This might be off topic, but given the recent posts (and in today's comic strip parody "ifruit" by Jason in Fox Trot) of mac gamers' frustrations (limited games), I thought this might be a fresh breeze for all of you. "Sony Playstation Personal at USD 185.00 = SWEEEEET." Need I say more? I hate to burst the bubble on the iPod Photo wanna be owners, this might give you a (cheaper) alternative - and that screen - soooo big for a mobile gadget, in HDTV proportions too. I definitely will skip the iPod Photo and get this one instead. ================== http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6364344/site/newsweek/ Nov. 8 issue - Since its May 2003 announcement, Sony's PlayStation Portable has been highly anticipated. But to beat Game Boy and iPod, experts felt that PSP would need to be aggressively priced. Last week Sony finally announced that it would ship PSP in Japan on Dec. 12 for about $185 in U.S. dollars. ... ================== Tantin
Does the PSP come with a hard disk? If so, how big is it? I'm just thinking that it needs a lot memory if you're planning to use it as an iPod/Photo replacement.
Well, that is one problem, no Hard Disk for it yet, but they have this new DVD standard (UMD - Universal Mobile Disk = 4.7GB?? - nearly about the size of a piso coin) I still havent viewed the whole spec of the Playstation personal (Anything Playstation is automatically blocked in our Firewall kasi). But I bet once the games get more complicated, an internal HD will become an upgrade for these device. I like the fact that it can act as your personal mobile "language translator" which can talk for you using the "Talkman" disc - that way I dont have to memorize Cometalle vous mon ami? and others phrases like it.
I heard that it was $150? Nevertheless, $185 is still a pretty sweet deal. I was floored when I heard that it's actually under $200! [Edited on 11-2-2004 by yapi]
Actually, UMD is not a new DVD standard. Universal Media Disc is a proprietary format developed by Sony (arrgh, not another one). Capacity is 1.8GB. The bad news: UMDs are not rewriteable, nor are they writeable (unless you're Sony). Only Sony has the ability to create/write to UMDs, and Sony has no plans to market UMD writers, not even to third-party game developers. So if you're a PSP game developer, you'll have to pay Sony to record your game data to UMDs. Bravo Sony. ~Henjie
As Henjie pointed out, you can't write your own data on these UMDs (1.8GB for a dual-layered disc). It seems that the only way to get your music or photo collection into the PSP is through a Memory Stick Duo (currently tops out at 512MB, which costs about $100). Personally, I'd be surprised if they made a hard disk add-on for the PSP. Something as bulky and power-hungry (relatively speaking) as a hard disk will be difficult to integrate with the PSP while still keeping it portable. In short, I don't think the PSP is well-suited as an iPod/Photo replacement. As a portable gaming platform though, it looks mighty impressive and the price IS very attractive for what you'll be getting. I'll definitely be keeping my eyes out for this one
Or, just forego a couple of basic necessities (food? shelter? clothing? you can only pick two out of three) and buy both the PSP AND the iPod Photo! :evil: (oops I hope Cyn isn't reading this thread)
Nintendo still rules my roost with regards to mobile gaming devices. But who knows? I'd definitely give the PSP a try.
Yup, I heard only sony will be able to write to UMD (?Unibersal Mosion Dansers?). I hope our company's JV in fuel cell makes an external battery that will be compatible with this one. Sayang naman if you can play at Wi-Fi hotspots (Gaming+Big Screen+WiFi=Battery Drain) then just disconnect because of dead batteries.
