How To Hook Your PSP Go Up To a TV And Play With A Dualshock 3

Last night I sat in a Wal-Mart parking lot for an hour waiting to meet someone. You should try it some time. Sitting in a Wal-Mart parking lot, that is. It’s like another world — one where humans regress into the sum of their animalistic needs, all to the heavy beat of some distant subwoofer.

I met up with someone I found through Craigslist who was selling a PSP Go for the reasonable price of $65. After checking the merchandise, I exchanged some folded bills and was off. The remainder of the night was spent working on the setup you see above, which was pleasantly easy to execute. I can finally play Monster Hunter Freedom Unite on my TV. And with a Dualshock 3, no less!

I found a surprising lack of tutorials on how to do this so I figured I would break it down for anyone interested:

How To Sync a Dualshock 3 Controller To Your PSP Go Using Bluetooth

Go to Settings from the PSP Go’s desktop
Scroll down and select “Bluetooth Device Settings”
Turn Bluetooth connection on (if it isn’t already)
There will be an option specifically for connecting a Playstation brand controller
The PSP Go will walk you through the remainder of the process. In addition to a PS3, Dualshock 3, and the PSP Go, you will need a USB cable and the USB cable used to charge the PSP Go

This may not be compatible with all titles. I tested it with both Monster Hunter Freedom Unite and Final Fantasy VII and it worked with both. The analog however, is not compatible with PS Classic titles.

How To Use Your PSP (or PSP Go) On Your TV

Plug a PSP or PSP Go component cable into your TV and into your respective PSP device
1. Here is the PSP Go component cable (also available in standard AV cable)
2. Here is the standard PSP component cable (compatible with PSP-2000 & PSP-3000)
Go to Settings from the PSP desktop
Scroll down and select “Connected Display Settings”
From there choose to “Switch Video Output” and follow the basic directions

You may need to adjust your PSP and TV’s settings to try and get the screen to fit as best as possible. You most likely will not be able to get a perfect 16:9 widescreen.

It’s also worth noting that the PSP Go is only compatible with Memory Stick Micro, as opposed to the Pro Duo used for the other PSP models. To be on the safe side, I purchased a micro that also includes a pro duo adapter on Amazon. This way I can essentially treat it like a memory card between both PSPs (as I still have a PSP-1000).

All in all the device isn’t bad considering what I paid and what it can do. I love the fact that I can use the PSP Go as a TV hub: I can play on the go and then convert the system into a glorified home console at night to unwind in front of the big screen. If a game is easier to play with my older PSP (still haven’t mastered “the claw” on the PSP Go…) then I can just switch my memory stick via the adapter and use whichever system allows for the best on-the-go play. I would say I am pretty happy with my purchase and the new gaming options it affords me. The moral of this story is: buy your tech when no one wants it and don’t be afraid of the Wal-Mart parking lot.