And it's time once again for another edition of the QJ How-To series. This time we're going to teach you how to make Pandora's Battery, your best buddy when you do the bad, bad thing of bricking your PSP, or if you just want to upgrade/downgrade your custom firmware.

Before anything, I recommend you have our PSP Homebrew Dictionary open in case there are terms you don't understand.

---

A Quick History

First, let's open up the box by giving you guys a brief explanation and history of what Pandora's Battery actually is. Pandora's Battery is the product of years of loving development from Team C+D. The first thing you need to know is that it doesn't refer to just a battery - if you read our PSP Homebrew Dictionary, you'll know that Pandora is made up of two things: the Magic Memory Stick and the JigKick Battery.

Pandora's Battery is used to rescue a bricked PSP, and to downgrade the PSP firmware to v1.5 so CFW can be successfully installed. (If you remember from our previous How-To, you'll need to downgrade to FW 1.50 to install CFW on your PSP.)

The rules changed when the PSP Slim came out though, since the lowest downgrade that could be achieved on the model was only to 3.6x. This rendered Pandora obsolete - which is why our Tutorial on how to install custom firmware only showed you how to downgrade until OFW 3.50.

Dark AleX solved this by making Despertar del Cementerio, which not only allows you to downgrade the Slim, but also to install kernel support. Despertar del Cementerio (or DDC for short, sometimes just DC) is effectively the modified form of a Pandora Install.

However, even DDC is not able to unbrick Slim models with the TA-088v3 motherboard, and the PSP Brite. And in case you were wondering, no, your PSP does not need to be bricked to use Pandora. And that's Pandora's Battery 101.

---

The JigKick Battery

What is it

So what is a JigKick Battery anyway? If you don't care about technical hoozits and whutzits then you can skip this part. A JigKick Battery is a PSP battery with its serial changed to 0xFFFFFFFF. When the PSP detects this, it will boot the IPL from the Magic Memory Stick instead of the PSP's flash0, unlocking service mode.

You can JigKick a battery through a hardware mod, or a software mod. For a hardware mod, you will need to open up your battery and tinker with the insides. Hardware modding won't be covered in this tutorial.

Your Tools

To make a JigKick Battery through software modding, you'll need a spare battery you won't mind converting, and a PSP. That's it? Of course not. There are rules. First of all you'll need a compatible battery. You can't just use any old battery you can get your hands on. Here's a list of Pandorizable batteries:

Compatible:

• Sony PSP-100, 1800mAh, 3.6v
  
• Sony PSP-280, 2200mAh, 3.6v.
• Datel Go Max GM100, Reusable Battery Pack
  
• Datel X2, 3600maH
• Datel MAX Power, 1800maH, 3.6v
  

Not compatible:

• Sony PSP Slim Battery, 1200mAH, 3.6v, PSP-S110
• MEGA Lithium, 2600 mAh, 3.6v
• Sony (Fake) PSP-280, 2200mAh, 3.6v
• Unknown brand TYP-107, 3600mAh, 3.6v (Gold Letters)
• Unknown brand PSP-360, 3600mAh, 3.6v (Silver Letters)

Next you'll also need a PSP that can do the job. Not all models can JigKick a battery. Specifically, those with the TA-085v2 or higher motherboards. That would be the God of War edition PSPs and later models. Also, the battery has to have FW 1.50 or any Custom Firmware installed.

Now, if you have the compatible battery, and the right kind of PSP, then you're good to go. Satisfying these requirements are actually the hard part.

JigKicking

Because it's a friendly app (and because I like the soothing XMB wave background) we are going to be using Marce82's UltraPandora Installer for this tutorial. Download it from here. Put the (fully-charged) battery you want Jigkicked into your PSP. Install UltraPandora Installer on your PSP and run it. Go to Battery Options, and choose to make your battery a Pandora.

Aaaaand you're done. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. You can also convert your battery back to normal with this program, only choose "Make Normal Battery" this time. Note that the serial for Datel's PSP Battery GO MAX will reset if you take out the AAA batteries, which means you'll have to JigKick it again afterwards.

---

The Magic Memory Stick

What is it

The Magic Memory Stick is simply a converted memory stick that is made to boot the PSP in service mode when used with the JigKick Battery. Because the PSP boots from a specific sector of the Mem Stick, you'll need to use an original Sony Pro Duo to make a Magic Mem Stick. You can make one from a fake mem stick, but you'll likely have issues.

Your tools

Like the JigKick battery, there are certain rules in making an MMS. The first is, you'll need an original Pro Duo Stick (not just a Duo), and it needs to be at least 256 MB, and it must not exceed 4GB. Be sure to back up the files you have in your mem stick, because you'll need to format it to make an MMS.

You will need several homebrew files. Fortunately, you don't have to worry about looking for all of them because there are already existing homebrew that have them in neat packages. There are two popular choices. You can download Rain's Ultralite MMS Maker, or DJB's PSP Pandora Deluxe. The major difference between the two is that Rain's program doesn't need the.NET Framework, while DJB's does.

To be safe, use Rain's program in case you don't know if you have .NET. It's also a no-frills program that pretty much does everything for you, and you can use the Pandora Battery normally without entering into service mode every time you do a cold boot.

Making magic

To use it, download the appropriate Ultralite version of your choice (there are different versions depending on the CFW version you want to install). You can download the version that supports 5.00 M33-4 from here, and for every other version from here. You will also need to put the corresponding Official Firmware update in the same folder as the program (you'll need to download them separately).

Connect your PSP to your PC, and run the program. You'll need to enter the drive letter of your mem stick, and just to be safe, check the tick box to format the card (so remember to back up your files first). When you're ready, click on the Make MMS box, and there you have it. Your very own Magic Memory Stick. Ta-da!

By the way, you can use your memory stick again after using it by just formatting it.

---

Unboxing Pandora

To use Pandora's Battery, put your Magic Memory Stick into the PSP, then - don't forget this part - hold L while you insert the JigKick Battery into your PSP.

If you did everything correctly, you'll reach a screen that will allow you to do several things, like Installing Custom Firmware, Nand Operations, and viewing hardware info. You can enter service mode again by holding the L button while doing a cold boot (with both the Jigkick and the MMS in your PSP of course).

Now if you brick your PSP while attempting this guide (which you shouldn't if you follow instructions), then you'll need... that's right, a Pandora's Battery. You're so smart. And that ends our How-To tutorial on how to make a Pandora's Battery. Watch out for more PSP homebrew guides here on QJ.NET.

Visit: QJ.NET PSP FAQs, Guides, and Tutorials - Pandora's Battery FAQ
Visit: QJ.NET PSP FAQs, Guides, and Tutorials - Make the perfect Pandora's Battery

* Credits and much thanks go to Team C+D for creating Pandora's Battery, Dark AleX and N00bz for innumerable things, and the developers who created the Pandora Battery installers, RainMotorSports, DJB, and Marce82. Thanks also go out to the QJ.NET Forum's Moose, and Bubbletune for posting the Pandora guides that served as the base of this How-To guide.

** Disclaimer: As with any process involving homebrew, you are running the risk of bricking your PSP. In the end, you are the only one responsible for the health and well-being of your PSP, treat it with loving care.