Sony may have just announced the successor to the Minidisc in the
form of the new Playstation Portable (PSP). Sony's CEO calls the PSP
device "the Walkman of the 21st century."=20
The core of the PSP is the "Universal Media Device," a 60mm disc
with 1.8GB capacity (about the same size as a minidisc, with three
times greater capacity). The PSP will use ATRAC, but will also
support MPEG4 video and audio.=20
Being a game machine, the PSP will have a color LCD and joystick
controls. The PSP will have a slot for memory stick, and a USB 2.0
port for connection to a computer.=20
To compete with other handheld game machines, the PSP price will have
to be below $300. That's a tremendous amount of technology at a
price below what current top of the line minidisc machines sell for.
OK, now the bad news: Sony does not expect to deliver the PSP until
Fall, 2004. So don't delay your purchase of a minidisc recorder just
yet.
--oryoki
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
|