PS2 memory card

[XxHennersXx]

my PS2 memory card broke for no reason. the console doesn't recognize it anymore but recognizes my others.

can i fix this?

[kendrick]

Memory cards on Sony consoles are notoriously susceptible to failure, especially the third-party ones. It's easy enough to remove two screws and look inside it, but apart from the one big flash ROM chip there's not much that's servicable in there. If you're lucky, while you've got it open you may notice corrosion on the contacts, or something else that might prevent a solid connection. Some tape head cleaner or a pencil eraser might be all you need to fix the problem.

-KKC, who used to backup his PSX memory cards to his PC every week, back in the heyday of the Playstation.

[XxHennersXx]

It's a first party one and I bought the damn thing last week. -_-

[kendrick]

In that case, I'd take it back as a defective item and exchange it for a new one. Sony doesn't pay much attention to individual consumer complaints, which is why we need to pass that pain on to the retailers. If stores get tired of processing returns, Sony is more likely to hear about it and do something about it.

-KKC, struggling to upgrade ancient equipment to Windows 2003...

[Ismail Saeed]

To add SOME knowledge here for once... sometimes a memory card  can act a bit flukey, like if you tug back a bit without pulling it out it THEN actually sits in the position it should sit.

I wouldn't discount cleaning some of the external crap visible just on the cover of and on the visible inside of the memcard slot, also.  I've had temparemental memory card reading on more than one PS2 adjusted by cleanups such as this.

[XxHennersXx]

My PS2 was bought like 3 weeks ago. taken out of package and put on the shelf. The memory card was bought, opened, and placed in the PS2. it's as clean as can be.

[Ismail Saeed]

Huh.  Despite Kendrick's comment to that effect, I never knew/never saw Sony memcards for the PS2 as inherintly shoddy.

I *can* tell you, however, that third party ones very commonly are.

I guess this was a luck of the draw thing... get it replaced/exchanged since it somehow was made defective.  To be sure: It doesn't even show up when plugged in, is that right?  Or is it that data ON it is corrupted?

[kendrick]

I will back off a little and say that my experience with Sony hardware has been dodgy, but that's not necessarily representative. But I think that the inconsistency is due to the fact that Sony is outsourcing a lot of its manufacturing now, instead of handling every little detail in its own factories. All it takes is one bad batch of silicon at the Korean subcontractor for a whole case memory cards to exhibit the problem that Henners is observing. On the other hand, Sony gear would be even more expensive than it is if they pulled a Mazda and decided to make every last machine screw and ground plate themselves.

-KKC, presuming foreknowledge of automotive manufacturing foibles. :)