HD Loader reviews?

I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.
 
[quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?
 
[quote name='epobirs'][quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?[/quote]

Good question. Maybe it COULD save you money, like if the game got scratched, and couldnt play, or if your dvd drive crapped out.
 
[quote name='epobirs'][quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?[/quote]

you're joking, right? How many people do you actually think are buying HDloader for legal means? lol :lol:
 
[quote name='BigNick'][quote name='epobirs'][quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?[/quote]

Good question. Maybe it COULD save you money, like if the game got scratched, and couldnt play, or if your dvd drive crapped out.[/quote]

So it only gaurds against hypothetical failures which require the game to be copied to the drive before either proposed failure occurs?

Pull the other one. It's got bells on it.

I'm interested in HDLoader, in fact it got me to get one of the $20 Network Adapters from Fry's since I have no interst in any of the online offerings to date. (I have DSL and an Xbox but haven't bothered with Xbox Live either.) THe convenience of fast disk access and being able to quickly switch games without handling the media are sufficient appeal to me if the product performs well. Especially now that 120GB drives can be had for $60-70.
 
Here's my super quick review:

Popped a Samsung SP0802N drive in, popped the disc in, booted it, hit format, took maybe a minute. Then I installed a couple games, which took about 25 minutes a piece. It seems like with a fast drive it cuts loading times by 40-70%. Not much to say really, it doesn't do a whole lot, but what it does it does flawlessly except for the couple games it doesn't support. You can't load imports or copied games with it unless you use some additional method. If you're gonna buy a new HDD I highly recommend the SP0802N, it's very quiet and very fast. It's also a single platter drive which is nice for noise/heat concerns. I'm assuming heat can be a problem with 2+ platter 7200 RPM drives.
 
[quote name='optimolife'][quote name='epobirs'][quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?[/quote]

you're joking, right? How many people do you actually think are buying HDloader for legal means? lol :lol:[/quote]

Me, for one. I have well over 100 PS2 games, all original legal units obtained at CAG prices. Making them more convenient to access, especially those with high replay value, is a major selling point.
 
Does anyone know if you need the actual HD loader disk after installing the software? because if not, a few friedns of mine and i will all pitch in to get the little sucker of a very NON legal baby.
 
>>2. Does the disk (HDloader) need to be in the ps2 to play the games or >>can you just load them straight off the Hard Drive thus protecting a >>weak laser.

You need to load the HD loader everytime when you start your machine if you want to use your hard drive.
Click to expand...
 
[quote name='optimolife'][quote name='epobirs'][quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?[/quote]

you're joking, right? How many people do you actually think are buying HDloader for legal means? lol :lol:[/quote]

speak for your immoral, thefting self. i'm going to africa for a year and don't want to lug my copious ammount of ps2 games with me. this is perfect. and its fucking legal you jackass.
 
For every person that uses a mod chip or software like this for completly moral reasons there are five others that see it as a great bootlegging tool.
 
just got it today.....so far working great....for some reason my ps2 had problems loading my smackdown hctp sometimes...but now it runs from the hd flawlessly and loads a tad quicker too
 
Looks pretty cool but I don't have any games with super long load times and really ever since joining this forum I don't pay much for what I do get, so backing up everything under the sun holds no appeal to me.
 
[quote name='coolsteel']Looks pretty cool but I don't have any games with super long load times and really ever since joining this forum I don't pay much for what I do get, so backing up everything under the sun holds no appeal to me.[/quote]

It's a matter of perspective. I've had a lot of friends who only have PS2's at home try a familiar multi-platform game with proper caching on the Xbox and be shocked at how much quicker it is.

Heck, I hadn't given much thought to how much faster the DVD drive is on the PS2 compared to the PS1 until I used a half-completed RPG on a friend's PSone while traveling in his van. The game that seemed merely a little slow on PS2 was torturous on PSone.

This why, in addition to occasional other features, I tend to favor the Xbox for multi-platform games unless the PS2 or GC version turns up super-cheap first. A few seconds here, a few seconds there, it adds up. Since I have plenty of hard drives lying around and the Network Adapter was only $20 I'm strongly considering a purchase of HDLoader. When I'm playing I want the pauses to be when I decide, not because the hardware is lagging.
 
yea that is a good reason...some games wont work with it though...and my 40 gb official hd will prob get full quick..half of it full allready..i want to get a 120 but i want to know if it will still work with ff11
 
where's everyone ordering this from? Any of those places reliable or atleast anyone here have expierence with them?
 
I was just curious because reading through divineo's forums seems to have alot of people pissed off they never got their order or it took forever
 
Yeah looking over PS Forums there are a lot of people that are pissed at the company also. Divineo. I went through consolesource.com. Have heard good things about them.
 
thanks for the tip on consolesource.com. I just put in my order. They definately look alot more reliable than the "official retailer". Now all I need is to find a good Harddrive...
 
consolesource is fantastic, I have never had a bad order from them, very prompt and fast, not too mention good prices.
 
hey guys, ive heard that you can use 3rd party (non sony) hard drives in conjunction w/ the hdl...but if i use, for example, the 160 gig maxtor harddrive (the one thats 80 bucks this week), would i have to have a modchip to use it w/ the hdl...ppl have kept mentioning this and this may sway my opinion a bit...

thanks for any input :D and good luck to those of you who have ordered this :)
 
[quote name='BigNick'][quote name='epobirs'][quote name='bballplaya210']I would give it a 9.5/10. The only reason it doesn't get a 10 is because a few games won't work with it. Not only does it save you a lot of money, it significantly decreases loading times as well.[/quote]

How, in a legal manner, does it save you any money?[/quote]

Good question. Maybe it COULD save you money, like if the game got scratched, and couldnt play, or if your dvd drive crapped out.[/quote]

It's kinda the other way around - if you use it, you're not going to get the games scratched in the first place. So you can play your suikoden 2 (does it support ps1 games? plz say yes) without fear of damaging it.
 
Anyone think that the Blockbuster Flip card is a good deal in conjunction with the HDLoader. Just Pay $49 bucks and get unlimited games for 3 months. Just go to stores and rent a ton of games from them, copy games, go to the next store, do the same again... etc.

think that's a good idea? or just rent normally? or not at all?
 
[quote name='zewone'][quote name='swetooth9']hey guys, ive heard that you can use 3rd party (non sony) hard drives in conjunction w/ the hdl...but if i use, for example, the 160 gig maxtor harddrive (the one thats 80 bucks this week), would i have to have a modchip to use it w/ the hdl...ppl have kept mentioning this and this may sway my opinion a bit...

thanks for any input :D and good luck to those of you who have ordered this :)[/quote]

No need for a modchip. The maxtor for 80 bucks is the one I will be picking up to use with HD Loader. People have said it works great with it.[/quote]

have any of you tried getting a pricematch for it? w/ the extra 10 percent off? ;) if so, howd it go?
 
[quote name='bluenatas09']I read that it didn't support PS1 games..but hey..there are plenty enough PS2 games[/quote]

o yea, i was gonna ask about that...
 
[quote name='swetooth9']hey guys, ive heard that you can use 3rd party (non sony) hard drives in conjunction w/ the hdl...but if i use, for example, the 160 gig maxtor harddrive (the one thats 80 bucks this week), would i have to have a modchip to use it w/ the hdl...ppl have kept mentioning this and this may sway my opinion a bit...

thanks for any input :D and good luck to those of you who have ordered this :)[/quote]

you don't need a modchip, but only the first 137 GB will show up on your PS2 because it doesn't support 48-bit LBA
 
I order one today, i'll let you guys know when i get it. Now i gotta buy a bigger hard drive though. I have 2 computers so i could pull the 40 gig out of the one i hardly use but that 40 would get full pretty quick....
 
Obviously the first thing that comes to mind when you hear anything that functions as a copy device being sold, you think piracy, but indeed there are totally legitimate uses for something like this - one of which was very appealing to me.

I've got a 9 yr old son, but no matter what, there's no way he's allowed to lay even a single finger on my consoles without me around! I'm way too particular about disc handling, condition, cost etc. to trust him yet. He can jack his Gameboy and his archaic computer all he wants, but hands off the PS2!!! :) Anyway, if I did put my games onto a Hard Drive, then I would let him play without fear. All you need to do is turn on the power, choose a game and play. It doesn't involve him touching discs, or worse, opening the way too flimsy PS2 drive door.

If you notice, HDLoaders site does not use the word 'backup' to denote what you can do with your games ANYWHERE. It always states "your games", "original" etc, and in this regard, I see the legality of it. But like -anything-, you can do illegal things with it. It's only a matter of time before Sony figures a way to circumvent it so I doubt they're worried....much.
 
[quote name='guyver2077']yea that is a good reason...some games wont work with it though...and my 40 gb official hd will prob get full quick..half of it full allready..i want to get a 120 but i want to know if it will still work with ff11[/quote]

Good question. The developer warns that that games placed on the drive by HDLoader will not pass Sony's online security gateway, so if online play is intended the game must be loaded from the original disc.

Whst isn't clear is if Sony scans user's drive for unapproved material. If so, you could get banned using HDLoader with your Sony HDD.

If your budget is up to it I'd say get a second Network Adapter and a hard drive to dedicate to HDLoader. This will save wear and tear on the connectors and drive handling which always carries a certain static shock risk if you have to handle it frequently under less than ideal conditions.
 
Different issue, but do any of you know if the HDLoader allows you to save DVD movies or Music onto your HDD, & access them via the HDD?
 
i'm still waiting for mines since the initial release from divineo. i e-mailed them and they said it would take about 2 weeks for air mail. i guess from canada.
so, are you sure it won't take a hd bigger than 137? and can you ftp to it? is there promise of an upgraded program?
i appreciate it my fellow cheapasses.
and i'll say this, just because you mod something doesn't mean you don't buy games anymore - i still have to buy gamecube games. right?
 
[quote name='aminerva']Different issue, but do any of you know if the HDLoader allows you to save DVD movies or Music onto your HDD, & access them via the HDD?[/quote]

They make no mention of it on the site so I'm inclined to say no. They may offer it in a future version but neither of those are compelling reason for me to buy HDLoader. The convenience of the game loading is enough for me. I have better ways to store my music and I can't image wanting to play any DVD so often that it would be worth copying to HD.

It would be different if I had small children who wanted to memorize every frame of the Disney library. Also, things like load time aren't an issue for my DVD viewing. Funny thing about movies, they tend to be very linear and set their own pace.
 
I understand that most people use their PS2s as game machines, but for me it functions more as a DVD player. I do play games, but not nearly as much as I watch movies/tv shows on DVD. I also have a relatively small HDD in my laptop (40gb) so if I could use the PS2 HDD to store more of my music it would be of more interest than the video game loading time (which I've never been bothered by).

I realize I'm in the minority here, my condo is tiny so space saving is a huge issue.
 
[quote name='aminerva']I understand that most people use their PS2s as game machines, but for me it functions more as a DVD player. I do play games, but not nearly as much as I watch movies/tv shows on DVD. I also have a relatively small HDD in my laptop (40gb) so if I could use the PS2 HDD to store more of my music it would be of more interest than the video game loading time (which I've never been bothered by).

I realize I'm in the minority here, my condo is tiny so space saving is a huge issue.[/quote]

I'm not sure how you plan on transfering your music to the PS2 HDD unless you have the PS2 linux kit (like I do.) :D
 
Interesting little encounter last night. Fry's advertised a Maxtor 120 GB drive (7200 RPM, 8 MB cache) for $70. The preferred brand and capacity for HDLoader. Perfect!

When I got to Fry's there were no units in sight but all of the other advertised drives with there in abundance. I checked with a salesperson and he said they still had them but he needed to bring a bunch down from the shelf tops. He remarked on how the drives had been flying out the door all day.

"Well, that's because they're the hot new Playstation 2 accessory."

"What do you mean? I've got a PS2. How can I use this instead of Sony's drive. Why?"

I explained to him the function of HDLoader. He happily wrote down the URL of the producer and mentioned that it explained why so many customers for hard drives that day were talking about video games instead of PC building like the usual crowd.
 
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