Nintendo is going to sell its new 3DS in a couple of weeks in Japan, and some extra couple of weeks in the rest of the world.
As a counter attack, Sony is planning to sell a new model of PSP, called Next Generation Portable (NGP, definitive name not yet decided) that has been presented a the end of January. This machine may be out at the beginning of 2012 (estimation).
| 3DS | NGP | |
| Dimensions | 134 x 74 x 21mm | 182 x 83 x 18,6mm |
| Touch screen | Inferior screen | Multitouch surfaces behind the machine |
| Screen resolution | 800×240 (superior) / 320×240 (inferior) | 960×544 |
| CPU | 2 x 266MHz ARM11 | ARM Cortex-A9 (4 cores with a frequency not yet known) Half of PS3 to save battery |
| Video card | DMP PICA 200 à 133 MHz (6 Mo of VRAM) | PowerVR SGX543MP4+ (128 Mo of VRAM) |
| RAM | 64 Mo | 512 Mo |
| Hard disk | 2 Go (SD) | 16 Go (supposé) |
| Type of game cards | 3DS cards | New Game Media cards |
| Battery | 3h à 5h | 4h à 5h (annoncé) |
| Other compatibilities | Total with DS games | PS and PSP games downloadable only |
| Phone-related | Nothing | 3G compatibility |
| Price | 25,000 yens | 40,000 yens~(＊) |
The two machines are for sure targeting different type of players.
3DS is more orientated for casual gamers, NGP more for hardcore gamers.
Lets see the good points and bad points of each machine.
| 3DS | NGP | |
| Good points | The price compatibility with DS games 3D is fashion |
Multi touch screen Screen resolution More developed network functionalities for multi-player games |
| Bad points | A 3D screen is really safe for young children? 3DS is forbidden for children younger than 6 years old, but even at this age the eye is not completely developed… 3D makes your game more beautiful, but it doesn’t really help you for the quest of the perfect score |
The price 3G functionalities need an additional contract with a phone company  PS games only downloadable, it looks that Sony has not really learnt with the PSP-Go… Even if you purchased one game in the past, you will have to pay it again to be able to download it… |
I am kind of skeptic for those machines to be so expensive for an hardware so low.
Even an I-phone 4 is faster…
For the 3DS, is it the 3D screen that much expensive?
About the NGP, itt may have characteristics close to the PS3, but some developers doubt if the machine may be able to render the same graphical quality as the PS3. It has been confirmed that to preserve the battery of the machine, its overall power is limited to half the PS3.
When the NGP will be launched, Monster Hunter Portable 3rd will be available in download.
You may expect new quests, and also a new gameplay more adapted to the camera manipulation with the backward multi-touch screen.
(＊) About the price of the PSP, a price of 40,000 yens when the machine is out is an estimation.
For the moment, Sony has just announced that the NGP will be sold to a price “affordable” (what means by the way expensive in Sony’s product culture).
This has been learnt from developers working on this machine. Besides, this price would be the one of the NGP without additional options (3G connection, etc.). In order to be able to use phone network, you may have to pay the machine 50,000 plus making a countract with a phone company in Japan (what may become 5,000 per month for internet services included). It may also be possible that Sony makes a partnership with NTT Docomo, Softbank or AUーKDDI to sell the machine at a cheaper price but in exchange you may have to sign a countract of 2 years with a phone company paying monthly fees.
