PSP 3000

Sony launched the PSP 2000 last year, with a few significant improvements over their first model. It was slimmer and lighter (hence the name PSP slim), and it had some much needed extra functions like USB charging, TV out for videos and games, faster loading times, which made the console the best deal you can get in portable gaming.

The question is — just a year later, was there really a need for a new PSP? And does it really offer enough for old PSP owners to upgrade to this one? We explore this and much more by first looking at the new features offered by the newly launched PSP, dubbed the PSP 3000.

Firstly, in case there is any misconception about it, this is not the sequel to the original PSP. It’s simply the 3rd redesign of the same hardware, capable of doing the same core functions as the original two. You won’t have any games or movies that would be exclusive to PSP 3000 and not compatible with the earlier two editions, simply because its not a successor to the original PSP.

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With that out of the way, at first look, there isn’t that much that makes the PSP 3000 stand out from the second generation PSP. It’s exactly the same size and dimensions. But on a closer look you notice the subtle changes—

• The Home button is now the PlayStation button with the classic PlayStation logo.
• There’s a mic placed right next to the volume control for the new Skype function in the PSP 3000.
• The D-pad is a lot better this time around, which I suspect would make playing fighting games a lot easier than its predecessors.
• It can now output games via Composite cable as well, unlike the PSP 2000, which requires a component cable to output games.

But you notice the biggest change from the previous PSP’s only after you turn it on — It’s spanking new screen.

Watch the video comparison review by clicking the image below:

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The improvement in the screen’s color gamut is immediately noticeable. The new richer and deeper black levels make a striking difference even in the way the basic operating system looks. Your old PSP movies and games appear a lot richer, to the extent that it will make you wonder how you appreciated their quality on the older PSP screen in the first place.

With better black levels, I also noticed that the white balance was a little warmer than before. In fact, it was warmer than neutral, making even pure white look a bit yellow as well. But that would be noticeable only if you have the eye for it. Most users would be considerably happy with the added warmth in the image, as warmer color tones are generally more pleasing to look at. But from a technical point of view, I do wish for a more accurate white balance.

But here’s the deal killer — while the new screen is the biggest improvement in the new PSP, it’s also the biggest flaw. The older PSP screens had a slight ghosting issue, which was visible during fast paced action in games and videos alike. This was definitely an issue, but not a major one. The new PSP has done away with ghosting, but now it’s plagued with interlacing, which is visible right from the first boot of your PSP.

Normally I wouldn’t complain that much about an issue that would be only be occasionally visible (like ghosting), but here the interlacing is easily noticeable at the slightest movement. The worst part is that if the video or game has the camera panning vertically (giving a vertically moving image), the interlacing goes on hyper mode with prominent black lines all over the display.

Even though I had to review the console, I couldn’t play it for too long at a stretch as the interlacing really got to me, hurting my eyes, after a few minutes in every session. I got a mixed reaction on this from my colleagues. While the interlacing was visible at once to all, not all of them seemed to have a problem playing the PSP for long durations, as I did. That said, there were a number of them who refused to play it any longer than a few minutes because of the same problem.

Priced at Rs. 9,490, the PSP 3000 does a lot to improve over the previous versions. God knows how much I’ve cribbed about the PSP 2000 requiring 2 separate cables for watching videos and playing games on a TV. The mic for the Skype function is a great addition, but I doubt it would be a reason for the PSP 3000’s sale out here. It’s something that would be sparingly used much like the PSP browser and RSS functions.

Unfortunately, the hardware interlacing flaw would be pretty much unrepairable by any kind of future firmware upgrade. That’s pretty much a deal breaker for me. If you already own a PSP (any version), there isn’t enough here to warrant an upgrade to the PSP 3000.

If you’re in the market for a new PSP, then I suggest you look at the cheaper PSP 2000 (slim) before making a buying decision; at least till you can still find them in the market.