With the early units, particularly the early 100x models, many gamers experienced skipping full-motion video or physical "ticking" noises coming from their PlayStations. The problem appears to have come from poorly placed vents leading to overheating in some environments—the plastic moldings inside the console would warp very slightly and create knock-on effects with the laser assembly. The solution was to ensure the console sat on a surface which dissipated heat efficiently in a well vented area, or raise the unit up slightly by propping something at its edges..[citation needed]
The first batch of PlayStations used a KSM-440AAM laser unit whose case and all movable parts were completely made out of plastic. Over time, friction caused the plastic lens sled rail to wear out—usually unevenly. The placement of the laser unit close to the power supply accelerated wear because of the additional heat, which made the plastic even more vulnerable to friction. Eventually, one side of the lens sled would become so worn that the laser would be tilted, no longer pointing directly at the CD. This would cause data read errors and games would no longer load. One common 'fix' was to turn the PlayStation upside down, making the lens sled rest on the unworn top rails. Sony eventually fixed the problem by making the sled tails out of die-cast metal and placing the laser unit slightly farther away from the power supply on later models of the PlayStation.
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