Other than the device itself, I think the main differing factor is the price of the software. A Nintendo DS game can cost as much as $40, whereas on the iPhone or iPod we are generally talking $10 max. The DS also has to contend with physical distribution costs and piracy, so I wouldn't be surprised to see these being factors that will be addressed in the next generation.
I would still want to see physical buttons on the next generation, but all the movement detectors of the new smart-phones will need to be there.
We don?t want gamers to be asking, what?s the difference between that and a PSP,? Hirai said. ?We have to come up with a message that users will understand. It would have to be a product that keeps the PlayStation?s strengths intact.?
I find this kind of funny considering the mess of other Sony products out there. I sit somewhere between most hardcore consumer electronics people and the average person who knows nothing. And for me, differentiating between what all their different skus do (in cameras, computers, TVs, phones, you name it) is somewhat daunting. It's a step in the right direction if Sony can finally get this part right.
Quote:
Originally Posted by tundraboy
Oh, no doubt they will try to position the next device to better match up with iPhone and iPod Touch. But I think it will primarily be a game device unless they are prepared to abandon current PSP customers. In the end it will still be perceived as a hardcore portable gaming device and most people will pass on it. For further reference, look into Garmin' GPS phone.
Sony's portable game business is basically dead in the water. They just haven't admitted it yet. Likewise Nintendo's.
Is there such a thing out there as a hardcore portable gamer? That market has gotta be pretty small. Anyway, I agree that the portable game business for NIntendo and Sony have got to be looking grim right now.
However, I also agree with Hirai about buttons.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jfanning
You have been able to make calls and access the internet off a PSP for years.
Not sure about how natively you can make calls (can you?), but let's be honest here: the internet experience in a PSP was pretty lacking. Pushing that extremely slow cursor around on a screen that scrolled around? I guess at least it had a tab implementation. I actually am NOT saying that the iPod touch/iPhone is that much better; I think it's better but still not perfect/ideal.
Not sure about how natively you can make calls (can you?), but let's be honest here: the internet experience in a PSP was pretty lacking. Pushing that extremely slow cursor around on a screen that scrolled around? I guess at least it had a tab implementation. I actually am NOT saying that the iPod touch/iPhone is that much better; I think it's better but still not perfect/ideal.
The poster I responded to said...
Quote:
Unless PSP can make calls and the internet I don't think they have much of a chance.
I have skype installed on my PSP, I can make phone calls with it.
I have an internet browser on my PSP, I can connect to the internet.
The PSP can do both, regardless of how poorly it is implemented.
How many people posting here have actually played Infinity Blade? FYI it's horrendous. There's still nothing on the iPhone that comes close to offering the kind of gameplay you get from games like Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker or Monster Hunter, definitely not anything with a $.99 price tag. There are several problems with the current iOS devices, such as lack of physical controls, which Apple can easily fix with a peripheral, the price structure which limits the kind of budgets and thus types of games that are feasible on the platform, and memory and bandwidth limitations that place barriers on the size of games. iOS devices began as iPods and branched into gaming, and it definitely shows.
Oddly enough, Sony tried the reverse process with the original PSP. They made a gaming device that branched out into media and online connectivity, and it too obviously shows. Although this is mostly due to CPU and memory limitations from 2004, and I expect PSP2 to be a much better media and internet device. Like WP7 they can also leverage their online gaming services in a way that makes a real difference to existing customers in the living room. If the new PSP initially only appeals to hardcore gamers, that's still enough to consider the device a success. There were enough hardcore gamers out there to make the DS and PSP profitable, and those who think these people are going to switch to iOS devices, at least in their current state, for their portable gaming fix are simply delusional. BTW most of these people are significantly older than 12. If after securing their base, either the 3DS or PSP2 can make incremental progress into the media player/app market then that's even more of a win. I don't think either, Nintendo in particular, will unseat Apple at what it does best, but then again Apple has failed to do the same against Sony and Nintendo. Also I think Sony's chances of competing with Apple at media, which it currently has both the content and the delivery system for, are much better than Apple suddenly "getting it" when it comes to gaming.
Long story short, iOS hasn't yet endangered the traditional gaming portable, and it's probably easier to make a gaming portable that does media and apps than an iOS device that does serious gaming.
Comments
Unless PSP can make calls and the internet I don't think they have much of a chance. On the other hand they have much more gaming cred then iOS.
You have been able to make calls and access the internet off a PSP for years.
I would still want to see physical buttons on the next generation, but all the movement detectors of the new smart-phones will need to be there.
We don?t want gamers to be asking, what?s the difference between that and a PSP,? Hirai said. ?We have to come up with a message that users will understand. It would have to be a product that keeps the PlayStation?s strengths intact.?
I find this kind of funny considering the mess of other Sony products out there. I sit somewhere between most hardcore consumer electronics people and the average person who knows nothing. And for me, differentiating between what all their different skus do (in cameras, computers, TVs, phones, you name it) is somewhat daunting. It's a step in the right direction if Sony can finally get this part right.
Oh, no doubt they will try to position the next device to better match up with iPhone and iPod Touch. But I think it will primarily be a game device unless they are prepared to abandon current PSP customers. In the end it will still be perceived as a hardcore portable gaming device and most people will pass on it. For further reference, look into Garmin' GPS phone.
Sony's portable game business is basically dead in the water. They just haven't admitted it yet. Likewise Nintendo's.
Is there such a thing out there as a hardcore portable gamer? That market has gotta be pretty small. Anyway, I agree that the portable game business for NIntendo and Sony have got to be looking grim right now.
However, I also agree with Hirai about buttons.
You have been able to make calls and access the internet off a PSP for years.
Not sure about how natively you can make calls (can you?), but let's be honest here: the internet experience in a PSP was pretty lacking. Pushing that extremely slow cursor around on a screen that scrolled around? I guess at least it had a tab implementation. I actually am NOT saying that the iPod touch/iPhone is that much better; I think it's better but still not perfect/ideal.
Not sure about how natively you can make calls (can you?), but let's be honest here: the internet experience in a PSP was pretty lacking. Pushing that extremely slow cursor around on a screen that scrolled around? I guess at least it had a tab implementation. I actually am NOT saying that the iPod touch/iPhone is that much better; I think it's better but still not perfect/ideal.
The poster I responded to said...
Unless PSP can make calls and the internet I don't think they have much of a chance.
I have skype installed on my PSP, I can make phone calls with it.
I have an internet browser on my PSP, I can connect to the internet.
The PSP can do both, regardless of how poorly it is implemented.
Oddly enough, Sony tried the reverse process with the original PSP. They made a gaming device that branched out into media and online connectivity, and it too obviously shows. Although this is mostly due to CPU and memory limitations from 2004, and I expect PSP2 to be a much better media and internet device. Like WP7 they can also leverage their online gaming services in a way that makes a real difference to existing customers in the living room. If the new PSP initially only appeals to hardcore gamers, that's still enough to consider the device a success. There were enough hardcore gamers out there to make the DS and PSP profitable, and those who think these people are going to switch to iOS devices, at least in their current state, for their portable gaming fix are simply delusional. BTW most of these people are significantly older than 12. If after securing their base, either the 3DS or PSP2 can make incremental progress into the media player/app market then that's even more of a win. I don't think either, Nintendo in particular, will unseat Apple at what it does best, but then again Apple has failed to do the same against Sony and Nintendo. Also I think Sony's chances of competing with Apple at media, which it currently has both the content and the delivery system for, are much better than Apple suddenly "getting it" when it comes to gaming.
Long story short, iOS hasn't yet endangered the traditional gaming portable, and it's probably easier to make a gaming portable that does media and apps than an iOS device that does serious gaming.