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[StuBurns]

a strong opinion seemingly based on technical criticisms would be what they'd use even if they didn't have technical criticisms but had instead just decided it didn't make business sense for them. They have to downplay any perceived technical advantage Nintendo has - partly to try and spoil their launch, but partly to keep positioning themselves as the technology leader in the handheld space.

I originally thought that the glasses 3D comment wasn't relevant - sony want 3D, the only reason they want glasses is because thats what the tech uses. But its a fair point. If they're pushing glasses 3D at the moment for technical reasons (big TVs need glasses) and there is a public and press resistance to that, the last thing they want to do is show that actually you don't need glasses, look at our PSP2. Yes, we know that small handheld device != large screen TV, but it may serve to muddy the waters of the general public.

I disagree because the PSP2 will be around for a long time if things go well, and Sony will be selling autosterescopic TVs at some point during that life cycle, they have to.

I don't think it mixes the message all the much either, it's no different to selling a PS3 (which is a blu ray player) while also selling DVD players.

 

[Acosta]

Have we commented this?:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2010-10-07-sony-to-stop-selling-psp-dev-kits

You need account, but the headline is pretty self-explanatory: "Sony to stop selling PSP dev kits". Seems Sony is packing up.

 

[Takao]

Have we commented this?:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2010-10-07-sony-to-stop-selling-psp-dev-kits

You need account, but the headline is pretty self-explanatory: "Sony to stop selling PSP dev kits". Seems Sony is packing up.

That article doesn't say much to support the headline. SCEE seems to be discontinuing the current PSP devkits to be replaced by a new one. In the mean time, new developers/publishers requiring more can simply loan them off of SCEE.

 

[Acosta]

That article doesn't say much to support the headline. SCEE seems to be discontinuing the current PSP devkits to be replaced by a new one. In the mean time, new developers/publishers requiring more can simply loan them off of SCEE.

Too bad, but I guess it adds another bit of info on how Sony is moving suff internally.

I really expect we see something at CES, at least an announcement.

 

[Takao]

Too bad.

It doesn't discredit any existance of the PSP2 though. Afterall, Sony still sells PS2 devkits, and while the PSP is dead, I imagine there'll be some stuff released for it after the PSP2 is released.

 

[Mrbob]

Have we commented this?:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2010-10-07-sony-to-stop-selling-psp-dev-kits

You need account, but the headline is pretty self-explanatory: "Sony to stop selling PSP dev kits". Seems Sony is packing up.

Interesting. I wonder if Sony is going to cut off the PSP like MS did the Xbox when moving onto a new system.

 

[AranhaHunter]

Interesting. I wonder if Sony is going to cut off the PSP like MS did the Xbox when moving onto a new system.

Not like the Xbox simply because of PSN. There'll still be lots of minis and psone games coming out (and PCEngine/NeoGeo?). Maybe some games in the vein of Zelda:TP GC/Wii as well. Not the biggest budget titles, but PSP will still get support and great games for those who want it.

 

[crazygambit]

He was so specific in his technical criticisms about it though. He certainly sought to give the very strong impression it wouldn't be in their next handheld, and I'm not sure there's any reason for him to do that as opposed to just being coy about it, if they were in fact still quietly developing that tech.

BTW, Neon is an optional SIMD processing unit for the ARM A9. I think it was built into all A8s, but they made it optional again for the A9 (either neon, or a smaller FPU). It would be good for video decoding, but also other FP processing (e.g. if you wanted to do other geometry processing on the CPU, or doing audio processing there, or for physics etc.).

I wouldn't put that much weight into his comments. Remember what he thought of rumble when SIXAXIS came out and then quickly changed his mind when the DS3 was released. He said something along the lines of "what did you expect me to say?". If he got a call from the engineers that they can get 3D working on the cheap on the system without impacting the other features, you can be sure he'd "change" his mind again.

I still don't think it makes any sense for the PSP2 to have 3D though.

 

[mrklaw]

I disagree because the PSP2 will be around for a long time if things go well, and Sony will be selling autosterescopic TVs at some point during that life cycle, they have to.

I don't think it mixes the message all the much either, it's no different to selling a PS3 (which is a blu ray player) while also selling DVD players.

You don't base your marketing message on what products might come out in a few years, you base it on what you are selling now, which is TVs that require glasses. Or more likely to downplay a feature the competition has that you don't.

 

[Father_Brain]

I don't think that's really analogous. All a fancy high-res screen needs to do on the PSP2 is look nice when people see it demoed in the store and maybe have a good buzzword attached to it. Again, I'm not claiming it'll be a strong, active selling point so much as just something to keep them from looking deficient next to the 3DS.

I may be completely off about how casual consumers will respond to the 3DS screen, but I have trouble imagining any 2D screen that PSP2 might use, even one as good as iPhone 4's, not looking deficient in comparison. I just don't think the vast majority of the potential audience cares about resolution and dpi nearly as much as you think they do. But we'll see.

 

[Panajev2001a]

I may be completely off about how casual consumers will respond to the 3DS screen, but I have trouble imagining any 2D screen that PSP2 might use, even one as good as iPhone 4's, not looking deficient in comparison. But we'll see.

I prefer a very high IQ over a 3D effect and low IQ: low resolution and no AA are not what my eyes like to see right now .
High DPI display > glassless 3D for a portable device IMHO... it would be good if you could have both, but if SCE had to choose between the two of them I'd suggest to go with the higher quality screen in terms of IQ.

 

[Panajev2001a]

I wouldn't put that much weight into his comments. Remember what he thought of rumble when SIXAXIS came out and then quickly changed his mind when the DS3 was released. He said something along the lines of "what did you expect me to say?". If he got a call from the engineers that they can get 3D working on the cheap on the system without impacting the other features, you can be sure he'd "change" his mind again.

I still don't think it makes any sense for the PSP2 to have 3D though.

That second comment was made by Phil Harrison and not Kaz Hirai. Also, Sony was being sued by Immersion over rumble.

 

[Lonely1]

I prefer a very high IQ over a 3D effect and low IQ: low resolution and no AA are not what my eyes like to see right now .
High DPI display > glassless 3D for a portable device IMHO... it would be good if you could have both, but if SCE had to choose between the two of them I'd suggest to go with the higher quality screen in terms of IQ.

But is not what you (or GAF) prefer, but what the mass consumer might. Even here at GAF, we have a sizable amount of people who can't tell when a game is sub 30 fps, sub HD, with massive tearing and no AA while being displayed in 40+ Inch screens....

 

[FoneBone]

I prefer a very high IQ over a 3D effect and low IQ: low resolution and no AA are not what my eyes like to see right now .
High DPI display > glassless 3D for a portable device IMHO... it would be good if you could have both, but if SCE had to choose between the two of them I'd suggest to go with the higher quality screen in terms of IQ.

But you're a techie and therefore not who he's talking about.

 

[Father_Brain]

I prefer a very high IQ over a 3D effect and low IQ: low resolution and no AA are not what my eyes like to see right now .
High DPI display > glassless 3D for a portable device IMHO... it would be good if you could have both, but if SCE had to choose between the two of them I'd suggest to go with the higher quality screen in terms of IQ.

"Casual consumers" != "techies who read every bit of gaming news and post regularly on boards like NeoGAF"

 

[Panajev2001a]

It is not a technology fetish. It is what my eyes find more pleasing to use.
If PSP2 wants to be a truly multimedia device, unless they can bring a high IQ screen and glassless 3D in the same device that they are better served by the higher IQ screen.

It is like arguing that the Kindle needs motion controls over its e-ink tech...

 

[Pureauthor]

It is not a technology fetish. It is what my eyes find more pleasing to use.

If PSP2 wants to be a truly multimedia device, unless they can bring a high IQ screen and glassless 3D in the same device that they are better served by the higher IQ screen.

It is like arguing that the Kindle needs motion controls over its e-ink tech...

A very large portion of the consumer base cannot tell the difference, and a very large portion of the consumer base that can tell the difference don't care anyway, and a very large portion of the consumer base that cares will buy the system anyway.

 

[Lonely1]

A very large portion of the consumer base cannot tell the difference, and a very large portion of the consumer base that can tell the difference don't care anyway, and a very large portion of the consumer base that cares will buy the system anyway.

And a large portion will chose an iOS, android, webOS, etc device over a PSP for their handheld multimedia needs.

 

[Father_Brain]

It is not a technology fetish. It is what my eyes find more pleasing to use.

If PSP2 wants to be a truly multimedia device, unless they can bring a high IQ screen and glassless 3D in the same device that they are better served by the higher IQ screen.

It is like arguing that the Kindle needs motion controls over its e-ink tech...

I'm not suggesting that 3DS' autostereoscopic screen is objectively better than a higher-res, higher-IQ 2D display, or that you or anyone else is wrong for thinking otherwise. All I'm saying is that you are likely in the minority (of consumers, not NeoGAF) when it comes to that opinion.

 

[Gravijah]

And a large portion will chose an iOS, android, webOS, etc device over a PSP for their handheld multimedia needs.

Multimedia handhelds are such a waste of time. Jack of all trades, master of none.

 

[Pureauthor]

And a large portion will chose an iOS, android, webOS, etc device over a PSP for their handheld multimedia needs.

If you buy a PSP for handheld multimedia needs you either have low standards or are just plain ignorant.

 

[Panajev2001a]

"Casual consumers" != "techies who read every bit of gaming news and post regularly on boards like NeoGAF"

Sony is a much less over-engineering drive compared to the pre-PS3 days now... look at the choice of Move+PS Eye vs Kinect. Kinect is the kind of high tech, transformational jump that I would have expected Sony to attempt while Move is an approach that I would think MS makes (given their more practical R&D choice with the Xbox 360)...

They will not try glassless 3D + high DPI screen IMHO (not cost effective), so between a "relatively" poor image quality with a 3D effect and a regular 2D screen which is more pleasant to watch and read from, I'd think SCE would choose the latter.

Wii and DS pushed a "new way to interact with content" while 3DS pushes a new way to "see the content". I am not questioning 3DS's success, but I think that SCE has a better chance at competing with the 3DS even with a screen that does not support 3D than the way PSP challenged the DS.

 

[Gravijah]

Sony need to focus on making a good gaming handheld. Less PS3/PSP1, more PS1.

 

[Wazzim]

Multimedia handhelds are such a waste of time. Jack of all trades, master of none.

True, most people don't seem to care though.

 

[Panajev2001a]

If you buy a PSP for handheld multimedia needs you either have low standards or are just plain ignorant.

If it gets the job done and you already have a standard phone you are happy with... it is a good rational choice.

Not to take anything away from devices like the iPhone or the iPad... which IMHO are quite awesome devices in their own right... (and for what is worth the best in their fields IMHO... although I really do not like virtual sticks on a touch screen... playing DOOM on the iPhone feels like a chore sometimes).

 

[Panajev2001a]

Sony need to focus on making a good gaming handheld. Less PS3/PSP1, more PS1.

So why are you arguing for a 3D screen?
A display with higher IQ also lets you game better than before (and is IMHO more versatile than a lower resolution 3D screen) and is cheaper for the manufacturer to implement compared to a 3D screen (I think that Sony going for a more pragmatic and cost conscious R&D approach is not the PS3/PSP approach at all).
You do not necessarily have to go to 300+ DPI like the Retina display does... and still... they can get the new iPod Touch out at less than $200 with good margins on it.

 

[FoneBone]

I am not questioning 3DS's success, but I think that SCE has a better chance at competing with the 3DS even with a screen that does not support 3D than the way PSP challenged the DS.

How on earth do you think that? It seems undeniable that Sony faces more of an uphill battle than they did with the PSP.

 

[Gravijah]

So why are you arguing for a 3D screen?

I'm not.

 

[Panajev2001a]

How on earth do you think that? It seems undeniable that Sony faces more of an uphill battle than they did with the PSP.

Well, I see the 3DS less of a disruptive force in gaming compared to what both DS and Wii were. An evolution rather than a disruptive revolution.
You have more of a chance fighting against the former IMHO.

 

[FoneBone]

Well, I see the 3DS less of a disruptive force in gaming compared to what both DS and Wii were. An evolution rather than a disruptive revolution.
You have more of a chance fighting against the former IMHO.

Ah, I see what you mean. Not arguing with that.

 

[charlequin]

I may be completely off about how casual consumers will respond to the 3DS screen, but I have trouble imagining any 2D screen that PSP2 might use, even one as good as iPhone 4's, not looking deficient in comparison.

The issue I have with this line of thinking is that pretty much directly implicit in it is the idea that the iPhone itself is going to start looking "deficient" in comparison to the 3DS once the latter launches and I really just honestly find that completely implausible.

 

[FoneBone]

The issue I have with this line of thinking is that pretty much directly implicit in it is the idea that the iPhone itself is going to start looking "deficient" in comparison to the 3DS once the latter launches and I really just honestly find that completely implausible.

I'm confused, as I thought you'd been arguing consistently that the iPhone was hardly competing directly with the 3DS or PSP.

 

[badcrumble]

I'm confused, as I thought you'd been arguing consistently that the iPhone was hardly competing directly with the 3DS or PSP.

If I'm reading him correctly, charlequin's drawing a thin but important line between competition and comparison.

 

[Lonely1]

The issue I have with this line of thinking is that pretty much directly implicit in it is the idea that the iPhone itself is going to start looking "deficient" in comparison to the 3DS once the latter launches and I really just honestly find that completely implausible.

But the iPhone has been competing with higher resolutions screens for years (until the 4). I have a 7 year old PPC that has a VGA screen, 2x of what the iPhone 3GS offers. Yet, the other devices didn't compare favorable. I'm sure that if it was another company that introduced the retina display it wouldn't be as a big deal as it is now. I'm just talking about the resolution, since the iTouch 4 screen wont compare favorable with 3DS in other fields such as contrast ratio and luminescence, iPhone 4 screen is without doubts very high-end.

Not to mention, that such a high resolution screen would require a GPU several times more powerful than what the DS offers just to achieve parity with on screen effects.

 

[Dalthien]

The issue I have with this line of thinking is that pretty much directly implicit in it is the idea that the iPhone itself is going to start looking "deficient" in comparison to the 3DS once the latter launches and I really just honestly find that completely implausible.

The whole "deficient or not" thing seems kind of pointless if we're talking about a gaming device.

We've had how many prior experiences showing that graphical prowess is irrelevant to the mass market? Game Gear vs. Gameboy - Wii vs 360/PS3. Or perhaps the most glaring example ever that we've been watching unfold the past several years, the DS vs PSP.

For gaming, the mass market doesn't give a rat's ass about the graphical resolution. The only time it becomes an issue at all is if the display is so horrible that you can't make out what the hell you are even looking at in the game. But as long as the game looks fine, and the game plays well - then it isn't an issue.

I fully expect Sony to go with a super hi-res display on the PSP2, but the question becomes who is Sony competing with? If they are trying to compete with Apple/Android as a multimedia device, then a hi-res screen becomes an important issue for stuff such as e-books, spreadsheet apps, accounting software, web browsing, etc.

But if they are competing with Nintendo for a pure gaming device, then a super hi-res screen is essentially irrelevant to the mass market vs the resolution that will be available on the 3DS.


The issue with the 3D display on the 3DS will come down to whether or not Nintendo (or 3rd-parties) can develop the 3D display into new and meaningful gaming uses that can't be done on other systems. The 3D itself will provide a 'wow' factor for the first year or two, but I don't see it sustaining interest in the device by itself long-term. But if Nintendo can incorporate the 3D display into actual new and interesting gameplay uses like they did with the touchscreen - then the 3D display could wind up being a very important distinguishing characteristic, much as the touchscreen was for the DS.

 

[charlequin]

I'm confused, as I thought you'd been arguing consistently that the iPhone was hardly competing directly with the 3DS or PSP.

If I'm reading him correctly, charlequin's drawing a thin but important line between competition and comparison.

Right. Let me see if I can express this better.

In the debate about whether the PSP2 will have a 3D display, I fall down on the "no it won't" side, and believe that instead it'll have a nice 2D display, where "nice" probably means high dot-pitch and good viewing angles/contrast/etc. Part of the reason that people are offering for why the PSP2 "needs" a 3D display is that it'll look "deficient" or "backwards" or "weaksauce" compared to the 3DS, and my contention is that, basically, to whatever uncertain degree this "deficiency" issue is important, a "nice" 2D screen will be enough to nullify it, especially as long as basically every other desirable CE device has a "nice" 2D screen.

Not to mention, that such a high resolution screen would require a GPU several times more powerful than what the DS offers just to achieve parity with on screen effects.

Not necessarily such a wild idea. The 3DS is pushing out 800 x 240 pixels (even if it's sacrificing half of that to do the 3D effect.) A PSP2 with an 800 x 480 screen (say) would be twice the pixels and I think we've definitely established that there are viable mobile GPUs without an outrageous power profile that could handle that.

We've had how many prior experiences showing that graphical prowess is irrelevant to the mass market?

We've had long enough to internalize this message that it's probably gotten more stark than reality reflects at this point. The fact is that appearances -- the ability to look at interesting and attractive things in a game -- are actually extraordinarily important in gaming (they are video games and all) -- it's just that people mostly compare individual games to one another and the things that make a game look "good" often have little to do with technological prowess.

It's not like producing spectacularly gorgeous games for its time was a bad thing for the PSP -- in fact, it was absolutely a big part of its appeal early on. The problem was the way that doing so negatively impacted its cost and battery profile, and the way that the system failed post-launch to deliver on desirable software (for years in Japan, and for ever in the US.)

With something like a high-res screen, it's certainly not worth breaking the bank over -- but in order to compete with the 3DS, it's worth spending moderately on to create a distinguishing factor and type of distinct appeal separate from what the competition has to offer, even if it's a subtle differentiation and its effect will be more in a holistic boost to the system's overall value than in any kind of active "omg must have now" killer-app feature.

 

[Log4Girlz]

Just throwing it out there but in comparison the original DS, the PSP had 1. Fantastically high resolution screen. It could not compete with the novelty of a touch screen. 2. Fantastic graphics.

This time around what will the PSP2 have over the DS...a Fantastically high resolution screen? Fantastic graphics? What?

 

[Mr_Brit]

Just throwing it out there but in comparison the original DS, the PSP had 1. Fantastically high resolution screen. It could not compete with the novelty of a touch screen. 2. Fantastic graphics.

This time around what will the PSP2 have over the DS...a Fantastically high resolution screen? Fantastic graphics? What?

Much better graphics, a screen with a higher resolution than the 240p, different control method, better sound, an actual competent online system, proper media functionality, Video on demand, MP3 playback, 720p video playback, photo viewer, enough memory to actually be a decent webbrowser with flash etc, wireless N, PS2 and PS1 playback, a download store with day 1 sales of all PSP 2 games, bluetooth, DS3 support, TV out, large flash memory storage, a lower price and most importantly a fantastic first party line up?

Do any of these things strike you as something that would convince you to get a PSP 2? All of the things in that list are highly likely to happen except possibly the lower price.

Seriously, the amount of people putting the PSP 2 down before it has launched is ridiculous, did it ever occur to you that some people may not want what the 3DS is offering and may instead be looking forward to something different?

 

[Lazy8s]

A 543MP is like four something square millimeters in a 45/40nm process.

Asking for a PS3 in your pocket is not asking for so much.

 

[Tarin02543]

I have a high desire for psp2 to use cartridges instead of umd's or DD.

 

[Wazzim]

I have a high desire for psp2 to use cartridges instead of umd's or DD.

I think they will use a new version of the M2 micro series, read-only ofcourse.

 

[dogmaan]

Right. Let me see if I can express this better.

In the debate about whether the PSP2 will have a 3D display, I fall down on the "no it won't" side, and believe that instead it'll have a nice 2D display, where "nice" probably means high dot-pitch and good viewing angles/contrast/etc. Part of the reason that people are offering for why the PSP2 "needs" a 3D display is that it'll look "deficient" or "backwards" or "weaksauce" compared to the 3DS, and my contention is that, basically, to whatever uncertain degree this "deficiency" issue is important, a "nice" 2D screen will be enough to nullify it, especially as long as basically every other desirable CE device has a "nice" 2D screen.



Not necessarily such a wild idea. The 3DS is pushing out 800 x 240 pixels (even if it's sacrificing half of that to do the 3D effect.) A PSP2 with an 800 x 480 screen (say) would be twice the pixels and I think we've definitely established that there are viable mobile GPUs without an outrageous power profile that could handle that.



We've had long enough to internalize this message that it's probably gotten more stark than reality reflects at this point. The fact is that appearances -- the ability to look at interesting and attractive things in a game -- are actually extraordinarily important in gaming (they are video games and all) -- it's just that people mostly compare individual games to one another and the things that make a game look "good" often have little to do with technological prowess.

It's not like producing spectacularly gorgeous games for its time was a bad thing for the PSP -- in fact, it was absolutely a big part of its appeal early on. The problem was the way that doing so negatively impacted its cost and battery profile, and the way that the system failed post-launch to deliver on desirable software (for years in Japan, and for ever in the US.)

With something like a high-res screen, it's certainly not worth breaking the bank over -- but in order to compete with the 3DS, it's worth spending moderately on to create a distinguishing factor and type of distinct appeal separate from what the competition has to offer, even if it's a subtle differentiation and its effect will be more in a holistic boost to the system's overall value than in any kind of active "omg must have now" killer-app feature.

I understand what you are saying, and to a "core" gamer like me, image quality is paramount.

But I can't help but feel, that Sony would be onto a marketing negative if they where to not include a 3d screen, in the same way that the psp may not have been as successful due to a lack of a touch screen, or the way the PS3 is criticised for lacking some of XBLive's features (especially at launch).

Nintendo have proven that disruptive technologies that make the average consumer say "oooh shiny", and have an instant novelty factor, are (unfortunately?) more marketable than iterative improvements to an old system.

 

[leroidys]

3D is pointless fluff to me, but I can't see sony going without it for psp2. It seems to me that they are really investing themselves in 3d in all of their other markets, and I would be surprised if it didn't make it into their handheld, especially when a competitor has it.

 

[gofreak]

But I can't help but feel, that Sony would be onto a marketing negative if they where to not include a 3d screen, in the same way that the psp may not have been as successful due to a lack of a touch screen

I'm not sure touchscreen and 3D are comparable. Touch allowed content not possible on PSP, to the detriment of the comprehensiveness of its catalogue for example.

But let's wait and see how 3D is received. It may not be all roses for Nintendo. Reading Joystiq's preview of My Garden raised concerns about it for the first time that I don't think most had even thought about before. If the 3D thing 'went wrong' for them, for a reasonable number of people, that could turn an apparent asset now into a liability later.

If it is all roses, and it did become a sticking point in PSP2's competitiveness, it also differs from touch in that they could adopt it into a later model without breaking backwards compatibility.

 

[Log4Girlz]

Much better graphics, a screen with a higher resolution than the 240p, different control method, better sound, an actual competent online system, proper media functionality, Video on demand, MP3 playback, 720p video playback, photo viewer, enough memory to actually be a decent webbrowser with flash etc, wireless N, PS2 and PS1 playback, a download store with day 1 sales of all PSP 2 games, bluetooth, DS3 support, TV out, large flash memory storage, a lower price and most importantly a fantastic first party line up?

Do any of these things strike you as something that would convince you to get a PSP 2? All of the things in that list are highly likely to happen except possibly the lower price.

Seriously, the amount of people putting the PSP 2 down before it has launched is ridiculous, did it ever occur to you that some people may not want what the 3DS is offering and may instead be looking forward to something different?

"Much better graphics". The PSP crushed the DS in the graphics department and had a far higher resolution screen. DS won handedly. Sound is not an important feature to the mass consumer. Competent online system...I hope it matches the abilities of a smart phone. Not critical to the mass consumer, many of them have smart phones. Proper media functionality including video on demand, MP3 playback and 720p video? Netflix was aiming to get on the original DS, I would imagine its a shoe-in for the 3DS, this will probably not be an exclusive feature to the PSP2. Digital music playback did not do much to combat the original DS, and 720p video playback will highly depend on the resolution of the screen, and when compared to 3D movies, the mass consumer will not be as impressed I wager.

The remaining features are very iffy and none seem like a huge factor to the mass consumer. Now, even if everything was combined into a neat package, ultimately, what the mass consumer is going to consider when purchasing one hand-held vs. the other is price, novelty and quality of games. I will assume the 3DS will be cheaper, as is usually the case with Nintendo products vs. Sony products. The 3D feature of the screen is a huge novelty while most of the features listed for the PSP2 are already done to a great extent on smart phones. And finally, Nintendo has Nintendo. Nintendo games sell systems in droves.

The device you described would fail compared to the 3DS and capture a smaller market share than the original PSP did simply due to the 3DS putting out some decent graphics in awe-inspiring 3D (and I literally mean awe, the consumer will be in awe of the 3D) which will be hard to blow out of the water without making a substantially more expensive machine. Many of the strengths you attribute to the PSP2 were strengths the PSP had over the DS to some degree. Ultimately it lost the war. Not a failure, but definitely a loss.

 

[BLagiver]

If the PSP2 is indeed real the question now is... when its going to be announced..? And when launched..?

edit: BlazingDarkness .... =(

Most likely when games like Metal gear solid 3D, resident evil, and mega men legends 3 are actually ready to come out? legends 1 and 2 will probably be up on psn so we can get some time to replay the classics before the new one comes out. One thing you guys can count on is handhelds having just as many multiplats as consoles. Trophies and sleek unified system and online for the psp2 would be so sick.

 

[Man]

3D is pointless fluff to me, but I can't see sony going without it for psp2. It seems to me that they are really investing themselves in 3d in all of their other markets, and I would be surprised if it didn't make it into their handheld, especially when a competitor has it.

3D can be applied post with a simple software hook in place.
They could decide to do a 3D revision three years from now and all games back to launch would work in the extra dimension.
Controls on the other hand (on a handheld) are permanent.

 

[H_Prestige]

Just throwing it out there but in comparison the original DS, the PSP had 1. Fantastically high resolution screen. It could not compete with the novelty of a touch screen. 2. Fantastic graphics.

This time around what will the PSP2 have over the DS...a Fantastically high resolution screen? Fantastic graphics? What?

Much better online, dual analog, PS back catalog, and a much higher quality display.

This may come as a surprise to you, but some of us actually want to see what Sony can offer here, not winning some stupid imaginary war fought by companies you have nothing to do with. And the 3DS is FAR from perfect.

 

[makingmusic476]

"Much better graphics". The PSP crushed the DS in the graphics department and had a far higher resolution screen. DS won handedly. Sound is not an important feature to the mass consumer. Competent online system...I hope it matches the abilities of a smart phone. Not critical to the mass consumer, many of them have smart phones. Proper media functionality including video on demand, MP3 playback and 720p video? Netflix was aiming to get on the original DS, I would imagine its a shoe-in for the 3DS, this will probably not be an exclusive feature to the PSP2. Digital music playback did not do much to combat the original DS, and 720p video playback will highly depend on the resolution of the screen, and when compared to 3D movies, the mass consumer will not be as impressed I wager.

The remaining features are very iffy and none seem like a huge factor to the mass consumer. Now, even if everything was combined into a neat package, ultimately, what the mass consumer is going to consider when purchasing one hand-held vs. the other is price, novelty and quality of games. I will assume the 3DS will be cheaper, as is usually the case with Nintendo products vs. Sony products. The 3D feature of the screen is a huge novelty while most of the features listed for the PSP2 are already done to a great extent on smart phones. And finally, Nintendo has Nintendo. Nintendo games sell systems in droves.

The device you described would fail compared to the 3DS and capture a smaller market share than the original PSP did simply due to the 3DS putting out some decent graphics in awe-inspiring 3D (and I literally mean awe, the consumer will be in awe of the 3D) which will be hard to blow out of the water without making a substantially more expensive machine. Many of the strengths you attribute to the PSP2 were strengths the PSP had over the DS to some degree. Ultimately it lost the war. Not a failure, but definitely a loss.

A bold assumption to make, given the pricing of the 3DS is completely at odds with Nintendo's past pricing strategies.

 

[Binabik15]

Much better online, dual analog, PS back catalog, and a much higher quality display.

This may come as a surprise to you, but some of us actually want to see what Sony can offer here, not winning some stupid imaginary war fought by companies you have nothing to do with. And the 3DS is FAR from perfect.

Pretty much my number one reason to wait for the PSP2, let´s hope Sony is smart enough to add two good sticks.

Depending on price and library I´ll get both handhelds at some point or at least have both in my family that I could borrow to play some killer exclusives, so I´m all for Sony being in a good position to stop Nintendo from total market dominance. Ideally price drops, good bundles and "greatest hits" for the games from BOTH companies will follow from this competition.