We skipped covering Nintendo’s DS, and the release of Sony’s PlayStation Portable (PSP) only confirms the wisdom of that decision. iLounge readers may recall that we were highly skeptical about the PSP some months ago, and we still think it’s a major stretch to bill it as an iPod competitor.
It’s way larger/not really pocketable, can’t store music on its own (and uses either UMD media or expensive Sony Memory Stick Duos for storage), and is not going to replace the need for portable music jukeboxes.
But ever since Sony abruptly decided to reverse its internal decision on PSP pricing (originally $330, goes the story, flipped to $200 when Nintendo announced the DS at $150), we’ve been thinking that Sony is going to wipe the floor with the Nintendo DS unless something highly dramatic happens soon on the DS’s price.
Sure, the first batch of PSPs has shipped with all sorts of random defects (ranging from dead pixeled screens to cock-eyed disc drives, dust and hairs inside the casing, etc.), but once you’re playing a game on one, you’re willing to forgive just about anything. We’ll have plenty more to say on the PSP in the days to come, but for now, enjoy our new photo gallery.
