Back From The Front: Gp2x Vs Psp

[DaveC]

I'll edit one more time with NeoGeoPocket and CPS comparison.

It's similar to what happens to a widescreen film projected onto a fullscreen television: either the vertical dimension is scaled (letterbox mode with black bars on top and bottom) or each frame is forced to a non-native resolution (causing distortion).

Well I much prefer the GP2X version of CPS2. Not only does it feel better to play but it actually looks sharper too. The PSP one looks rather soft.

First the myth of CPS2 being a wide aspect is completely wrong. It was 4:3 in the arcades. If you fill the screen on the PSP it ends up very squished and THAT is actually distorted.

I am not sure what screen aspect setting you used on the GP2X but it makes a difference.

If you use scaled horizontal *only* (not full scaled, that looked too pixely) on the GP2X it is the correct aspect ratio. Yes there is a row every once in a while that is averaged but the PSP has the whole screen that is filtered.

 

[vaustein]

jimid2: You own 62 UMD games? Wow... :blink: On a related note, I wonder how you rip a UMD without removing the disk from the plastic housing.

slaanesh: I suspected as much. That doesn't excuse Flavor's tasteless decision to put it there. :rolleyes:

DaveC: Good observations. The GP2X display looks sharper in general.

GunPei2x: Goemon4 mentioned above that PSP emulation officially lights up when bridged through a PS3 for downloading authorized content. For unauthorized PSX emulation you need to bypass Sony's restrictions built into the PSP firmware, correct? You make a good point about the actual proportion of homebrewers compared to all PSP owners, though. I'm biased toward the homebrew community, obv

 

[DaveC]

As for the "failure" of the PSP, I've heard that before too, and if the PSP is a failure with only 17 million units sold, then what's the GP2X?

Yeah they sell alot of PSPs but most of them are running pirated ROMz, and bootleg UMD rips

 

[sand_man]

Post it on a PSP board

that would be trolling

 

[jimid2]

As for the "failure" of the PSP, I've heard that before too, and if the PSP is a failure with only 17 million units sold, then what's the GP2X?

Yeah they sell alot of PSPs but most of them are running pirated ROMz, and bootleg UMD rips

DaveC, with all due respect, this assertion is completely ridiculous... of the 17 million PSPs sold, I'd wager you a month's salary that fewer than 500,000 of them are running pirated or bootleg anything... Look at the download numbers for Dark_Alex's 3.x.x firmwares - they're well under 100,000 - and since anyone who can run pirated software needs hacked firmware, it's not only unreasonable but rather foolish to purport that most PSP users are pirates... In fact, I feel very safe in asserting that - as a percentage of systems sold - you will find far, far more "technically illegal" ROM usage among GP2X users than PSP users. After all, how many of us own a CPS2 board? And how many of us have loaded up Alien Vs. Predator on our GP2Xs? :rolleyes:

People in glass houses should avoid hurling large, heavy objects, like the PSP... :lol:

jimid2: You own 62 UMD games? Wow... :blink: On a related note, I wonder how you rip a UMD without removing the disk from the plastic housing.

Ya, we have lots and lots of PSP games, but it's been the fave system in our house since it's release - at least until I got my GP2X My son likes sitting in front of the bookcase and running his finger along the spines of the game cases with his eyes closed and randomly picking one out to play some times - reminds me of me with my Genesis collection when I was younger... As for ripping, all you need is the right software and a big enough memory card, and you can tear 'em right off your UMD... I'm at work, so I don't have the links near me, but the QJ.NET forums should have the info somewhere...

edit: Here's a tutorial on ripping UMDs to the memory card: http://www.psp-hacks.com/forums/about36727.html

 

[Goemon4]

Imo the psp is a good commercial gaming handheld, its a failure when you compare it to the DS which has sold like 5 units for every psp unit....

@vaustein - the ps3 is a good console, i mean look at the neo geo, that was 600 adn look how awsome it was! it just needs more titles (and the latest Virtual Fighter is a great example) and yeah the psp homebrew community is mostly into XMB hacking and commercial games, i cant find one decent homebrew game on it (excluding pspr adn ponies and kittens : D ) all of the rest make me bored, but hey, i have a bitchin XMB!

@jimid2 - duh the psp has better sales, its by frickin sony! lol, but alot of people mostly do use it for GTA adn music more than anything, i mean only like 15 out of the 200 people who own one at my school know how to hack it (and only 10 have since i did it for them) and they only really care about psx emulation and a cool xmb, because of that the homebrew scene isnt making good games imo, but idrc cause the 2x keeps me covered for that....

@DaveC - yeah cps2 emulation is alot better on the 2x imo to, the psp is nice adn does play well, but i prefer the 2x alot better (if only i had a better joystick) i guess its just a p[ersonal preference, but playing with the psp's horrible controlls, it just keeps me gettin pwnd (espicially when fighting guy in SFA 3)

but in all as terms of homebrew/emulation the 2x is way better, yes the psp is more powerful but like someone said, only like 500,000 out of the 17 million owners have hacked their psp so i doubt its the major concern to have a full speed amiga emu unlike the 2x which is made for it.... sooooo 2x ftw! and psp ftl!

 

[slaanesh]

After all, how many of us own a CPS2 board? And how many of us have loaded up Alien Vs. Predator on our GP2Xs? :rolleyes:

I've got a Dungeons and Dragons: Tower of Doom board

I'm lacking some of the other CPS2 boards though

 

[DaveC]

yes the psp is more powerful but like someone said, only like 500,000 out of the 17 million owners have hacked their psp so i doubt its the major concern to have a full speed amiga emu unlike the 2x which is made for it.... sooooo 2x ftw! and psp ftl!

I am suprised. Everytime I see a crowd huddled around a PSP at a store or something it is usually some guy showing off his l337 w4r3z collection of R0mZ that he has on the PSP. It is never some new commercial game that just came out.

 

[Dunny]

After all, how many of us own a CPS2 board? And how many of us have loaded up Alien Vs. Predator on our GP2Xs? :rolleyes:

I've got a Dungeons and Dragons: Tower of Doom board

I'm lacking some of the other CPS2 boards though

Don't be fooled, folks - owning the board does not entitle you to play the ROM image on your GP2X... In any country that exercises IP law.

<sigh> We're all just a bunch of filthy pirates. But we're happy, filthy pirates, so that's ok.

D.

 

[Crazy Goat]

GP2X weight - 161g (w/o Battery)
PSP weight - 280g (w/ Battery)

See how many hours you get with 119g of AAs (around 5 batteries?)

At least the PSP has a solid build quality - and has a very tactile feel to holding the device, due to it's weight.

The primary reason behind selling my GP2X was the lack of support for the firmware, it was ugly, and the fact that it felt flimsy to hold. I had two Ni-MH 2500mAH batteries in there, and it would give it some girth, but it simply wasn't as "rock solid" as the PSP. I also found myself cheated by the price of the GP2X - that it was much too high for what I got. Sony was at least trying to perpetuate the retail titles, and add features to their handheld, and Gamepark Holdings kinda sat there - released periodical firmware updates... which caused more problems... and then the river ran dry.

I jumped ship, and sold my GP2X because it simply didn't get any use. Every day, I was pelted with new information "NEW USE FOR PSP WIFI!" and "FULL SPEED PSX EMULATION!" ... I simply couldn't tolerate it. I had purchased my GP2X at the point in time when PSP wasn't that great at anything... they were still sorting out the firmware and modding issues, and the emulation was pretty poor. I had now found myself in a complete roll reversal - as the PSP homebrew community was much larger than I had initially thought, and progressed at a much faster pace. I saw no reason as to why I should sit here with this handheld which did quite a few things, but most of them were done poorly... while I could get a PSP, and at least offset some of these developing emulators with interesting applications.

Now you say, "done poorly, what the hell does that mean?" I mean to say that a TON of the apps on the GP2X were straight ports. Many apps on the GP2X were little more than a direct port - with little to no modifications for the hardware available - with many haphazard applications and underdeveloped emulators skewn throughout the archives.

I was not, at any point, disappointed with the developers - everyone did an excellent job. But I simply couldn't justify keeping the poor thing, as I found myself bored with it (a lot of the games I wanted to play, wouldn't play well. Quake ran poorly, and SquidgeSNES could barely run Final Fantasy III at 25fps.

Did I sell my GP2X for a PSP? No. In fact, I bought an xbox, installed a 120GB drive, and modded it with Xbox Media Center and Xbox Linux.

I am currently planning on picking up a PSP (trading a RAZR, so it is less of a fiscal commitment). The reason being that it has Wireless internet, Fullspeed PSX, a highly active modding community, powerful hardware, tactile build-quality, and a base of homebrew applications which take advantage of it's capabilities.

...internet radio? It's a small app, but it is a cool little feature. I am surrounded by WiFi - and there are many podcasts I'd love to keep up with.

Future room for expansion is key. The wireless internet really creates a new little realm for developers to create ad-hoc and internet-based multiplayer games and emulators. Having a dedicated GPU really helps too - and the fact that the homebrew community has a pretty good grasp of the hardware - unlike the GP2X. Hardcore Homebrew was that huge dream, running homebrew with little to no Gamepark Linux overhead... and while I know nothing of it's current situation - I cannot say with any certainty if you've gotten any use of the ARM 940 yet.

I'm just going to end this now. The GP2X is an interesting little machine, but I was severely disappointed with Gamepark Holdings, the build quality, and the lack of good accessory-hardware (like wifi, etc).

Keep on trekking GP2X... I hope you live to prove me wrong.

 

[craigix]

^ You are WAY out of touch. So out of touch I just don't know where to begin...

 

[slaanesh]

After all, how many of us own a CPS2 board? And how many of us have loaded up Alien Vs. Predator on our GP2Xs? :rolleyes:

I've got a Dungeons and Dragons: Tower of Doom board

I'm lacking some of the other CPS2 boards though

Don't be fooled, folks - owning the board does not entitle you to play the ROM image on your GP2X... In any country that exercises IP law.

<sigh> We're all just a bunch of filthy pirates. But we're happy, filthy pirates, so that's ok.

D.

Well I also own hundreds of original console games. Whereas it's difficult to have all my systems setup at any one time, it's easy to use an emulator to run games from different systems. And on a handheld is even better (except if you need a keyboard - damn you BoB where are you?)

Okay I don't have a complete collection of aracade boards but I do have pretty much all the console games that I play. It's nice to have them for reference to check for differences. I guess some of the older members on this forum may be in the same boat. Perhaps the youngsters won't have the cash to collect physical ROM carts and CDs as well as the oldies.

 

[Exophase]

Not using SNES9x TYL in the original post invalidates the SNES comparison of course, the emulators you tested are extremely obsolete. You rectified this in a later post, but since you only tried one game (and far from one of the most popular ones) then gave up that's not exactly a fair overall representation of the emulator.

And leaving GBA out because you own a DS is pretty weak, when it's a pretty popular platform to emulate (much more popular than some of the other comparisons).

My opinion: don't post an indepth comparison if you're going to be that subjective about two of the more popular platforms. No one else is going to judge the quality of SNES emulation on whether or not Do-Re-Mi Fantasy runs (which is quite a bit different from how well it runs). I don't see the point in making the thread at all when you outright admit that it comes down to your personal circumstances and game preferences, and not comparing the emulators in a more general sense...

 

[slaanesh]

I think something along the following lines is needed and the topic stickied for good.

Some initial ideas:


Purpose of comparisons?
================
* Prospective buyers can use it as a guide to deciding which handheld best suits them.
* Existing owners can determine which emulator suits their needs.
* Existing owners of multiple handhelds can determine which handheld has the best emulator for a particular platform. ie. gpSP on GP2x vs PSP.
* Developers can use it as a guide to develop new emulators or update existing emulators.


Composition of comparisons
==================
* Objective comparisons preferably by multiple reviews.
* 10 or so test games for each emulated platform covering multiple genres and popular games.
* Screenshots and Videos of emulators in action.
* Specific platform Pros/Cons. ie. NDS touch screen, PSP wide screen.

 

[MiL0]

^ You are WAY out of touch. So out of touch I just don't know where to begin...

actually, I thought he made a very valid post. The only thing I'd disagree with is selling the gp2x. I own one, but definitely want a PSP as well (to go with my favourite handheld of them all, the DS.)

 

[Super Jamie]

i'd just like to say thanks for doing this comparison and writing about it. as a new gp2x user, it's slightly difficult to find good honest reviews of what emulation is like, and what the strong and weak points of given systems are, especially from someone who owns not only a gp2x and psp, but an nds as well. super effort!

 

[imhotep]

I cannot say with any certainty if you've gotten any use of the ARM 940 yet.

PicoDrive uses it for sound which allows for decent Sega CD emulation. What is Sega CD emulation like on the PSP?

But I agree, the ARM 940 hasn't been of much use to other developers as it stands.

 

[Goemon4]

there is Egoboo, but i think its still catching on, but yeah ive been using my psp more and im enjoying it alot for certain things, i think the psp goes with the 2x alot and they both have their own unique features, but if i were to be stranded on an island for a year, id pick the 2x over the psp.....

@ MiL0 - the post was a bit out of touch, he clearly hasnt been on in a while, which i think he stated, but alot of the stuff he posted has been done (for the most part) but yeah he does make valid points in some areas.....

 

[gaterooze]

But I agree, the ARM 940 hasn't been of much use to other developers as it stands.

gpu940

 

[jimid2]

....but if i were to be stranded on an island for a year, id pick the 2x over the psp.....

+1 B)