Sony’s bold disc-less re-imagining of its powerful handheld is finally out in the wild
It may not have enjoyed the same level fanfare that can often usher in a new hardware release, but today’s arrival of the PSPgo is an important landmark for both Sony’s machine and the wider games industry.
The PSP has for a long-time been hampered by the generalised belief that it has failed to perform to Sony. This is mostly down to the huge success that has been the DS, and is really quite unfair – global PSP sales have recently surpassed the 50m mark, meaning the machine has sold only fractionally less than the Wii.
And whilst UMD sales have suffered at the hands of the widespread piracy that has blighted the system, the PSP is home to several great titles – including the likes of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, God of War: Chains of Olympus, LocoRoco, Patapon, Every Extend Extra and WipEout Pure.
Just a few years ago it would have been unimaginable for a games console to release without a physical media drive. Sony’s decision to drop UMD from PSPgo is as bold as it is groundbreaking.
The machine’s arrival has, however, been clouded by an ever-present air of uncertainty from some retail members thanks to its reliance on digital downloads. Hardware is traditionally a very low margin product for retail, with game sales proving a more important part of the business.
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With UMD sales likely to tumble in light of the PSPgo, some retailers have gone as far as to refuse to stock Sony’s machine.
The price has also been a sticking point. £225 is not outlandish for sexy bits of portable tech, but considering the fact that £25 more will get you a PS3 – and that the PSP’s core tech is now over five years old – many have claimed that the PSPgo is as much as £100 over-priced.
And whilst Sony’s “solution” to those who want a PSPgo but also own a large UMD collection may have been ridiculed by consumers, the platform holder is determined to reward early adopters with free copies of both the long-awaited Gran Turismo and three free full-game downloads.
Overnight also bought world of a new firmware update, v.6.10. New functionality includes music categorization software SensMe, a new look for MediaGo and Bluetooth tethering. It’s release is said to be close.
Comments
cost to dam much
Reviews of this new PSPgo have been very harsh, but my biggest problem with the whole machine is the price £225, it's a dam joke
good article
i like, finally someone writing a reasonable view on the matter instead of just complaining about the cost etc
Nice idea, but pointless.
I had the pleasure of playing one of these at Gamescon, it's well made and looks awesome but I couldn't help but think, what's the point. There's no technological jump here, it's just a redesigned PSP sans the UMD drive. Sony has to be the most irritating company going! I was hoping Sir Howard would stop Sony from hemorrhaging money, no luck there then.
Get it together Sony!
Question!!
is it me or doesn't the PSPgo look like a rebadged Nokia N97 phone?
it is quality
if you sell the psn cards and promote this well in store pspgo should be a success, the console itself is fantastic, our sony rep came in last week and the console is very thin but feels solid, very comfortable the price is the only issue we have, too close to a new ps3 price
Rubbish
Overpriced rubbish. This product is doomed to fail, who in their right mind re-releases a five year old console with overpriced DLC during a recession and expects it to make money?
Utter lunacy as a business strategy, I don't care how fantastic the Sony rep made it sound.
re-imagining? re-branding?
can someone please explain to me as to what the purpose of the "redesigned" gameboys/ds and the "updated" gamecube is?
why is it that no-one notices that the the dsi (a glorified n64 with a stylus) and the wii (gamecube?) both use tech that is over five years old, and yet still happen to be successful machines? nintendo have been ripping their customers off since the minute they realised that redesigning an ailing platform prolongs its lifespan and generates extra sales... why can't sony do the same?
and to be honest, if it wasn't for the price, i too would have welcomed sony's move towards a digital future. sony are also aiming to secure premuim indie-generated content via their online service, thus making the platform more friendly towards those who would rather develop for the iphone and the ds, and all you sony haters can do is say that the machine is a flop when it hasn't even had a chance to prove itself yet.
admittedly, the price is a sticking factor... but i'm sure that sony will be able to resolve this issue as the machine gains momentum and increases its userbase.
oh... and if anybody wants to know, sony did not pay me to say what i have just said.
BEN PARFITT: don't worry about what some of the above people think. your views should never be shot at because all you did was object to the common consensus.
i already made the move with digital on PSP
TBH i made the digital only move on my PSP a long time ago....
PSP minis are fantastic ideas, TETRIS and PINBALL FANTASYS are enough on there own to tickle you for hours and hours.
i too would be having the smaller and better looking GO if it was not for the really high price tag.
no way in hell doth it cost £100 more to remove the UMD drive and put in 16gb flash memory.
Testy Tetris
Tetris you say?
Didn't that game debut on a certain handheld machine of yesteryear whose name begins with G and ends with Y?
Sometimes I find this industry totally baffling!!
PSPGo
Well the sales of Go have hardly been very encouraging on day one and two!!
What is the point in this machine? I am fairly sure that I was not imagining playing LocoRoco 2 on my PSP the other night which I bought from the PlayStation Network. Only my PSP still allopws me to play a UMD game or film, should I wish.
And SOMEONE please explain the price thinking. Same chipset as PSP3000, battery with a lower lifespan, a smaller screen, no UMD drive or laser and a smaller shell. To me, that sounds like what Sony did to the PS3 60gb when they stripped it and DROPPED the price. How on earth can something that has been made INFERIOR and has removed or reduced 3 of the key essential components of a console become more expensive!?!?
Baffled that anybody WOULD buy one. Which obviously nobody is.
Well done Sony.
Cloning
I've already seen Chinese clones of the PSPgo invading the market...
http://chinagrabber.com/4-3-slide-panel-retro-gamer-game-mp5-player-w-camera-mp4---pxp-2000.aspx
Though it looks like it's actually got the innards of a Dingoo rather than any actual PS piracy going on (though it can apparantly play PS1 games)
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