Sony PSP Skype Headset Kit Available Now
Sony has made Skype support on the PSP available since the 3.90 firmware but yesterday the official Skype headset kit from Sony was released for retail at last. For $28.99
Of course, Skype calls to other Skype users is completely free. If you want to call cell phones or land lines, you’ll need Skype Credit. Now you too can be cool like all the iPhone users who can already use Skype.
Transfer files via ad hoc from one psp to another. Supports up to 6 connections at a time. The best part about it is the receiving PSP doesn’t have Minerva’s homebrew installed, you can transfer said tool using Sony’s official game sharing.
What is Remote Play on the PS3 / PSP?
Remote Play is a feature on the Playstation 3 and Playstation Portable which allows a Playstation Portable user to interact with their Playstation 3’s Xross Media Bar. Users can access music, videos, games, and various programs stored on the Playstation 3’s HDD, external flash drive, or optical media.
Remote Play works by encoding a video and audio stream (most likely AVC and AAC) of the output image on a PlayStation 3 then delivering it over a network (via TCP port 9293) to a PlayStation Portable. Actions performed on the PSP, such as the pressing of buttons, are uploaded back to the PlayStation 3 over the same connection. This is similar in concept to the Slingbox.
Sony PSP fails to capture female gamer market
According to the results of a survey unleashed upon the world by Net Asia Co. Ltd., the PSP and DS Lite have very specific demographics. Taking answers via the internet and text messages from people aged 15-29 in Japan, it turns out men admitted to PSP as their handheld of choice, with 42% selecting it. Women chose completely differently — less than 10% opted for the PSP as their handheld of choice (exciting pie chart pictured above).
Take this with the results for the DS and DS Lite, and you see that Sony is losing on a huge chunk of the gaming market — girls. Females responded almost 80% towards Nintendo’s handheld. Sony is trying to break the mold with titles like MyStylist, but they might need more games featuring cute dogs and cats, or more mini-game titles instead of SRPGs to get the majority of casual female gamers interested. Let’s go, Sony!
New adapter allows high capacity microSDs on PSP
If you’re in need of extra gigs for your PSP, but looking to save a pretty penny or two, perhaps you’ll want to hear about this adapter. The PhotoFast CR-3500 microSDHC to Pro Duo adapter will allow microSDs and microSDHCs (high capacity) to work with both PSP-1000 and PSP-2000 models. The adapter supports microSDHCs up to eight gigs large.
Now how is this going to save you a few bucks? Well, for the exact same amount of storage capacity, microSDHCs offer a cheaper solution to Pro Duos — even if you factor in the price of the adapter. But hang on right there. There’s no price yet on the adapter. However, a little rummaging finds the adapter listed on Amazon Japan for ￥990. That’s roughly US$9.70. If that estimate holds true for North American consumers, then there’s a lot of savings to be had.
Sony just released a new PSP firmware. 3.95 is a minor update to what is already out. No word on when the mod’ed version will be out, but my guess is shortly.
Newly added features
PSP Firmware 3.95:
While playing PSone games on your PSP, you can now customize how the buttons are assigned by going to [Controller Settings] > [Assign Buttons] and select [Custom].
You can now quit Remote Play and choose to turn off your PS3 or leave it on after quitting. This is useful if you are performing a download and want to quit Remote Play, but still want your download to continue on the PS3. Select [Quit and Turn Off the PS3 System] or [Quit Without Turning Off the PS3 System] from [Quit Remote Play] when you press the HOME button on the PSP system.
And for those who don’t know. In japan the PSP already has GPS
Japanese charts: PSP outsells every other system combined
Japanese charts: PSP outsells every other system combined
PSP sales top charts in Japan last week, not only out selling the DS Lite, but out selling all of the other consoles on the market combined. Sales were obviously spirited away by the release of Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G, which can be seen in the hands on busy PSP owners in the Tokyo metro.
PSP : about 139k
DSL : about 57k
Wii : about 49k
PS3 : about 13k
PS2 : about 9.8k
360 : about 2.8k
PSP audience is ‘important and new’ for MGS director Kojima
Hideo Kojima, revered director of the Metal Gear series, recently talked about the PSP in an interview with IGN. He noted the success Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops has had, especially with the younger demographic. He notes that teens in Japan love the PSP: “middle school students, from 13 to 15, are really fanatical with the machine itself — look at Monster Hunter Portable, for instance.”
Circuit City has PSP Capcom games cheap!
Not sure how many people need these but Circuit City is finally putting their games on clearance. Supplies of these games have been fluctuating online, so it might be best to check if your local retailer carries these titles:
