According to a new WSJ report, Sony is finally ready to create a PlayStation-branded smartphone, one that will help it compete against the iPhone, and Microsoft’s new Windows Phone 7 line.
Additionally, the company will be creating “a portable device that blurs distinctions among a netbook, an e-reader and a PlayStation Portable, or PSP,” one that it hopes will compete against the iPad and net/smartbooks.
The products have a target launch in 2010, but prices are nowhere near finalized.
Equally as surprising is the news that this will be a Sony-only venture, leaving out Ericsson, its long-time smartphone partner.
PSP and PSP Go sales have been extremely disappointing since the launch of the iPod Touch and the Nintendo DSiDS continues to rack up impressive sales, all at the expense of PSP market share.
Result for: PSP
Sony America publisher relations senior VP Rob Dyer has admitted this week that the PSP Go handheld “confused” buyers, and that sales have struggled.
Acknowledging another long-time criticism, Dyer says the expensive $250 price has not helped sales any, with the cheaper PSP-3000 model handily outselling its newer brother.
“Yeah, I think the higher price point didn’t help matters any,” Dyer said, via IpodNN.
Since the release of the PSP Go, Sony has done nothing but lose market share to the DS/DSi, and even the iPod Touch, which are cheaper and have big fan bases.
Result for: PSP
PSP and PSPgo owners can now download graphic novels to their handhelds from popular publishers such as Disney and Marvel via the PSN Digital Comics service which has gone live today.
There are currently 550 issues available at launch and prices range from $0.99 to $2.99. There are popular titles such as X-Men and Spider-Man already available.
To download the novels, users will have to update to the latest firmware update, install the reader, and then download what they want.
USAToday adds: I’ve tested out the Reader with a couple issues of Astonishing X-Men, and it seems to work pretty well. The readers uses an autoflow feature, where users click the directional pad to move between panels. Sometimes, the readers zooms in and out to show key sections of the panel or to get a better view of the text. Users also have the option of manually zooming and moving through the panels if they choose. The comics look sharp on the classic PSP model I used to test the reader.
