Things to expect when you're expecting (a PS4)

[Jess Ragan]

So yeah, I've got one of these coming in the mail. It's a fixer-upper; I won't be able to use the optical drive but I was assured it can still play downloadable games. I also have a Dual Shock 4 coming, but that's going to require a little more work... the rubber has peeled off the sticks and two of the shoulder buttons are broken off. (What can I say, I'm cheap and not terribly invested in the current generation of consoles.)

 

So is there anything in particular I should know about the Playstation 4? What can I do with it, what accessories will work with it, that sort of thing. Can you use SD cards as a storage device, the way you can with the Xbox 360? Am I going to notice a significant improvement in the quality of games? Thanks for any information you can provide.

[Flojomojo]

It depends what you're coming from. I think it's great, but a PC person would find it underpowered. Get a Vita too and you can remote play it from anywhere-- plus many of the indie games are cross buy.

 

It's funny that you bought a beater like that, I hope it was really cheap since it might not be super reliable. No optical drive doesn't sound so bad to me, I have exactly one disc between my PS4 and Xbone. You can upgrade the internal hard disc easily if you ever need more space.

 

You should join PlayStation Plus and get a ton of free games if you haven't already done so.

[Jess Ragan]

Is $100 plus $30 shipping pretty cheap? I thought so, heh.

[Jess Ragan]

Also, I'm not sure about this "underpowered" business. I tried running Mortal Kombat X on my system, and it didn't go so well... I had to run it in a window and turn down all the settings to make it playable. I figured it would probably be smarter to get a Playstation 4 than to buy a new graphics card that could handle the game (for roughly the same price).

[Agent X]

So is there anything in particular I should know about the Playstation 4? What can I do with it, what accessories will work with it, that sort of thing. Can you use SD cards as a storage device, the way you can with the Xbox 360? Am I going to notice a significant improvement in the quality of games? Thanks for any information you can provide.

 

I'll start by assuming you are familiar with the PlayStation 3 and some of its features.

 

I'm not sure about SD cards. The PS4 has a pair USB ports, and you can use USB flash drives as storage devices. However, doesn't have a dedicated SD card slot (like some models of PS3). You might be able to get an USB SD card reader and use SD cards that way, but I haven't tried this myself.

 

Using a USB flash drive with a PS4 works very similar to the way it works with the PS3, with similar freedoms and restrictions. You can use a USB flash drive to store photos, videos, or music files, and play them on the PS4. You can also transfer saved game data from the console to the flash drive and vice versa. However, you cannot install games onto external media--you can only install to the internal hard drive.

 

Instant PS4 game library

 

If you've previously purchased downloadable PS3 or PS Vita games, then after you've hooked up your newly acquired PS4, go to the PlayStation Store and check your library. Many PSN downloadable games are cross-buy between the various Sony systems. This means that you may already have some PS4 games available to you right from the get-go, without having to spend even one red cent.

 

Some notable cross-buy games include flOw, Flower, Journey, Zen Pinball 2, Resogun, Shovel Knight, Velocity 2X, Hotline Miami, The Unfinished Swan, and both OlliOlli games. If you want to get an idea of what cross-buy games are out there (or what games might already be in your PS4 library), then here are links to pages on the US PlayStation Store with cross-buy games for PS4 owners:

 

PS3/PS4 cross-buy: https://store.playstation.com/#!/en-us/ps3-ps4-cross-buy/cid=STORE-MSF77008-PS3PS4XBUY

 

PS4/PS Vita cross-buy: https://store.playstation.com/#!/en-us/ps4-ps-vita-cross-buy/cid=STORE-MSF77008-9_PS4PSVCBBUNDLE

 

As Flojomojo mentioned, Remote Play is a great feature of the system. You can perform Remote Play from a PS Vita, PlayStation TV, or even from your computer. I use the Vita for some of the games with simpler controls, but some games with demanding controls (especially if you need to use L2/R2/L3/R3 frequently) work better from a computer or PSTV.

Edited June 12, 2016 by Agent X

[cimerians]

Console performance:

Neither console is under powered, there's no such thing. Maybe in 10 years you can say that. Uncharted 4 graphically is better looking than any video game I have seen to date. I don't buy into that anymore. Its what you do with the hardware that counts.

 

It's 100% all on the developer. Look at HERO on the Atari 2600....looks fantastic. Look at DKC Tropical Freeze on Wii U, looks utterly amazing.

 

The issues come when you have cross platform games. Games that devs have to work on for PC, PS4 and Xbox One. Then you can have problems pop up on any system. In my opinion most of the time its minor. Major issues do happen on occasion and sometimes a game is worse on PC (Batman Arkham Knight).

 

I have multiple copies of some games on PS4 and PC and notice very little difference. Saves and loads are faster on my PC since I have an SSD and the textures and framerate can be slightly bettter at times depending on the title and its patches.......but in general you really need to be looking for it.

 

Basically what I'm saying is: It's trivial.

 

Recommend:

- You can plug almost anything into the PS4. Mini keyboards, USB hubs etc., I keep a 4 port hub plugged in myself.

- The PS4's media player can play MKV's, MP4's, MP3' and most file formats you'll ever care about, but forget USB drives. Download the Plex app on your PS4 and PC and use that as a media server, for me its pretty much flawless.

- If your getting a busted controller and need replacement triggers....here's what I bought to replace mine. (I replaced the batteries in mine with longer lasting ones and lost the springs when I wasn't careful). Youtube the DS4, its simple to replace stuff you just need a steady hand at times.

- Read this and this and just google hidden features on the PS4 for more tips. Last firmware info is here.

[Jess Ragan]

I got the PS4, but I can't seem to get it running. I just get a pulsing blue light, even after removing and re-seating the hard drive multiple times. I'm not sure what's going on here or if it even can be fixed, which is... annoying. Anyone know where to send these systems to be fixed?

[cimerians]

I got the PS4, but I can't seem to get it running. I just get a pulsing blue light, even after removing and re-seating the hard drive multiple times. I'm not sure what's going on here or if it even can be fixed, which is... annoying. Anyone know where to send these systems to be fixed?

 

 

These guys fix stuff:

 

http://www.tronicsfix.com/store/p19/PS4_Blue_Light_of_Death_Repair.html

 

You can also check with Sony to see if its still under warranty. If not maybe those guys can help above. I noticed a few posts with some good words about them but I never used them. The price seems reasonable and they have a bunch of contact info.

[Jess Ragan]

Thanks for the advice. I contacted these guys, but they mentioned on their site that it's less likely to fix a PS4 if it came from eBay. This worries me slightly, as that's exactly where I got this unit.

 

People have been nudging me to send the system back to the seller, telling me that even though the machine was listed as "no refunds" there's a strong chance I could get my money back anyway. I'm tempted, but I'm not sure I want to deal with the hassle. I may wind up taking it to a place in Tucson, even though they're not totally confident that it can be repaired either. WHAT. A. HEADACHE.

[Jess Ragan]

I finally got the thing running, but it's flakier than a croissant. It's a gamble just downloading anything larger than 500MB, because most of the time it dies on me halfway through the download. Evidently it's a power supply problem. I haven't played anything demanding on the system yet- just Downwell- and I'm not sure how it will react.