PSP pricing rumors: $370 - $550 (!!)

[Ze_ro]

You hear that? It's the sound of thousands of wallets suddenly closing.

Read about it here (http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/01/10/0036249&mode=thread&tid=127&tid=186&tid=207&tid=212) (I'd rather link the the actual article, but it doesn't seem to open properly for me, so whatever).

--Zero

[Cmosfm]

my GOD!

I was hoping for about 200.00 or less, its a HANDHELD for crying out loud!

Anyways, hopefully games will be cheap, within the 15-30 range, I havent heard anything about game pricing except that it will be cheap. How else can you justify paying 350+ for a handheld

[Querjek]

And, all of a sudden, the N-Gage began to look appealing.

[Mike1988_11]

Damn, I thought the SP is expensive at $100.....


Mike

[Cmosfm]

Damn, I thought the SP is expensive at $100.....


Mike

I agree with you there

[eolsen]

Yeah, handhelds should never start at that much.

[mikeetler]

Keep in mind that's the projected price point for Europe. If you notice, systems tend to sell in the US at $1 to 1 pound, so that would peg the US launch at $199, which is pretty much what was expected.

[zmweasel]

N/A

[D-Lite]

At $199, it's not that bad, and it'll probably do some other stuff like play music or something. Hopefully.

[GameGuru]

At $199, it's not that bad, and it'll probably do some other stuff like play music or something. Hopefully.

Oh yeah definitely, it was already published that they are working with the movie companies to release movies on their proprietary discs so it will be a portable movie player also.

[Jive3D]

If the system can double as an MP3 player with a good size HD, something akin to at least 5 gig, then I would pay 200 as long as the PSP doesnt have battery issues like the iPods have (battery only lasting for 18 months and then you have to pay 100 bucks for a replacement, complete ass.)

I really want something to replace my iPod. I dont want to combine my phone with a gaming device or music player, I like my phone a stand alone thing. But I would not mind combining gaming and mp3 player.

Still at 200 I wont buy it at launch. I have as of late become a Cheap Ass Gamer, and yes obsessed with the site of the same name, so I'm gonna wait for some games to be offered with that liitle sucker before I empty 200 of hard earned duckets onto an EB countertop.

[ianoid]

I LOVE how cheap you guys are. A quality piece of hardware does have associated costs. Still, one can't forsee widespread success for a handheld well above $300. I mean, how many ipods are REALLY out there?

Depending on what else it does, it could be a good buy. I was actually thinking about a 40 gig ipod ast $500. If it has more functionality aside form gaming, perhaps it will be cool at $300. If it's just a nice portable console, it's clearly in ngage territory.

[GameGuru]

I will be getting a PSP for sure, even if it is $300! Do you want to know why? Because I want a near PS2 quality Madden on the go! Madden on the GBA SP is okay but it is just like the SNES version. I would love to have that quality of games on a handheld. And no the NGage doesn't compare, I have downloaded and seen the quality of the games on shows like X-Play and it just sucks. My GBA SP blows the NGage away!

Hopefully the PSP will be $200 or lower but if it is $300 I will buy it. Hell I paid that much for my PS1 on launch and the PSP has better specs and is portable.

[SoulBlazer]

Sorry, $200 is still out of my price range. I'm sure it will be a great system and I plan to get one -- AFTER more games come out for it and the price comes down a little. With my GBA trade in I only paid $60 for my GBA SP, so yes, I do try to save money when I can. :)

[GameGuru]

I do hope that the new concept pictures shown will be drastically changed. I actually like some EGM had printed awhile back, remember the one that had two analog sticks? I know they now said there would just be one but I did like that design. Does anyone have a link to a site that has all the concept pictures?

[ubersaurus]

I LOVE how cheap you guys are. A quality piece of hardware does have associated costs. Still, one can't forsee widespread success for a handheld well above $300. I mean, how many ipods are REALLY out there?

Depending on what else it does, it could be a good buy. I was actually thinking about a 40 gig ipod ast $500. If it has more functionality aside form gaming, perhaps it will be cool at $300. If it's just a nice portable console, it's clearly in ngage territory.

Yeah, because the n-gage didn't have any other features, like say, playing music, or being a cell phone. No, no, it was just a handheld that did motherfucking 3d.

If you are all about the PSP but rip on the n-gage despite being in the same price range, then there is somethign seriously wrong with you.

[maxlords]

I wouldn't even CONSIDER buying a handheld system at all for more than about $120 and even then, I'd be hard pressed to bother. At $200....I can wait a few years, and most likely, I'll buy it for $30 at a pawn 5 years after release or something. There's no way I could justify a buy like that at $200.

[D-Lite]

I LOVE how cheap you guys are. A quality piece of hardware does have associated costs. Still, one can't forsee widespread success for a handheld well above $300. I mean, how many ipods are REALLY out there?

Depending on what else it does, it could be a good buy. I was actually thinking about a 40 gig ipod ast $500. If it has more functionality aside form gaming, perhaps it will be cool at $300. If it's just a nice portable console, it's clearly in ngage territory.

Yeah, because the n-gage didn't have any other features, like say, playing music, or being a cell phone. No, no, it was just a handheld that did motherfucking 3d.

If you are all about the PSP but rip on the n-gage despite being in the same price range, then there is somethign seriously wrong with you.

You see the problem with the N-Gage is that it sucks. No, seriously. I don't give a crap that it's a cell phone and a handheld video game and plays music.
- have to disassemble it to change carts.
- screen is ridiculously small AND vertical
- the system is bulky as hell
- button layout sucks and is somewhat confusing
- overpriced

Seriously, I don't know who did the marketing tests for that system but they should be shot. Even before it was released people were complaining about it which should be a big signal to the Nokia that "Hey, maybe we should look at this a little more carefully before we release the biggest flop in video game history."

If someone offered me one pound of gold or a pound of crap, each for $100, I'd buy the gold, not the crap. The price is really irrelevant since people would shell out the coin for something either well-made or revolutionary. The iPod may be a bit overpriced, but it's still the most popular MP3 player on the market. I mean, even Dell sold them for a while and now HP is partnering with Apple. People recognize the quality is better than the competition and the same will happen with the PSP.

[GameGuru]

Didn't mean to ruffle any feathers. :) Ok, from all the reports here is what the PsP is supposed to be able to do:

1. Graphics near PS2 quality
2. Play movies
3. Cell Phone
4. MP3s

I would assume this will be able to run other systems through emulation at some time. I think the PsP is gonna be very good and worth $300 as it will be a portable PS2, movie player, mp3 player, cell phone and any number of classic systems through emulation.

[Flack]

Didn't mean to ruffle any feathers. :) Ok, from all the reports here is what the PsP is supposed to be able to do:

1. Graphics near PS2 quality
2. Play movies
3. Cell Phone
4. MP3s

I would assume this will be able to run other systems through emulation at some time. I think the PsP is gonna be very good and worth $300 as it will be a portable PS2, movie player, mp3 player, cell phone and any number of classic systems through emulation.

Yeah but I got a 128 meg MP3 player off eBay for $30 (iRock), and my old ass 5165 Nokia that I got for $20 is still working too. That's cheap technology they're throwing in just to raise the price.

For $300, I think I'll hang on to my GP32 a bit longer.

[suppafly]

I got today my spanish copy of "EGM", and theres an article about the PSP...its says the estimated price will be 300 US ....

[kai123]

Is anyone else concerned that you will have to buy the same movie over again? Also size is a big consideration for me. I won't buy a modern handheld if it won't fit in my pocket.

[MarioAllStar2600]

$200-300 seems resonable. Anythong over that is pushing it though. I mean think about it though- a portable DVD player, MP3, and a great gaming system. I guess its worth it, but I hope un-reasonable prices aren't the future of Video Games. :o

[ubersaurus]

Didn't mean to ruffle any feathers. :) Ok, from all the reports here is what the PsP is supposed to be able to do:

1. Graphics near PS2 quality
2. Play movies
3. Cell Phone
4. MP3s

I would assume this will be able to run other systems through emulation at some time. I think the PsP is gonna be very good and worth $300 as it will be a portable PS2, movie player, mp3 player, cell phone and any number of classic systems through emulation.

Of course, knowing sony, its going to end up with PS1 graphics, and only play mp3s.

[Ze_ro]

1. Graphics near PS2 quality

I don't see this happening... PSX quality graphics sure, maybe even a little better, but that's about it. PS2 quality graphics squashed onto a portable's screen kinda seems wasteful to me.


2. Play movies

I'm with kai123 on this. Why would I buy a movie a second time? Just so I can watch it on the bus and look like a moron? If I'm going to watch a movie, I want to sit down and watch it, not watch it in 10 minute stints between classes.

I know there are people out there who would love to watch movies on the run, but I'm certainly not one of them. I just don't see the appeal. If it was able to play all the DVD's that I already have, then it would be more worthwhile, but that's obviously not going to happen.


3. Cell Phone

A lot of people didn't see the sense in making the N-Gage a phone/game system... for a number of good reasons such as A) anyone who wants a cell phone probably already has a perfectly good one, and B) What happens when you end up getting a better cell phone than the PSP? Having all your geek equipment bundled into one device is okay, but different equipment ages at different rates.


4. MP3s

This is one part of it that I do like actually... I don't have an MP3 player myself (Actually, my car stereo plays them, but I have yet to actually try that out. I'm fine with mix CD's for the most part). All I really want though is a thing that plays games... everything else is basically just fluff that raises the price of the system. I like the Zodiac, and I think that PDA's and game's fit together better than all the other "stick everything together" attempts, but it's still far too expensive for me to get one.

Here's another article (http://www.gamespy.com/ces2004/handhelds/) I found on Slashdot that discusses meetings between the "GBA Killers" (ie, Nokia (N-Gage), Tapwave (Zodiac), IBM (XScale processors), and Sony). In the article, there's a confusing quote from Sony's executive vice president: "We feel very strongly that what the consumer wants is a dedicated gaming device." If that's the case, then what the crap is with this "portable movie player" and cell phone talk???

--Zero

[brykasch]

Well I look at it this way, if I won't pay 200 for a console, there is no way in HELL I would pay that much for a handheld. I don't care what it does, I mean for a little more you can get a hell of a pocket pc that can do all that stuff (games, phone, movies etc). I buy a handheld for one thing and thats gaming, if they want to do other things, I say drop the price and have em as add ons like the stuff for gb sp. And if you think its gonna have near ps2 graphics you are definitly smoking something.

[Parodius]

I'm concerned with battery-life on the PSP. That disc needs spinning..........

[Ze_ro]

I'm concerned with battery-life on the PSP. That disc needs spinning..........

I used to think that all the power requirements for modern consoles were mostly for the cd motor and laser and such. I mean, the Gamecube uses 39W, and the Dreamcast uses 27W... that's a LOT of electricity there. None of my cartridge based systems get that high.

Then I realized there are tons of discman's out there that run off 2 double-A batteries... so I have no idea where all that power is going.

--Zero

[GameGuru]

My Sony Mini-Disc NetMD plays for about over 20 hours on one AA. Granted it doesn't have an LCD screen or power hungry graphics card but maybe we can get as much battery life out of it that we do with the GBA SP.

[Jive3D]

When they combine devices into one, things get very confused.

Music player/ Movie Player / Game player = OK, they are all entertainment. So the PSP will be a portable entertainment device that does more than just games, That's cool. Thats pretty much what I use my laptop for and I would love a smaller device for gaming, music & movies that doesnt weigh 8 lbs.

I do not want a phone in my entertainment device. I like my phone to be seperate. Whenever I go out and I'm drunk making phone calls at a bar, I dont want to accidently drop my PSP because I'm using it while drunk at a bar. I dont mind if I drop my phone, b/c its just a phone, and most of them are pretty sturdy to withstand a decent amount of abuse.

I do not however want to drop my 300 dollar gaming/music/movie player while out wasted with my friends.

And contrary to what I said earlier, i would pay 300, BUT the psp would have to a nice package. I dont want to have to spring extra for the Movie player adaptor, or the battery pack. It should come with 1 battery pack, play movies out of the box, come with headphones & it would be nice to get 1 game or movie. Lets get back to systems launching with a game in the box PLEASE!!!

[Jasoco]

If it's as easy to navigate as the N-Gage, we're all DOOMED.

The N-Gage's OS is one big gigantic Ergonomic Clusterfuck! (I love saying that.)

The displays in the GameStop are always set to a menu or something because no one can figure out how to play a game!

What's with all the fucking menus? And what freaking button do you push to do what? It's horribly designed and just as bad looking..

Has it failed yet? My shelf needs one to display. :D

I say CUT OUT the MP3 playing. CUT OUT the Phone. DROP the Movie playing unless there's some way of a person burning their own discs with Movies on them.

Just give me a Game machine and nothing else.

What am I saying? I know for sure it'll be killed by Nintendo. The Game Boy is one Baby Nintendo will defend to the death.

But it'll be fun to watch die. ;)

[Jive3D]

N will defend the GB to the death, but sony has 'sony style' on it's side. they know how to design a piece of hardware so that people will want it. the Ngage is not Japanese made and that has a lot to do with its poor design. Sony has experience in making products like this.

Yes, the mini disc did for all intensive purposes go under, but the PSP has promise. Sony came out of nowhere with the PS and became the console leader. I dont think that they can do exactly that with the handheld market, but it will motivate Nintendo to compete, unless nintendo is stupid and acts like the GB is so superior that they dont need to do anything.

regardless, things will get interesting.

Be able to plug the PSP into my PC using a USB and write movies to the discs would be nice.

But like others said above, at the end of the day, we want a kick as gaming machine.

[GameGuru]

I love my NetMD Mini-disc! :)

[Ze_ro]

The displays in the GameStop are always set to a menu or something because no one can figure out how to play a game!

I was at EB a week or so ago, and there was an N-Gage set up with Tomb Raider. I couldn't figure out how to play it at all. There was an icon on the screen with Lara's face on it, but I couldn't figure out how to actually run it. None of the "action" buttons were labelled, so it wasn't obvious at all what buttons were "select" or "cancel" or whatever.

I managed to get to a few other menus, but they certainly didn't seem like they had anything to do with playing Tomb Raider.

--Zero

[ubersaurus]

It's Klepping time, folks!



You see the problem with the N-Gage is that it sucks.

(And who says the PSP won't?)

No, seriously. I don't give a crap that it's a cell phone and a handheld video game and plays music.

(well then obviously you won't be interested in the PSP either.)

- have to disassemble it to change carts.

(because its so dumb to have internally stored carts on a cell phone, which gets knocked around quite a bit...)

- screen is ridiculously small AND vertical

(oh god, a small screen on a handheld cell phone! Stab my eyes out with forks!)

- the system is bulky as hell

(If by bulky, you mean "smaller then a neo geo pocket color, and gba mk1".)

- button layout sucks and is somewhat confusing

(It's pretty clear to me. Pad on one side, buttons on the other. It's not rocket science. IT'S A GODDAMN PHONE.)

- overpriced

(And 300 bucks for the psp is such a good deal...)

Seriously, I don't know who did the marketing tests for that system

(conceivably, people who use cell phones.)

but they should be shot.

(There's alot of people who could use that too.)

Even before it was released people were complaining about it which should be a big signal to the Nokia that "Hey, maybe we should look at this a little more carefully before we release the biggest flop in video game history."

(Fanboys were complaining. I'd say their initial ad campaign was their greatest flaw, because the system itself isn't bad.)

If someone offered me one pound of gold or a pound of crap, each for $100, I'd buy the gold, not the crap.

(And then you'd bean the guy over the head with the gold, take the crap, and paint "I <3 Sony" on it.)

The price is really irrelevant since people would shell out the coin for something either well-made or revolutionary.

(No...because you see, how many people shelled out 500+ bucks for the neo geo? Or 400 for the saturn? At least, in comparison to lower cost alternatives.)

The iPod may be a bit overpriced, but it's still the most popular MP3 player on the market.

(Because mp3 players are the same thing as video game systems. What's that sound? Oh, its just your argument dying).

I mean, even Dell sold them for a while and now HP is partnering with Apple.

(Way to keep to your guns, there, pal.)

People recognize the quality is better than the competition and the same will happen with the PSP.

(So basically, what you're saying is that anything sony makes will automatically be good. I'm sitting on a sony computer right now, and the damn thing crashes at least once a day. I've got 2 dead PS1s, a 3rd one thats on its last legs, and I can't even go out and buy commercial minidiscs anymore despite Sony's name being all over them. Face it-its popular to hate the N-gage and live in the false hope that everything Sony does will be popular and well made. I seem to recall another company people used to say that about, it was called ATARI.)

[badinsults]

The PSP sounds like it will be a pretty neat device. But that does not mean it will be. Since the game has the support of most major Japanese companies, I cannot see it failing, at least not at the same level as the N-Gage, or even the Neo Geo Pocket.

[Starcade]

Don't think of the price your paying, think of the hours of fun you will have, and honestly, what else are you going to buy with that money?


I rest my case. :)

[Jasoco]

Don't think of the price your paying, think of the hours of fun you will have, and honestly, what else are you going to buy with that money?


I rest my case. :)
Going on what I spent today... I'd say 100 more Playstation games for my collection. In the long run, it's more satisfying.. and fun. To me anyways.

[WiseSalesman]

Since when was the PSP going to include cell phone capabilites? News to me (and good news, at that). My pockets are already to full. Just hope we have noe of that die talking crap.


I don't care what it does, I mean for a little more you can get a hell of a pocket pc that can do all that stuff (games, phone, movies etc).

Really? DAMN, I AM out of the loops. What kind of pocket PC does all that for just $200? Can you direct me to one? Seriously, I'm not being sarcastic, if I can get a PocketPC that is a cell phone, plays some games, and has enough memory on it to hold movies and music, I'll buy one this friday!

[WiseSalesman]

Man, did I kill this thread or what? Excuse the bump, but I really DID want to know the answers to these questions.

[ManekiNeko]

What's that I hear whistling through the air on its way down to Earth? Could that be... a bomb?

(KABOOOOM!!!)

Yep, it sure is.
$500... that's hilarious. Not even the dumbest and most loyal Sony fan would spring for that.

JR

[Mr. NEStalgia]

I'm a Sony fan, so I'll pay $200 for the PSP, but $300 is stretching it. I could do without the cell phone, and movie player.

-=Mr. NEStalgia=-

[TheRedEye]

Whenever I go out and I'm drunk making phone calls at a bar, I dont want to accidently drop my PSP because I'm using it while drunk at a bar.

Timma tree? HANH? TRIMMA GODDAM CHRISTMAS TREE?

[GameGuru]

I like Sony but I am not a fanboi. I really like games so that is why I am getting a PsP no matter the price. The PS1 and PS2 have some of the best games out so then the PsP must too.

[brandver3]

Why would I pay double for movies I already have, for my $100 dollar Toshiba DVD witch works great. Or pay for an MP3 when my car stereo does it anyways, and when am I going to need to listen to more then 80 minutes of music anyways. And I already have a Gameboy SP, it fullfills all my gamer needs.

So for $500, screw that.

[RetroYoungen]

Since when was the PSP going to include cell phone capabilites? News to me (and good news, at that). My pockets are already to full. Just hope we have noe of that die talking crap.


I don't care what it does, I mean for a little more you can get a hell of a pocket pc that can do all that stuff (games, phone, movies etc).

Really? DAMN, I AM out of the loops. What kind of pocket PC does all that for just $200? Can you direct me to one? Seriously, I'm not being sarcastic, if I can get a PocketPC that is a cell phone, plays some games, and has enough memory on it to hold movies and music, I'll buy one this friday!

I have a Pocket PC that does a lot of that sort of stuff, and mine cost just over $200 (About $220 or so, though I bought it as an out-of-box special). It's a Toshiba e355, with 64 meg internal memory, capable of mp3 playback, wmv playback, and though it's a bit slow and bad for fast-paced games, it has emus for it that I can play some great games with. You can get Bluetooth for it, and that can sort of constitute for the cell-phone bit, and altogether that may add up to what, $300?

I'd say it's about covered! :D

About the PSP, I'd say I'm interested in it a bit, but I agree that it would be a better idea to have a base unit that you can add on to later on instead of just all-in-one.

[link1110]

$300 is way too much for ANY system for me, let alone one who;s competitor is only $60 and in 23 million homes with over 1000 games for it. There will never BE a gba killer, end of story.

[link1110]

And remember, Wonderswan had almost all the big companies PSP has.