PSP powers up

Edvarcl Heng | Mar 17, 2006

On March 22, the Japanese giant will finally be lowering the price (formerly US$249) on the mini gaming beast down to 199 euros and US$199 in Europe and US, respectively for the console alone. This will effectively lower the entry barrier for potential PSP fans and increase the gaming console's competitiveness against Nintendo's new DS Lite.

According to Sony, the same price reduction will apply to Asia-Pacific markets though the PSP will only be available as part of a bundled package rather than a standalone purchase. At press time, Sony could confirm the pricing only for Hong Kong: HK$1,780 for the PSP Value Pack (32MB Memory Stick PRO DUO; pouch; ear phones with remote control; USB cable; cleaning cloth; display stand; AC Adaptor; Battery Pack) and HK$2,180 for the Giga Pack with the difference being a 1GB Memory Stick PRO DUO instead of the 32MB version.

For homebrew fans, Sony will be offering an alternative download service for old PlayStation games specially emulated for the PSP. Sony has also announced that the device will be able to play games made with version 6 of Macromedia Flash though oddly the built-in Internet browser does not play Flash content. The PSP will support RSS channel functions.

If you were wishing for a touchscreen-like navigation similar to the Nintendo DS on the PSP, Sony goes one up better with a camera attachment (to be named the EyeToy) that can add motion tracking to future games and support video VoIP. A GPS receiver is also on the cards.

Filed under: Music & Play
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