A few questions about PSP...

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DuckRacer

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I'm considering to buy a PSP...so I have a few questions:

1. Can you play UMD's on a normal DVD player?

2. Can you copy movies from DVD's to UMD's legally?

3. With the memory sticks, do you have to get a Sony one or can I get one from Sandisk or some other company?

Thanks for your time. :)

Duck
 
AFAIK (i.e. I could be wrong, but I'm fairly certain I'm right)

1. No
2. No, you can't buy writeable/re-writeable UMDs. If you could, It'd probably still be against copyright, although I suppose you could argue you were just backing the DVD up (but then you couldn't be using the DVD and UMD at the same time)
3. You can get them from other manufacturers (Link)
 
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#2 They could be releasing the format to the public to allow people to copy onto them etc. but there's no confirmation as of yet i believe.
 
Sony have really gone screwed themselves up with the licensed tighter than a nun's bum proprietry formats like Memory sticks ($$$!!) and UMDs ($$$!!)...

New iPods will be very successful. HDD and whatever videos you like (as far as I know).

ONLY buy a PSP if you want it for games, and games alone. The machine is superb as a portable game console, and as sexy as Jessica Alba and Kiera Knightley nude in a tub full of jelly. Wrestling. You just need to be confident that Sony will get some regular game releases happening.

The machine is almost worth it just for WipEout Pure (very nearly as good as 2097/XL) and RidgeRacers (best ridge game ever). Why you'd buy a machine thats almost as quick as a PS2 and play a puzzle game on it is beyond me. But then I am a graphics whore. :D

Just get a GBA SP if you just want to play oldschool stuff. I've a feeling that PSP has been designed as a system to last a very very long time (easy as long as PS3's rien). Technically it'll take Nintendo about another 10 years to reach those kind of graphics in a handheld.
 
If Sony stopped being so uptight with Memory Sticks, then PSP wouldn't have this disk space issue. Other flash memory formats are 4GB in size and rising. If Sony had a 4GB Memory Stick at a reasonable price, the PSP would definitely be in striking range of the iPod Nano.

IMO, the PSP is already an iPod killer with a feature set 10 times as much, but the only thing holding it back is disk space.
 
No. The UMD is very similar to the old MiniDisc format. It's got your normal miniaturized disc but it is encased in plastic. That alone makes it impossible to fit into most DVD player slots. Add the small disc space that can be read at a given time (the laser can't move back and forth like normal without doing some damage to the plastic) and you're really just asking to break you DVD player.

UMDs are really evil little things for movies. No one wants to buy the same movie on two formats (DVD and UMD) unless the smaller of the too is considerably cheaper. Well...the UMD costs the same, so it's really not worth it. Especially if you have a big memory card and a DVD ripper. :P
 
1. No. However, there is a TV out device coming out shortly for the PSP. Also, there's a chance that some BluRay players will be able to.
2. No, for the simple reason that there aren't any UMD burners or writeable media available. (Although I think they were being developed for Digital Camcorders, but I think those are replaced by BluRay discs.)
3. Yes. Scandisk sells Memory Cards that are not only cheaper, but also faster. The biggest currently on the market is 2Gb.

Additionally, Datel is releasing a 4GB harddrive soon that you can attach to the memory stick port, and that comes with a capacity doubling 3600mA battery as well. Looks pretty good.

(and by the way, James, the iRiver beats the iPod in my book, bigger screen, better battery life, more video formats, more features, etc. - but I still prefer the PSP, which has the best screen by far)
 
Ok, I'm not going to get one. Unless I get the whole set-up for dirt cheap. Thanks to everyone for answering my questions. :)

Duck
 
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