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Sony offers flicks on Memory Sticks
It's probably a bit of a stretch to call this the beginning of the end of movies on UMD, but Sony is set to offer at least one other means of getting flicks onto your PSP. Starting next month, you'll be able to grab a bundle consisting of a Memory Stick and a DVD pre-loaded with four PSP-ready movies, along with a code that'll let you unlock and transfer one of 'em (just one) to your PSP. Available for your choosing are four classics of modern cinema: Hitch, S.W.A.T, The Grudge, and XXX: State of the Union, although it's not clear if you can buy additional codes to unlock all four movies. The bundles will be available with either 1GB or 2GB Memory Sticks for $60 and $100, respectively.[Thanks, Kevin]
SanDisk RapidGX Memory Stick PRO Duo cards trump Sony
If you want something done right, you'd better do it yourself. That's SanDisk's thinking anyways, with their new RapidGX Memory Stick PRO Duo cards they're showing at E3. The cards do the usual Memory Stick PRO Duo thing, namely providing music, movies and other content for PSP owners, but they include a bit of SanDisk special sauce performance enhancements to speed file transfers up to 15MB per second, double the normal rates for PRO Duo cards. Seems like they just got tired of Sony's limitations in the Memory Stick tech, and figured a way to improve it themselves. The 1GB card is all that's available right now, and it retails for $85. The price -- for a limited time only -- includes for free SanDisk's new MicroMate high-speed card reader to help the RapidGX hit its maximum speeds, and also includes PSP loader software to maximize space and convert files.
Cheaper PS3 loses HDMI, slots, Wi-Fi, 40GB
As you can see above, there are a few things different between the two PS3 SKUs planned. (Hint: the obvious alterations concern high-def output and wireless connectivity -- though Bluetooth controllers should work just fine with both, with or without any chrome case highlighting.)So what's HDMI, built-in multimedia card-reader slots, wireless internet connectivity, and an extra 40 gigabytes' hard disk space worth to you? $100? Now that Sony's gone with the 2-SKU approach with its next-gen hardware (a la the Xbox 360's premium and "Core" systems), we can expect some tough consumer choices after six months -- with console shortages possibly for another six months after that -- as $100 separates the base $499 and premium $599 versions of Sony's "Clear Black" hope.HDMI is important to those who want to take full advantage of Blu-ray high def and have the new screens to use it; MemoryStick, SD, and CompactFlash slots would be nice for the PS3 memory-card users and those will run multimedia on the system; Wi-Fi's the only way to avoid stringing ethernet cables for online access; and 360 owners might appreciate the full 60GB available to potential buyers of the premium PS3 model. Neither model comes with a second HDMI port; thankfully, one should hopefully be all most users need. The details are laid out in a feature-comparison table at the end of Sony's official PS3 hardware press release, available in both Adobe Reader and Microsoft Word formats. Determine what's most important to your PS3 ambitions there.[Image pieced together from the PlayStation.com forums; thanks, Guru]
Sony brings TV to PSP, with limits
JapanChronicles.com has the scoop on Sony's Portable TV service (P-TV), which is currently available to PSP users in Japan. Despite offering valuable content (downloadable PSP-formatted videos), the P-TV service is flawed. All of the videos are DRM-protected and only accessible for a limited amount of time (ranging from 5–30 days) — each video must be bought separately (some videos are free).If Sony wants to stay competitive with services like iTunes, the company will have to give downloaders full ownership of downloaded video or move to a fixed low-cost subscription fee. That is, either sell users videos to download and keep, or charge them a monthly fee that will grant access to all (or part) of the video library, giving users a limited time to watch a downloaded video, but also permitting them unlimited monthly downloads. Given the Memory Sticks' limited storage capacity, users should also be given the opportunity to archive content on a PC.
SCEA: PSP price drop to $199 on March 22nd; EyeToy, GPS, and PSone game-download support coming later
As noted in our earlier story on the PS3's worldwide launch in November, the PSP will drop in price to $199 in the U.S. on March 22nd.According to an official PR announcement from SCEA, this basic package with PSP, AC adaptor, and battery will also retail for $229.99 CND (for our friends up north).Highlights include classic PSone games for download onto Memory Sticks, web browser compatibility with Flash, a silver USB EyeToy camera for video and voice-over-IP chat in September, and GPS support for games like Hot Shots Golf as well. Europe will get their basic PSPs for 199 Euros on the same date, while Japan will get a new white SKU on April 15th.See also: PS3 worldwide in November PSP-specific page from IGN; second IGN page with other pricing info New PSP Value Packs revealed [with bundled games for Europe] Rumor: New PSP to get a built-in camera and 4GB of flash
