The PlayStation Portable (officially abbreviated PSP ) is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on May 11, 2004 at a Sony press conference before E3 2004. The system was released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in the PAL region on September 1, 2005.
The PlayStation Portable is the first handheld video game console to use an optical disc format, Universal Media Disc (UMD), as its primary storage medium. Other distinguishing features of the console include its large viewing screen, robust multi-media capabilities, and connectivity with the PlayStation 3, other PSPs, and the Internet.
Sales of the PSP have (with cyclical exceptions) lagged behind its main competitor, the Nintendo DS. Nevertheless, the console is "the most successful non-Nintendo handheld game system ever sold". After the release of a remodeled, slimmer, and lighter version of the PlayStation Portable, appropriately titled Slim & Lite, in early September 2007, sales quadrupled in the United Kingdom the following week and increased by nearly 200% in North America for the month of October. The Slim & Lite had a minor redesign including a new screen and inbuilt microphone, and has since been followed by the PSP Go.
History
Sony first announced development of the PlayStation Portable at a press conference before E3 2003. Although mock-ups of the system were not present at the press conference or E3, Sony did release extensive technical details regarding the new system. Then-CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Ken Kutaragi called the device the "Walkman of the 21st Century" in a reference to the console's multimedia capabilities. Several gaming websites were impressed by the handheld's computing capabilities and looked forward to the system's potential as a gaming platform.
The first concept images of the PlayStation Portable appeared in November 2000 at the Sony Corporate Strategy Meeting and showed a PSP with flat buttons and no analog stick. Although some expressed concern over the lack of an analog joystick, these fears were allayed when the PSP was officially unveiled at the Sony press conference during E3 2004. In addition to announcing more details about the system and its accessories, Sony also released a list of 99 developer companies that had pledged support for the new handheld. Several PSP game demos, such as Konami's Metal Gear Acid and SCE Studio Liverpool's Wipeout Pure were also shown at the conference.
Launch
Main article: PlayStation Portable launchOn October 17, 2004, Sony announced that the PSP would launch in Japan with TV Stations Signing Off on December 12, 2004 at a price of ¥19,800 (about US$181 in 2004) for the base model and ¥24,800 (about US$226 in 2004) for the Value System. The console's launch was a success with over 200,000 units sold the first day. They also sell different color variations in bundle packs, which cost more than usual, around $200. Sony announced on February 3, 2005, that the PSP would go on sale in North America on March 24, 2005 in one configuration for a MSRP of US$249/CA$299. Some expressed concern over the high price, which was almost US$20 higher than the system's price in Japan and more than $100 higher than the recently launched Nintendo DS. Despite the concerns, the PSP's North American launch was a success, although reports two weeks later indicated that the system was not selling as well as expected despite Sony's claim that 500,000 units had been sold in the first two days.
The PSP was originally to have a simultaneous PAL region and North American launch, but on March 15, 2005, Sony announced that the PAL region launch would be delayed because of high demand for the console in Japan and North America. A month later, on April 25, 2005, Sony announced that the PSP would launch in the PAL region on September 1, 2005 for €249/£179. Sony defended the high price, which was nearly US$100 higher than in North America, by pointing out that North American consumers had to pay local sales taxes and that the GST was higher in the UK than the US. Despite the high price, the console's PAL region launch was a resounding success, selling more than 185,000 units in the UK alone, selling out of all stock nation wide in the UK within 3 hours of launch, more than doubling the previous first-day sales record of 87,000 units set by the Nintendo DS. The system also enjoyed great success in other areas of the PAL region with more than 25,000 units preordered in Australia and nearly one million units sold across Europe in the first week.
Technical Specifications
The following Technical Specifications apply to all PSP's unless noted for a specific PSP series:
Models
Variations
Retail configurations
Models
The PSP is sold in two main configurations that differ in which accessories are included. The basic unit package or Base Pack (called the Core Pack in North America) contains the console, a battery, and an AC adapter. This version was available at launch in Japan and was later released in North America and Europe. The Core Pack currently retails for CA$/US$169.99, ¥19,800, HK$1,280 or $1,360 (depending on the color), S$280, AU$279.95, NZ$299.95, €169.99, and £129.99.
The Value Pack includes everything in the Base Pack as well as a 32 MB Memory Stick Pro Duo, headphones with remote control, a carrying pouch, and a wrist strap. Some regions have modified versions of this pack that include different accessories. The Value Pack retails for US$199, ¥26,040, HK$1660, AU$399.95, and NZ$449.95.
Many limited edition versions of the PSP that include various accessories, games, or movies have also been released.
Redesigns
PSP-2000
The PSP-2000 (marketed in PAL areas as "PSP Slim & Lite" and still marketed as PSP in North America and Japan) is the first redesign of the PlayStation Portable.
At E3 2007, Sony released information about a slimmer and lighter version of the PlayStation Portable . The new PSP is 33% lighter and 19% slimmer than the original PSP system. The model numbers have changed to PSP-2000 , following the previous region-based numbering scheme (cf. the PSP-1000 numbering scheme of the "old" PSP model).
It was released on August 30, 2007 in Hong Kong, on September 5, 2007 in Europe, on September 6, 2007 in North America, September 7, 2007 in South Korea and September 12, 2007 in Australia. On January 8, 2008 built-in Skype Wifi Internet phone service was added via firmware updates.
PSP-3000
In comparison to the PSP-2000, the PSP-3000 (marketed in PAL areas as "PSP Slim & Lite (with enhanced screen + built in microphone)" and still marketed as PSP in North America and Japan) has an improved LCD screen with an increased color range, five times the contrast ratio, half the pixel response time to reduce ghosting and blurring effects, a new sub-pixel structure, a microphone, a new disc tray design, new button designs and logos, and anti-reflective technology to improve outdoor playability. It can also output all games by component or composite using the video out cable.
In its first four days on sale, the PSP-3000 sold 141,270 units in Japan, according to Famitsu . In October 2008, the PSP-3000 sold 267,000 units in Japan, according to Enterbrain.
Hardware
The PSP Slim & Lite system is 19% thinner and 33% lighter than the original PSP system (reduced from 23 mm to 18.6 mm and from 280 grams to 189 grams ). Internal changes to achieve this include the removal of a metal chassis (used to reduce damage in the event of sudden trauma to the system resulting from the user dropping the system on a hard surface). However, users have complained about generally poor hardware assembly like misaligned faceplates and loose/creaky battery covers.
Other changes include improved WLAN modules and Micro-controller, and a thinner and much brighter LCD. To target the original PSP generation's poor load times for UMD games, the internal memory (RAM and Flash ROM) was doubled from 32 MB to 64 MB, which also improved the web browser's performance.
Battery
To make the PSP slimmer, the capacity of the battery was reduced by 1/3. However, due to more efficient power usage, the run time of the PSP is still the same as the previous model. Older model batteries will still work which extends the amount of playing time. However, the battery cover on the newer model does not fit over the older battery due to its bulkier size. The batteries take about one and a half hours to charge and last roughly 4.5–7 hours depending on factors such as screen brightness settings, wlan and volume levels.
In mid-December 2007, Sony released the PSP Extended Life Battery Kit, which includes a 2200 MAh battery with a battery cover that fits over the bulkier battery included; initially only available in North America. The kit comes with two new battery covers, one black and one silver. In March 2008 the Extended Battery Kit was released in Japan. However, unlike North America the batteries are sold individually with one specific cover. There are three separate kits, one with the black cover, one with the silver cover and one with the white cover. This me
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