PSP: Wall Street Journal gives us its impressions

by James Ransom-Wiley { Mar 16th 2005 at 4:29PM }

PSP You won't read anything new here, but the WSJ offers a straightforward hands-on review of the PSP. While the reviewers were clearly impressed with the gaming capabilities, they were thoroughly unimpressed with the device's other multimedia functionality. The bottom-line here: the PSP will not be replacing your iPod or portable DVD player any time soon. Despite these miscues, the WSJ seems to hold out hope for the future. But just how long will it take Sony to make the multimedia features attractive enough for non/part-time gamers to take the bait?

[Thanks, Kevin]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Kamalot @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

Walt Mossberg is a very good reviewer who is always interested in product usability. This is worth a read.

Maskatron @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

I'm have less hope for Sony's multimedia efforts, and more for the hacking community. A Xbox Media Player type program would really be this thing's killer app.

Dario @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

As usual the business pubs see things from a perspective that is different from the gamer's pov. The PSP's capabilities are in the hands of those who will use it as gamers which means we probably won't find out what how is going to be used until we all get comfortable and gain confidence with the device's multiple personalities. My intial thought is that it may not replace Ipod for music but it could definetly compete with portable dvd players because of size and convenience.

Kamalot @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

Please read the article before going all Kotaku flippant. The reviewer is very good. He examines devices from a functionality/usability standpoint. The reason he likes the ipod is because there isn't a media player that is more usable right now. He also loves the Treo smartphones for the same reason; they are the best of class.

I don't own an iPod, I'm a Rio Karma user. But even I realize that the iPod is nearly a perfect device for most people. It offers a rich feature set in a simple to use package. It may not have EVERY feature, but it does what it was designed to do VERY WELL!

If you ACTUALLY READ the review, you will see that he is reviewing the complete package of the PSP, not just the game functionality. He is a Non-gamer and therefore a very good representation of the people Sony is targeting with the multimedia functions of the PSP.

Walt is right in saying that the multimedia capabilities of the PSP are weak. Sony gives no out of the box solution for connection to the PC. They offer no easy solution for managing music or video on the device. The device lacks a clean interface for media playback; it is a set of gaming controls retrofitted to music and movie playback. The packaged media (32 MB) is paltry and isn't sufficient for the most basic multimedia functions. The list goes on and on.

While the PSP may be nice for gaming, it is CLEARLY not the ipod killer Sony hoped it would be and barely passes as a multimedia device at all.

GTi-VR6 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

Ahhh...any chance you can get to knock it......

I HAVE read the review and some of it is accurate, while some of it seems to miss a bit. For instance, he goes on a couple of times about how the PSP has no real "transport controls" to ff, rw, etc, but fails to mention that a remote WITH those controls is INCLUDED.

The 32mb Mem Stick is for game saves not playing movies.

I do fault Sony for not providing us with a cleaner method of moving media to the mem stick, and for still being a slave to the horridly expensive Memory Stick format, BUT, they have already stated that they will provide software to facilitate music and movie transfers as well as pledging to make Memory Sticks a little bit more affordable (I'm not holding my breathe on that last one).

IPods are far from perfect, there are quite a few devices out there that can do what it does. The main differentiator is the iTunes software/music transport. That is its killer app. The main reason the iPod dominates is because it has become what people think of when they talk of mp3 players. Just like any PDA is referred to as a PalmPilot, most DVR's are called Tivo's etc.

Come on Kamalot, you spend way too much time knocking the PSP.....did it do something to you or do you have some sort of hatred for Sony?

Kamalot @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

Why support something based on false claims rather than the truth?

The PSP makes a poor multimedia device.

Some people seem all too happy to drool and lust after a device whose manufacturers� claims are not in line with reality.

GTi-VR6 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

No one said you had to support it, but why do you have to jump on it every chance you get?

WizarDru @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

First off: this is Mossberg we're talking about here: he's a Wall Street Journal business tech reporter, speaking to non-technical readers. Apparently, reporting favorably on the iPod is somehow a bad thing? Kotaku certainly doesn't appear to be lacking bias, if the sudden "DUDE, the PSP is soooo Coool!" non-news posts are any indication (do I really need to know you named it?) If the iPod wasn't a success, it certainly wouldn't be the market Sony was trying to grab, would it? I don't own an iPod, but I know several folks who do...and it is to portable music players what the Sony Walkman once was. iPod isn't a success just due to the hardware, but the complete integration with iTunes, and the simplicity of the interface. Most readers here are hardcore geeks, so they don't think twice about the PSP's extremely kludgy methods for loading and unloading media onto the device.

I personally think Mossberg is a poor reviewer of gadgets, in that he rarely puts them through their paces for hard use...but he does give a usually fair review of them. If I have a problem with the review, it's that Mossberg fails to mention some of the hardware issues that have cropped up, and seems to take Sony's word for it with regards to battery life. I would have appreciated finding out how well it actually worked for someone without any sort of bias about the device.

The reason that iPod, TiVo and Palm are the known names in their field isn't that they were first (in all three cases, they weren't), but that they offered the most accessible and easy-to-use package. Ask anyone attempting to use Comcast's current DVR package...they suffer it, not enjoy it. That's why Comcast was so eager to partner with TiVo. Palm made the best interface for a PDA, period. That the market has moved on doesn't invalidate that Palm became the go to guys through solid design. The Treo survived because it was the smartest thing Handspring produced.

As for the 32MB stick not being for media...well, then you have to say that the PSP doesn't support media out of the box, and hence "Cost Issues". For the price of a 512MB Duo stick, about $130-$180, I can get a flash player like my Cali or a Forge. That's a cost on top of the purchase of the device. The same applies for UMD movie purchases: do you really think that folks are going to pay $20-$30 for a UMD copy of a movie, when they can get a 2-DVD set for the same price? It's no accident that all of the movies currently announced for the UMD format are either old, unpopular or extremely safe bets for the core geek market (such as Buena Vista's announcement). I expect you'll see commercial UMDs become the way that the system first gets hacked, with clever folks buying them just to crack the cases and reuse them with recordable MDs, which is what Sony is probably very nervous about.

The PSP will rock the house...but that doesn't mean that it doesn't have problems. A negative review isn't going to impact sales for the PSP much, word of mouth will...but considering Mossberg's review was overwhelmingly positive, I'm not even sure what the fuss is about. Both the PSP and the DS have issues that need addressing in the market. Pointing those flaws out isn't being a fanboy, it's being a consumer. Ignoring them is.

Prof Wiz @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

it looks like kamalot is commenting on the article. people tried to discredit the author who has an excellent track record of reviews. kotaku does not. if you read kotaku he even named his psp. I think kotaku is a little biasex and a lot frightening. walt mossberg is level headed.

GTi-VR6 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

The assertion that the PSP doesn't support media is partially true. I readily agree that you are fooling yourself if you think you are going to use the 32mb for anything more meaningful than a couple of songs and a bunch of game saves. BUT, you're cost estimates for the 512mb Pro DUO are WAAAAYYY OFF! A quick search finds prices ranging from $60-80 dollars. Granted, that is twice what it should cost.

I absolutely agree with your statement about UMD movies. There's no way I will be buying any movie (or music) in the UMD format. It just doesn't make sense.

As for the calling people fanboys: I never called anyone a fanboy, BUT if you look at the bulk of Kamalot's posts on Joystiq, you'll see a history of boosting for articles regarding DS, and incessant putting down of the PSP. In fact, the previous article on this board is one reviewing Yoshi's Touch & Go for the DS, and there is Kamalot complaining about how the reviewer "just doesn't get it". The review wasn't all that bad either, it just wasn't glowing.

I definitely agree with Kamalot about Kotaku, though. He's weird.

Optimus Mind @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

I think the Yoshi article is here:

http://www.joystiq.com/entry/1234000803036330/#comments

And I don't see anything inflamatory about the comments on the article. The discussion is about DS reviews in general, not about specific reviews.

Personally, id rather have some one who is skeptical of the systems that are being pushed on us instead of buying into the hype.

Optimus Mind @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=6837694&type=product&id=1093386153672

People aren't going to be going to PriceWatch to buy these memory cards. They will be going to retail.

Here is something interesting though...
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7011832&type=product&id=1099392727069

And this looks much easier to get music onto-off of tied to the awesome itunes program too. Maybe the old man reviewer was right that psp isn't good a multimedia.

Kamalot @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

This is hysterical. Overall, the review is a very positive review. If you scroll all the way to the top of the comments, you will see that I suggest everyone read it.

I appreciate the reviewer�s candid nature. They clearly aren�t a blind, Kotaku fanboy or PS2 fanboy. Not being a fan means they can objectively review the product.

If I was out seeking to bash the PSP every opportunity I get, Why would I even suggest that people read the article?

I still maintain the PSP is a weak multimedia machine. I still maintain that the PSP could be better had Sony not insisted in forcing an optical drive in the system. The PSP could have been a MUCH better handheld gaming system had Sony eschewed the weak multimedia aspects of the device and focused on making the best portable game system possible.

http://www.joystiq.com/entry/1234000743034952/

If anything, my frustration is at the potential I see in the device and the bone-headed decisions that kept it from reaching that potential.

GTi-VR6 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

@Optimus Mind: $89 for the Sandisk 512mb Duo Pro at BestBuy is hardly the $130-$180 that was mentioned earlier. BTW, i did't use price watch. You want retail? Go to CompUSA and buy it for $79.
http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=312297&pfp=SEARCH

I don't understand, you mean people aren't going to shop around for a better price? Come on.

I already agreed that iPod has a much better method of transfering music. Thats the main reason its so poplular.

Yes, Kotaku is a putz, Mossberg was fairly accurate in downplaying the multimedia functions of the PSP, which I agree with. But keep in mind that future firmware updates will "probably" make these features more useable.

For me, right now the PSP is the only handheld that i'd consider. The DS is a good system, but its not my kind of system. (i'm sure i'll get bashed for that too).
It just doesn't offer any games I'm interested in and the PSP does. The fact that the PSP may or may not be able to play music and movies well is pretty much a side note for me. I usually carry a PVR with me anyway for my ReplayTV'd shows and music.

WizarDru @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

I'm glad to see my quick googling of Memory Stick Duo prices was way off. That said, the point still stands: you don't buy a PSP for multimedia...you enjoy the added features of multimedia on a machine you bought for games. It's an important distinction that one hopes Sony has figured out.

I mainly take issue with how those multimedia features are being presented. I watch a lot of divx movies, for example. Can I watch an episode of Lost on the PSP? How many episodes of Gankutsuo can I fit on there? What kind of playlist functionality does it offer?

Sony's MP3 players have traditionally been crippled by their own software. From all accounts, this trend continues on the PSP. It's a legitimate criticism, I think, to point that out.

I should mention that I know you weren't specifically calling anyone out as a fanboy...more that I've heard the assertion in some related PSP news items, where it's tossed out pretty quickly.

As Kamalot points out, Mossberg recommends the PSP...just not for his readers who are looking to have it replace the iPod...it won't do that. He's reviewed some of the iPod clones, and come to roughly the same conclusion. Remember, his readers are not necessarily all tech-savvy blog-reading geeks, who grok how to bypass iTunes or the like. KISS is still the order of the day.

WizarDru @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

"For me, right now the PSP is the only handheld that i'd consider. The DS is a good system, but its not my kind of system. (i'm sure i'll get bashed for that too).
It just doesn't offer any games I'm interested in and the PSP does. The fact that the PSP may or may not be able to play music and movies well is pretty much a side note for me. I usually carry a PVR with me anyway for my ReplayTV'd shows and music."

Got it in one. That's all I was pointing out. The PSP has all the earmarks of a kick-ass gaming machine. The DS targets a different market and different gaming style. They are two different devices, with different focuses, and the market is big enough to accomadate each. Sony is at a crossroads right now, and we can only hope they wise up.

If Sony can improve the multimedia tools for the PSP, it will be an awesome device. I plan on getting one, regardless. I have all three consoles, too. Gamers reap more benefits if there are two succesful systems, instead of one.

GTi-VR6 @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

Exaclty!

Both PSP and DS are far from perfect (iPod falls in there as well). There is room for improvement on both platforms.

As Mr. King (Rodney, not MLK!) said, "Can't we all just get along?" The DS camp should be happy that new innovative games that utilize the touchscreen are finally coming out, and the PSP group should be happy that the PSP is finally launching!

In the end, we will all win because competition breeds innovation. (look at IE for example-- no competition left it a bloated stagnating piece of code, and MS didn't get off its butt until Mozilla's Firefox came along).

BTW, just picked up a 512mb Pro Duo for $65 from outpost

Kamalot @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

"512mb Pro Duo for $65"

That is a frickin sweet deal.

Post the link!

Brian @ Dec 18th 2005 9:58PM

I'm not jumping into this argument lol ... BUT for everyone having such a hard time finding lower prices (apparently a few people are), check out techbargains.com.

Scroll down the page looking at the left hand side. Pro Duo memory (by SanDisk) 512MB = 54.26$.