PhatRick
03-27-2005, 05:36 AM
Thoughts on Sony?s PSP
By Ricky Morgan
Anyone?s initial thoughts on this device, upon opening the box, are going to include surprise and a childlike excitement. The smooth black design and just down right sexy visual style is unlike any portable gaming device ever made. The first time you hold this device you are surprised at how comfortable the control layout is. So, within 30 seconds of purely opening the box and before even installing the battery, you are already happy with your purchase.
Now, the real excitement begins. After installing the battery, I slid in Spider Man 2, the movie that came with the PSP in UMD format. As the screen came to life, I was once again quite surprised. The quality of the picture is unlike anything I expected. Because of the small nature of the screen, the movie looks to be in High Definition. The picture is as sharp and the colors are quite beautiful. There was never any delay or stutter in the picture and the sound quality (packaged headphones) was quite good.
My second test on my newfound joy-bringer was the game I purchased, Untold Legends. I had initially pre-ordered Rengoku: Tower of Purgatory, but it was delayed from the launch date. My first unpleasant moment with my PSP came as a result of load times. They are quite long and are accompanied by a strange sound in the form the UMD spinning in its case (UMDs are basically small DVD?s enclosed in a case comparable to a mini-disk.) The game itself was graphically stunning considering it was on a handheld. The graphics are almost identical to Baldur?s Gate: Dark Alliance for the PS2. The controls ease of use was comforting, but not enough to get me over the load times. Every time you switch levels or maps you have to wait at least 20 seconds for the map to load. Considering the amount of level and map switching, it is becoming very disheartening. But, besides the load times, this game was very pleasing and aesthetically gorgeous. It took around 12 hours of play to stop being stunned by the sharpness and color of the screen.
My final test was of the MP3, Photo, and Video player capabilities that the PSP has. A 32 MB Sony Memory Stick Duo was included with the PSP but I needed to purchase a $10 USB cable in order to transfer files to the card while in the PSP. I installed around 30 pictures, of nature I will not disclose, a Genki Sudo highlight, and an Album that was sent to me by a friend (Uber.) The pictures lost NO quality and actually appeared somewhat sharper. I am assuming that this is because of the high pixel count and small size of the screen. The HL showed in amazing quality without and skipping or stuttering. The sound quality of the MP3s was actually better than the quality that came from my laptop or the CD that I made from the album Uber sent me. I was very happy with these functions but I can?t say that I will get rid of my iRiver, mainly because of the cost of a 1gig Memory Stick ($150.)
In closing, I found the PSP to be worth the cost ($249) and the games quality to be worth the $39. The load times WILL cause some annoyance and there were a few dead pixels (5) on my screen. After doing some research I found that almost everyone is having these problems and Sony does NOT have a stance on the situation as of now. The batter life was quite good considering the size of the screen. I got around 4 hours of constant play on games and I played SpiderMan2 3 times in a row before the battery died. If you are a gamer, this machine is for you. If you enjoy games to a smaller extent but spend large amounts of time in airports or doing nothing, this machine is for you. If you are an owner of a Nintendo DS and are unhappy with the amount or quality of games, this machine is for you. Basically, if it comes down to the games, this is the best machine on the market for on-the-go gaming, although I do not recommend this machine for MP3, photo, or video playing purposes alone. But, they are a great addition to a great device. I highly recommend this device for gamers, business men, and anyone else that wants to be a part of the sexiest and most exciting thing to ever happen to mobile gaming since the original GameBoy.
I give the Sony PSP 9.5 out of 10 on the Phatness Scale.
Ricky Morgan
"PhatRick"
http://www.gamemag.ru/deathmatch/psp-small.jpg
By Ricky Morgan
Anyone?s initial thoughts on this device, upon opening the box, are going to include surprise and a childlike excitement. The smooth black design and just down right sexy visual style is unlike any portable gaming device ever made. The first time you hold this device you are surprised at how comfortable the control layout is. So, within 30 seconds of purely opening the box and before even installing the battery, you are already happy with your purchase.
Now, the real excitement begins. After installing the battery, I slid in Spider Man 2, the movie that came with the PSP in UMD format. As the screen came to life, I was once again quite surprised. The quality of the picture is unlike anything I expected. Because of the small nature of the screen, the movie looks to be in High Definition. The picture is as sharp and the colors are quite beautiful. There was never any delay or stutter in the picture and the sound quality (packaged headphones) was quite good.
My second test on my newfound joy-bringer was the game I purchased, Untold Legends. I had initially pre-ordered Rengoku: Tower of Purgatory, but it was delayed from the launch date. My first unpleasant moment with my PSP came as a result of load times. They are quite long and are accompanied by a strange sound in the form the UMD spinning in its case (UMDs are basically small DVD?s enclosed in a case comparable to a mini-disk.) The game itself was graphically stunning considering it was on a handheld. The graphics are almost identical to Baldur?s Gate: Dark Alliance for the PS2. The controls ease of use was comforting, but not enough to get me over the load times. Every time you switch levels or maps you have to wait at least 20 seconds for the map to load. Considering the amount of level and map switching, it is becoming very disheartening. But, besides the load times, this game was very pleasing and aesthetically gorgeous. It took around 12 hours of play to stop being stunned by the sharpness and color of the screen.
My final test was of the MP3, Photo, and Video player capabilities that the PSP has. A 32 MB Sony Memory Stick Duo was included with the PSP but I needed to purchase a $10 USB cable in order to transfer files to the card while in the PSP. I installed around 30 pictures, of nature I will not disclose, a Genki Sudo highlight, and an Album that was sent to me by a friend (Uber.) The pictures lost NO quality and actually appeared somewhat sharper. I am assuming that this is because of the high pixel count and small size of the screen. The HL showed in amazing quality without and skipping or stuttering. The sound quality of the MP3s was actually better than the quality that came from my laptop or the CD that I made from the album Uber sent me. I was very happy with these functions but I can?t say that I will get rid of my iRiver, mainly because of the cost of a 1gig Memory Stick ($150.)
In closing, I found the PSP to be worth the cost ($249) and the games quality to be worth the $39. The load times WILL cause some annoyance and there were a few dead pixels (5) on my screen. After doing some research I found that almost everyone is having these problems and Sony does NOT have a stance on the situation as of now. The batter life was quite good considering the size of the screen. I got around 4 hours of constant play on games and I played SpiderMan2 3 times in a row before the battery died. If you are a gamer, this machine is for you. If you enjoy games to a smaller extent but spend large amounts of time in airports or doing nothing, this machine is for you. If you are an owner of a Nintendo DS and are unhappy with the amount or quality of games, this machine is for you. Basically, if it comes down to the games, this is the best machine on the market for on-the-go gaming, although I do not recommend this machine for MP3, photo, or video playing purposes alone. But, they are a great addition to a great device. I highly recommend this device for gamers, business men, and anyone else that wants to be a part of the sexiest and most exciting thing to ever happen to mobile gaming since the original GameBoy.
I give the Sony PSP 9.5 out of 10 on the Phatness Scale.
Ricky Morgan
"PhatRick"
http://www.gamemag.ru/deathmatch/psp-small.jpg