Don't use generic battery chargers, PSP gets angry

by Nick Doerr { Aug 9th 2007 at 6:30PM }

For the love of your PSP, ladies and gentlemen, do not lose your PSP charger cable that Sony gave to you. Even worse, don't replace it with some generic Radio Shack battery charger cable. Your PSP will go Hulk on your ass and explode. Seriously. Bob Nixon, a Florida PSP enthusiast, related to his PSP battery exploding: "It had been charging for over an hour when it just went off." He lost his official charger during a trip and was using a generic Radio Shack charger. A shame.

First, the scent of something burning. We all know the smell of something plastic on fire -- it stinks and the black smoke sticks to the wall like nicotine to the lungs. That's where the smoking analogy ends, since the PSP battery exploded so forcefully that "it flipped the PSP off of the nightstand." There you have it -- get an official replacement from Sony or make super-duper sure that an off-brand charger will work properly with your PSP.

[via Digg]

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

rothgar @ Aug 9th 2007 7:45PM

also, don't use the chargers that charge your battery outside of the psp. My psp no longer charges through the charge port (generic adapter) and now my original psp battery is dead thanks to the intec psp charger :(

Sony refuses to fix the psp unless I have the original reciept.

Quest @ Aug 9th 2007 7:50PM

Holy Smokes! So sorry to hear this.

I have had no problems with my Pelican charger. Had it since Feb. 2006.

Service_Games @ Aug 9th 2007 8:27PM

Honestly, do people still use third party accessories that aren't officially endorsed by the company that makes the console/handheld? I stopped that YEARS ago after I heard many horror stories. I don't take chances, AT ALL, with third party accessories.

SG

Psp_doc @ Aug 9th 2007 8:49PM

can the psp get aids?

Sircolby45 @ Aug 9th 2007 9:30PM

That's a Sony battery for yah

black_vegeta @ Aug 9th 2007 9:36PM

That's what you'll get for being cheap!

Kxpuc @ Aug 9th 2007 9:47PM

i used my MP3 player charger once to charge my PSP and the charge only lasted like 15 mins. charged with PSP charger and it lasted the full time

GoBob @ Aug 9th 2007 10:37PM

@Quest

Heh, my Pelican works great.

@Psp_doc

Yes. Pool's closed.

pentapenguin @ Aug 10th 2007 1:22AM

Yikes! I always had a suspicion that third party batteries and chargers could ruin your PSP. I'm glad I went the official route then -- I got my car charger for $5 off eBay. Now I won't worry. :)

wisemanleo @ Aug 10th 2007 3:44AM

You can still use 3rd party chargers no problem. The charger I sometimes use is a simple USB/AC-split cable charger that draws power from a USB port. It takes a LOT longer, but it still gives a full charge. Useful if say, you have two psp's like me, but only one Sony charger.
The Nodus Cyclone charger base charges my psp also with no problems. Heck, you can even use the PSone AC adapter to charge up the PSP.

So is it just the universal chargers that don't work?

GoBob @ Aug 10th 2007 6:36AM

You know, I was thinking about this, and I'm pretty sure that this person had the universal charger set to the wrong voltage. That would definitely cause the battery to pop.

allmodcons @ Aug 10th 2007 7:56AM

Talk about anecdotal evidence. One reader claims that the his PSP melted because of a charger and you suddenly draw the conclusion that all generic PSP chargers are defective?

Rick Ludwig @ Aug 10th 2007 9:15AM

I've been using the charger that came with my iPaq Pocket PC for more than a year now and it works just fine (in fact, the PSP spends a lot of time on the charger lately because I haven't had any time for gaming, unfortunitly).

psp_doc @ Aug 10th 2007 1:17PM

If the psp does get aids, what should i do/where should i bring it?

ryanguy @ Aug 10th 2007 1:42PM

The logic leap made makes no sense....

I see fat people drink diet soda.
Conclusion: Diet soda makes people fat.

grg_ibe @ Aug 10th 2007 3:31PM

Damn! That shit looks totalled sorry for you buddy... That psp went straight to heaven!

Glenn @ Aug 10th 2007 6:31PM

I agree with GoBob's comment... I have two third-party chargers (car adapters), and have not had problems with either of them. It seems more likely that the person who had his battery blow up either didn't set it to the correct voltage, or got one that doesn't do 5 volts.

There's no mention of what kind of third party charger he used at all.

KarateMedia @ Aug 10th 2007 9:25PM

Let's see: a story on a random blog that cites only one source - some guy named Bob Nixon. No confirmation that he was even using the correct type of charger, much less a Radio Shack model number. Oh, and the story ends with a link to a very sketchy site that offers downloads of popular PSP games.

Um, yeah. Let me know when there's some actual news to report on this subject. Or better yet, don't post this sort of nonsense.

tenmohican @ Aug 11th 2007 9:39PM

I have a pelican brand car charger that is DC, with a usb notch for the spiral cord to the psp plug. It works great.

I think some people dont realize how fast stuff charges with a DC connect, and 1 hour might possibly be too much for the fairly small psp original battery. I recommend only using DC to get a quick charge on your accessory/toys but never to just leave it on the charger..

Larry V @ Sep 7th 2007 2:14PM

I have the feeling this nowerday's has got to do with the technology used in batteries. I own a Ipaq h2200, and while charging the (original) battery almost exploded: it "popped" and went dead. The size had grown bigger - pushing the lid out of the HP. Now I have to buy a new battery plus a new lid. Comment of HP: the Ipaq is little over 2 years old, out of warrant, this can happen. Apparently this can happen with any (HP) battery device.

eggatron @ Sep 10th 2007 2:17AM

My PSP doesn't charge.when i got to charge it the little light does not come up. I got the charger(sony) and the battery checked and they are both fine. does anyone else have this problem or knows how to fix it.