@ ZenfoldorVGI
I think we might as well stop discussing price, we already concluded that it is too high and that Sony are making good money from every PSP Go sold. Other than that, we can't know anything for sure.
And the screen is definitely a downgrade speaking of size, but also an upgrade in terms of quality. In the end, for me this is just one of those things where I can't help but feel people will complain because they have to complain about something. This downgrade is absolutely insignificant to me.
Losing the UMD drive on the other hand, is not only a downgrade, but a downgrade with major advantages. There are the small superficial advantages, like more reliable hardware (due to less moving parts) and also the portability aspect.
But with the PSP Go, people are forced to buy their games through an online service, which means games can be sold at prices comparable to retail prices, but developers and publishers will recieve much more profit pr. unit sold, meaning the PSP becomes a less risky platform to develop for, and combined with the lowered price of development tools will mean more software coming to the PSP.
The PSP Go also opens up the possibility of Sony's rumored rental program, where you for a subscription fee can rent 5 or so games a month (don't remember the specifics).
Yes, you lose the ability to resell your games, buy used games and to borrow UMD discs from your friends, but honestly, with the PSP Go, my need for the used PSP games market is removed. The people who want to use the used PSP game market should get themselves a PSP-3000, but I would much rather pay the prices on the PS Store (which are quite reasonable where I live anyway), then trying to hunt down new copies of old games at retailers. The big difference between buying new PSP games at GameStop compared to on the PS Store, is that the PS Store has a selection going beyond Patapon, Buzz and LEGO Batman.
Of course, we are forgetting here that Sony have already tested the waters for selling redeemable codes for a game at retailers, and I don't see why this won't be an option in the future. Which would allow for good deals to be found out in retail, even for the PSP Go.
And honestly, I don't see why Sony wouldn't allow the sharing of games bought on the PS Store after the Go releases, I believe it's possible to do now, though not as easily as PS3/N games. We'll have to wait and see at the PSP Go release.
And Sony IS broke, no one is denying that. I believe they want to see just how much a DD only device can sell for, and if they can ride out the holiday season with decent sales at a high profit, then they would love to earn that extra cash. They can then drop the price in spring, to see if people are in fact really interested in a DD only device, and not just the people who would have gotten a PSP Go anyway.
Honestly, when I read the last part of your post, I can't help but think of conspiracy theories. Maybe you are right in some of your assumptions, but you make it sound like Sony are only keeping the 3000 on the market to please the current 1-3000 owners. Would taking the 3000 off the shelves in favor of the Go not have been a disaster considering how many people might be ready to move onto a DD only gaming device alone, not to mention retail relationships?
And your PS3/PS4 analogy only works to a small extent, partially because the Go is not the PSP2, and partially because the home console front is quite different from the portable console front. Having all your games on your portable console offers a great advantage over carrying around all your cases after all, and a DD only designed handheld console is something I think is a great step in the right direction for handheld gaming. Not because of what it might do to physical media in handheld gaming, but because of what it will do for DD in handheld gaming.
Honestly, I think the PSP Go is bringing exciting times with it, and I am quite excited to see just how big the ramifications of it will be, for the PSP2 and every other future console released, not to mention retailers.
