Dealing w/ PlayStation 2 Disc Read Errors?

Habitual submits this tidbit: "Ars Technica has a guide on how to essentially re-align your busted PS2 laser. The fix is meant to eliminate the Disc Read Error that tends to appear as our beloved PS2s age. The procedure isn't for the faint of heart, but it does work."

Re:Major Problem?

[ivan256]

Sell 20 million of something and find out how many problems get reported on the internet. Seriously, if the failure rate is .1% you are still going to have a lot of angry forum posts.

They have a high return rate, because they have a high sale rate.

(For the record, my PS2 for launch day is still working. I'm on cube #3)

Re:Major Problem?

[NanoGator]

"They have a high return rate, because they have a high sale rate."

If the original Playstation is any indication, that is simply not true in this case. I'll never forget the first christmas those things were out. 1 in 4 of them were returned within 90 days. 1 in 4. We sold 4, one came back. That's not "well it's only a problem because alot were sold", that's a 25% defect rate. Sony sold a crappy product, and lots of kids had disappointing christmases. (It is for this reason I have made a personal decision to not own a PS2.)

What I said has absolutely no bearing on what's happening with the PS2 here. However, I would caution you against simplifying it down to just high sales. Something is seriously defective if normal everyday use results in the same problem for many people.

Frankly, I'm shocked that people are so forgiving about it. Depending on when you hop into the cycle, you could lose anywhere from $150 to $300.