Video: White PSPgo hands-on
Sure, speaking with Sony's John Koller was great and all, but one of the real treats with the interview was some quiet hands-on time with a white PSP Go, unfortunately not turned on but with the same build quality and weight as its functional black model (also found tagging along to the Q&A). Our impression of the device is largely unchanged from the initial experience -- a sturdy build that's surprisingly light, although with this go around we didn't find the shoulder buttons to be more comfortable this time. Still, our interest wanes pretty dramatically when we're reminded of its $249 price tag, but enough with our chatter, hit up the break for an up-close video of all its nooks and crannies, and while you're there, stick around for more tidbits from our interview.
Koller told us battery life would be about five to six hours, on par with the 3000 model, and if that doesn't jibe with your needs, he said the company's looking into a battery boost peripheral similar to the add-ons we saw when the iPod first launched. The portable itself has been in the works "for several years," but despite the overlap, says it was designed independently of the MyLo -- we're pretty skeptical, but hey, stranger things have happened. Also, we think it goes without saying, but just to make absolute sure, we confirmed with him that it uses the same SDK as the regular PSP and hence, no exclusive Go titles.
In the closed position, as we show at the end of the video, the Go's pretty much limited to basic interaction with the left and right shoulder buttons for switching between songs / scenes, alongside the volume control on the top. We couldn't get any clear answers on the future of the PSP, whether or not they'll be revising the classic model at any point in the future or ride out the 3000 until the world at large finally says "good riddance" to the UMD format. We gotta hand it to Sony for making a pretty stylish portable, but as is the standard, it's hard looking past that cost.
