BitSnark

Recognised as the ‘world’s worst kept secret’ by Kaz Harai himself, the PSP Go handheld was finally given it’s moment in the spotlight as it was unveiled at the Sony conference.

It many regards it appears that the internet leaks were accurate. The revamped console is roughly the size of an iPhone and is some 40% lighter and 50% smaller than the original PSP-1000 series. In terms of storage, the PSP Go marks a brave foray into the market with a gaming platform which is totally driven by digitally distributed content.

Echoing this idea, the UMD drive is no longer present instead the machine possesses 16GB of flash memory with no 8GB SKU announced as per the internet rumour mill. As a result of this all games will be downloaded to the PSP through a revamped Playstation Store and owners of large UMD libraries will be offered some kind of ‘good-will’ solution for converting their purchases to a digital downloadable medium. The specifics of this have yet to be announced however.

The machine can also take Memory Card Mini cards, to further increase the amount of storage available to the user.

In terms of media capabilities, the machine can do anything the regular PSP can do; playing videos, music, browsing the internet and streaming content directly from your PS3 are all part of the PSP Go’s resume. Additionally, the machine also boasts full bluetooth conectivity for a variety of applications and hardware associations. In somewhat of a mixed message, Kaz Harai also suggested that the PSP Go would co-exist with the currently available PSP-3000 series, with UMD and retail releases occurring simultaneously for the ‘foreseeable future’.

The date of the PSP Go was also announced; it is due to hit European territories on October 2nd 2009, for 249 EUR. As of writing, Sony have yet to confirm a price for the UK, but many sites are currently taking pre-orders for the machine to the tune of £229.99.