Details for redesigned PlayStation Portable revealed

It was bound to happen. With all talks of Sony‘s PlayStation Portable being too bulky and too heavy especially compared to its main competitor – the Nintendo DS – it’s only a matter of time before Sony gave in to the calls for a PSP redesign. Kotaku now has a post up revealing some details regarding the upcoming “toned down” version of PSP, information they claim to have come from “several sources close to Sony”.

As expected, Sony focused on giving it a slimmer design which Kotaku credits on “a new LED screen that will deliver an ultra-crisp image but take up far less space”. Hardware specs are to be retained (meaning it should be as homebrew- and hack-friendly as the current-gen PSPs) but the sexier model should have a longer battery life (again thanks to the new LED that appears to consume less power), a faster version of the UMD drive (giving us better loading times and gameplay), and an 8GB worth of internal flash memory.

A built-in camera and glossy or matte finish is still being decided. Kotaku assumes the new unit to cost buyers US$ 170, with a release date somewhere between August and September. The redesigned PSP will allegedly highlight Sony’s booth in E3.

What strikes me as surprising though is that according to Kotaku, the phonenixified PSP will carry a completely overhauled set of controls (they compared it to PlayStation 3’s D-pad actually). This is a bold move for Sony considering that most of the games out today are coded using the current PSP’s controls. It can also mean a nightmare for developers of PSP games since it could translate to two sets of control schemes to develop for.

Should we expect the two generations of the PSP to carry completely different control schemes? I’m still putting my money the redesigned PSP having the same control schemes but perhaps an improved analog stick and better button placing. Sony just can’t afford to have the headaches two PSP versions having completely different controls will definitely bring.

Thanks Ninjax for the heads up!

Via Kotaku

It was bound to happen. With all talks of Sony‘s PlayStation Portable being too bulky and too heavy especially compared to its main competitor – the Nintendo DS – it’s only a matter of time before Sony gave in to the calls for a PSP redesign. Kotaku now has a post up revealing some details regarding the upcoming “toned down” version of PSP, information they claim to have come from “several sources close to Sony”.

As expected, Sony focused on giving it a slimmer design which Kotaku credits on “a new LED screen that will deliver an ultra-crisp image but take up far less space”. Hardware specs are to be retained (meaning it should be as homebrew- and hack-friendly as the current-gen PSPs) but the sexier model should have a longer battery life (again thanks to the new LED that appears to consume less power), a faster version of the UMD drive (giving us better loading times and gameplay), and an 8GB worth of internal flash memory.

A built-in camera and glossy or matte finish is still being decided. Kotaku assumes the new unit to cost buyers US$ 170, with a release date somewhere between August and September. The redesigned PSP will allegedly highlight Sony’s booth in E3.

What strikes me as surprising though is that according to Kotaku, the phonenixified PSP will carry a completely overhauled set of controls (they compared it to PlayStation 3’s D-pad actually). This is a bold move for Sony considering that most of the games out today are coded using the current PSP’s controls. It can also mean a nightmare for developers of PSP games since it could translate to two sets of control schemes to develop for.

Should we expect the two generations of the PSP to carry completely different control schemes? I’m still putting my money the redesigned PSP having the same control schemes but perhaps an improved analog stick and better button placing. Sony just can’t afford to have the headaches two PSP versions having completely different controls will definitely bring.

Thanks Ninjax for the heads up!

Via Kotaku