Slashdot Mirror
PSP Pricing, Battery Life Announced
zmcnulty writes "The day has finally come: Over at TechJapan, we've got a translation of a Japanese BB Watch article stating that Sony has announced the Playstation Portable will cost 20,790 yen (about $195 USD) and is to be released on December 12th. Also, the battery life is quoted as being 4 to 6 hours. Not exactly what I'd call fantastic, but at this price, looks like Nintendo is in for some serious competition. Free your doubts about software too, as Sony has announced 21 titles will be released in December as well. Here's the official Japanese PDF press release regarding the PSP's release."
Just remember that 4-6 hours really means 2-3 hours.
I will wait until someone test this out to check real battery life.
That's 4 to 6 hours in standby mode, right?
I'll turn into a supernova and burn up everything. Well I'll turn into a black little hole and you'll turn into string.
Game Gear and Lynx both advertised '4-6 hour battery life'
They both failed. Why? They ate through batteries too fast.
The original Gameboy lasted 15-35 hours. If I took my Gameboy on a family trip, I'd get bored of it before the batteries ran out.
Two hundred smackers for something you might accidentally leave on the bus. Nintendo has the right idea, I think. $80 for a brand new Game Boy SP, with older models selling at even cheaper prices.
Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
I still take the 4-6 hours of battery life to be optimistic given their past articles wrote on this topic.
There are articles like this one circulating the web that says developers are responsible for good battery life on the PSP
http://www.gamesarefun.com/news.php?newsid=2305
What are developers going to do ? Randomly decrease the screen brightness or turn off the screen for a couple seconds at a time ? Half the processor speed ?
Maybe games like Metal Gear Acid and Gran Turismo run fine for 4-6 hours now and that is why they are releasing these figures. I guess we will have to wait and see.
For 195$, this is a cheap alternative to a portable DVD player. This feature alone might get me to buy one, not to mention it also plays games.
http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/categories/products/dep tpage.asp?wherefrom=search&searchword=psp
The preorder ship date on all of them is 12/20/2004.
Including game titles to be released in December:
Article
Given the anounced price and the speculative pricing I guess Sony decided to take a hefty loss on the hardware. Either that or they found some really creative ways to cut costs.
devmage
Looks like it's not just iPod owners who will be mugged based on the colour of the PSP's headphones.
" this is a cheap alternative to a portable DVD player
It can't play DVD's.
And unlike portable media players, you can't convert videos to a different format and download; you'll have to either buy your movies again in a new format or hope that Sony's new movie format catches on so that you can rent them.
Not terribly appealing, particularly since cheap portable DVD players can be purchased for well under $200 these days.
You were mistaken. Which is odd, since memory shouldn't be a problem for you
That's not really enough. Last time I used my GBA I was on a 12 hour flight. While it's good that the battery is removable it I don't perticaully want to have to buy several (presumably expensive) custom batteries for it. If they had used AA form factor (some digital cameras can take AAs and a special Lion pck) then I could just get a load of cheap rechargables for it.
"My mobile phone costs A LOT more. My sunglasses costs more. My wrist watch costs more. My ring"
And how many of these have you bought for an 8-10 year old child?
Do you think the criteria for an adult purchase is different than that of a child's purchase? Do you think the primary audience for a portable game system is children or adults?
Looks like the English press releases are up (still PDFs, though):
Release date, price
Package details
December launch title list
Also, I apologize for the error I made in formatting the original post. I was sleepy and in a rush.
A clip on battery. Just like the first addon for the Advance was a clip on light so you could see the awful screen. And the first one for the SP was a headphone jack to replace the one nintendo took out.
Game systems often have their weak points adressed by other companies. Except Microsoft, who decided just outright buying Bungie was better than waiting for someone to fix their no games anyone gives a damn about problem.
Introducing the new Occam Fusion! Now with sqrt(-1) fewer blades!
Oh yeah, Sony just introduced some new product that can do that.
I think it's called "Pee Ess Too" or something. I don't think it'll catch on though. The Dreamcast's VMU is just too entrenched.
Having the wifi would be interesting for travellers. Imagine going to the airport and joining in in established games with other travellers. If the game had an online version (in addition to multiplayer), you could continue the game with other people you met. Also, if the airlines start allowing wifi usage on the plane, then you could play against others in flight. Heck, the airline could sponser tournies and what not. This could be an interesting opportunity for developers to come up with some interesting games/apps geared specifically for those who have between 1/2 hour to 4 hours to "play".
the games..
That's all that really matters. Have you looked at the lineup for the two systems on ebgames?
Nintendo's games are, for the most part, hand-hend games. The GBA's best titles (Advance Wars, FFT:A), would not work as home console games. They were designed specifically to be 'pick up and play', and put down for an hour, then play again.
The PSP seems to have mostly ports of PS2 games. This won't work, but I suspect most people will ignore this fact, and be turned on by the sexy graphics of the PSP, and the PSP will do well, with shitty games, because most people are too stupid to base their opinion on anything that matters anyway.
I think sony is making the correct steps to get this product out. The battery life althoguh short will most likely improve, and the price of the unit really is not that bad.
My question is... will ther be a region lock. The interview with Kawanishi-san makes me believe there will be region locks on all the systems. That really dissapoints me. If that is the case then I wont be playing any american games for this bad boy...
I think the key difference between the two systems is Nintendo's dedication to innovation. Both consoles will put more gaming power into a portable package than ever before.
But Sony's going to use that power to exploit proven franchises and game concepts. People can play their favorite kinds of games with great graphics on the go, and that's a huge selling point.
Nintendo is going to use its console's power to do more than push polygons: Nintendo will (like Nintendo always does) create great games that have a child-like sense of pure fun.
I guess it depends on what you want from your system. Personally, I prefer the unique and just plain fun games that Nintendo publishes to yet another sports game, first person shooter or driving game.
And, frankly, 4-6 hours of battery life is pathetic.
Well, the PSP has a better screen (both in resolution, size and aspect ratio), is significantly faster and more powerful (featuring PS2 ports from the get-go with full true 3d as opposed to n64 graphics on the DS), is aesthetically MUCH more pleasing, is more hackable (thanks to the fact that its got USB interface built in, including using that as a firmware upgrade vector according to the developers)...sounds like comeptition to me.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not tossing my GBA SP, but I'm not even thinking about buying a DS but I'm debating the PSP.
"Stumble before you crawl"
It'll be the heavy duty 3D processing that sucks up the juice even more.
The PSX was inferior to the N64. The PS2 is inferior to the GC and the Xbox.
But, they got the products out to market first. And, they treated the developers good, even if it isn't a easy platform to develop for. Plus, they didn't use any fancy, proprietary, and expensive media formats (such as the N64 cartridges or the GC's mini-CD's)
They don't have any of these advantages this time.
Seriously, though. If it had a 2 hour life, I'd still consider it. This thing looks gorgeous, and I am not really away from an outlet for more than 2 hours at a time (let alone able to play for more than 2 hours, sheesh.)
I make a sacrifice with my Area51m every day, and it's one I made a conscious decision about when I bought the thing. Buy what fits you best - If you want to play 6 hours a day, and recharge the thing on weekends, get a GBA. If you can take the responsability of nightly charging, and dont play all day long, you can get a PSP.
The best solution now, however (with the price drop)----
GET THEM BOTH - WOOT!
Physics is nothing like religion. If it was, we'd have an easier time trying to raise money!
All of Nintendos battery life times have been longer than advertised. Which is generally the opposite from everyone else.
so you're saying that some of the DS's features are not going to counteract the game selection. OK, both have wireless gaming, but DS can cash in on the numerous GBA titles already out there (which is one of the reasons that I will actually be getting a DS). On top of it, I know the battery life will be good. On top of that, I know the sucker will be durable (a big plus for something portable).
I imagine that most people who want to watch movies would buy it to play DVDs, not to have to buy a select few of their titles over. Thats a stupid move on Sony's part.
Secondly, i like Nintendo's game selection. It may be "kid friendly," but generally they are great to play. These are just factors in favor of Nintendo. Not saying its no contest, obviously Sony knows how to ruin Nintendo's day.
Nintendo is still the big player in the portable game market, holding its own against the N-gage, Zodiac and other mobile phone-based games. This round is Nintendo's to lose.
And many plans are in the works for internet gaming and applications. Keep an eye out for DemaSked.
P.S. Anyone who says the screen is sexy is a liar, too, as pretty much nobody has actually gotten a chance to use it and determine its quality in person.
-=-=-=-=-=
I'd rather be flamed than ignored.
I need to know a couple of things about you for my next ... er ... "Job". Where do you live? What kind of a Car do you drive? Do you have a home security sytem? Do you have any Guard dogs that I should be aware of? Does your car have an alarm? Does your car have Guard dogs and/or any trunk monkies? Whats the easiest way to break in your house? Do you or any of your other family memebers carry any conceled weapons? What night of the week is the house usually empty? Where do you keep your valuables? Do you have a Safe? What is the combination to your Safe? Do you have any Life Insurance? Could You make me the Sole benificiary of said Insurance Policy? Do You have fire Insurance? Have you ever considered the benifits of Insurance Fraud?
... Uh... "advise" you sooner.
Get Back to me as soon as possible! That way I will be able to
Well.. maybe. Or Maybe not. But Definitely not sort of.
Some of the claims of this are ridiculous.
...ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the NEW minidisc player.
1. Four to six hour battery life.
I would guess that it would be less than that. Playstation 2 processor and a beautiful screen? It will eat those batteries alive. Those screens don't just bust out all of those colors so efficiently.
2. Plays movies in letterbox format.
Correction. Plays movies in a proprietary format in letterbox. If you can rip to and burn these disks, great. If you can't, then you are just buying another movie on the same old format. Remember, the market has never loved the better format, the market has only loved the cheaper and more universal format. *Cough* Betamax *cough*
Sony, of all people, you should know this!
3. Plays awesome video games.
Making Metal Gear into a card battle game? That is the one they keep showing? Aw, Cmon! Card battle? Has any American bought a card battle video game besides the PA guys? I admit I haven't researched them all, but if you just show Solid Snake and you can't control him directly (an amazing NES feature), you just lost me. Why did they do that? Is there a limitation that allows you to not control him directly? Is the Wifi/processor too slow to go head to head? Does the disc not hold enough image space for a full experience? Is there a RAM issue? Look, it just doesn't make any sense why it is card battle. I think that it is a card battle game because there is a limitation somewhere. They shortchanged something in the machine, and they said "we can't do Solid Snake like we should, make it card battle so it doesn't have to cache so much!" If it was Konami's idea to try something different? Then they need to stop sniffing glue, and remember that interactivity is not what card battle is about.
4. It will revolutionize the way that people carrry around data and information.
Uh, not without a hard drive. Hard drives are where it's at these days. Not much more to say.
Look, it's a toy. It is not a personal video player. If you purchase movies in that format with no video out, then you are just totally messed in the head. I'll be sitting next to you on the plane with a only slightly larger flip-top DVD player with a slightly crappier screen, AND A BAG FULL OF DVDs. When I get to my hotel room, I'll plug it in the back of the TV, and watch them all night. Why? Because I bought something that is agreeable with the rest of the world, and I bought it cheaper at Sam's Club or Costco. If I lose it, or somene rips it off, I'm not crying.
(Walking on the plane with the new PSP)
"Hey, I have two movies that I payed $30 for! Let's see, we have FF:Spirits within or Akira! I sure won't get tired of these titles! Nah, let's card battle with Solid Snake, YEAH!"
Conclusion? It is a game machine. If you buy it for any other reason than the games, you're fooling yourself. You certainly don't want to get into yet another proprietary format that you cannot mess with without outrageous expense, when everyone is just getting to the phase where they now start burning their own home movies on DVD.
At least Nintendo knows what they make are toys. Nintendo is out to maximize the toy experience, not add crap on top and charge you for it. I do believe I will be buying the PSP2 if I buy one, when all of the features make sense. Sony needs to get a grip on the idea that they go and bust out a new format every two years, and then surprise, no one buys it. Can you get a PSP disc recorder? Can you even buy blank media?
Not that it would matter...
Great, now the press can start comparing apples vs. apples.
Meet the new competitor... same as the old competitors? Maybe not.
ISTR my Atari Lynx having a 4-6 hour battery life... my Game Gear, too. I think the TurboExpress' batteries were rated to last 6 hours, too (they could only make it for about 3).
All three machines generally had better games and specs which crushed the Gameboy's.
But, all of the Gameboy's past competitors have also debuted at prices 2x or more the cost of a Gameboy system. Sony isn't making that mistake - and it could be the most important one. IMO Gameboy didn't get its market share based on better software or hardware... but it sure was cheap. Pricing may be the keystone of this war, and from there consumers will weigh battery life vs. eye candy in isolation - Gameboy won't have a price gulf to rely on this time.
You say that like it's a bad thing. For an opening line-up having a couple of sports, racing, and platform titles is good. They're the main genres that people are attracted to. And Nintendo always take their time getting their first generation of games on a new system perfected. But that results in top-notch games, look at Super Mario World (SNES), Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, Super Smash Bros Melee (NGC). As for gimmicky nonsense: This is video games we're talking, it's all gimmicky nonsense.
The only things that are missing are a role-play game (Golden Sun series), turn-based strat (Advance Wars, Final Fantasy: Tactics), and beat 'em up (a Namco one would be nice, as would a new incarnation of the Super Smash Bros games). All of those Nintendo are well and truly capable of producing in short order. I'll be very surprised if they don't release more really good exclusive titles for the DS in next six months than Sony does for the PSP.
Hold up a minute. This is Slashdot, and I fully expected to get trolled and mod-bombed over a post critical of anything Nintendo does, but I'm really getting sick of the argument you and a billion other Nintendo fanboys keep spouting off about.
I didn't say anything about violence in games. I sure as hell didn't say anything about GTA3 - that has to be the single most overrated franchise next to, perhaps, Mario and Final Fantasy. No one said anything about death matching (and for the record, Metroid Prime: Hunters multiplayer is deathmatch). I said more mature. Perhaps you need an explanation:
Nintendo's portable systems are dominated by games like, say, Golden Sun, Megaman: Battle Network, and Pokemon. In each instance, the main character is extremely young, the dialogue is insultingly simple and/or convoluted (see: Fire Emblem on the GBA), and Nintendo pulls all sorts of crap like this.
I've said it a dozen times on Slashdot: when I want a more mature game, I want a game that isn't insultingly simple to play, or where the main character doesn't act like a little kid, not blood and guts. I'm not looking to strangle some guy to death with his own intestines.
According to the developer of the PSP in an interview, the PSP should be about as powerful as the PS2, and the batteries are replaceable, so you can carry a spare. Judging by the size of the new PS2, it's easy to believe they fit that kind of power in to a handheld. The question is: Do people really want to be able to take Metal Gear with them wherever they go? By the way, look at that trailer!! Wow if the graphics are that gorgeous, people could be buying a PSP to keep alongside their PS2 as another console.
Nintendo's portable systems are dominated by games like, say, Golden Sun, Megaman: Battle Network, and Pokemon. In each instance, the main character is extremely young, the dialogue is insultingly simple and/or convoluted
Oh, so you think Nintendo's the only one putting out simple, kid-friendly games? Go browse the PS1 and PS2 title lists at GameFAQs sometime.
And that's to say nothing about all the games for Nintendo systems which don't fit your "kiddie" criteria in any way, shape, or form. I notice you didn't bother to list any of those
and Nintendo pulls all sorts of crap like this.
I quote, from the page you linked to -
"Today, Nintendo does not actively censor the games it releases. Games such as the infamous Conker's Bad Fur Day, which include swearing, blood, and sex are now openly published under the Nintendo banner, as long as they carry with them a "M for Mature Gamers" rating."
And also, from a Wikipedia article -
"Upon the advent of the ESRB video game ratings system in 1994, the censorship practices were lessened. However, minor changes to games being localized for the U.S. and European markets are still made on occasion; these are largely left to the individual developer's discretion."
_______
I didn't say anything about violence in games.
've said it a dozen times on Slashdot: when I want a more mature game, I want a game that isn't insultingly simple to play, or where the main character doesn't act like a little kid, not blood and guts.
As said, Nintendo has tons of such games for their systems. Obviously, though, you haven't even bothered looking for any of them, and you're determined to paint a few titles/series as being indicative of their entire library.
for the feature set, 4-6 hours is what you can expect given the current battery technology. there is no battery right now that can give significantly more than this to drive the specs PSP have. (otherwise, everyone else would be using it and our expectations would be different.) if it gave better than 4-6 hours, then some of the features would be removed and then people would be complaining about that.
or do you think sony implemented a battery draining system on purpose to reduce the battery life? there's not magic battery out there. if you want to call something not "fantastic," how about the law of nature and the state of technology/engineering/manufacturing?
"It's nothing but a couple sports games, a couple platformers, two racers and a bunch of gimicky nonsense."
Look at the sony line up, some "X"-treme sports games, Japanese-like RPG games (blue hair, bad english dubs, wahoo), on the edge racing games, golf game, and some platformers.
Not much different is it. Ahhh fanboyism at its finest.
GBA games are mostly ports of console games. FFTA is basically a watered-down version of the original FFT, which was for PSX (and worked quite well there). Ports of all the Super Mario Allstars games (as individual carts), ports of Zelda, ports/remakes of old games (Shining, Phantasy Star, Final Fantasy Adventure/Sword of Mana, Metroid ZM, direct NES title ports).
The few titles that have been original (Golden Sun, Metroid Fusion, etc.; you know the ones) haven't been that great, either. Castlevania has been good. Wario Ware was funny and fun. Advance Wars was good. But c'mon here. I bought a GBA and a GBA SP, hoping for a whole new lineup of SNES-era games, and all I got was ports.
I don't know what you're smoking, but you obviously haven't had beyond a cursory glance at what the PSP will be offering. You saw Gran Turismo 4, and heard that there would be Metal Gear, and though "ports!"
There are already a good number of original games lined up. Ren Goku. Mercury. Metal Gear Acid (no, this is not a port, and no, the fact it's turn-based is actually pretty logical). The Gagharv. Ten No Kagi. Many more, go look (psp.ign.com or the like).
It is all about the games. That's what Sony has to offer: a great selection of original games.
Don't think of it as a flame---it's more like an argument that does 3d6 fire damage
You got it WRONG the PSP will win because it uses memory sticks. Memory sticks are THE most popular memory expansion cards EVER. The battery life is awesome because Sony forces the developers to make their games apply to their specs.
- Danny
Nintendo will (like Nintendo always does) create great games that have a child-like sense of pure fun.
This is why I love Nintendo... but in this market, I don't know if it'll help them. It's not "hip" these days to admit you like Zelda's cel-shaded look, or enjoyed Mario Sunshine.
I don't think the PSP will rule over the DS like the PS1 did over the N64, but the jury's still out. One advantage in the DS' favor: portable systems are intrinsically more interesting to kids than adults.
I get 10 hours with backlight on from my SP, so this seems reasonable. (I have the sound off, tho', 'cos there's no sodding headphone jack).
Vino, gyno, and techno -Bruce Sterling