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Sony to PSP Owners: Just Adapt
Cymoro writes "In an article Gamespot posted recently Ken Kutaragi, Sony Computer Entertainment president, was quoted in a japanese business magazine about the PSP square button defect as saying "There may be people that complain about its usability, but that's something which users and game software developers will have to adapt to." Apparently, flaws are a feature."
If the gate refused to open sometimes, killed a couple people, or was in an area where someone couldn't enter the gate, they sure would. And they'd have the gate fixed. Why shouldn't they fix a gaming handheld, for crying out loud?
Elmo knows where you live!
I rarely find myself defending Sony in any matter. But this time, at least Mr. Kutaragi is willing to admit the PSP has a problem, and can offer a logical explanation for the engineering compromises that led to this design.
Now I'm looking forward to his explanation about the UMD launching mechanism "feature".
Must... think up... something... clever!
I only approach these kind of gates with a tranq gun in hand. You never know when they might chomp you.
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
Weaslease to English translation:
"We screwed up the design, but we can't figure out how to fix it, so live with it, you ungrateful fuckers."
I know BSD rhymes with PSP, but who died (heh) and appointed you Netcraft?
Don't blame Durga. I voted for Centauri.
People not buying Sony's flawed product is something Sony will just have to adapt to.
When in L'Acadamie, I pointed out a small flaw in Michelangelo's David. The unimpressed guy next to me said "meh, what did you a expect, a mass produced consumer device made by Sony?"
If the button mechanism had to be placed further to the right than the button itself, why didn't they just make the PSP more wide by that small amount of distance? It probably wouldn't have increased the width by a noticable amount.
If it was produced to specifications, then I have some questions for whomever forced those specifications all the way past the play-testing phase.
This sounds like classic Sony to me. Do note, I say this as a fact and not an opinion... Look at the original PS1 design with the ventilation on the BOTTOM of the console...or the way 1 in 10 or the first edition of the PS2 accidentally bumpped the laser's lens and DVD/CD against each other, ruining both game and system..... They'll change it, it'll just take a few months. To call the PSP's design "perfect" is a fairly wrong use of that word too.
"A truly wise man realizes he knows nothing."
"The button's location is [architectured] on purpose," Kutaragi added. "It's according to specifications. This is something that we've created, and this is our specification. There was a clear purpose to it, and it wasn't a mistake."
I see. I'm sure the translator made a mistake what Kutaragi really said:
"Production was already done by the time we knew of the design flaw. We are too lazy to go back and do something about it."
Just like Lucas has ALWAYS knew that Star Wars was going to be a 9 part series and Wachowskis ALWAYS knew The Matrix was going to be a trilogy.
Brilliant!
-Shawn "If the Name Don't Rhyme It Ain't Mine" Conn
I passed this quote around the office, and one guy mentioned that it reminded him of the Falling Waters building, which is apparently the most gorgeous building in the world but has so many issues that pretty much nobody wants it.
Analogies apart... for god's sake, it's a BUTTON.
Exactly. How else do you propose to play the game?
If you KNOW the switch is not directly in the middle, just damn push the outer part of it, where you know the button's pressure sensor (switch) is !
Which is quite easy to keep in mind while playing those fast 'n' furious button-mashing action games, no doubt.
Or, if you're so unhappy, take it apart, move the "hole" in which the button is a few milimeters and be happy about it (and have a funny-looking handheld, but, hey, that's the trade).
OK... that's taking the fanboy thing a bit too far... Sony should've been the one who did that (after all, the top guy himself agrees it is a design flaw), so it certainly shouldn't have to be up to me to fix their flaw.
What's next? "The UMD drive isn't an issue, just duct tape it shut between game sessions, and don't whine about the sticky residue"? Or: "Just get a freaking hamster if you really care about batteries that much!"
0.6% of the products were not broken, .6% of the people who bought one were annoyed enough (or had the button stick PERMANENTLY) to complain to Sony asking for a new one.
g
You can see for yourself how the buttons line up here:
http://www.gamesarefun.com/consoles/psp/square.jp
Having talked to people who own the console, when pressing right on the pad you can hear grinding on the side, the square button is less responsive than the other buttons and meets resistance about 2/3rds of the way down with an audible click. If you try to push over the pad, eventually the button gets stuck, and apparently can get stuck beneath the screen just by pushing straight down.
This hardly new information, it's just that the major media is finally starting to pick up on it. Not owning up to a mistake that could be fixed by extending the unit an eighth of an inch or removing around two vertical columns of pixels is not only stupid, it's asanine.
And another (small but vital) piece of information: you completely neglected the fact that the speaker is Japanese.
I'm not aware of your personal experience with Japanese manufacturers, but I can tell you this (which is afaik "public knowledge"): a Japanese will always do whatever it takes to "save face".
This means that yes, on some small degree they will admit that something is wrong, but will also try to explain to you that this is the best possible solution that he could come up with, and announce nothing will be done to change it. Soon after, a solution will appear, and be presented with as small "attention attracting" as possible. That's just the way it works - you will get a better product soon, just don't rub it in too much, it's offensive.
Again, personally, I believe this to be (overall) a superior system to the "western" one, where sometimes blame is admitted but nothing gets done.
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