Buying a used PS2

Mai-Kero

So, being that I somehow made it through the last console generation without getting a PS2, now that they are pretty cheap I find myself desiring one greatly. I just scoped out ebay, though, and noticed a lot up for $50-70~, and was wondering if it would be worth saving the $60-80 to get one used. I heard a while ago that PS2s break a lot. Is that still the case, or if I'm buying a newer used one will it probably be fine?

JHunz

I, personally, would not buy a used PS2 off Ebay. It'll cost you more money, but I would recommend going to EBGames or an equivalent retailer, and buying a refurb PS2 that you can try out, and that comes with a warranty.

ViolentChemistry

Think "1984 Fiero". Don't buy a used PS2 without some kind of 1-year free-replacement situation.

monkeyfeet63

You could break into someone's house and take one.

Tal

Wow, this is perfect timing. I was just about to ask the same question.

So I want to be looking at refurbed from a gaming store to get the warrenty? I'll only be using this for DDR, although I'll probably pick up guitar hero as well as some point.

ChopperDave

About a year ago I bought a refurbished PS2 from EB games with a 3 month warranty. It started to malfunction after about 4 months (monster load times, skipping, disc scratching) and after 5 months it was unplayable. Of course EB wouldn't give me the refund. Fortunately, it was functional enough that I was able to trade it in to the pricks for $70 in-store credit and get a brand new PStwo, which hasn't given me any problems.

Keep in mind that the PS2, in general, is a damn crummy piece of hardware. Breaks easily, overheats, falls apart after a year or two of use on its own. When you buy a used or even refurbished one, you're basically asking for its early death. And while it's croaking out its last breaths, you'll probably find that it wastes even more of your money than you expected. For example, I actually tried to get that old PS2 repaired, which brought me down $20, and the thing scratched up my Rez and Gitaroo Man CDs so bad that they're now essentially unplayable (which puts me down god knows how many dollars if I wanted them replaced).

What I'm trying to say is that you should really, really just consider dropping $125 on a new one. It isn't THAT much more money, and a new one will last you much longer and won't give you any of the problems that a used/refurb one probably will, at least not for a good year or two. If you must "save" that $50 - I say "save" because I ended up losing more money than saving when I went with a refurb PS2 - DEFINITELY get a refurb, and DEFINITELY make sure that you have a warranty that lasts you at least a year.

ViolentChemistry

So yeah, illegal advice? Still illegal.

blincoln

I'd recommend against buying a used one as well. The relatively small price difference isn't worth the potential hassles, especially considering how poorly most people take care of their systems and games, and how crappy EB is about selling used merchandise in questionable condition without fully disclosing it.

Ahtari

I bought a used one off e-bay (refurbished) and so far so good. It is even the old style.

But if it is your first PS2 I would say try and get the new slim model. My brother has one and it is great. I only bought the other model because it was cheepest and I had gone through 2 PS2's already due to the damn disk read error BS.

Doc

See if you can get a slimline PS2 from craigslist. I got mine for $70.

drxand?

if you're buying off ebay, look for a pstwo
the redesigns are much more reliable

SkyGheNe

Please get a new slim-line. My old ps2 died but my slim-line has been good since release and has 0 problems.

Used ps2s are the devil.