Hacking the PSP Blog

Plug 'n Play Homebrew?

If you have a PSP Classic (non-Slim model), you may be in luck... Neo has released the PSP Motion, which supposedly is plug 'n play homebrew. Plug it into your headphone jack and it works. I'm not sure about this yet, so I'm trying to order one and I'll post a review once I get it.

The sites I saw linking to it ... well, their link to the product no longer works. I wonder if Sony had the product yanked. Silly Sony.

Here's the specs... I'll post a link if I find a working link:

new neo item --- PSP motion kit released!

SPEC:
* Ultra small size
* Support ALL version of PSP
* not support psp slim
* support homebrew app & game
* open homebrew lib
* not need extra power supply
* plug and play

Best,

-Auri

Source: PSP News and NeoFlash Forums

M33 on the state of custom firmware and Sony's relationship with homebrewers

M33 has a new post on their site RE custom firmware development and Sony's stance towards such developers...

Hello, world.

As you have seen, some things have changed between Sony and the developing of custom firmwares.

Due to the leak (that we've always gone against this crime) of the OE sources from a private svn, everyone can
take a peek into the patches done from the Open Edition to the original firmwares to allow the development
into this scene that was growing day after day. And, when we say anyone, we include Sony.

This intrusion into one of the basis of the actual PSP Scene, has just made harm to the entire world of the
PSP Scene. Therefore, Sony saw this and made some interesting changes in some modules (mainly loadcore), plus
the change of some nids that are used to the development of M33 Custom Firmware.

So, if you can't wait for the new release, you'll have to wait; and this is cause this leak and this changes
made upon the material we work and we try to release asap to the *entire* psp community. Looks like, as always,
there is someone that wants to be important in this world when no-one asks him, and his result is this delay
on the development of the new versions.

This "benefit" that much lammers talked about in foreign forums, talking about OE leak, will just made a result
in the near future: that serious developers (including us) will think twice before releasing anything else.

And also, speaking about the new "custom firmwares" that have been released, such as AoP, and others addons
that use M33Cf, will be deeply studied and reversered to see if *anything* of the core, reboot, or whatever
from our work has been ilegally used. If this is afirmative, we'll have to act against this.

This changes won't probably last too long and won't be an important problem, but it's just, as we have just said,
another resultant of trying to be someone on this world by stealing and leaking instead of studying.

Please have patient and stay tuned for the next Custom Firmware for PSP and PSP Slim and Lite :)

M33 Team.

Source: M33's Web Site

UMD a waste of time and money, says Perry; also PSP Slim a "head in the sand" move

The UMD is a dead format that's a waste of money, time, and investment according to David Perry.

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, the Shiny founder and operator of GameConsultants.com revealed what he would do if he were in charge of PlayStation Portable development.

"They really need to restart the PSP programme in my book. They really need to bring out the PSP 3.0 and start again and try to get a lot of units out by reducing the manufacturing costs, by taking out all the motors and drives and stuff they have in there."

"That will make it even more sexy-looking, because it will be thinner again when they get all that junk out. Then, hopefully, the platform will actually get enough interest so that people will make a game specifically for it," Perry said.

He referred to the recent PSP Slim and Lite remodel as a "head in the sand" move.

As for what current PSP owners will do with their UMDs if Sony turns to a download-only handheld, Perry said that it would be fairly trivial to include software to validate that a user owns a certain game, much like iTunes. With authentication, users should be allowed to download digital versions of UMD games they already own.

When questioned as to why Sony hadn't already done this, Perry responded: "The truth is, the stores will not carry PSPs unless they feel they are going to get a piece of the action on the back end. And Sony has not come up with an innovative business model that can support that concept."

But with the industry moving in the direction of digital downloads, Sony needs to come up with a shared revenue system eventually.

"Maybe its an even slightly better deal because there is no cost of goods, and shipping, insurance, and warehousing is all out the window...so maybe the store gets a little bit more. And they get more of their shelf space back, which is their most valuable asset."

The complete interview with Dave Perry will be published tomorrow on GamesIndustry.biz.

PSP Slim & Lite Disassembly Tutorial

Acid MODs has posted a tutorial for tearing apart the PSP Slim (a.k.a. PSP2000).

Check it out

Source: ACIDmods and PSP News

Sony Selling Cell to Toshiba for $100B, but keeps management role...

So why don't they want to keep that magical processor that powers the PS3? Amazing processor. Incredible for scientific applications. Now they're going to sell it for PCs and computing clusters. But Sony doesn't know jack about marketing processors, which makes the "Sony as managers" clause very bothersome. -Auri

TOKYO (AP) - Sony Corp. will sell its Cell microprocessor and advanced chip operations to Toshiba Corp. for nearly 100 billion yen ($870 million) next year, a news report said Saturday.

Sony will effectively stop making advanced chips, and instead focus on audiovisual equipment, according to a report in Japan's largest business daily, the Nikkei.

The deal will likely include manufacturing lines for the Cell, the microprocessor Sony codeveloped with Toshiba and IBM Corp. for its PlayStation 3 game console, as well as image-processing chips for game consoles and camcorders, according to the report.

At the same time, Sony and Toshiba will establish a joint venture that will use these lines to manufacture system chips, the report said.

Although Toshiba will take a majority stake in the venture, Sony will be the principal buyer of the chips and will have a say in the company's management, the report said. Its game unit, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., could take a stake as well, it said.

The deal, expected in several months, will be worth nearly 100 billion yen, the report said.

Though Toshiba is Japan's largest chipmaker, raking in about 1.3 trillion yen ($11.3 billion) in sales in fiscal 2006 mainly through flash memory sales, it ranks third in advanced system chips, according to the Nikkei.

Through the planned purchase, Toshiba hopes to boost sales and catch up with foreign chip making rivals such as Intel Corp. and South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co., the report said.

Sony and Toshiba officials were not immediately available for comment.

Source: Associated Press