Sony PSP

Playstation Portable (PSP)
Released: 2005
Created By: Sony
Price Value Pack: $249.99 / £179.99 / €249.99 Giga Pack: $299.99 / £294.99 / €299.99 PSP Slim: $169.99 / €169

The Sony PSP is the third entry in the Playstation family, following Sony’s two home consoles that went on to dominate the console sector, the Playstation and its follow-up, the Playstation 2.

The PSP 2000 (AKA PSP Slim or Lite) will be released worldwide for $169.99 / €169 on September 10th, 2007. This new PSP will slowly replace the old PSP! Compared to the PSP 1000 (AKA the normal PSP) it features these enhancements: a 33% lighter weight, size is 19% slimmer, improved responsiveness D-pad, new speakers that have also been moved up, WiFi switch moved to the top, new UMD loading tray, the USB port now charges the PSP as well, of course the new video-out function for pictures, videos & games where the PSP becomes the controller (cable not included), twice the RAM (now 64MB) for shorter loading times, and new enamel colors Piano Black & Ice Silver for the handheld (Ceramic White bundle will be released later on at $199.99).

Sony had for years wanted to break into the handheld video game market, which has always been dominated by Nintendo, who has ruled the portable sector with an iron fist ever since their Game Boy debuted 1989. Many other companies have tried to get in on the portable action and take a piece of Nintendo’s 90%+ pie, though no one truly succeeded. The closest company to challenge the Nintendo throne was Sega, with their successful Game Gear handheld. Most recently (not including the PSP) was Nokia, with their N-Gage and N-Gage QD (there are also two other recent portable systems, the Zodiac [by TapWave] and the Gizmondo [by Tiger] although they aren’t exactly what you’d call a major challenge to Nintendo). But outside of the Game Gear, no company has even come close to dominating in the way Nintendo has. However, no other company has had the resources, or more importantly, the gaming success (Sega did but not to the degree of Sony) that the Playstation brand brings with it, so if anyone could truly give Nintendo a run for their money, it would be Sony. And Sony sure put out all the stops when it came to developing their PSP.


The PSP is by far the slickest handheld gaming system you’ve ever seen. Using a horizontal design, with four face buttons (the patented Playstation symbols square, circle, X and triangle) and two shoulder buttons (R and L), the PSP has a huge, high definition, screen, displayed in the 16:9 ratio (the same as widescreen DVD movies). It also includes a little analog nub (to replace a full fledged control stick) in addition to its D-Pad. The design of the system casing itself is about as purdy as a handheld comes. The system has a sleek shine (some would say too sleek, fingerprints are left when you touch the system) that gives it a really high-tech-gadget look, one that screams “You gotta have me!” from the shelf.

And that’s only the tip of what the PSP offers. For one thing, the system uses custom Sony discs called UMDs (Universal Media Discs); this unique medium is designed to not only house games, but also movies and eventually music as well. The UMD holds a TON of information (1.18GB, about the size of Nintendo’s GameCube discs), especially when compared to Nintendo’s DS medium (which is only 1/14th the size!). And the graphics on the PSP are better than Playstation One quality, and almost comparable to PS2 games. In other words, it has unbelievable graphics for a handheld.

In addition to games, movies are also available for the UMD, and Sony is trying to sign artists to release albums on UMD as well.

A browser for Internet surfing was recently released for the PSP in the way of a firmware update (click here to download) and the system also plays mp3s along with Sony’s own ATRAC3, for audio, as well as MPEG-4 for video, and JPEG images. Sony promises that updates for the PSP will keep coming, adding more and more file support to the system.

All of this music, video, pictures as well as games, are saved onto a Memorystick Duo, and files can be transferred from the PC to the Duo for playback on the PSP.

All of this makes the PSP a multimedia juggernaut, something that the Nintendo DS simply can’t compete with (although an accessory for the DS called the Play-Yan, will allow the DS to play mp3s along with video, similar to the PSP, and the DS could theoretically do Internet browsing as well) since it was designed from the ground up to simply be a game machine, while the PSP was built from the ground up to be more than a game machine, since it also plays music and movies, in addition to Internet browsing.

The PSP, like the DS, supports wi-fi Internet play. Several games are already out that support the future, although strangely Sony doesn’t seem to be pushing Internet play in a large way like Nintendo is doing with their Nintendo Online Connection network. You can also play wireless multiplayer with people in close proximity to you with the PSP, which is a feature the DS also supports.

Of course, all this talk of multimedia can make you forget that, at it’s core, the PSP is a game machine, and most everyone is making PSP games, although the system has yet to have any huge sellers like the DS. Most games on the PSP have graphics that are far and away better than what the DS can pull off, with graphic and sound capabilities mimicking very closely what you would see and hear on a home console.

The PSP is a very expensive system, there is no hiding that fact.

All in all, the PSP is certainly created for the tech-savvy gamer, and the one who is willing to slam down some serious cash for a serious device. However, since the system does support just about anything under the sun that you can think of, that makes it ideal for just about anyone, as there is bound to be something you will like. While the game selection is surprisingly small with not many great games, that will most certainly change as more and more gets released for the system, and as the installed base grows.

But I’m sure Sony isn’t worried, with the reputation of the PSOne and PS2 behind its belt, Sony is surely in this for the long haul, and hey, it’s always better to have two choices instead of one for those of us who want to take the portable dive.

Features: Huge widescreen display, top quality graphics and sound capabilities, wi-fi support, UMD movies available, music support, web-browsing support through wi-fi as well as multiplayer support through wireless

Pros: Ultra slick looking system, huge screen, high quality graphics and sound capabilities, support from just about every third party company, multimedia juggernaut

Cons: Really expensive price, game line-up is lacking in top titles, slick look of system prone to fingerprint uglyness, system isn’t as pocket friendly as the DS and prone to scratches

Launch Games Included: Ape Escape: On the Loose, Darkstalkers Chronicle: The Chaos Tower, Dynasty Warriors, Gretzky NHL, Lumines, Metal Gear Acid, NBA, Need for Speed Underground: Rivals, NFL Street 2 Unleashed, Ridge Racer, Spider-Man 2, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, Tony Hawk’s Underground 2 Remix, Twisted Metal: Head-On, Untold Legends: Brotherhood of the Blade, WipEout Pure, World Tour Soccer

Great Exclusive PSP Games Include: WipEout Pure, Twisted Metal: Head-On, Lumines, Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Daxter

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