to the version of the same thing on wipeoutpure.com. Another example, is that text without borders on solid, bright colored backgrounds makes the text seem a little fuzzy/blurry, like Wipeout's menus.And also, am I the only one that actually has a hard time focusing on the movies? I mean, it's not constant, and it's not severe or anything, but perhaps they just look too clear, and combined with the small size it just for some reason is occasionally hard to focus on. I realize I am being very nitpicky with these things, but I'm just trying to make sure I'm not seeing things.
Now, all that said, this thing is still absolute fucking sex.Hahaha.Slayven said:
Doom_Bringer
Banned
funcojoe said:
:lol
Guy LeDouche
Banned
Wipeout is amazing fun.
I showed the PSP and WO to my mom this morning and she just said, "Wow. The screen is so bright and clear. Wow. That's like a PS2, right?"
"Yeah mom, its like a PS2 in your hands."
"Wow."
I showed the PSP and WO to my mom this morning and she just said, "Wow. The screen is so bright and clear. Wow. That's like a PS2, right?"
"Yeah mom, its like a PS2 in your hands."
"Wow."
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
Tortfeasor said:
Excuse me!? When the match ended it was 3-2 on my screen (me winning)-- maybe I got kicked out and you killed a couple of ghosts? Or perhaps the PSP has a "grandma" function that makes everybody thing they've won.
Hey man, my pride is at stake here....
Anyway, that was literally my second round-- and I'm guessing one of yours, too-- cuz we were driving like ass! I had gotten a little better at the controls by the time we were done, but I'm far from my regular TM self yet.
Anyway: I was amazed at how fast I got online and actually played. Rustiness and new controls or not, TM is one smoooooth game.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
Some impressions:
I only played a few minutes of each of these games: Twisted Metal, Wipeout, and Lumines. TM I talk about above.
Wipeout-- I had a hard time streering with the nub. I imagine I will get used to it, but I went to the d-pad (eek!) in the meantime. Purty. Didn't play enough to really get a good, deep feel, to see if the AI is all wonky like WOXL, or how I liked the tracks. Music was good.
Lumines-- like all new puzzlers, I had no idea what was going on. Looks very promising. Like WO, the presentation and music are fab.
Spider-Man-- good lord this looks good. And it's viewable at any angle (unlike my laptop). Who sold their soul to make the screen look this good?
Oh, one dead (well, I think) pixel. It's hard to distinguish from dust, and it's not too noticable. I didn't even see it for a while.
I only played a few minutes of each of these games: Twisted Metal, Wipeout, and Lumines. TM I talk about above.
Wipeout-- I had a hard time streering with the nub. I imagine I will get used to it, but I went to the d-pad (eek!) in the meantime. Purty. Didn't play enough to really get a good, deep feel, to see if the AI is all wonky like WOXL, or how I liked the tracks. Music was good.
Lumines-- like all new puzzlers, I had no idea what was going on. Looks very promising. Like WO, the presentation and music are fab.
Spider-Man-- good lord this looks good. And it's viewable at any angle (unlike my laptop). Who sold their soul to make the screen look this good?
Oh, one dead (well, I think) pixel. It's hard to distinguish from dust, and it's not too noticable. I didn't even see it for a while.
This is like the longest day of work ever for me... Brother called up (and I couldn't hear him cuz my cell phone sucks) to tell me that he picked up mine and his PSP... this is just great, he's gonna have a head start at Lumines and Wipeout when we play each other tonite
Just a heads up that PSP Video 9 Final is out now
http://www.pspvideo9.com/
If you're looking for a good setting to use with a 256 card give this a try. I uploaded the StarWars trailer made with this profile so you get an idea of the quality.
- make a custom profile with these settings
320x240
29.97 fps
variable - 256 kbps
min - 128
max - 300
passes - 2
Audio bitrate - 32 kbps
mono
sample 24000 kHz
That will give you nice video at 2 megs a minute which translates to 2 hours in 240 megs.
I picked up a 512 but thats the best settings I came up with for a 256 when I wasn't sure which I'd get.
http://s39.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=33NZDIXRJZ23V39MC9H9OBA7EX
http://www.pspvideo9.com/
If you're looking for a good setting to use with a 256 card give this a try. I uploaded the StarWars trailer made with this profile so you get an idea of the quality.
- make a custom profile with these settings
320x240
29.97 fps
variable - 256 kbps
min - 128
max - 300
passes - 2
Audio bitrate - 32 kbps
mono
sample 24000 kHz
That will give you nice video at 2 megs a minute which translates to 2 hours in 240 megs.
I picked up a 512 but thats the best settings I came up with for a 256 when I wasn't sure which I'd get.
http://s39.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=33NZDIXRJZ23V39MC9H9OBA7EX
quick impressions:
Went to walmart at midnight thinking there would be a ton of people..there was only one other dude waiting so it ended up being just 2 of us. They rolled out 60 psp's and they only just a had a few games.
The games they had were
Ridge Racer which I bought
Wipeout which the other dude bought
Lumines
Darkstalkers
NFL Street
THUG2
I was going to pick up twisted metal just for the online but they didn't get it in.
The psp is nice looking, but the very moment I took it out, it was finger print happy...the thing attracts them like nothing I've ever seen. Spider-man 2 (movie) looks real nice and what I've played of RR seems pretty sweet. At first i didn't notice any pixel issues, but I think I have 3 stuck or dead pixels..I really only notice them on the menu screen though..I don't see them at all on black screens which is wierd. I'm kinda pissed about it actually and I'm deciding whether r not to exchange it..ut that risks the issue of getting another with even worse issues and its not something you can just check in store.
I'm pretty impressed so far but there are a few issues with the design..the finger print issue is really bad..the screen will get damaged very easily..and the analog nub is just awful..it feels awful and its placed at an awkward spot. Also I'm not fond of the clicking sounds on the shoulder buttons.
Went to walmart at midnight thinking there would be a ton of people..there was only one other dude waiting so it ended up being just 2 of us. They rolled out 60 psp's and they only just a had a few games.
The games they had were
Ridge Racer which I bought
Wipeout which the other dude bought
Lumines
Darkstalkers
NFL Street
THUG2
I was going to pick up twisted metal just for the online but they didn't get it in.
The psp is nice looking, but the very moment I took it out, it was finger print happy...the thing attracts them like nothing I've ever seen. Spider-man 2 (movie) looks real nice and what I've played of RR seems pretty sweet. At first i didn't notice any pixel issues, but I think I have 3 stuck or dead pixels..I really only notice them on the menu screen though..I don't see them at all on black screens which is wierd. I'm kinda pissed about it actually and I'm deciding whether r not to exchange it..ut that risks the issue of getting another with even worse issues and its not something you can just check in store.
I'm pretty impressed so far but there are a few issues with the design..the finger print issue is really bad..the screen will get damaged very easily..and the analog nub is just awful..it feels awful and its placed at an awkward spot. Also I'm not fond of the clicking sounds on the shoulder buttons.
I arrived at Target at 8:05 am thinking there would be massive lines and that I might have to physically fight someone like I almost had to do with the PS2 launch.
The parking lot was empty and when I went into electronics, there were 6 employees standing behind the counter looking bored. I think my Target had 70 of them and I was the first purchase of the day. I drove by Best Buy on my way home and the parking lot had maybe 15 cars in it and you figure half of them were employees.
This makes me very happy. Not because I want the PSP to do badly, but because I want all the little ebay get-rich-quick-by-buying-everything-to-resell, bastards to lose their asses big on this one.
I picked up Wipeout and Lumines, both of them are very cool games, but my hands are kind of hurting after 30 minutes of playing them. Its gonna take some time to get used to the system. I can't believe how gorgeous the screen is. I popped in Spider-Man 2 for a few minutes and it looked damn good.
Luckily my system had no dead pixels. Maybe I should pick up a lottery ticket since its my lucky day.
The parking lot was empty and when I went into electronics, there were 6 employees standing behind the counter looking bored. I think my Target had 70 of them and I was the first purchase of the day. I drove by Best Buy on my way home and the parking lot had maybe 15 cars in it and you figure half of them were employees.
This makes me very happy. Not because I want the PSP to do badly, but because I want all the little ebay get-rich-quick-by-buying-everything-to-resell, bastards to lose their asses big on this one.
I picked up Wipeout and Lumines, both of them are very cool games, but my hands are kind of hurting after 30 minutes of playing them. Its gonna take some time to get used to the system. I can't believe how gorgeous the screen is. I popped in Spider-Man 2 for a few minutes and it looked damn good.
Luckily my system had no dead pixels. Maybe I should pick up a lottery ticket since its my lucky day.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
FnordChan said:
FnordChan
Drooool.
Homebrew can't come fast enough!