Transfer Files from PS to PC - Made Easy!

GrumpyOldMan

GrumpyOldMan

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dagware
NOTE: This is just an initial review, so I reserve the right to change my mind later. :D

If your PS and your desktop/laptop computer are close enough, you can actually wire them to each other using a device called a USB Switcher:
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One USB cable goes to your PS4/PS5, and the other goes to your computer. You plug a thumb drive into the switcher. Then just press a button to switch whether your PS sees the thumb drive, or your computer sees it. You can probably use any kind of USB drive, not just a flash drive, but that's all I've tried.

Pardon my messy office. The yellow arrow points to the switcher. The other arrows are basically where the USB cables go.
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Using it is simple:
  1. Switch it to your PS4/PS5.
  2. On the console, go to Media Gallery, select one or more media files, and use the "..." button to save your media file(s) to the USB drive.
  3. Switch the switcher to your computer.
  4. After a few seconds, your computer should see the drive and mount it.
  5. Copy the media file(s) to your computer.
  6. Eject the drive when you're done, and you can switch back to the PS if you want.
For me, before I eject the thumb drive, I like to delete the files on the thumb drive. On my Mac, here's how I do it so the files really get deleted, not just trashed:
  1. In Finder, select the top-level folder (in my case, it's "PS5").
  2. Click the "File" menu item.
  3. Hold down the Option key, and near the bottom of the menu, it changes from "Move to trash" to "Delete Immediately...".
  4. Click "Delete Immediately..."
  5. Obviously heed the warning about the files being permanently deleted. Equally obviously, make sure you've selected the correct thing to delete.
Here's the switcher I bought from Amazon. It comes with two 1.5 meter USB-to-USB cables, and a USB C cable for hooking it to power if you need to. If you use a flash drive, it doesn't need power. Other kinds of drives may require the power cable.

And obviously you'll need some sort of USB drive.

NOTE: If you need longer cables, make sure you buy "USB to USB" cables, with ends that look like this:

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For those who moving a tiny device from one location to another is just too much work! LOL

In a GT-application, could something like this be used to switch wheel controller between PC/PS?
 
MikeUD06
For those who moving a tiny device from one location to another is just too much work! LOL
Click to expand...
It may sound funny, but it's actually really nice to not have to do that. For me, anyway.
MikeUD06
In a GT-application, could something like this be used to switch wheel controller between PC/PS?
Click to expand...
I don't see why not. I mean, everything has limitations, so you never know until you try, but it seems reasonable.
 
MikeUD06
For those who moving a tiny device from one location to another is just too much work! LOL

In a GT-application, could something like this be used to switch wheel controller between PC/PS?
Click to expand...
Yeah, controllers are very low speed devices, about a decade ago I made a device for this exact purpose with a 4 pole 3 throw rotary switch so I could plug my G27 into my PS3 and PC (and a third host that I didn't have yet) which really shouldn't work for USB devices, but they're so slow that it doesn't care if the huge amount of parasitic capacitance from the switch rounds off the edges on the data lines. This isn't that though, it's a digital switch with like electronics and stuff inside.

This is smart though, USB connectors are guaranteed for a limited number of mating cycles so switching a wheel between two consoles like this would save on wear (which could actually be an issue if you use both devices a lot, but for most people this is never an issue)
 

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