A PSP that won't power on feels dead — but on our bench, most of them are very much alive. After hundreds of "dead" PSPs, here are the six causes we actually find, roughly in order of how often they appear.
1. The battery, not the console
The most common culprit by far. A fully failed cell won't power the console even on charger with some models. Test: remove the battery and run the PSP on the charger alone. If it boots, you need a battery (₹1,049), not a repair.
2. Charging port or charger
Bent pins, cracked solder joints or a worn barrel jack mean the console never actually charges. The orange charge LED not lighting is the giveaway. Port repair is ₹399.
3. The green-light-then-off syndrome
Power LED flashes green for a second, then dies. This is classically corrupted firmware or a failed flash — the console is trying to boot and giving up. Recovery is usually possible on the bench without replacing hardware.
4. A blown fuse
PSPs have small surface-mount fuses that sacrifice themselves during power spikes or wrong-charger accidents. No lights at all, on battery or charger, points here. It's a precision soldering job — exactly what an ESD-safe bench is for.
5. Liquid damage
Old spills leave corrosion that slowly eats traces until one day the console doesn't wake. Prognosis depends on how far it spread — which is why we photograph the board and tell you honestly before quoting.
6. It's actually fine — the screen is dead
Sometimes the console boots perfectly but the display doesn't. Listen for the startup sound or check if the WLAN light responds. If so, you need a screen (₹1,999), and the "dead" PSP was never dead.