Itsupport: The Skinny on the Redesigned PSP

It has been revealed by Sony Computer Entertainment Europe that this Autumn, the brand new slim PSP will be launched in European shops - before it reaches the Japanese market.

The PSP has gone on a diet and is sporting a svelte, slim new design. Sonys upcoming release of their redesigned PSP features a thinner, more compact unit which makes the original look darned right chunky.

In addition internet firewall its trim figure, the PSP also has a new wardrobe with fabulous colors and skins. Star Wars geeks Fiber Optic Amplifier get a Storm Trooper white PSP complete with Star Wars graphics.

As far as portable consoles go, the PSP Slim and Lite still rocks. It still has the 4.3-inch screen and all of the features you love but without the bulk or weight. The new PSP is roughly three millimeters shorter and Wifi Plan millimeters thinner than the original ?just right for slipping in your pocket for gaming fun on the go.

The new version of Sonys PSP features video-out functionality so that you can connect to a TV and play video games the old-fashioned way. This option may have you dreaming of big screen gaming but is a compromise at best. The PSPs video output is rendered at 480 x272 resolution using progressive scanning. If you want to play video games on the telly, youre better off sticking to the gaming consoles designed for the job like the Sony PlayStation 3 console or buy the Nintendo Wii.

PSP is what it is - a snazzy little portable gaming device. That it can now connect to televisions gives you another option when youre on the road but dont expect it to be a standalone console.

You can still do it all on the Sony PSP no matter if you are stuck with the chunky original or upgrade to the new design. Watch movies, listen to music, store photos, surf the net, and play your favorite games.

Martin Wyman is a contributing author on Consoles News at http://www.mangotango.co.uk/technology-news/

Although Intel made some waves yesterday with the announcement of the smartphone-capable Moblin 2.1 release, the reality here on the ground at IDF is pretty much status quo: phones and other connected devices based on the next-gen Moorestown mobile platform are nowhere to be found, and the actual products on the floor are the same chunky MIDs we've all come to know and ignore. But while the devices remain somewhat uninteresting, Moblin itself has some terrific potential from what we've seen -- there's deep location and social networking integration with a unified contacts list that works a lot like Palm's Synergy, standard Linux apps can be easily ported over and run without any fuss, and manufacturers and developers can even ditch the standard UI and develop whatever they want on top. It's definitely cool stuff -- we just wish Intel had given us this demo on a compelling hardware instead of an older Menlow-based Compal MID, you know? Video after the break.

Continue reading Video: Moblin 2.1 for MIDs and phones, sort of in action

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds