The PSP was pretty much the first real competitor to Nintendo in the handheld market. The Game Gear and Wonderswan didn't come close by a long shot. And the PSP managed to beat the DS head-to-head during several periods in Japan. They've been beating the DS for the past four months as well and beating the 3DS for a couple months.
Like psrock I feel that the PSP didn't meet it's full potential. Specifically outside Japan. Sony and the western third-parties focused way too much on creating home console experiences on the go. And while this strategy did work to some extent (ie. GTA Liberty City Stories and Vice City Stories, God of War Chains of Olympus), this strategy didn't work out too well overall. Sure the PSP had some hits but if we're looking at overall hardware and software sales, the DS was kicking their ass big time outside Japan. And later on in the PSP's lifespan people started caring less about these kind of experiences on the go (see: Ghost of Sparta selling a lot less than Chains of Olympus).
Sony really need to take a different direction with the NGP. But instead it looks like they're continuing to focus on making home console games to go with the NGP. Operating business as usual is not going to improve Sony's position outside Japan. They need to focus more on pick up and play type of games. The type of games that made the DS a major success. So as long as Uncharted Portable and the other home console-style games can make a profit, they're fine to have around. But Sony and the third-parties need to focus more on the pick up and play stuff to undercut Nintendo (who seem more interested in catering to the Nintendo hardcore lately than the mass market) and stay competitive with the smart devices (iOS/Android and to a lesser extent Windows Mobile 7).
