Rumor: PSP2 will ditch UMD disc drive

Ah, it's funny how rumors get started--and this one is truly back-channel if there ever was a back-channel rumor.

One of the concept designs for the PSP2.

(Credit: Joe Thomas and Rocco Devenanzio)

Kotaku is reporting that a developer at Acclaim, David Perry, wrote this message on his Facebook and Twitter accounts:

"I hear Sony FINALLY has the PSP 2. And thank goodness, they've removed the stupid battery-sucking UMD disc drive. I'm excited!"

Now that message is rapidly making its way through the blogosphere. Of course, it's unclear what it means exactly. As Kotaku says, no one knows if Perry has seen the new PlayStation Portable or is "just hearing rumors through the development community."

At the same time, it wouldn't be surprising if Sony were to shift away from a cumbersome optical disc system and move completely to flash memory storage (Memory Stick Pro Duo) and digital downloads via the PlayStation Network Store. Kotaku does bring up a good point in wondering how such a device would be backward-compatible (perhaps if you have the UMD, you'd be allowed to download a digital version of the same game?).

While there's been a lot of chatter lately about a totally new PSP system, it's still up in the air whether the next version will be a complete redesign (a true PSP2) or just another another incremental upgrade to something that would be called the PSP-4000 (we're on PSP-3000 right now).

Kotaku and others are pointing to E3 in early June as a moment that would be ripe for a PSP2 announcement--which does seem logical. However, I for one hope it will do a lot more than play games.

As always, feel free to comment.

Update: Kotaku has some new quotes from Perry, who claims the PSP2 is indeed real and could hit this fall. I'm sure Sony isn't all that happy to have a developer leaking unverified information--but we don't mind.

[ucsdmike]

The iPhone showed up, and without intending to, it is looking like it'll be a serious competition in the future for the PSP for games that work well or better on the buttonless iPhone. So lets hope Sony (and Nintendo) realizes that an App/Game store is the way of the future. What also makes the iPhone so appealing is that the SDK is for everyone, not just registered developers that wants to pay tens of thousands of dollars for a SDK. People have been developing homebrew application for years for a reason. Apple embraced it and is definitely making a name for themselves by giving unknown developers a chance.

Just like what they did for the music industry, they are revolutionizing the gaming industry. Soon, we'll no longer only have available what Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft thinks what may be a good game/application. And we'll no longer have to pay for packaging and distribution costs when its not necessary. This is definitely a big win for the consumer.

[DarkHawke]

I wouldn't jump for joy at more App Stores. As we've seen with the iPhone/iPod Touch, while they bring the iTunes convenience model to applications and games, they also bring the iron hand of Apple's caprice as to what they will and will NOT allow. Google appears to be more lenient about what they'll let into their walled garden, but why should there be any restrictions at all? Why should there even BE a dedicated App Store? The only thing I use on my 'puters that came on a disk is the OS! Everything else was downloaded, and from MANY different sources. Smartphones are just handheld computers with integrated cell phones; why should they be treated any differently than any other computers? Same thing for any potential PSP 2. Open the damn platform already and TRULY let the users decide what they want to run on it!

[curtiskelowna]

OK seriously....did you really just say "iphone" when the article is CLEARLY about the new psp? I know that you probably dont think alot, but the toy games you get on the app store will NEVER compare to a device that has a dedicated 3d engine and high powered CPU. Amateur developers would never be able to create 3d games like real companies do. leave the "developing" to real companies who know what there doing. The last thing sony needs is an app store feauturing games like scrabble and pong rather than Need for Speed and God of War

[lightningboy7]

I have been waiting for a long time to upgrade my original PSP 1000 and this would be the time to upgrade. My PSP is starting to wear out. I have dropped it several times. If they released the new PSP at E3 I would go out and buy it without giving it a second thought.

[techgeekdude]

The UMD format was doomed to fail because of the price and the lack of content. Sony has long pushed its own format such as memory sticks in order to try and force another format on consumers. With its marketshare shrinking, Sony has no choice but to focus resources on worthwhile areas. The brand has definitely suffered the past few years, and no longer brings the premium prices it once did. First betamax, now UMD, I hope Sony learns to work with other platforms instead of forcing others to work with it.

[C433Z]

haha, good luck convincing THEM of that. if they can get 1 format out of 10 to be successful it'll be worth it for them for all the royalties they get. Memory stick isn't completely dead (though I do hate it) and they already won with blu-ray.

[abundantsnotbob]

Sony isn't the only one who does that though, Apple does that too. I paid $60 for a 2GB memory stick when I bought my PSP 1000, just before the 2000 came out (s#;t!). I wish that formats were more standardized. I like the price of SDs better, but they are slightly bigger.

[mbenedict]

@techgeekdude: The flaw in your logic is assuming that Sony lost financially with betamax. It didn't. Although betamax lost the "format war" overall it still became the leading format in many countries outside the US, and even today professional variants of Betamax (ie., BetaCam, Digital BetaCam, HDCAM, etc.) are still in wide use.

As with UMD, realize for every single disc-game or video that's ever(!) been sold for the PSP platform, Sony made UMD-licensing money from that sale. That's a ton of revenue for Sony and even if they shutter UMD today they've certainly made a tidy profit out of it.

[firefoxluva95]

@abundantsnotbob

I'm not sure where the "Apple does that too" comes from. Are you talking about them forcing the .m4a/.m4p format on users? You don't have to use those formats on an iPod, it plays .mp3. .m4a is also a standard format that's just a bit less common. iPod isn't the only device that plays .m4a files. As for the DRM, there's the Amazon music store and iTunes Plus and the announcement that Apple is going to phase out the DRM for audio.

Apple does tie their OS to the hardware but I don't think that's "forcing" a format on a user. You do have a choice to buy a Mac, to buy Windows, or to download Linux. There's nothing stopping you from dual booting a Mac or even triple booting either.

But really does Apple force people to use a certain storage medium? I don't think so and I'm no Apple Fanboy. I'm posting from a Windows 7 Beta computer. The only Apple product I have is an iPod Touch.

[curtiskelowna]

holy crap are you all idiots? the apple ipod touch and the psp (past present and future) are two TOTALLY DIFFERENT devices. Theyre not even the same category! The psp is a GAMING device that plays videos and music. The touch is an music/video player that happens to play games.

2 friggin different devices.....stop being stupid and shut up about apple

[Drummer102]

I know Sony make Pro Duo but I wish they would start using SDHC (being able to hold 2 would be nice) and a upgrade to at least g wireless. I also hope the battery is still removable. And yay for the second joystick!

[Drummer102]

And I forgot to add the center keys might be hard to reach with anything less than monster fingers.

[jsnowbordr47]

If Sony decides to use only the memory stick duo format then it will doom this system. At least with other card formats most people can easily read the cards since most laptops and desktops now come with card readers, but not many support the memory stick format. So if sony does decide to drop UMP in favor of solid state memory, they better use SD or CF at least.

[viper396]

So then what happens to people that have existing UMD games? If someone already has a PSP are they out of luck for new games.

[curtiskelowna]

wrong. if sony was smart they would offer a digital version of the game you previosly purchased. It would simply require the serial number off the game

[Archaenon]

Wow , the concept images are terrible. All they need to do is improve on the current model. Getting rid of the UMD will make the PSP a powerhouse for those with wifi access. Other then the lack of game support because of piracy , the PSP is an amazing handheld. I honestly don't know how the DS is still around compared to it other then it's game library tbh. I can't wait for the next step up , but I hope they don't overload it with pointless stuff.

[Tod Smith]

Sony Pro Mem Sticks cost too much!

Also if this doesn't have a touch screen it's dead.

[curtiskelowna]

why would you want a touch screen? it would just cause fingerprints and smudges.....

besides, the psp isnt a little dinky DS. it doesnt and shouldnt need a touch screen to woo its users.

uggh. they're really going to bother to make another one of these? The DS has outsold this thing far and away. Nifty features and shiny graphics are no match for innovative, fun, (and CHEAP) gameplay. And we can see Nintendo is moving more and more towards multimedia/extra features with the DSi - what the DS doesn't already beat the PSP in, the iPhone does. Sony needs to ditch this thing and leave it behind with all the other portable devices that have tried to compete with the Game Boy dynasty.

[Sadodare]

Honestly, if you think the PSP "Competes" with the DS, You know absolutely nothing about the two system's relationship....And good luck trying to justify it...the only thing they have in common, one and only, is that they both can play games...and 90% of the time, the games are nowhere near the same style...Apples to oranges.

[curtiskelowna]

haha the only thing you said that had any intelligent thought was "CHEAP gameplay" The DS is disgustingly immature for a mobile gaming device. i swear you could play all of the games from DS out of a browser!

HOLY F**K! the only thing the iphone beats the psp in is making phone calls! its a fricking phone! the psp is a PLAY STATION PORTABLE! or for all of you apple fanboys without brains......a portable GAMING device. The iphone can compare to HTC, BLACKBERRY, and ANDROID but you would have to be stupid to compare it to SONY PSP

[JordyKun]

I would like to see a redesign somewhere in the future... I would just be worried about the worthwhile games on the UMD format that would be lost, ( Final Fantasies, I don't really know more than that since I don't own a PSP and don't have any of the games, but I know that there are good games for the PSP).

In competition with the DS though, I'm not so sure about. I mean the DS is selling like crazy and truth to be told it's no fluke. I mean the DS may not have the same graphical capabilities of the PSP but it still does very well with the graphics it can muster. Though, I would like to see how well they will do Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days, since to me that would be some of the highest and most in depth of in-game graphics I would see on a DS.

As for the iPhone, I don't think that that will go anywhere in terms of becoming a true contender. I mean what can one truly do on an iPhone if they want an RPG that the DS or PSP can handle? What if the next action fighter game comes out (like Dissidia:Final Fantasy or Tekken or something else), the iPhone wouldn't be able to do it, or at least not very well since there are no buttons. When someone looks at the practical issue of having no hardware then maybe, but all of those downloads can take up space but the variety is only so limited with just an accelerometer and touch control. I just don't think the iPhone could truly be a competitive "console", and that's where the DS fits in with having both touch and buttons. And if the PSP had some sort of touch-ish feature then it would do well, though I would see more complaints of DS copying, which to an extent is true.

Anyways though, I think a new PSP would do well for the consumer and sales as well. Let's just hope that somehow backwards compatibility fits into the equation.

[amhamkul]

I Really wish that they make this NEW PSP 2.

[tdk_travis2]

why dont they use the already avaliable and market-won tech...blu-ray
but use the mini discs or make even smaller ones.
they will probably be able to hold some of the best graphical portable games ever if done right

[curtiskelowna]

because optical drives are way more suceptable to breaking and they drain battery life. Plus i'm pretty sure its faster to read from an SSD than optically.

[Faysal21]

I like this idea of removing the UMD format.Not only did a lack of support put struggle onto it,but i think the fact that the disc could not be removed from it's protective skin (in the case it gets scratched up to working improperly).What concerns me is if this is true,at the least i know of three sources in which to download games through a direct Internet connection,a PS3,and a computer.However,if one does not have any of the three,how will they obtain games if they don't have the needed source for those games?

[curtiskelowna]

maybe sony would put their games on DVD's (or similar disc) and sell those from stores. Then people could pop them into their computer and transfer them to the psp. Most people who are buying a psp have access to a computer so it could work....

however, piracy is a really big issue with this way

[Warrens DUMAS]

***SONY U'r my favorite in technology***
Ow ! Wow!!!
I can't Xplain the i Luv the look, I also can't even Xplain the way i want touch this product...
I only hope this one will B more Light, Slim very sexy and fit my needs...
Sony i just wait... So U used 2 fit my needs, My favorite laptop, sound system, home theater and...

[Blue_Storm0]

I think that if this design would happen(the second 1) then it'd be really cool.Look at it though.Where do the games go?It better have a pen like the DS.But I'm gonna break away from Sony for good if they don't make a system like or similiar to this.Becuz I'm a serious gamer.Why else would I look things like this up.I don't want to waste my days on Consoles that don't take serious updates.And right now the new DSi is looking nice.If Sony doesn't make a serious update they should break away from Playstation forever.Or even from all games stuff.Because the PS3 was a good advance from the PS2.But it doesn't compete for the gaming generation.They need to fix it or Nintendo and Microsoft will just have each other.Sony is gonna be the next Sega if they don't make an update.It's to late for the home systems but not for the portable.Becuz the DS wont have a challenge making it uneeding to upgrade at all.So the Portable industry will gradually die.And really 1 system isn't really a challenge.BUT ITS STILL TO MUCH!!!Sony don't kill the PSP too.But if you brake of playstations that aren't portable or wutev the are called then the PSP will fade into the darkness never to be found again.Please, I love PSP it's my first ever system.It brought me so much joy and to see it crushed kills me.SONY I'll HURT UR KIDS.NO I REALLY WONT.BUT U GET THE IDEA THAT U SHOULD MAKE WUT THE PPL WANT NOT JUST WAT U WANT 360,Wii,DSi, the killers of PS???NO!

[jthoresen]

Have you ever bought a game, quickly beat the game and sold it or gave it to a friend? Sold or traded any used games for new ones? Picked up used games for cheap < $5.00?
All of these will no longer be an option is Sony goes the digital downloads route.

[curtiskelowna]

why cant Sony just use game cards? like the nintedo ds but bigger.....like 4 GB. This would work beautifully but would require some manufacturing changes (lol big ones)