14 DAY TRIAL // After a hefty amount of rumors and speculation, the team over at the PSM3 magazine has revealed two new mock-ups of the all-but-confirmed PSP2, the second generation of Sony's PlayStation Portable handheld.
Note that these images aren't official, nor leaked, they're just an artist's representation of what a PSP2 might look like, considering all of the details that appeared on the web up until now.
First off, in the front, we've got the basic sliding form factor of the current PSP Go, but you should note the new front-facing camera on the upcoming device.
In the lower part of the PSP2, we have a redesigned control interface, with the biggest change being the presence of two analog thumbsticks, a feature that has been requested by a lot of current PSP owners.
Besides the nubs, which have a special concave finish, we have the regular D-pad and the familiar PlayStation face buttons, triangle, circle, square and X.
In the back of the new handheld, we have a rear-facing camera as well as a trackpad, which will be used by games that require touch input, including ports of mobile titles.
Besides these visual features, the PSP2 is set to have more powerful hardware than the current handheld platforms, almost half as powerful as the PlayStation 3 home console.
This increased power will allow the PSP2 to render visuals close to the PlayStation 3, according to previous reports from inside sources.
As of yet, however, Sony still hasn't admitted the existence of the PSP2, but the boss of the PlayStation division, Kaz Hirai, recently teased a few of the rumored details of the PSP2 as being mandatory for a new handheld platform in order to reach success.
Based on the rumors that have appeared up until now, the PSP2 is set to be revealed around the middle of 2011, and will go on sale around the world close to the holiday season of next year.
