PSP

[Pepsi-Wolf]

I'm looking into buying a PSP
and I was wondering (if anyone would know (MMPD)) if there is a specific version I need to be looking to buy at to use all the 3rd party apps that is running around the internets

[Sir MMPD Radick]

Just look for a Fat PSP and you are safe, however from what i understand the slim PSP's are now able to run homebrew apps as well.
Especially with Dark Alex's mod firmware.

You may also want the pandora battery and usb stick, from what I understand it is the simplest way to get the firmware working properly.. I took the hard way around when I did it, took me several days to find the right information to get the PSP working, and I had to purchase the origional version of some tetris like game which someone was able to hack in order to write the correct firmware on my system because I upgraded unfortuneatly. If you just get the Pandora Battery I believe you can make this thing yourself, but I have no idea how.

I can tell you however, PSP Slim is better than fat in specs, so if you decide to go the slim version retail or whatever i just warn you there is no guarantee it will work with every homebrew app because the specs are minorly different. You will however be able to run skype on the slim version.

So whatever you do, when you get your PSP do not upgrade it, if you happen to get a fat with 1.5 or earlier you do not even need pandora unless you want a shortcut.

Basically after you get Pandora Follow this video on youtube.

Ps. becareful of that pandora battery link, i have no idea if it is the real thing, there are many fakes on ebay.
This one looks more reliable.

[Pepsi-Wolf]

whats the real advantage of doing all these things with the PSP?
I mean, i guess its cool to load up whatever you wanted to, but is it worth the hassle?

I remember my friends were able to go on the internet with it, but is there anything else?

I'm looking to play mech2 on it

[Sir MMPD Radick]

As with anything, it gets old after a while.
Yes you can play Mech2 PS1 version, but mech2 PC version is out of the question unless you try through dosbox which means you probably will get less than 1 fps.

The way I look at it is this, when you are bored and have nothing to do it is an excellent distraction.
You can stream radio streams, War Drive, play Tyrian, Commander Keen, etc there are hundreds of homebrew applications that are updated regularly.

As I said, it depends on your expectations, but I can tell you this for a fact if there are any PS1 games you like, this is definitely a way to enjoy them without a PC emulator...
Speaking of which, you never played the Final Fantasy Series, if you get this go out and buy FFVII!

The SNES & Sega emulators are good too, MechWarrior 3050 on PSP is kinda fun.

[Pepsi-Wolf]

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.12711

is this something that I can use to unbrick the PSP, MMPD?

[Sir MMPD Radick]

Pandora yes, but that is not a genuine one from the looks of it.
Though it probably will work based on the reviews.

[Col.Kell]

I am in the market. Not so much for a game device (Xbox does me quite nicely), but for an mp3/video device. I was thinking about an iPod, but then my second thought was the PSP;

• because it can do everything an mp3 player seems to do,
• it could do more if you ever wanted it to, (I have always been a sucker for wi-fi )
• and most importantly, it is too large not to notice. Unlike the Sansa that may fall out of your pocket (or the 3rd party case that you buy for it) to be later ran over by your dad's Mahendra tractor, or your Zune that is too light for you to take notice of when you put your jeans in the washer after a shower.

I am just craving my music and am seeking an appropriate vessel for them.

[Sir MMPD Radick]

Well I have been using it as a portable media player for a long time. It works just fine for my needs.
Though the max size you will be able to get is I believe 8 GB(16 maybe), so it may not be the ideal medium for videos let alone a ton of mp3's.

Just make sure you get a FAT PSP if you do it... cause the other ones are harder to unlock... especially the newest version.

[Col.Kell]

Would something like this seem like a good deal?
And when you say "FAT", do you mean a PSP that is not super-slim, or the type of memory format?

[Sir MMPD Radick]

That is the right PSP, but I dunno about price. I was given mine for doing work on a computer for 8 hours or so.
FAT PSP is PSP 1001. It is just a model basically.

The difference between the new versions and the origional is minimal. New version you have a skype capable PSP, and abit more memory onboard. The newest has a better readable screen.
Generally as far as I know those are the only major differences.

The only reason you would want the original is for modding the PSP, if you do not care about that then any PSP will do.
Make sure tho that you get one with old firmware otherwise your goona have a hard time getting out of official versions.