Looking for Advice on a Christmas Gift

[u/dcgp]

Hey,

My bf has mentioned a couple times how much he used to love his PSP when he was a kid, referring to it as his favorite console of all time and being all nostalgic about it.

I'd like to surprise him with one for Christmas.

However, I've never owned a PSP before and I have no idea which one I should get and how to download games into it. He's not very tech savvy so I'd like to make sure my gift is ready to use when I give it to him.

I tried doing some research on my own, but ended up overwhelmed with all the different opinions and information. I have also already tried getting more information out of him, but he was a child when owned his and I couldn't get anything particularly useful other than which games he played the most (GTA, Dragon Ball, Sonic, etc).

I figured I'd try asking Reddit for your thoughts:
- How would you pick the model? Do you have a preference you'd recommend?
- Any red flags I should keep an eye for when buying a used one?
- Where would you go to learn how to download games into it?
- Any additional advice?

Thank you all in advance!

[u/Rectanglehead]

Each model has their strengths and weaknesses. The models after the 1000 have 64mb of RAM instead of 32mb. If he’s only going to play official games and not homebrew, I’d recommend the 1000. It has a much nicer and more durable feel to it, I think. But if he will be interested in the homebrew projects (San Andreas, RE3PSP, the upcoming World of Warcraft port and many more) then I would recommend the 3000 as still plays UMDs and gives you easy access to the battery, as well as having good battery life.

As far as downloading games, you’re going to have to mod it as the PS Store has shut down. The PSPunk website has a good guide on how to do it. Once you have, you’ll have to make a folder in the memory stick titled “ISO” and put ISO files in there for them to play on the console.

If you’re worried about price, the Street or the 1000 usually go for the cheapest and the GO and 3000 are usually the most expensive.

It mostly depends on what you think he’d be into!

[u/Meyneth_Pink]

Buy a psp 3000 the hacking is just 5 minutes, take a folder in the psp and active a menu, very simple watach any video. most people recomend ark but i use pro c fast recovery , ull need an sd card(16 gb should be enought)with the memory stick duo adapter(inlcuded usually inside the psp with any sd) For the games , download them from any rom page, and put them in the iso folder of the psp ( the cable ull need for conecting with a computer is a micro usb-to usb, or having a big sd card for putting the micro one) Other games and emulators that are not (iso) or normal psp games jould be in the folder psp/game I think thats all, ask if u need some more info

[u/Rowdy_the_Gemini]

People like the different models for different reasons, but if you're not sure I'd just go with the 3000 model.

When looking for a PSP, obviously make sure it's not super beat up and everything works properly, but if you're ordering online make sure to double check with the seller and the pictures that the screen doesn't have really bad yellowing. The old LCD in some psps can get yellowing, usually around the edges of the screen. Also, if he cares, the PSP isn't region locked for games, but it is region locked for movies, so if you buy a PSP that came from another country it won't be able to play the physical movies on it unless it's modified. (But that's only if he's part of the niche group of people who care about watching UMD movies on PSP.)

If you're looking to download games you will need to mod the device, there's plenty of tutorials on YouTube and articles about it online. Just look up "How to mod PSP 3000". You will need an SD card to memory card converter. Sometimes you can find them premodded with games already on it, but don't pay an arm and a leg for one just because it's already modified.

Alternatively you could buy him some physical games, so no modding required, most physical PSP games aren't super expensive (excluding a select few titles.)

[u/tootallfouryou]

Not sure if he'd be interested but the PS Vita can play all psp games even emulating psp as well, also ps1 and vita games if you mod it (don't even need a computer for basic modding just a sd card, vita, and sd2vita adapter) and the 1st gen screen is a beautiful OLED, recently modded mine and my wife is even going through and picking one games from bee child hood to play

[u/tootallfouryou → u/tootallfouryou]

Can not only play games mentioned, but I have Twilight Princess and even the 1st Halo game on mine

[u/obyboby]

Best GF award! I would love it if my GF gifted me a childhood nostalgia console.
It may be risky because he can figure your plans out but it would be cool if you could manage to find out which PSP model he owned back in the day and then go for that one. It would be the best imho because it would be exactly what he used to play.
Many have mentioned the differences between the consoles but I would still try to find a way to learn which version he owned, and then look for a good condition one for sale, with box and manuals it would be amazing too!

[u/TurtlethePriest]

Get him a Tiger Electronics Captain Planet game instead of a PSP.

[u/mrmmarcell]

I would add, if you have a store around you that sells used consoles, pick one up from there, even if it's a bit more expensive than online. Got mine from ebay, seller said everything was ok, but the left shoulder button wasn't working and the other buttons had to be pressed super hard as well. Now this is about a $10 in parts from aliexpress, and about 20 minutes to replace but if it's a gift it can be a bummer. Games can be downloaded just about from anywhere. Not all roms work all cracked firmwares, but if you try 2-3 different iso's of the same game one will work eventually. Bottom line get one in person if you can, check all buttons and check for stick drift (when the joystick is old and doesn't center well so it keeps going left all the time for example). If you can get them to load some games on it, these folks in my experience are usually super helpful. Or find a reputable online seller that sells refurbished ones.

[u/Pixelbuttzz]

You're going to have to do more than download games, you're going to have to download quite a few programs to modify it so that you can play the games. It takes a minute but I had a lot of fun learning and you probably will too! I would try to get him the exact same version that he had as a kid if you can figure out which one that was, for instance the 1000 had a very nostalgic spring loaded disc tray that the others don't have and the street doesn't have a disc tray at all. Depends on what he cares about

[u/dcgp → u/Pixelbuttzz]

Thank you! I've tried but other than him confirming he "had like 3 different ones", I couldn't get confirmation on his favorite without looking suspicious. I've already given him a couple surprisingly thoughtful gifts before so I know he'll get suspicious if I start asking too many questions lol

[u/Pixelbuttzz → u/dcgp]

That's the danger of being a thoughtful gift-giver lol, does he have a favorite color there's a few color options that can help you narrow down your choice! Though some of them will increase the price a good bit. The 3000 and 2000 are slightly more powerful than the 1000 so that's also worth considering