14 DAY TRIAL // Sony is detailing its recently-announced Next Generation Portable left and right these days, trying to clear up any speculation that is persisting about what will be the PlayStation Portable 2.
This time, the company talked about the possible 3D capabilities of the device, as well as how the 3G mobile network connectivity will affect the price of the upcoming console.
According to Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida, the NGP won't have any support for 3D technology, unlike its main competitor, the Nintendo 3DS, which is among the first devices to support glasses-free 3D.
"We evaluated the 3DS screens that are available and the costs," Yoshida said to Kotaku. "And there are lots of trade-offs. This [the NGP] is what we want to do."
He stressed, “The portable is a totally different beast. It's still emerging and in a transitional stage. We are developing a platform to last a long time."
This is quite peculiar, as the Japanese company is a big proponent of 3D, boasting that it has over 50 games in development that will use the technology, which will appear on the PlayStation 3.
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe boss Andrew House also cleared things up about the multiple versions (SKUs) of the upcoming platform, and how only one will have 3G support, which might be more expensive than the average.
"The first thing to clarify, which I'm not sure the presentation did a perfect job of doing today, is that all of the devices will have Wi-Fi capability; a separate SKU will have 3G," House told EuroGamer.
"So the user gets a choice. Wi-Fi is available wherever, which clearly is the most important aspect of connectivity and that connected experience; 3G will be a subset of that."
More details about the 3G support will arrive, according to House, as we approach the launch of the Next Generation Portable.
Judging by Sony's statements, the new device is set to arrive in at least one country by the end of the year.