PSP Phone reference spotted in Sony Magazine

Now obviously, before proceeding here you're going to want to find the largest grain of salt you can locate and keep it nearby. According to SEfanatics, a page in an issue of Sony Magazine (an office favorite over here) makes passing mention of a "PSP-Style phone" which is supposedly in development, then casually suggests the device could be "in shops as early as February." Of course, we've been hearing hushed conversations about this topic for some time now, though it does strike us as slightly odd that it's referenced in what is essentially a multi-page Sony advertisement. Sure, it's possible that something like that patent we recently saw could be headed our way -- obviously the company is still capable of throwing a few curve-balls in our direction, though we're going to need to little more evidence than this to start cracking open our piggy banks.

[Thanks, Teemu]

[Andrew @ Feb 15th 2008 10:08AM]

Will you look like as much of a nerd using it as you do playing PSP?

[tom @ Feb 15th 2008 11:07AM]

hmmm...can someone remind me what happened to n-gage?

[JohnTitor @ Feb 15th 2008 11:29AM]

it came back better than ever

[Panathas17 @ Feb 15th 2008 10:09AM]

nevermind....

[Jeremy Hill @ Feb 15th 2008 10:13AM]

Wouldn't we have heard of it from the FCC long before now if it might be released 'as early as February'?

[Kamokazi @ Feb 15th 2008 11:45AM]

Not necessarily. Several products have been released/announced the same day the FCC posts filings on them. Some even get released without the FCC filings being noticed as well. If I wasn't lazy I'd look some of those up.

[Iain @ Feb 15th 2008 12:22PM]

It doesn't say where it might be released as early as February, does it?

They could be releasing it in Europe and haven't even sent anything to the FCC yet.

[Jeff @ Feb 15th 2008 10:19AM]

"PSP-style phone" could mean anything. It could mean something as simple as a phone with the same form factor as the PSP, ie. candy bar style with minimal face buttons and a big screen.

Writers just look for whatever metaphors they can find that they think their audience will recognize.

[Don @ Feb 15th 2008 10:58AM]

Yeah... like the Sony Mylo, huh? :)

[JC @ Feb 15th 2008 10:22AM]

The Engadget comment confirmation system. Not only keeps out spam, but makes people who make juvenile comments look like idiots. Gold.

[Flashpoint @ Feb 15th 2008 10:23AM]

I felt that the PSP should have had Skype in the very beggining. Considering Sony knew the PSP would be sold with games like Socom which allow you to play online with voice chat - and that they would soon be offering Skype - you'd think that a mic/headphone would have come standard in the package.

[caleb @ Feb 15th 2008 10:31AM]

Burn! Beaten by print media. Ouch.

[MikeLong @ Feb 15th 2008 10:35AM]

...idiot.

[AJ in the East Bay @ Feb 15th 2008 10:55AM]

FAIL.

[James L @ Feb 15th 2008 10:58AM]

Doubt this very much, the article Engadgets quoting even says "Apparntly theres a PSP phone in developemnt"

Why wouldnt they have annouced it at Barcelona?

[eddie.stapleton @ Feb 15th 2008 11:05AM]

OHHH SHIT!!!! Im ready for this

[palehorse @ Feb 15th 2008 11:07AM]

The PSP slim is still too big to be carried and used as a comfortable phone, so they'd have to get very innovative with button layouts to make a PSP-phone work -- with a screen big enough to play games on, yet an overall formfactor small enough to put in your pocket...

Maybe make it a 3" touchscreen smartphone with retractable gaming controls...?

I'd definitely buy one if they make it small and thin enough! Having that much gaming power in my phone would be incredible!

[Jonny @ Feb 15th 2008 11:30AM]

Can we stop with the grain of salt thing?


it's really getting old when it's in every single post

[sinjinn @ Feb 15th 2008 11:33AM]

you know you are reading engadget to much when you can comment on repeated use of phrases.

[sinjinn @ Feb 15th 2008 11:32AM]

theres a big difference between a "psp phone" and a "psp STYLE phone"

[rodney @ Feb 15th 2008 11:54AM]

Sony should focus on merging the XPERIA X1 + the Milo 2 and the PSP into ONE product. A PSP phone with phone capabilities + touch screen + 32/64gb flash memory + opera web browser + qwerty keypad (slide)and sony can realize its dream to defeat apple with that iphone/ipod killer. sony dont seem to realize how much potential they got. they always failed in the mp3 player business and the psp IS the way for them to have a handled machine that does it ALL. no other company could compete with them if they had that kind of device.

[Ronald @ Feb 15th 2008 12:01PM]

I agree with you they should release a product like that. But releasing products like that require a lot of money and with the PS3 release the playstation division hasn't had it's most proffitable year. So maybe Sony found the risk to big to actually develop and release a product with such an impact soon afther it's console release.

[sinjinn @ Feb 15th 2008 12:21PM]

thats a ridiculous idea. do you know how much 32 gb flash memory would cost? the psp slim is jyst about pocketabe and you want to add more to it . that would basically put it out of reach for many kids, and basically halt all the sales growth they are currently exoeriencig due to the price drop.

also, sony diesnt need or want to consolidate so much stuff into one device. they wantto target different markets with different devces. they dont want thier gaming system to take market share from thier otherhigh end systems like thier umpcs.
they certainly dontwant the psp infriging ob thier phone sales either. they have a great product in the psp which is now very profitable and they will never (especially after the debacle of the £420 ps3) pack so much extra stuff in to a console

[rodney @ Feb 15th 2008 12:51PM]

sinjinn.
i see ur point but if everyone was still thinking that way u would have never seen an mp3 player or even camera added to phones. Dont u think sony rather sell 100 million of that ultimate hyped-up product that everyone's talkin about or sellin only thousands of several different products here and there? dedicated mp3 player tend to disapear since phone are now starting to do the job greatly as it avoid us to carry many devices. iphone had basically free publicity in the press for a whole year every single day before its release. a psp phone would generate the same kind of crazyness.

+ and i'm talkin about next-gen portable gaming device. by the time (2 years?)this would be released 32gb flash memory wouldn cost as much as it is right now.
i understand what u say with the device beeing too expensive for kids. sony with the ps3 proved they can sell different versions of a product. the "cheap version" could have 4/8/16gb without phone capabilities (what apple does with ipod touch beeing an iphone without the phone) and the "in" ultimate version 32/64gb with phone and camera.

the new device can be even more pocketable if they remove the uncovenient umd drive and start to sell games on memory stick.

[NineT9 @ Feb 15th 2008 1:49PM]

great comments guys! especially about the XPERIA + PSP discussion...

Although I agree with both ends, how it could be really bad and really good... Personally I would love to see it

I think the perfect solution is to have different models, both with the same features, but one with less 'powerful' features...

Exactly like the PS3... The cheaper model can have a smaller HDD, less USB ports, different color, etc...And the more expensive model could have a huge HDD, more USB ports, better looking (chrome trims), etc...as long as each model as the bare neccessities which would be a hdd, sony memory stick, touchscreen, etc, etc

[sinjinn @ Feb 15th 2008 6:03PM]

ok, well , in the future it most definatly will happen since all devices seem to be converging and basic phone technology (i.e. the xperia of today) will be small enough to add to a system without adding too much weight.

2 years wont be enough though. the technology to merge a psp2 wit a experia would still add greatly to the price, and i dont see sony taking the same path they did with the next generation of hardware as they did with this.

the psp was hyped to squash the ds , hut it didnt happen. same with the ps3. with those systems they fully expected to take the lead i the console markets BUT both consoles were more expensive than the competition and so less people bought in.

next generation this wil definately be on sonys mind. if you add more technology you will be tagetting other sectors of the market but you risk alienating your core audience.

i would like a psp with a phone , a keypad and i can pay for it , but for everyone 1 of me theres 3 or 4 kids who are gonna go for the cheaper ds2.

the point is they already tried this strategy with ps3 but had had to pullback on it . so maybe in 2015 with psp3 and maybe add a basic phone to psp2 .. but noting like a xperia , that would be too expensove.

[Dan Davis @ Feb 15th 2008 11:54AM]

Am I in the minority of people who are looking forward to this? I am in the market for a new cell phone... I think I'm going to wait until we get confirmation if this is real or not.

[Miles @ Feb 15th 2008 12:43PM]

And it still won't manage to sell.

[Derwin @ Feb 15th 2008 1:20PM]

Who would actually read a Sony-published magazine? It's nothing but just a 100-page advertisement, really. I feel bad for whoever has to write for it.

[Jack Storm @ Feb 15th 2008 1:45PM]

They should add a filter that when it only says "first" or the first word is "first" it would make em 5th or lower. Because these people totally fail.

[Jon @ Feb 15th 2008 2:06PM]

Could that be just a not-100%-clued-up journalist talking about Skype for PSP? "Look, it's a PSP and with this headset I can make phone calls"

[monkfishbandana @ Feb 15th 2008 3:44PM]

@ Jack Storm

First, I want to say that I totally agree wi

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[hotwings1 @ Feb 15th 2008 8:49PM]

Oh boy, a PSP phone! Wait, is it a PSP phone or a PSP Style Phone? (big difference) Anyway, this should be perfect for that iPhone theme I got for my PSP.

[nixon @ Mar 1st 2008 11:17PM]

dumb asses i mean donkeys psp phone and psp Style phone are different it could look like apsp wit 2 buttons