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Hands-on With the PSP Go
ANkleStrong writes "Sony Corp unveiled on Tuesday a smaller, lighter PlayStation handheld game device called the PSP Go, in a race to catch rival Nintendo in an intensely competitive mobile games arena."
E3 attendees were able to take the new Sony handheld for a test drive, and more pictures and videos are now available. It's set to be released on October 1st, and will retail for $249. A new Resident Evil game is being designed specifically for the updated hardware, and Metal Gear Peace Walker is coming as well.
Once again Sony is probably overpricing the market. Sony would love to wipe the venerable DS off the face of the planet, but the DS is what, $130 or $180 for the DSi?
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So removal of UMD drive, adding 16GB of flash, use of smaller display, smaller packaging, cost-reduced internal hardware (CPU,GPU), cheaper RAM (just because prices drop over time) results in a device that is significantly more expensive.
Does this device have a faster CPU and GPU than the current PSP?
What does it add over the current PSP besides $10 worth of flash memory?
But, can it still play my rips of FF7-FF9/ANY ps1 game like my current PSP? (1001 w/ 5.02 m33 firmware). If not, Sony can PSPGO @#%& themselves.
Sony is asking for way more money than usual, same as usual. Nintendo will sell way more units, same as usual...
Seriously, once you notice the resemblance it's impossible to see it as anything else.
http://gizmodo.com/5273445/psp-go-a-dead-ringer-for-south-parks-eric-cartman
Exactly, I want me a PSP 2000 or 3000. Only one reason Tekken 5 & 6.
But at least those are not 250$, jebus cripes, I really dislike Sony and there constant overpricing of things.
With the title selection and price tag a DS Lite looks a lot more tempting to Americans, Especially in this economy.
There is a reason why I became and XBro, and so late to the part to PS2 also.
The price would be OK if it played Blu-ray Discs.
Yep its a Sony product over priced again... Its a shame I was hoping that it would be around $150-180 and then I would think about buying it. $250 nope over priced again...
Yeah... sure... if by, "intensely competitive," you mean that the DS / DSi are throttling all other handhelds.
You are using English. Please learn the difference between loose and lose; they're, there, and their; your and you're.
Agreed. The only thing the Go has over the Vanilla PSP is bluetooth - huzzah, I guess? There was mention of being able to tether the Go to your phone, I'd be interested in seeing how that works out. But aside from that, the lack of added benefit will still run you an additional $80.
Sorry, Sony, but the price tag just shot this horse right out of the gate.
The price tag is bad enough - but until I can flip a PSP closed to protect the screen and controls the way anybody can with any of the three models of the Nintendo DS, there's just no way in hell I'm going to waste my money on one of these.
I carry my DS in the hip pocket of my cargo shorts - it gets banged up, sat on, smooshed against the hull of the bus. It's spanged off of desks and doors, barstools and bannisters. And while the case is scraped and scratched (and mildly pulverized in one corner thanks to a FLYING LEAP the thing took onto pavement), the screens are still in working order and the machine continues to give me games on the go without complaint.
Sure, I could buy a screen protector or whatever for the PSP like I have for my iPod - but the only thing I've ever had to buy for my DS is games, and I prefer to keep it that way. If I'm gaming outside and it's raining, I just stick the thing in a ziplock bag.
As I see it, I'd be paying a hundred bucks more for the "privilege" of the screen getting scratched all to hell the second I stick it in the pocket with my keys... and it doesn't play any of my games. And I have a lot of DS and GBA games.
Sony may have owned the 32-bit generation of consoles, but they have yet to come up with anything compelling in the portable (or online) arena. Heck, the one friend of mine with a PSP uses it to run a Skype client. What does that say about the platform?
On a related note - when the first GBAs hit the market, they could play GB games. That was dropped with the DS, which could play GBA games. Now, finally, with the DSi, Nintendo has dropped the GBA capability (along with battery life, which is why when my DS gives out I'll be buying a DS Lite - or even another DS if I can find a new one. The DSL is a smidge too small for my hands). Nintendo has gone through several generations of handhelds and has maintained backwards compatibility with at least the first generation of each. Sony's on their second PSP and they've already dropped UMD - which screws over anyone who's paid good money for games that come on UMD media.
Clearly, they don't understand why Nintendo continues to dominate the market - only that they do. Kinda like Microsoft and Google - Sony, like Microsoft, seems to keep trying to take the lead, and every attempt is further and further proof that they just don't get it.
But, can it still play my rips of FF7-FF9/ANY ps1 game like my current PSP?
Is it even legal to make copies of Sony's PS1 emulator for PSP using the "Popstation" tool?
(1001 w/ 5.02 m33 firmware).
But it appears the ChickHEN jailbreak doesn't work on 5.50 that comes on new PSP-3000 series units, nor does it run PS1 games. So people who want to get into PSP homebrew might have to rely on eBay for used PSP hardware.
It also has 16 gigs of internal flash storage. A 16-gig Memory stick is goddamn expensive, though the earlier PSPs have the added benefit of being able to run Homebrew. It'll be a while before this one can do that, judging by the last model.
Sony is out of touch with the market. This thing wouldn't last a week in my kids hands. Toys should survive normal usage and the Go looks fragile . I think clamshell designs are more durable, and keep the screens from being broken or scratched when they're dropped out of the car onto concrete. Will it come in a pretty pink?. I think Sony is trying for the upscale, male geek, with lots of money. I'll pass.
Does anyone have any info yet about what is going to be done about buying UMD games and movies in stores and getting them onto the PSP Go?
Also there was nothing on the firmed-up rumors of an upcoming PS3 slim, does anyone have anything more concrete as well?
Not as expensive as one would think:
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-MSMT16G-Memory-Stick-Mark2/dp/B0013AX2HO
And that was just Google's first result. Less than $80. The Go still has me facepalming.
Exactly, I want me a PSP 2000 or 3000. Only one reason Tekken 5 & 6.
But at least those are not 250$, jebus cripes, I really dislike Sony and there constant overpricing of things.
Just got me a PSP 2000 for $120 from Dell the other day (seemed like a reasonable price to me). Showed up yesterday. But since I don't have a Memory Stick for it yet (waiting on a MicroSD->MSPro adapter from dealextreme), the only thing I can do with it is use Remote Play with my PS3. But that in itself looks like it'll be a really handy feature (nice to be able to control the tunes without needing to have the TV on).
Anyone have any suggestions for a few games I should get for it? It looks like the FW hacks for the most recent HW revisions are still in early stages at this point. Maybe I'll go down that road in another month or two...
This guy's the limit!
Final Fantasy Tactics is probably one of my persona favorites. If you liked Syndicate, you can get it along with Mutant League Football on the EA Replay UMD.
I also liked Crisis Core, but a lot of people don't care for it.
I wasn't impressed at all by the Vallhalla Knights games.
There is a war going on for your mind.
Currently Sony has such a complex line of products, virtually none of them leaders of their segment, that you can't help but wonder if they have completely lost their bearings. Perhaps a re-invention of the company, a la Steve Jobs when returning to Apple, would allow them to cut the dead wood and refocus on a few areas where they can be again undisputed kings. As it is right now, however, every new launch seems like another (overpriced) dead horse.
A new Resident Evil game is being designed specifically for the updated hardware,
Let me guess: one cross, 8 buttons (triangle, square, circle, x, L1, R1, Select & Start), and one damm f****ing placed analog stick and one screen. I guess that's the same hardware as PSP Classic & Slim.
Another thing would be if the game is designed to run "only" in PSP Go... that's another question.
Over 50 million PSPs have been sold worldwide by Sony. But some guy on Slashdot says they don't know what they are doing...
Which one to believe?
The PSP Go has 16gig of internal memory. The 16gig iPod Touch is $299. I'm currently on the market for a new MP3 player. With the way it can integrate with my PS3 through Remote Play and decent library, the PSP Go is a contender.
The PSP is currently 47.73 millions unit world wide, the ds ? 103.70 millions. So unless the PSP double sales it will never catch up.
37k vs 27k? That's a 27% difference, hardly neck and neck
I have a psp-1000. It has withstood all sorts of abuse, and it doesn't need a screen protector. I just don't put it in the same pocket as my keys. duh.
I've been playing Dead Head Fred. Picked it up at a bargain bin price and have been pretty happy with it. Good story and voice acting, but the load times kill it a bit. Could have been a great game with a few changes, but at least the price is right.
"This thing does science so hard, you say, 'I've never seen that much science.'" -Sam
And there's the flaw with this comparison. Sony is not comparing the PSP Go to a DS. It's probably more in line with a ipod touch, if anything.
The DS is what you buy your kids. The PSP Go is what you buy yourself.
Let me guess...
You got that fake worldwide sales number from vgchartz.com?
Actually the official word from the latest fiscal report indicates something close to that
Having a large screen is a problem too, it's much harder to secure and absorbs more of the shock during a fall than the DS's screens, which is why 9/10 times you'll get dead pixels on a dropped PSP, and in the same situation the DS's screens will be fine.
Twinstiq, game news
Right now on Amazon you can get a PSP-3000 and 16GB Memory Stick for $6.60 less than the PSP Go. By the time the thing actually goes on sale, that gap could widen to something more considerable. The screen is smaller, the UMD drive is gone, the only real features you're getting are smallness (is that a feature or a bug when it comes to the PSP?) and Bluetooth. According to their presentation they're not planning anything exclusive to it software-wise. It's probably a good purchase if and only if you want to use your PSP as your primary music player (the old one was kinda huge for that, and didn't have Bluetooth control/output). Otherwise, no...
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