Lens Cleaner vs. Sending my PS2 to Sony....

Some of you may have seen my earlier post about my 5 month old PS2\'s inability to play games with Purple undersides anymore.  

Some people told me to use a lens cleaner but Sony said not to because the brushes on the disk could damage the lens on the PS2 which is very small.  

Well they told me I needed to send my PS2 in and get it repaired and that it would cost $120 almost half the original damn price and that it would take 4 to 6 weeks to get it back.  

That is just ridiculous I told her so she got her supervisor and said they could drop the price to 64 bucks which is better but still sucks.  

I wonder if I should try a lens cleaner first or if I should just say screw it and buy an XBOX.  

I can\'t believe that the damn PS2 can break within 5 months and not be under warranty.

What do you all think.

Thanks,

OS

There are some stores where you get a 12 moth warranty and a coverplan even though you have to pay for every extra year you take out...
I\'d say send the PS2 back as it\'s not worth damaging it for good if you make a mistake...
Sony will replace the laser, or if not possible just send you a new console...
Where you just having problems with the rare blue disks or all types?

Yeah this happened to me as well. I think the driver is messed up. The laser doesnt read fast enough to run the blue disks. Some dvd\'s dont work either, but i have a launch ps2 . I really need to know a cheap way to fix this. Can i get the cleaner or do i have to dish out the big bux?

From 90% of the people who have had this problem, a lens cleaner was generally the way to fix the issue.  Sony doesn\'t want you damaging your PS2, that\'s a given, but they would say anything for you to send it in so they could get your money for the system repair.  The laser just gets dusty incredibly quickly and since it\'s internal, it\'s difficult to clean it unlike the PSOne and the Dreamcast.

Just use the disk cleaner, no matter what happens, even if it doesn\'t work, you can always send it to sony to fix it regardless.  What do you have to lose now?

I have resorted to using a disc cleaner on more than a couple of times. Seems to be a "band-aid" solution, considering the number of times I have had to use it, which is probably half a dozen times since launch. I have noticed a marked degradation in the image quality as of late, which I do believe may be attributed to the over-use of the cleaner. I could be wrong, but I can find no other explanation. So, the cheaper solution may prove to be the more costly in the end.

What\'s with Sony\'s cheap Hardware?  I haven\'t had any problems yet...  "Knock On Wood!"

I too have not had a single problem (also knocks on wood).  My PS2 runs 60X better (without faults) than my PC.

If you\'re any good with electronics, and you\'re willing to open up your PS2, i know where you can pick up a PS2 laser unit pretty cheap, all you do is swap it with your old one (a few wires i believe). If you want the info on where to order it, email me frenis@optonline.net

Yeah, I was just thinking that one should be able to get parts for it.  I wouldn\'t hesitate to swap out some parts.

Thanks for all the responses guys.  I think I will try the lens cleaner and I will also buy the replacement lens and try to fix it myself then if that doesn\'t work I will send it in.

Matt I\'m sending you an email.

Thanks again,

OS

i would go for the cleaner, im lucky in the uk sony give a years free gaurentee, they pick it up, you either wait a month for your ps2 back, or you get someones elses, that they have fixed that day, even though a few of us have a prob with that ( me and i think richg)


if you got the money you always could buy a new one, swap the ps2 over, take the old ps2 in the new box back and get your money back.....get it from eb as it soooo easy to take stuff back, just say something like well its my birthday soon and my bro said that mums bought me a ps2, so you dont wanna hurt her feeling so you gonna get your money back and wait a extra week for your ps2...or something like that

Alright I bought the lens cleaner from Radio Shack and it won\'t even read the disk.  Now I am thoroughly pissed.

I put the disk in and it says "Cannot read disk"

Does anyone have any suggestions?

You should do a search of the threads in this forum.There was a thread with a link to a site that will show you how to fix the problem.You probably have to increase the power to the laser.Take a look if you want it does\'nt look like it\'s very complicated.

I had the same problem with my launch PS2.  I tried the lens cleaner, didn\'t work.  Called Sony, $120.  Complained, $64. Formal complaint letter sent to SCEA, they fixed my unit free of charge.

What is the SCEA and how do I send a formal complaint to them?

Thanks!