PSP = Big Problems

[Crash]

http://www.gamespot.com/news/2004/12...s_6114909.html

QUOTE
Sony is supposed to release a downloadable version of its video transcoding software, Image Converter 2, to handle this, but as of yet, we haven't been able to find it.

QUOTE
The PSP reads video files using a directory structure that isn't put on the stick when you initially format it for PSP use. So you'll need to create a root directory called "mp_root" first, then place another directory named "100mnv01" under it. You put your MP4s inside that directory, but they must be named a certain way for the PSP to recognize them. The naming convention is m4vXXXXX.mp4, where "XXXXX" is a series of numbers, such as, say, 00001.

QUOTE
Based on our estimates and a few battery-draining tests, Ridge Racers seems to last somewhere between 90 minutes and three hours.

QUOTE
We've heard reports from the development side of things that the control disc on the PSP isn't a "true" analog device. After playing a few games that use it, it's difficult to tell the difference. The disc definitely allows for more than eight directions of motion, and works fine for, say, making slight turns in Ridge Racers. That said, the disc seems to have a fairly large dead zone, and it's difficult to get very slight movements out of it.

[GameMaster]

Oh man, that's going to kill sales. Most normal people won't be able to follow that complex naming structure for music files and the flucuating battery life is definitley to steer unsure customers towards a DS unit instead. And to top it off, Gamespot says PSP's screen picks up fingerprints quite easily! No need for me to say more, Crash's new signature picture says it all.

[Canyarion]

Yes, this will surely put Sony out of the console business. What? Out of all business!
My guess is that Nintendo will take over the video/audio market.

[Null]

OMG! they said something bad about PSP! they must be anti psp, DS FANBOYS!!!!

[Jonbo298]

Jeez, if its that hard to convert, hopefully Sony gets out software soon so its not a hassle. Battery life, its always been a creeping issue that can be solved some time if its an issue.

[Crash]

I know I'll get a PSP later on... after some good games come out... Not going to pay $200 for it at launch though... when it'll have one ridge racer and take longer than windows to boot up...

PSP has the best graphics that's clear...but i'm not a graphics hound so I can wait until: twisted metal, or something good.

[Null]

Originally Posted by Jonbo298

Jeez, if its that hard to convert, hopefully Sony gets out software soon so its not a hassle. Battery life, its always been a creeping issue that can be solved some time if its an issue.

wont be up to sony, i dont think sony ever planned mainly on that part. thats why they were talking about trying to sell movies on UMD's.
people who are having the problem are the ones trying to do other things with the psp. the memory card puts in, formats in a couple seconds and does what its supposed to.

People tho are trying to format movies in a format that it will read. Just as they did with CD players long ago, they were meant for people to buy music cd's. but others wanted to convert songs into a format that the players would read.
software will come out that does it. prolly already exists. but its not an issue for people who bought it has a protable gaming system.

[DeathsHand]

The only major problem I see there is battery life...

90 minutes to 3 hours... I agree with the people who say battery life in handhelds doesn't need to last friggin like... 8-10 hours or whatever Nintendo gets out of them (just plug the dern thing in at night and problem solved, you're not gonna spend 8-10 hours playing it in one day, or at least you shouldn't), but as low as 1 1/2 hours?

My guess is they'll find some way to fix this problem... Such as... Super... Batteries.... o.O

[Null]

Originally Posted by DeathsHand

The only major problem I see there is battery life...

90 minutes to 3 hours... I agree with the people who say battery life in handhelds doesn't need to last friggin like... 8-10 hours or whatever Nintendo gets out of them (just plug the dern thing in at night and problem solved, you're not gonna spend 8-10 hours playing it in one day, or at least you shouldn't), but as low as 1 1/2 hours?

My guess is they'll find some way to fix this problem... Such as... Super... Batteries.... o.O

yea. its also tho that this is an early game and doesnt use as many methods to try and keep battery life up. im almost betting they could remake that game in half a year and have the batter life double, by only changing the way the game works.

for me tho it wouldnt matter, i dont even think i've used a hour and a half total out of my GBA and i got that within the first month it came out. lol im still on the original batteries!


oh wait. i took thoes out and put em in a cd player... eh.. ah well.

[Canyarion]

Roflmao, you bought a GBA and never played it more than 3 hours?

So you're implying that when you buy a PSP, you're not going to neeed battery life?

[Null]

no actually im implying i dont need battery life cuz i dont like handhelds. lol i just dont use em, dont like the games, no reason to play em.

i dont even think i played my GBA more then a half hour total honestly. i'll be damned if i even remember where it is.

Who said i was buying a PSP? i think the psp is a neat gadget, but i'd never use it. same with DS.

[thatmariolover]

Originally Posted by Null

yea. its also tho that this is an early game and doesnt use as many methods to try and keep battery life up. im almost betting they could remake that game in half a year and have the batter life double, by only changing the way the game works.

And I kind of agree with you on that. Although I kind of doubt battery life will double, I don't doubt that a nice sized boost (40%-60%) might be possible with cleaner code and special techniques. But it's still going to be a huge problem; particularly with up and coming developers. Sony's going to have a hard time getting third party game developers to learn how to use the same battery-saving techniques. So if the PSP winds up depending heavily on 3'rd party software, say goodbye to battery life.

I was really planning on getting a PSP, but the battery life alone is enough to make me rethink it. I think I'm going to just have to see how this one plays out. Maybe I'll wait for the first price drop to get one.

In the meanwhile I'm more than happy to play my DS.

[Null]

Originally Posted by thatmariolover

And I kind of agree with you on that. Although I kind of doubt battery life will double, I don't doubt that a nice sized boost (40%-60%) might be possible with cleaner code and special techniques. But it's still going to be a huge problem; particularly with up and coming developers. Sony's going to have a hard time getting third party game developers to learn how to use the same battery-saving techniques. So if the PSP winds up depending heavily on 3'rd party software, say goodbye to battery life.

I was really planning on getting a PSP, but the battery life alone is enough to make me rethink it. I think I'm going to just have to see how this one plays out. Maybe I'll wait for the first price drop to get one.

In the meanwhile I'm more than happy to play my DS.

i really dont think it'll be a problem at all. and all the talk and complaining about it will fade away and people will totally forget about that issue.

the main thing that developers will have to do is just load more into ram so the game uses the Ram instead of the actual UMD disc. by cutting out that motor they save a lot of energy.

the other thing is i think sony will work on the issue with the actual hardware and next year i think you'll be seeing the psp last much longer.

doesnt help for people that bought it now. but thats the way it goes sometimes.

[bobcat]

ouch that's pretty nasty stuff.

I'm guessing that will all be cleared up b4 launch?

[thatmariolover]

Originally Posted by bobcat

ouch that's pretty nasty stuff.

I'm guessing that will all be cleared up b4 launch?

It's already been launched in Japan. I doubt they're going to make major changes before the U.S. release.