You know who knows everything? People familiar with the matter. In particular, they know everything when "the matter" happens to be Sony's handheld strategy for 2010, which is said to finally include an honest-to-goodness
PSP with phone capabilities -- something the world's been demanding
for as long as they've wanted a Zunephone. According to the
WSJ, the device is apparently part of a larger push by Sony to create an iTunes-like Utopian ecosystem of products this year that connect to
Sony Online Service, an ecosystem that would also include a hybrid portable of some sort that "blurs distinctions among a netbook, an e-reader and a PlayStation Portable." Details aren't offered on this particular monster -- but turning our attention back to the phone for a second, it's claimed that Sony's working with it in conjunction with the folks at Sony Ericsson under the direction of Kunimasa Suzuki, an exec largely responsible for the
VAIO line who's also involved with the PlayStation team. Of course, SE's already taken some baby steps toward corporate harmony by bundling
Remote Play support with the
Aino, but everyone knows that PSP compatibility is the panacea; Microsoft finally buckled on the Zunephone thing with the introduction of
Windows Phone 7 Series, and there's no reason why Sony shouldn't follow suit.
posted March 4th 2010 2:16PM
PSP phone?
*cough* N-Gage *cough*
We all know how popular the N-Gage is/was! This MUST be a winner based on that.
@GenericMessage
PSP is already an incredibly successful gaming platform. The N-Gage platform had absolutely zero background or legitimacy. It was a total gimmick.
@Mr Oos
Actually it wasn't a gimmick, Nokia put a lot of money into it, but they just didn't have the knowledge of how to make it successful. It was definitely a lot more powerful than the gameboy advance, but the problem was more external. Games were supposed to be played in portrait, developers were not used to that idea, than the whole cartridge behind the battery thing was a bad idea, not finally the infamous side side-talkin'. In the game industry, if you have a poor launch, you're spelling disaster, so even the imporved QD didn't help
@GenericMessage
comparably we can see why the PSPhone can be successful;
they have a fanbase similar to how Apple had their fans with the iPhone launch, they're games will be sold OTA, again like the iPhone, and sony already has a start with the Go, finally if it uses the same hardware, they may already be up and running with a huge library
Don't think it will be a hit with the max market.
Adding PSP to the name of a phone would make it appear not be meant for business or non-gamers. Bringing a phone to the market that leverages their best technology would be a better idea. They should develop something new with out of the box thinking if they want to be a true player in this market.
I personally don't think they can do this since they are a hardware company that doesn't do software very well, and the key to any new smart-phone will be software.
Btw I do think they should make the phone capable of running PSP games, however they should not brand it as a PSP/gaming phone.
@GenericMessage
N-GAGE? Are you kidding me? You had to take the battery out to change games!
@GenericMessage
How can you compare a rumored PSPphone to the N-gage? If a phone is developed that has the hardware which makes it capable of fully functioning as a PSP too then it will sell, AND will keep the PSP library alive even if a next-gen quad-core PSP2 is announced this year at E3.
@GenericMessage - "PSP phone?"
Yes! We want that. So thank me for the repeated salty blasts at sony's portable device devisions for lazily standing around while Apple and (now Microsoft) blast past them in this area. Its about fraking time!!
@dxdragon
The UI on the PSP and PS3 is very simple and elegant and I'm sure if Sony put something like that in a phone, they would make it big.
one reason I like the PS3 over the Xbox 360 is because of the UI. The 360's is too cluttered with squares of all sorts. I think Windows Mobile 7 looks a little cluttered too. I actually like the iPhone simply because I love the hardware, and if I don't like the interface, I jailbreak it an change it to whatever I please.
@Mr Oos
I think Sony's formula for market dominance is much more simple than we might think. And I guess they're starting to realize it now. They should centralize ALL their media in one area or market place like itunes. PSP/PS1/PS2 Games, ebooks, music, movies. AND enable ALL of their devices to access said content. Think of it: MP3 players, ebook readers, cellphones and laptops that ALL access content from ONE DEDICATED source? Can you say "bigger than itunes"? And oh yeah, one device that can access ALL of that content AND make calls? Hmmm...Sounds like a true iphone competitor to me.
@JeremyBenthem
I remember playing 3D Tomb Raider on an N-gage at Gamestop. That seemed years ahead of its time but then it just dropped out of the horizon. What a shame.
Oh no! Is that a single analogue nub?
@GenericMessage
a problem with a psp phone is that they could be limiting their customer base.
unless of course it has support for both cdma and gsm and is unlocked... =\
@b3nj4m1n
if people couldn't get the psphone because of their service, they can get a psp without the phone, thus sony keeping their consumer base.
@Maroonfree
happens all the time, for example some devs made 3D-games on high-end WinMo devices. Obviously the poor eco-system Microsoft developed didn't work out so well. Years later, the same games were ported to the iPhone and they are making more money for the same product
@Mr Oos
The PSP is incredibly successful? I think not. It's been plagued by mediocre sales and third-party devs are leaving for greener pastures. It's also getting killed by piracy. Don't get me wrong, I love my PSP (at least, on the rare occasion that a good game comes out), but it's hardly been "incredibly successful".
@Ryan P They improved that with the N-Gage QD but it was still a flawed device, hence why it wasn't successful. The PSP has sold over 50 million devices, so Sony's got a winner on it's hands if it can figure out how to expand the life and increase sales further. PSPGo was a total and complete flop, however I think a PSPPhone would do quite well.
@JeremyBenthem
Amen on the Ngage thing, I owned the original and was the best smartphone/gamehandheld of the time, I owned gda an never used thanks to this.
I see the benefits behind this idea - convergence is great, carrying 1 device is awesome and all that. But I'd like 3 dedicated devices that do their respective jobs very well, rather than 1 device that a half assed job at 3 things.
@DirtyVegas
I understand your point of view seeing as how most all-in-one devices are mediocre at most functions. However, this doesn't necessarily mean that this particular device, or any upcoming device for that matter, will follow the same trend.
If they could combine true PSP gaming (not just mini's), with Series-X audio quality, and SE call quality, then they will have a winner in my book. Although the device will require a hefty battery, or at minimum swappable batteries. Given the design diagram above, swappable batteries may be a tricky one to incorporate.
@DonkeyPuncherello
+1 just for your name, lol
I used to love the idea of a PSP phone, and spend days and nights googling for concepts and modifying them on photoshop.
Not anymore.
I want a really good portable gaming handheld. With good buttons, next-gen gfx, dual sticks for FPSs, a multitouch touchscreen for strategy games, and a damn good library of games. If they want to add phone functionality on the side then why not, but I expect top notch handheld gaming.
@TareG Well Pandora is as near as you'll get for the time being.
@Cydoniac
You mean the PandoraOpen project thingy? The same one that was supposed to be out a year+ ago and now their still "almost ready" to launch? Yeaa lemme know how that works out a decade from now when it finally releases
Can't wait for the Sony Ericsson Cybershot Walkman Playstation Phone
@JeremyBenthem
I'd rather wait for the Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot Walkman PlayStation Bravia VAIO Handycam Phone
@JeremyBenthem
that... would probably look alot like this:
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2009/01/sony_pokepc5.jpg
@nicholasphan Once a greedy always a greedy
I'm with ya
@JeremyBenthem Get Lost, Jeremy!
@JeremyBenthem
Well it's stupid of them not to do combos earlier. They could have been first by miles to have a good camera and games. Now people are already quite settled with Android or iPhone OS.
@Schmich
...they do do combos
The Sony Ericsson Walkman phones used to be some of the best media phones (then the smartphones came along)
And the Sony Ericsson Cybershot phones are still the best camera phones on the market (better than the Nokia N-series cameras in my opinion)
Not for AT&T or verizon please. Sprint is nice.
@cell128 yeah why would they release it on one of the two largest cell networks in America. That's stupid.
Here's a hint. It's not going to be Verizon OR Sprint. Sony isn't going to make a psphone for the US market. They're going to make a global phone... and they're going to make one.
@vicsvenge japan only at first probably.
needs camera and 1-seg tuner as well...
What I want to know is if this will be PSP phone or PSP2 phone?
they charge too much for those PSN/Mini games, comparing those ported from iphone...
Looks like one analog stick, so either it isn't PSP2, or the PSP2 still has only 1 analog stick. My guess is the former, but who knows? Maybe it's all a fake anyway.
@crunc
1 analogue stick means that the rumored PSPphone will be a way to keep the PSP library alive while the PSP2 is out. Which is a rather smart idea to tell you the truth.
I'll save my money for a good, beefed up PSP2 though.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-psp2-features-quad-core-gpu-blog-entry
SHOW ME THE SECOND ANALOG STICK!
@thinkthis
you know, it's just more simple and makes more sense to Sony to
implement an entire phone rather than a single analog stick...
I think it makes sense to throw in phone functionality at this point. The technology is cheap and small. I hope Nintendo does the same with their next handheld.
@Ksult1
The problem is that it is probably harder to make a good phone with gaming capabilities than it is to make a good gaming system with phone capabilities. Sony will need to be very clear on what the primary function of the device is and ensure that it is very good at doing that. I cannot, for example, imagine trying to use a current PSP as a telephone because, frankly, it's a bit of a brick in comparison to current cellular telephones. Given this Sony needs to decide who the device is going to be for because I'm pretty certain they won't be able to keep everyone happy. A device that is a gaming system first and a phone second would be novel but perhaps there is a market for that.
@Kelmon I agree, though I think the progression of technology makes the brick-like nature of handhelds less of an issue. Still, these devices need to be for gaming first, with the phone functionality thrown in keep these in our pockets at all times. I would prefer a cheaper version without phone functionality as well for people not interested.
I've been a long LONG time reader, but registered this very moment just to say this: This thing will be DOA if it doesn't have dual analog sticks... Did you hear that Sony? DUAL analog sticks, lol. Jeezy chreezy, what have we become.
@civitasdei
It's clearly not the PSP2...
Forget a zune phone. I want this.
No Dual Analog, No Sell.
C'mon.....Sony....
Does their Product Dev team and Marketing Dept. not visit Engadget at all?
@BMills God I hope they dont. This site is so anti Sony theyd have committed suicide by now
@BMills
And..how do you expect backwards compat to work....?
Think!
You know what would be awesome? If Sony made a WP7S PSP phone. Its already rumored that PSN could be on WP7S as an alternative to the Live hub. It could have slide out controls like the psp go and you could download games from the hub as well as download other apps from the winmo marketplace.