If looks alone determined the fortunes of new gadgets, the PSP Go, Sony's newly upgraded handheld gaming system, might be the most successful device of its kind.
Available in pearl white and piano black, the PSP Go is about half the size and weight of the original PSP, which makes it roughly the same mass as a portly smart phone, and the first model in the PSP family to fit comfortably in one's trouser pocket.
The device's svelte new chassis is made possible by a cleverly hidden control console that slides down from under the screen, as well as a slightly smaller display, reduced from 4.2- to 3.8-inches.
Another factor affecting size is that the PSP's traditional Universal Media Disc (UMD) drive has been swapped for 16GB of internal memory. The upshot: PSP Go owners will need to download games through Sony's online PlayStation Store rather than buy them on disc.
A sexy new form, and a purely digital gaming platform.
Indeed, the shift from physical to digital media is the PSP Go's raison d'être. It may have a sexy new form and a couple of new features (such as support for Bluetooth headsets), but it plays the same games with same controls and same graphics as earlier PSPs. Thus, those who buy it will do so primarily to unchain themselves from optical media.
But is this a good idea?
There are plenty of advantages to a purely digital gaming platform. We need no longer go to the store to buy games. Players will never worry about losing tiny discs stored in their pockets and purses. And the elimination of packaging and chemical manufacturing processes ought to delight green-minded gamers.
But drawbacks exist, too.
It took me almost an hour to download a 1GB game. And avid players who exhaust the limits of the device's onboard memory will eventually end up either spending time managing files or investing in Sony's proprietary M2 Memorysticks. Plus, there's no way for existing PSP owners to transfer their existing library of UMD-based games to the new device.
Then there's the elimination of consumers' ability to trade in used games to create currency to buy new ones – a popular penny-pinching tactic among lower-income gamers. And if, given publishers' lessened distribution costs, you expect a decrease in software prices, you'll be disappointed: Digital titles sell for the same price as their hard copy cousins.
However, given the PSP Go's steep price-$249.99 (that's a whopping $80 more than previous model PSPs and, perhaps even more alarming, just $50 shy of the much more robust PlayStation 3), it's safe to say that Sony isn't marketing it to minimum wagers whose first concern is economy.
Indeed, Sony Canada's Matt Levitan told me earlier this summer that the PSP Go is best considered a high-end portable gaming device. “It's more of a tech-savvy, early adopter handheld,” he explained.
It's also an obvious effort on Sony's part to begin competing with the iPhone and iPod Touch, both of which have become ad-hoc gaming devices that provide users access to thousands of cheap downloadable titles through Apple's App Store.
Indeed, Sony has even gone so far as to add a new section to its own online store that focuses on the same sort of smaller, less expensive games available for Apple's devices-including many of the same titles.
Still, the PSP Go will succeed or fail based on players' interest in downloading full-size, full-price games. To that end, Sony is firing off a volley of high quality handheld titles in rapid succession, starting with a pair of glitzy racers released this week, Gran Turismo and MotorStorm: Arctic Edge .
Now it's just up to consumers to let Sony know whether we're down with downloadable content.
