Sony gets it right with new PSP

Hope you enjoyed your 15 minutes, iPod. Sony, the company that invented the modern handheld entertainment industry 20 years ago, moves to reclaim the throne with the Sony PSP, a media device that plays music, movies and games and looks great.

Flat, encased in black plastic and metal and highlighted by a pair of clear plastic shoulder buttons the PlayStation Portable exemplifies Sony's aesthetic: a savvy combination of state-of-the-art circuitry and techno-design that screams, "Buy me!"

Looks ain't everything. The PSP plays music, delivers stunning picture clarity when used as a film playback device and plays games -- supporting 3D graphics and wireless play -- with a deftness that appears to outmatch its rival in handheld gaming, the Nintendo DS.

The Sony PSP doesn't come cheap. For $250 you get the PSP, headphones, battery, power adaptor and a 32 MB Memory Stick Duo, Sony's in-house memory card. Games and movies run an additional $20 to $50 each and they come on yet another new storage disc -- ugh! --  the 2.3-inch wide Universal Media Disc which works on nothing else save the PSP.

Gaming for grownups
While the PSP handles the things any self-described techno-fetishist would desire, the majority of buyers this week will be buying the PSP for one thing and one thing only: gaming.

Sony PSP: The official specs Price: $249.99 Size: 6.7" wide / .9 " high / 2.9" diameter Screen: One 4.3", 16:9 wide screen high-resolution TFT LCD, 480 x272 pixel, 16.8 million colors. Wireless: IEEE 802.11b Sound: Stereo speakers Battery: Lithium ion battery with two to 10 hours of play depending on WiFi usage Controls: Directional buttons, analog stick, enter keys, Left/Right buttons Input / Output: IEEE 802.11b (WiFi), USB 2.0, Memory Stick PRO Duo, IrDA, IR Remote (SIRCS) Codec: Video: H.264 / AVC MP Level3; audio: ATRAC3plus, MP3

Sony literature claims the PSP renders graphics comparable to the PlayStation 2. After playing more than half of the 17 games currently available, I can say that the PSP comes close.

The PSP's 4.3 inch screen is capable of displaying 16.77 million colors at a resolution of 480-by-272 pixels. This translates into game graphics that are unbelievably detailed and crisp.  Although there are rare moments where game objects betray ever-faint white outlines, the level of overall detail and clarity should lure anti-handheld gamers out of their living room lairs.

Take, for example, "Tiger Woods PGA Tour" and "MVP Baseball," two PlayStation 2 best-sellers that use the PSP's wide screen for sweeping, TV-riffic effect.

The PSP version of "Tiger Woods PGA Tour" includes the flying camera perspective where we literally share the ball's flight from tee to green.  In "MVP Baseball," views jump from blimp shots of the diamond to up close shots of the batter at the plate and the box seats behind him.

In both games the wide screen helps create the illusion of depth and openness without reminding you that you're looking at a screen 4.3 inches wide.

Sony The PSP's 4.3 inch screen offers unbelievably detailed and crisp game graphics.

Best of all, the Sony PSP supports wireless 802.11b WiFi multiplayer play in the form of head-to-head competition or over what Sony calls an "infrastructure" mode where users connect their PSP to the Internet using a wireless access point and do battle with anyone logged on anywhere.  Does this "infrastructure" mode portend future web browsing capability for the PSP?  Hmmmm.

Of the PSP titles available now, "Tony Hawk's Underground 2: Remix," "Tiger Woods PGA Tour," "Metal Gear AC!D;" "WipEout Pure," and the DreamCast remake "Darkstalkers Chronicle: The Chaso Tower" look like definite winners.  But while Sony deserves kudos for gathering so many (if not quite as many as originally promised) well-produced titles for launch -- compared to the Nintendo DS's measly eight titles at launch -- none of the titles have the originality, gameplay wise, of the DS's ""Feel The Magic: XY/XX."

Instead, most of the games, while well produced, are remakes of popular PS2 titles with built-in wireless connectivity. Here's hoping for some original and creative games in the future.

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