PSP firmware is lame

[Niode]

With the Wii, the DVD playback was never a feature of the console anyway. Hacks added the functionality to the system via software.

This is half true.

The Wii always had the ability to do this but for whatever reason Nintendo decided not to enable it on consumer consoles. I recall reading something years back about Nintendo not wanting to pay licensing fees so they decided not to allow playback of video DVDs on the console. You could argue that they probably didn't enable it due to concerns over piracy but if that were the case you would think they would have removed it all together.

Anyway I wouldn't say this functionality was "added" it was simply "enabled" by reverse engineering the software that came with the console.

You like tomato and I like tomato. Wait, that doesn't really work in text. Oh well.

[DownSince86]

I just thought you might be interested in how it came to be. That "exploit" is the one widely used by pirates after all.

Anyway I just wanted to point out that it wasn't the creation of some hacker. It was something that shipped embedded in the console that was simply just turned on.

Hopefully you did find the links interesting though.

[MrPopo]

You like tomato and I like tomato. Wait, that doesn't really work in text. Oh well.

I usually go with spelling it foneticly (intentional) when I want to make the distinction.

[Niode]

I just thought you might be interested in how it came to be. That "exploit" is the one widely used by pirates after all.

Anyway I just wanted to point out that it wasn't the creation of some hacker. It was something that shipped embedded in the console that was simply just turned on.

Hopefully you did find the links interesting though.

I read the links a while ago and I know about how the exploit works. I just didn't care to go into detail on how it works. Thanks for doing the leg work for me though.

[MerRocher]

Sony sees custom firmware as a threat. Piracy has devastated the handheld in the western market. And while there may be people who want to use the PSP's custom firmware in a way that doesn't cheat developers out of money (by downloading games with no purchase whatsoever to back them up), most people seem to have an entitlement attitude. People see the PSP as a system that they don't have to buy games for, so they don't. This decreases incentives for developers to publish games on the handheld, which Sony's business model relies upon. It's not like Nintendo, who profits off of their hardware.

[MrPopo]

Sony sees custom firmware as a threat. Piracy has devastated the handheld in the western market.

I'd say that's only half the equation. The PSP has two problems that has really trashed it. Well, three. The first is that for the first several years of its life the PSP really didn't have that good of a library. Even today it feels like developers aren't entirely sure what kinds of games to develop for it. Sony has pushed a "hardcore" brand image, but those types of games typically just aren't as well suited for a portable format. The second problem is the piracy. All the early adopters found that to get the most value out of their device they needed to go the CFW route to get things like emulators. Additionally they started to feel burned by the low quality of PSP software, which is a breeding ground for piracy. By the time the PSP gets a decent library it already has a reputation as a system you should be cracking. The third problem is that they're going up against Nintendo in the handheld department, which is where they've dominated since its inception. The NES is the only other place Nintendo has been dominant, and in that case it was due to them coming into a barren market with a great product (plus somewhat draconian business tactics). With handhelds Nintendo has had a steady stream of competitors and its buried them all.

[Niode]

Sony sees custom firmware as a threat. Piracy has devastated the handheld in the western market.

I'd say that's only half the equation. The PSP has two problems that has really trashed it. Well, three. The first is that for the first several years of its life the PSP really didn't have that good of a library. Even today it feels like developers aren't entirely sure what kinds of games to develop for it. Sony has pushed a "hardcore" brand image, but those types of games typically just aren't as well suited for a portable format. The second problem is the piracy. All the early adopters found that to get the most value out of their device they needed to go the CFW route to get things like emulators. Additionally they started to feel burned by the low quality of PSP software, which is a breeding ground for piracy. By the time the PSP gets a decent library it already has a reputation as a system you should be cracking. The third problem is that they're going up against Nintendo in the handheld department, which is where they've dominated since its inception. The NES is the only other place Nintendo has been dominant, and in that case it was due to them coming into a barren market with a great product (plus somewhat draconian business tactics). With handhelds Nintendo has had a steady stream of competitors and its buried them all.

Couldn't agree more. It's all too easy to blame a system's failure on piracy. The DS is arguably more pirated than the PSP, and that's still trouncing it at retail. The reason? Superior software and a better form factor (alleviated somewhat by the PSPGO, but then the PSPGO is download only, so nobody will buy it for games anyway).

[MerRocher]

Well the DS is in a different situation than the PSP. It's managed to be a lot more successful, for one thing. Nintendo is likely to sell it at a profit and Sony is unlikely to profit off of PSP hardware for another. And while the DS is rampant with piracy, this is able to be offset by decent software sales. This is also true for the PSP in Japan where developing for the PSP is considered to be profitable. In fact it is the most profitable medium for Marvelous, for example. If you look at the weekly media create numbers, you'll see that the handheld consistently has chart toppers and sales of system hardware have been pretty high. In fact,the PSP has been more successful in Japan than the Wii. So it's not just "the product is no good." People just don't seem to be buying games in the west.

The PSP Go is a complete failure.

[Niode]

Well the DS is in a different situation than the PSP. It's managed to be a lot more successful, for one thing. Nintendo is likely to sell it at a profit and Sony is unlikely to profit off of PSP hardware for another. And while the DS is rampant with piracy, this is able to be offset by decent software sales. This is also true for the PSP in Japan where developing for the PSP is considered to be profitable. In fact it is the most profitable medium for Marvelous, for example. If you look at the weekly media create numbers, you'll see that the handheld consistently has chart toppers and sales of system hardware have been pretty high. In fact,the PSP has been more successful in Japan than the Wii. So it's not just "the product is no good." People just don't seem to be buying games in the west.

The PSP Go is a complete failure.

That goes back to the demographic argument though. The software just isn't there for the PSP outside japan, a lot of the good games are JP only. People are buying games for the DS because there is a substantial amount more good games to buy. A major factor that has played in the downfall of the PSP is it's not considered a status symbol. Whereas the DS is. It's cool to own a DS now. That's why everybody has one. Status symbols are never dictated by which is most powerful, or most value. Just look at the iPhone, it's not the most powerful phone, it's not the most open phone and it definitely isn't the best value phone. People want it because it's cool to have one (no matter how much I disagree with status symbols or any of the crap, doesn't make it untrue). You just can't compete against status symbols. The same thing happened with the iPod and the Gameboy. It's one of those invisible factors that deems whether a product is destined to succeed and it's impossible to ignore.

[MrPopo]

Or the Walkman. Certain devices come along and do something very well. The Walkman, the Game Boy, and the iPod all did one thing and did it very well compared to any competitors of the time. The PSP came into the handheld market, which had been dominated by Nintendo since the late 80's, and attempted to carve out a piece of the pie without knowing what it was trying to do. It plays movies, it plays games, you can put music on it. Except the no one wants to buy their music again for a proprietary format and using the PSP as a music player is pretty cumbersome when you can just get an iPod instead. So all that was left was the games, and no one knew what to do with the PSP on that front. So out the door it did nothing well, and now Sony's wondering why they can't make money on it in the US.