While the PSP2 is not yet official, there have been fan Photoshop creations. Apparently, this is not a fan-made creation. Apparently, this is a Sony-made one. But is it?
Granted, this could very well be another slick Photoshop, but this week Sony is expected to unveil the new PlayStation Portable, which is currently being called the PSP2. As the reveal approaches, this art work surfaced online today on 2ch, Japan's largest online forum.
The photo features a handheld believed to be the PSP2, which has a PSPgo style sliding shell. There is a 32 GB SD memory card as well, plus a "PSP2" Memory Stick. There is a long, thin stylus as well. According to Japan's Nikkei newspaper, the PSP2 will have a touch screen.
Unlike the current PSP, there are two analog nubs, giving this handheld a controller layout similar to the PS3.
What is fishy about the picture is that it appears to be a photograph of a handout of some kind. While handouts may be present at the January 27 press conference, it's also a good way for a Photoshopper to hide their work, as it masks any differences in resolution you'd be able to detect in an online image.
Official Sony art is typically at a higher resolution, but this art is not, which also sends off alarm bells. The buttons and the d-pad look to be at a slightly different resolution. The copyright in the bottom left, which appears on official Sony images, is cut off, too. Likewise, odd. However, as mentioned above, this purported PSP2 image could be photo taken of official Sony art or of an official Sony handout, hence these resolution inconsistencies.
The memory stick in this photo looks more akin to the Memory Stick Sony previously used and not the Memory Sticks currently in production, further throwing doubt on its authenticity. Sony, however, did finally embrace the SD Card, which appears next to the Memory Stick, last year.
The thumbsticks are in a different location from photos that appeared last fall of what is supposedly the PSP2.
Last October, Kotaku broke the news that the PSP2 will ditch the UMD format and could very well rival the Xbox 360 in horsepower. Kotaku also reported then that the PSP2 will have dual analog sticks, a touch pad, a bigger screen and go on sale in fall 2011.
Whether or not it is real, won't be known for sure if and when the rumored PSP2 is finally made public. However, Kotaku is reaching out to Sony and will update this post should the company comment.
本物？ それともフェイク？ PSP2っぽい画像が出回ってます [Kotaku Japan]