PSP or DS?

[mobiusclimber]

I've always purchased used PSPs off Craigslist, and always ones that are already modded, so I haven't actually had to do much of anything. I think it really depends on what firmware is already installed on your PSP as to how easy or difficult it is.

[Gamerforlife]

Great info in this thread. Honestly, I think I want both systems, but I'm leaning towards getting an already modded PSP first. I wonder how much one would go for.

[mobiusclimber]

Check Craigslist.org in your area. I've seen them go for $100 to $150 depending on what comes with them. You could probably also find someone to mod a PSP for around $15.

[profshiny]

Prices vary, naturally, but ebay seems to be around $150-200 with some stuff.
http://video-games.search.ebay.com/psp- ... fmtsZinsif

[MrPopo]

I ended up flashing my PSP myself, and it was a pain in the ass to find a guide for it. Most of the guides out there assumed access to a PSP phat. I eventually was able to find a good step by step, and required a $20 purchase of modded battery. After that, it was pretty simple. Format the memstick, put in the modded battery, install the flash with the installer. Badda bing, badda boom.

Personally, I'm not worried about DS saves lifetime. Hell, my old SNES games are still going strong. I got Super Metroid and Earthbound shortly after release, and those batteries work just fine.

[Ziggy]

I too flashed my own PSP Slim. Its actually VERY easy, it's just that all of the guides out there suck. Most of the PSP hack/mod sites/forums I went to were just full of the type of people that say 'noob' if you ask a question. And the guides leave a lot of questions, then don't really explain well at all.

This is the guide I used, and it's very simple as long as you can follow directions. You can use it to flash any PSP, Slim or fat, and its also an unbricker so you don't have to really worry about bricking your PSP. It even has a link to a guide that will show you how to make your stock battery into a Pandora.

I myself opted to mod my stock battery, then went out and picked up the 'extended life' battery. So not only do I have a longer lasting battery, but I have a Pandora battery lying around if I ever need it. There's actually two good ways to make a stock battery into Pandora and then be able to use it as a normal battery again, I would suggest this option as a money saver, but wouldn't recommend it if you aren't good with that sort of thing.

[Pulsar_t]

I opted for the DS eventually, since after trying the PSP for a week I thought it wasn't really fit for its purpose. I kept worrying I would break the screen whenever I slipped it into my pocket, and I'm the type that refuses to wear those silly purses so the unit either fits neatly into "normal" pockets or it doesn't at all. I even think the DSLite is a bit fat (but not too fat to replace with the inferior DSi!). The best thing I like about the DS is that you can fold it and have it in your pocket within seconds. And when you unfold it you're back to where you were in the game. Battery duration is decent, too.

When it comes to the library, the PSP has some interesting titles but most of them aren't really designed for the road warrior in mind. Perhaps by next year they'll refrain more from porting/designing console-like titles. The DS could certainly have used better 3D processing, and most developers just don't bother innovating enough for it, but it's still the best on the market IMHO, especially since it's backwards-compatible with the GBA. The PSP is good if you like multimedia functionality, and most emulators written for it are adequate. But to me it's like a touch-less iPod touch that isn't as snazzy, if you disregard the gaming bit.

[bobbynewmarkiii]

I ended up flashing my PSP myself, and it was a pain in the ass to find a guide for it. Most of the guides out there assumed access to a PSP phat. I eventually was able to find a good step by step, and required a $20 purchase of modded battery.

you can do a relatively easy (no soldering required) hardware hack on your own battery to turn it into a 'pandora' battery, and then turn it back to normal state - see the link for a guide I posted somewhere in the 'hacks and mods' part of the forum. No outlay is needed to hack a psp.

[Pulsar_t]

http://gizmodo.com/5058251/sony-fondles ... -the-other

Haha Sony's goons are pure comedy gold!

[RackGaki]

Since everyone figured out the Pandora's Battery trick last year, modding a PSP seems to be ridiculously simple.

Personally, I went PSP, and enjoy great games like DJ Max Portable, LocoRoco, Patapon, and superior versions of N+ and Space Invades Extreme. Plus I can put whatever deviant pictures and movies on there that I want.

Still, I might want to pick up a DS someday, but only for a few adventure or RPG titles: Contact, Izuna, The World End With You.