The PlayStation Portable just turned 20 years old. Alarming as that may be to hear, it means the PSP is "retro", and thus features some rather aged hardware. Broken screens, worn out batteries, stuck buttons; all of these issues plague used PSPs, rendering them unusable. However, a new project from two modders has found a new way to repurpose otherwise useless PSP units. Creatively named the PSP Placeable, it's a kit that takes PSP-2000 and PSP-3000 systems and turns them into a home console. The project is open source, and there's detailed documentation that explains how to dissemble PSPs and attach them to the custom-made Bluetooth board and 3D-printed shell, or alternatively, fully-made PSP Placeables are sold through their RetroModWorks website. Designed to look like a mini PlayStation 2, the Placeable plays original UMDs with the pop-up tray, connects to Bluetooth controllers, and has an AV to HDMI converter.

Currently, the PSP Placeable is sold out, though you can still send in your broken PSP to be turned into a Placeable, or you can order the parts yourself and assemble it on your own.

Source

 

[SylverReZ]

This does sound quite amazing. Connect any compatible Bluetooth controller and play your PSP games on the TV.

I would've liked it better if you could dock your PSP rather than place it into a shell built from the ground up. There's also the aspect ratio; if you use a television that renders the video at 4:3, then the picture gets cut off as seen in Macho Nacho's review; it seems like it was meant for a widescreen TV in mind. One day, there will be future updates that fix this, I hope.

 

[Armadillo]

The PlayStation Portable just turned 20 years old. Alarming as that may be to hear, it means the PSP is "retro"

I reject this reality

 

[SylverReZ]

I reject this reality

A console after 20-years can be considered 'retro', or any console for that matter after decades which no longer has support by the companies making them.

 

[Blythe93]

That looks pretty sweet, just watched the Macho Nacho's video, it's always good to see how people turn their broken console back into working condition even if there are some tradeoffs.

 

[Deleted member 702243]

fuck the psp-1000 I guess

the worst of them and the one that would benefit from this the most too

 

[torrent_get]

Okay now lets see a PSP GO with a UMD Carousel Changer.

 

[Axido]

fuck the psp-1000 I guess

the worst of them and the one that would benefit from this the most too

This solution is probably just using the AV-out of the 2000+ models, which unfortunately isn't present on the 1000.

That being said, I don't see what this kit actually does that you couldn't do without it already.

Also, PlayStation Portable Placeable? Who came up with that? If I was to name that thing, I'd scrap the "Portable" and just call it PlayStation Placeable, or PSPlaceable for short.

 

[slaphappygamer]

fuck the psp-1000 I guess

the worst of them and the one that would benefit from this the most too

The 1000 has the slowest processor.

The PSP was arguably the best handheld.

 

[Deleted member 702243]

This solution is probably repurposing the AV-out of the 2000+ models, which just isn't present on the 1000.

That being said, I don't see what this kit actually does that you couldn't do without it already.

you could do video out via usb, but that has a lot of overhead and games don't really like that lol

 

[Axido]

you could do video out via usb, but that has a lot of overhead and games don't really like that lol

I know, since I did that a lot back in the early 2010s. Doesn't really work for broken screens, though, since it requires CFW and other precautions. Anyway, that wasn't my point to begin with.

My point was that those guys are going with the laziest approach and bundle things that are publicly available, selling them for a premium. I also got a slight feeling that their custom board for bluetooth connectivity is based on PSP-Bluetooth (formerly PSP-Consolizer), which just uses an ESP32.

 

[SylverReZ]

fuck the psp-1000 I guess

the worst of them and the one that would benefit from this the most too

The PSP-1000 is probably the best one out there.

What's wrong with it?

 

[Kazmar]

The PSP-1000 is probably the best one out there.

What's wrong with it?

That's what I want to know (lol) I went to a game store once just too see how the revision's screens are 'better' and it was honestly kinda marginal.
Though more RAM is a pretty objective thing.

 

[Axido]

The PSP-1000 is probably the best one out there.

What's wrong with it?

Less RAM and the lack of video out. But when it comes to feeling like a high-quality product, it does way better than those lightweight 2000s and 3000s.

 

[Delerious]

A console after 20-years can be considered 'retro', or any console for that matter after decades which no longer has support by the companies making them.

I'd personally say it should be closer to 25 years before we consider a system to be "retro," as a platform often still gets support 7 years, often longer, into its life. For example, I think it's odd to call the PSP retro, when a game like, say, KH:BBS isn't even 20 years old yet, and thus, that game wouldn't "technically" be considered retro. However, the game's overall design was still limited by the hardware itself, so I also wouldn't go as far as to say that a system should only be considered "retro" 20 years after the end of its life, either. Plus, 25 years rounds out to a nice, even, quarter of a century.

Of course, there are still going to be nuances to the discussion, like at what point might a game by itself be considered to be "retro" if the system it was made for is or isn't technically classified as such. To which point, I would say it should still be 20 years for the game if it's on a system that is 25 years or older. But if the system it was released on isn't that old yet, then the game would not have earned its "retro" wings, yet.

All said though, I know that what's considered "retro" is still heavily debated. All this is just my own personal opinion at the end of the day.

 

[SylverReZ]

That's what I want to know (lol) I went to a game store once just too see how the revision's screens are 'better' and it was honestly kinda marginal.
Though more RAM is a pretty objective thing.

*sigh* It's just that people often nitpick one variant that has better features over the other. In all honesty, I like the brighter screen and it's quite durable over the later models.

 

[Robert Newbie]

This is a really intriguing project, and it gets extra points for being PS2-shaped.

I'm stuck on the whole "20 years" thing. The PSP released in 2004/2005, while Sony was still on a successful track. One of the early standouts on the PSP was Death Jr., of all things, and the library grew with nice third party support. Good times.

 

[Noctosphere]

A console after 20-years can be considered 'retro', or any console for that matter after decades which no longer has support by the companies making them.

Nintendo DS is also Retro then...

 

[littlesmurf]

fuck the psp-1000 I guess

the worst of them and the one that would benefit from this the most too

Mine is still working fine with the original battery. I just bough a new screen for it that has better brightness (not fitted it yet though). I was playing killzone on it earlier, it's still a good little console, but I prefer the vita which still has people making stuff for it.

 

[shadow1w2]

My psp 2000 silver had its screen just shatter on me one day. Buttona still work but its very TV only now and I thankfully managed to get the cables.
This looks much much better.
Wonder if theres any menu projects out there to make a nice locked kiosk for a little psp bartop cabinet woth a rotating screen maybe, cause it had a few veritcal games that were good.

These days I just emulate it on my steam deck near oerfectly but I do miss the insanely good homebrew scene.