PlayStation Portable - a 'toy' featuring real technology!

We have reached the point where life without high-end technologies is almost impossible. High-tech entirely fulfill your life, whether you use them for work or for entertainment,.

PSP (PlayStation Portable) is one of those cutting-edge technology products that can easily make you addicted. In 2005, Sony PSP was tipped as the best-seller gadget. It has even pushed out iPods of 60 Gb capacity.

So, what makes people get addicted to this gadget? The answer is - GAMES! People of different ages are still children deep in their hearts. And when they get a 'toy' featuring most of the Pocket PC functions and supports games, then it is real a blessing!

Getting into details

PSPs are basically the same PMPs(Portable Multimedia Players), but acting as a handheld game console. The first PSP was manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment. For the first time it was released in Japan on December 12, 2004; then followed United States and Canada - March 24, 2005; and Europe and Australia on September - 1, 2005.

A PSP measures about 170 mm (6.7 inches) in length, 74 mm (2.9 inches) in width, and 23 mm (0.9 inches) in height. It weights about 280 grams (0.62 lb) including the battery. An average LCD display is 110 mm (4.3 in) in diagonal.

Key features of PSP

Let's begin with the feature that makes PSP unique. It's all about Games!

1. Games. This is the feature PSPs are famous and valued for. Games run from UMD disks (Universal Media Disk) which are slotted at the back of the device. The games are usually formated to your 4 x 3" screen.

UMD disks have a 2 Gb capacity. This means you can watch high quality movies only if inserting the disk into the video slot. UMD disks have all the chances to take over DVDs, the main cause being its plastic protection and its scratch-prove surface.

The games are saved on a little device called a memory stick duo.

2.Internet. PSP can be used to surf the Internet using Wi-Fi technology.

3.Music. PSP features the ability to play music. It supports such formats as MP3, WAV and AAC. The files are usually arranged in alphabetical order. The menu is very easy to navigate.

4.Video. The device supports video formats such as MPEG-4 and AVC. PSP has the ability to play video games too.

5.Photos. The image viewer displays several image formats including JPEG, PNG and BMP. This is suficient to cover most of the images. You can also use the available options to set wallpapers, slide-shows, network settings, security settings, date, time, etc.

Component Parts
PSP usually comes with some optional accessories. Some of them include headset, headphones, extended-life 2200 mAh battery, battery charger, remote control, car adapter and AC adapter.

Memory Stick Duo
Memory Stick Duo is a memory card that works only with PSPs. Memory Stick Duo has a capacity ranging from 64 Mb to 256 Mb. It is a creation of Sony and is designed to store media. To use the memory card, the PSP device should be hooked to your PC using a USB port.

Camera
The Quick Shot camera was announced in March 2006 and released in Japan on November 1, 2006. PSP comes with add-on camera. It shots video and images.

GPS
GPS receiver was released together with Quick Shot camera. This feature was meant to support GPS-enabled games.

Battery life
Actually PSP's battery life ranges on a very wide scale. It basically depends on applications used. Wireless network access, screen brightness, etc. are just a few to mention. Usually the battery works from 3 hours to 10 hours. The extended-life 2200 mAh battery provided by Sony increases the battery life up to 20%.

It is recommended to set the sleep mode to save power when you do not use the screen. Experiments show that a system set to sleep mode increases the battery life to approximately 48 hours.

PSP does not support all the functions of a PMS, such as playing audio files of Ogg Vorbis format; video of DivX, XviD and SMV formats; or digital imaging of GIF format and interactive media including Adobe Flash and Flash LITE. Still it is a multi-functional device which supports gaming!
Many consider it as 'the most relaxing toy' people ever created. And it is quite hard to disagree.