Gaming So I want to get a PSP.

[Rydian]

I have $200 (USD) to spend total, I plan to order all I need online.
I'd prefer to buy the main system new, but I'm finding only used ones on amazon...
I do fully intend to mod it, run emulators, and all that good stuff, and I am by no means technologically inept.

EDIT: I'm ready to order (took a day for the deposit to clear), and just want confirmation on what I'm ordering.
The Daxter pack, Ice Silver 2000, which includes a "1GB Memory Stick Pro". I will be ordering a used model that has no screen scratches and includes the adapter and such.
PSP Slim Pandora Battery, this states you will need a "magic memory stick", could I just use the 1GB stick that comes with the Daxter pack to install/backup the firmware?
8GB MS Pro Duo, for storing games/programs/media.

I want to confirm, this is all I need, and all of this will work fine for hacking it?

However, I don't know a damn thing about PSPs and modding.

All this CFW/GEN/M33/CSO/D3/pr0n stuff? Totally over my head.
I'm capable of following the tutorials, but I need info, the right tools, and a damned PSP first.
[*]From what I've been told a 1000 will be the thing to aim for, because even though the 2000 has double the memory, there's a chance mine will not be hackable. While I would love double the memory for things like better emulation and what have you, unless I can find a 2000 that is for sure the older motherboard type, I should just get a 1000, right? Any other drawbacks to a 1000? If I can find a 2000 that's the older type, will it be AS hackable as the 1000?[*]I'm fully willing to buy a pandora battery, I'm seeing them online for like $10-15, is that about right?[*]I have a bunch of PSX games I never got around to playing, how well do converted games play?
The PSP lacks L2 and R2 though, right? Does this hinder any games?[*]How is emulation of the SNES/Genesis and other systems? I know the PSP has a smaller resolution, is the scaling filtered so it doesn't look like crap? Is text still readable in RPGs?[*]Does the (main/base) hacked firmware behave like the original firmware's menus? Is it the original with some additions/modifications? Does this depend on which one I use? From what I've read there's two or three main ones.[*]How is video playing on it? Is this done mainly through the base firmware or through homebrew? Does it look decent and get decent framerates?[*]Is the firmware held on the memory card like with DS carts, or is it internal and the memory card/stick is only used for media/homebrew/games?[*]What are some average sizes for games? Does having them on the memory stick make the loading times bearable?[*]What are acceptable prices for memory sticks, would it be more economical and not hindering to get two smaller ones instead of one larger one?[*]Do you have to worry about the speed of memory sticks at all?[*]What about converters for microSD to whateverthefuck the PSP uses, do they work well? Are they slower than normal sticks?[*]I'm aware that the browser's not very good, but exactly how good/bad is it? I'm fully aware there's no official flash or other plugin support, what about unofficial flash or video/porn streaming?[*]Cheat support? How hard?
While my DSi is great and all, it's not really a portable multimedia machine, and I'm also missing out on a bunch of great PSP games...
And I'm tempted by portable emulation and PS1 games. X3

I'll be editing this first post as questions are answered and as new questions pop up. ^^;

EDIT: And done! =D

 

[rockstar99]

I have $200 (USD) to spend total, I plan to order all I need online.
I'd prefer to buy the main system new, but I'm finding only used ones on amazon...
I do fully intend to mod it, run emulators, and all that good stuff, and I am by no means technologically inept.

However, I don't know a damn thing about PSPs and modding.

All this CFW/GEN/M33/CSO/D3/pr0n stuff? Totally over my head.
I'm capable of following the tutorials, but I need info, the right tools, and a damned PSP first.[*]From what I've been told a 1000 will be the thing to aim for, because even though the 2000 has double the memory, there's a chance mine will not be hackable. While I would love double the memory for things like better emulation and what have you, unless I can find a 2000 that is for sure the older motherboard type, I should just get a 1000, right? Any other drawbacks to a 1000? If I can find a 2000 that's the older type, will it be AS hackable as the 1000? Yes the older 2000 models are the best if you manage to find one but currently all psps lower than firmware 5.03 can be hacked in some way

[*]I'm fully willing to buy a pandora battery, I'm seeing them online for like $10-15, is that about right?Yes

[*]I have a bunch of PSX games I never got around to playing, how well do converted games play?
The PSP lacks L2 and R2 though, right? Does this hinder any games?

[*]How is emulation of the SNES/Genesis and other systems? I know the PSP has a smaller resolution, is the scaling filtered so it doesn't look like crap? Is text still readable in RPGs?Yes I have lots of SNES RPGs and they are very playable

[*]Does the (main/base) hacked firmware behave like the original firmware's menus? Is it the original with some additions/modifications? Does this depend on which one I use? From what I've read there's two or three main ones.
Yes just has a recovery menu added and the ability to load ISOs

[*]How is video playing on it? Is this done mainly through the base firmware or through homebrew? Does it look decent and get decent framerates?
Videos are decent, and framerate is good
[*]Is the firmware held on the memory card like with DS carts, or is it internal and the memory card/stick is only used for media/homebrew/games?Internal

[*]What are some average sizes for games? Does having them on the memory stick make the loading times bearable?Loading is much longer than DS, sizes range from 200mb to 2gb

[*]What are acceptable prices for memory sticks, would it be more economical and not hindering to get two smaller ones instead of one larger one?Depends on size

[*]Do you have to worry about the speed of memory sticks at all?YES cut scenes in games will not run well with a slow speed

[*]What about converters for microSD to whateverthefuck the PSP uses, do they work well? Are they slower than normal sticks?I havnt used one but from what I hear they are almost the sameWhile my DSi is great and all, it's not really a portable multimedia machine, and I'm also missing out on a bunch of great PSP games...
And I'm tempted by portable emulation and PS1 games. X3

I'll be editing this first post as questions are answered and as new questions pop up. ^^;

 

[zeromac]

Lol you sound exactly like me 3 weeks back when i just got my PSP 1000 and didn't know what the hell anything was, i've learned from then.
Lemme break it down for you:

1) There are 2 main 'companies' or 'groups' that each make their own custom firmware. They are Team GEN and Team M33.
2) So thats why there are 2 types of custom firmware, Gen custom firmware and M33 custom firmware.
3) I recommended going with Team GEN's firmware as Team M33 is now discontinued and not updated anymore.
4) CFW stands for Custom Firmware
5) When you hear shit like D3 its just like RC1 or 2 for Akiao, there just minor updates to the custom firmware version, ie: GEN-D1, GEN D2, GEN D3
6) The custom firmware is exactly the same as the proper firmware your PSP is supposed to have, it just lets you play pirated games and homebrew, no menu changes etc
7) The firmware is not stored on a memory card, its stored on your PSP so even if you don't have a memory card, you can still run custom firmware but you'll need a memory card to install CFW onto your PSP and use the memory card to store homebrew/games
8) iso files are just the files PSP games are usually in
9) cso files are just compressed (squished) versions of iso files taking up less space
10) Yep Pandora Batteries are around 10$
11) You sometimes might encounter files such as EBOOT.PBP or a .PBP file, don't worry about em, those are just what homebrew and crap are, .PBP files.
12) The standard video player on the PSP is quite nice, but it can only play .MP4 formats, there are some homebrew players out there that let you play more formats.

Hope that helps you dude, your just like me

Just ask if ya need any more help

BTW those arnt numbered according to yours questions ^^''

 

[JohnLoco]

I bought and modded mine yesterday, so i got all the EMUs and stuff fresh in folders if you would like it. (GBA emulation was a hassle i to fix, for me)

PM me if you need help.

P.S.
You would need to get the 5.5 GEN3D with a pandora battery first though.
And with the 1k PsP you cannot go higher then the 4gb memory card (which is for me 4games, 1 episode of south park, an album, NES, SNES, GBA emulation.)

 

[zeromac]

You don't need to use a pandora battery, you can use software to hack it which is much easier imo
But get a pandora battery incase your PSP suddenly bricks (renders it un-useable) Because using a pandora battery, you can save your PSP from being bricked if its bricked

 

[JohnLoco]

Oh, if that's the case i stand corrected and shamed for getting one of those >.>

 

[Rydian]

Didn't know the 1000 was limited to 4 gig sticks... I guess I'll go for two 4 gig memory sticks, then.

It's info like this I don't know. ^^;

And I'm getting a pandora battery anyway for safety, 'cause I'm like that.

 

[JohnLoco]

My friend who works at GAME told me so atleast, so im not 100% but i take his word for it. Changing games etc are allot easier then it is on the DS, so beeing able to switch a game within the minute makes it no problem. Im not going to play more then 4games at a time anyhow.

 

[JohnLoco]

As to answer your first question, try to get an earlier 2k verison, if you cant get the 1k one. I see no major difference except the TV out & memory stick.

 

[zeromac]

As to answer your first question, try to get an earlier 2k verison, if you cant get the 1k one. I see no major difference except the TV out & memory stick.

Theres also NO IR port so you can't use this awesome homebrew that i use, that allows you to control your TV's or any TV's!!

 

[JohnLoco]

Control TVs?

In what way you say

 

[chartube12]

www.pspslimhacks.com and www.pspcustomfirmware.com/ Are the only two sites you need to learn everthing about psp hacking.

 

[Rydian]

I assume in the same way as a remote control, most standard remotes use IR.

Which has the TV port?
There's memory stick differences?
What other differences?
What about certain 2000 models is only "partially" hackable?

 

[JohnLoco]

The 2k & 3k.
The 2k can hold up to 16gb and not just 4gb i think.
dont know
The early versions, the later ones use the 3k motherboards.

 

[Dangy]

I have $200 (USD) to spend total, I plan to order all I need online.
I'd prefer to buy the main system new, but I'm finding only used ones on amazon...
I do fully intend to mod it, run emulators, and all that good stuff, and I am by no means technologically inept.

However, I don't know a damn thing about PSPs and modding.

All this CFW/GEN/M33/CSO/D3/pr0n stuff? Totally over my head.
I'm capable of following the tutorials, but I need info, the right tools, and a damned PSP first.[*]From what I've been told a 1000 will be the thing to aim for, because even though the 2000 has double the memory, there's a chance mine will not be hackable. While I would love double the memory for things like better emulation and what have you, unless I can find a 2000 that is for sure the older motherboard type, I should just get a 1000, right? Any other drawbacks to a 1000? If I can find a 2000 that's the older type, will it be AS hackable as the 1000? Honestly, I would just go for the 1000. Most emulators don't even use the extra memory, and the retail games don't use it either.While my DSi is great and all, it's not really a portable multimedia machine, and I'm also missing out on a bunch of great PSP games...
And I'm tempted by portable emulation and PS1 games. X3 Keep in mind that the PSP can't map all of the PS1's buttons, so some games might be tough to play.

I'll be editing this first post as questions are answered and as new questions pop up. ^^;

The PSP is an amazing device. I recommend getting at least and 8GB memory stick. This may seem like a bit much, but you'll want it later when you have all these great emulators, videos, and games to put on your PSP.

Also, I have a PSP 1000 (and 2000, but the Start button is broken. Not a big deal but, meh.) for sale if you're interested give me a PM and I'll sent pics, info, etc.

 

[Rydian]

So majority vote is the 1000?

And no offense, I've never felt comfortable ordering from people. ^^;

 

[dearodie]

The 2k & 3k.
The 2k can hold up to 16gb and not just 4gb i think.
dont know
The early versions, the later ones use the 3k motherboards.

There is no such thing as a limit to the size of the memory stick you can use in a psp 1000. I've had mine since late 2005, bought a 4GB mem stick back then. Since then I have bought an 8gb, all work fine.
Recently I got a microsd converter that can hold 2X32GB micro SDs, but I am broke and could only buy 2X8GB microSD.
The converter did not work for me, I put the 2X8gb microsd in it, both Kingston, formatted fine in the psp, had about 15gb available, now putting the converter in my pc, the stick is not recognized and I cannot transfer any files to it.
So I would stay away from these.

 

[BlackDave]

I would say buy the 2000.

Get a silver one because they are hackable! (None of the 2000 Silver Edition are unhackable)

I got mine at gamestop for lie +$65 (I sold all my physical UMDs and downloaded them back the same day

)

It was a used system but it looked very good (I was surprised) But it didn't matter to me anyway because I have a faceplate on it.

 

[Rydian]

I would say buy the 2000.
Get a silver one because they are hackable! (None of the 2000 Silver Edition are unhackable)

"Fully" hackable like the 1000? =D
I'll be buying the battery as a safety precaution, of course.

 

[xist]

The best thing you can do is buy a fully hacked Slim PSP from ebay, a trading forum, or one of the numerous small personal online ad sites. The Slim is superior to the Phat thanks to TV Out, double the RAM, much better D-Pad and a better screen amongst other things.

You just need to be sure the PSP hasn't been opened up and that it's fully hacked and not just running Chickhen indicating a later Slim. I always ask about dead pixels too.