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http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/gadgets_and_gaming/article6111953.ece
It's hand-to-hand combat
As competition grows, Sony is revamping its PSP console. We reveal what we can expect
Sony is preparing to open a new front in the battle for supremacy in the portable gaming market. The Japanese giant has led the field with its PlayStation Portable (PSP) but in the past two years it has come under mounting pressure from its arch rival Nintendo and from Apple’s iPhone, which can double as a mobile games playing device.
When the new Sony device arrives it could trigger the biggest shoot-’em-up war in portable gaming history — and consumers can hope to benefit from reduced prices and better choice.
Speculation about how Sony hopes to beat its rivals has been growing on websites and internet blogs for months. Last week it moved up a gear, with leaked reports from one games designer who claims to have tried it out. The new model has a radically different design from the current PSP, along with several new features. Chris James, the managing director of PocketGamer, a mobile-gaming website, goes further, saying the new model not only already exists in workable form but will be on sale by the end of the year.
Sony refuses to comment on speculation but the real surprise would be if the company were not working on a replacement for its current device.
The most noticeable change in the mooted new design is the slide-open casing that conceals the main buttons when the device is not in use. The new PSP will also boast a touchscreen, along with a second analogue control pad. This would make it more akin to a full-sized console and unleash its potential — the device has always been hobbled by its single controller.
An even more dramatic revision is that the device will do away with physical discs altogether. Instead, users will buy games and other media — such as films — in the form of downloads, transmitted either directly onto the device over a wi-fi connection (as Apple and Nintendo already do) or perhaps via a full-sized PlayStation from Sony’s online store. This would also significantly reduce the cost: PSP games typically cost £20, but experts believe downloads will eventually be at least 25% cheaper.
Significant improvements to the processing power are not expected; the PSP is already well ahead of its handheld rivals in that area. The new device is believed to be slated for a June preview in Los Angeles and to go on sale in the autumn. This would mark a radical acceleration of Sony’s sales strategy: it has previously stated that it planned only another facelift for the original device imminently, with a full update following in 2010 at the earliest.
“The current PSP is doing very well and we have made no announcements yet about a replacement,” a Sony spokesman said. “Anything else is speculation. That said, I cannot rule anything out.”
When it was launched in 2005, the PSP was hailed as a pioneering console that combined 3-D gameplay with ease of use and portability. It was a massive hit with gamers: 50m have been sold so far. Recently, though, it has lost ground to rivals: since Nintendo launched the DS Lite console, its own portable device, in 2007, twice as many have been sold globally as the PSP. Over the past year in the UK the DS Lite has outsold the PSP by a factor of six to one, according to Chart Track, the gaming analyst. The company launched its updated DSi earlier this month, while Sony has persevered with its original model, making only minor cosmetic tweaks.
There is also the looming presence of Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch as genuine rivals for hand-held gaming. Apple says it has already sold almost a billion pieces of software — many of which are games — via its online store, launched only late last year.
WHAT'S COMING UP
Current model (PSP-3000)
- Case Single-piece tablet style
- Storage Optical UMDs (2½in discs) and MemoryStick cards
- Screen 4.3in (480x272 pixels); non-touchscreen
- Controls Single analogue controller and various buttons
- Games Mainly sold on UMDs; some downloads
Predicted new PSP features
- Case Two-piece slider design
- Storage MemoryStick cards but no UMD drive
- Screen Larger touchscreen
- Controls Two analogue controllers and similar buttons
- Games Downloads via wi-fi or a PlayStation; no UMD discs
