Downloadable PSP demos > memstick

[hey69]

The official story: "We haven't made any announcements regarding the process for downloading content for the PSP, so any information otherwise is purely speculation." --Sony representative.

What we heard: According to the source, Sony is considering the following scheme: Posting demos of PSP games on the Web and allowing gamers to download them onto their PCs. Gamers would then transfer the demo to a Memory Stick inside the PSP via the portable's USB 2.0 port. The prospect offers both great potential and peril. On one hand, it would allow Sony to widely distribute demos for PSP games for virtually no cost. However, given that Memory Sticks are now capable of holding up to 2GB of memory, allowing the downloading of PSP game content from PCs could provide ample opportunity for piracy--a dilemma that's probably being tackled inside Sony Computer Entertainment boardrooms right now.

Bogus or not bogus?: Probably not bogus. Other sources have implied to GameSpot that Sony planned such a scheme from the start.


src: gamespot

 

[Guden Oden]

If they put a hardcoded limit on the size of an executable stored on memorystick (maybe RAM capacity; ~36MB as I recall), piracy won't be an issue. No cracker will be able to chop up a game into almost 50 pieces and still have it remain playable.

 

[hey69]

you would be surprised 8)

 

[megateto]

Pirates will never stop surprising me with the things they can do.

 

[McFly]

A little bit of piracy never did anything bad to a system and I'm sure Sony knows that. I think they will try to make it hard for pirates, but not impossible.

Fredi

 

[darkblu]

However, given that Memory Sticks are now capable of holding up to 2GB of memory, allowing the downloading of PSP game content from PCs could provide ample opportunity for piracy--a dilemma that's probably being tackled inside Sony Computer Entertainment boardrooms right now.

ms duo is up to 128 and duo pro up to 512mb, respectively. it's not clear which type the psp supports

 

[wco81]

How would you rip a UMD game to a computer?

Sony isn't releasing any UMD drives for PCs are they?

For that matter, they're not even releasing UMD-compatible DVD players for instance, which would make buying UMD movies more viable -- if you can play the movies on the PSP as well as on your TV.

 

[Kalin]

How would you rip a UMD game to a computer?

Sony isn't releasing any UMD drives for PCs are they?

For that matter, they're not even releasing UMD-compatible DVD players for instance, which would make buying UMD movies more viable -- if you can play the movies on the PSP as well as on your TV.

PSP itself might be your perfect external UMD drive

PS. Does anyone know if the PSP can be powered trough the USB port?

 

[thop]

How would you rip a UMD game to a computer?

They will figure out how to run their own software on the memory stick. They will code some nice little app that will read the games from the UMD. There will be a USB cable involved. PSP games are now on the PC. I think in about ~6 months all will be done.

And i think it's gonna help the PSP greatly.

 

[Farid]

If they put a hardcoded limit on the size of an executable stored on memorystick (maybe RAM capacity; ~36MB as I recall), piracy won't be an issue. No cracker will be able to chop up a game into almost 50 pieces and still have it remain playable.

PSP's firmware is flashable, and we know that the TGS units could run any executable from the MenStick, so there's room for a "cracked" firmware resolving any software limitation, IMO.
If they change that for the released model and add some sort of "hardware limititation" then, it would, logically, require a more complex method to run executables directly from Memstick.
Modchips are unlikely, due to PSP's size, any solution found should be software related, i think.
But i'm sure we'll see a method, it's just a matter of time (I'm certain that'll come quickly).

Anyway, i don't think piracy would be a problem, a 2GB MSDUO (if that exist, i know about MSPRO of more than 1Gig but that's about it) would cost more than 2 PSP.
OTOH the emulation scene might find this very interesting.

edit: Engrish

 

[Farid]

How would you rip a UMD game to a computer?

Sony isn't releasing any UMD drives for PCs are they?

Just like how you rip DC games. Use the machine own drive.

 

[Fafalada]

ms duo is up to 128 and duo pro up to 512mb, respectively. it's not clear which type the psp supports

It supports both.
Anyway, 1GB Duo's are just coming out this month IIRC. And that's just for Sony brand MS - which I doubt most of us really want - they are way expensive.
Sandisk is already up to 4GB with standard MS Pro, I wouldn't be at all surprised if they roll out 2GB Duo's sometime soon too.

 

[Guden Oden]

Are those Sandisk sticks "true" 4GB sticks, or do they use some stoopid banking system with a little switch?

 

[Farid]

Are those Sandisk sticks "true" 4GB sticks, or do they use some stoopid banking system with a little switch?

The press release gives no indications about this.
And i'm not aware of any reviews of those new cards, though.

 

[McFly]

No switch.

Fredi

 

[cthellis42]

Frankly, if they thought piracy-through-MS would SELL a lot of 2GB ones, they'd probably encourage it!

 

[Fafalada]

Are those Sandisk sticks "true" 4GB sticks, or do they use some stoopid banking system with a little switch?

No need for banking with Pro for awhile their address space goes up to 1TB IIRC, so they have quite a way to go still.

 

[Guden Oden]

1TB... MMM! That's neat. Still, I would expect memstick software to be limited to a certain max size. Circumventing that protection by hacking the firmware would be impossible if memstick control is handled by unflashable firmware (seems likely, along with USB and UMD; probably handled by the secondary CPU, which is reportedly not open to run user code...)

 

[hey69]

what would be cool is a memstick dummy interface< =wire=>ide case or CFlash interface.. that would be cheaper, don't know if that 's easy to do

already chinese have made a PSP clone well that is, not really a clone but resembles the PSP , with even the playstation X and square logo on the buttons. it's nothing more then a mediaplayer apparently..

what an honour for Sony 8)

 

[cthellis42]

Yeah, you know I thought I'd posted that already--must've gotten swallowed up somewhere.

At any rate, according to insertcredit, this is a suspicious-looking 3G cell phone from Lenovo. I was wondering just what in heck they'd need with such a huge screen, but it does say "PDA" in there as well, so let's see what Babel Fish translates the passage to:

SCE is pivotal in the game status, since day before yesterday has announced the PSP price as well as sells Japan to cause the field also to seethe with excitement, even match no matter what the heaven stock vacation also bearing crazily unloads 120 Japanese Yen, obviously now PSP influence! With the aid of the PSP formidable influence, the association had issued section the 3G handset which extremely resembles with the PSP contour, this section handset similarly has with PSP equally noble and the magnificent outlook, moreover has the general PDA formidable function, also simultaneously has 摄像头, similarly has function and so on DV, most makes one exclaim in surprise is unexpectedly links Playstation the sign pressed key also to appear in ' associates PSP ' on, associates and the SONY cooperation exchange is very close as if!



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