So, why isn't the PSP the de facto portable multimedia device?

[Felon]

I have the widescreen. It's big, which I actually want, but it still fits in my khaki pockets with my blackberry.

I use public transportation heavily, so it's good to have as many ways to kill time as possible. Music, video, games, books, whatever.

Say, can an Ipod display ebooks? Sadly, the zen cannot.

 

[John Crichton]

I use public transportation heavily, so it's good to have as many ways to kill time as possible. Music, video, games, books, whatever.

If I took public transportation that was more than 20 minutes, I'd probably end up doing some video watching. That's if I could tear myself away from Lumines on PSP.

Say, can an Ipod display ebooks? Sadly, the zen cannot.

I believe there is software out there that will do it. A quick googling confirms.

 

[babomb]

There are several reasons:

First, Sony tried to make the PSP a jack-of-all-trades, which made it a master of none, as TwistedBishop noted.

Second, Sony tried to tie it to UMD, which was an utter failure, because who wants to buy a movie only watchable on PSP? That was a very poor choice.

Third, it comes with a tiny Memory Stick, and high-capacity Memory Sticks are more expensive than, say, SD.

Fourth, it has poor format support. It's kind of a pain to rip videos to it.

Fifth, Sony keeps trying to prevent homebrew apps from working with firmware updates. While there are somewhat valid reasons for wanting to do so, letting the community do cool stuff with your hardware increases its value.

Sixth, it doesn't have as many great games as the DS. If it did, it would be more popular and thus, I think more people would use it as a media player, even if it's far from the ideal portable media player.

Seventh, the big screen is nice, but the system is bulky. Plus, when I've tried to put it in my pocket and use it as a music player, its buttons often hit the side of my pocket and stop the music.

 

[ssampier]

I choose the iPod based on its music capability. The other players video playback was better, but the music was the key for me.

I have the widescreen. It's big, which I actually want, but it still fits in my khaki pockets with my blackberry.

I use public transportation heavily, so it's good to have as many ways to kill time as possible. Music, video, games, books, whatever.

Say, can an Ipod display ebooks? Sadly, the zen cannot.

You poor, poor soul. I suffered through public trans for most of my college years. Then I had the delightful Greyhound bus trips home. :\

 

[John Crichton]

I choose the iPod based on its music capability. The other players video playback was better, but the music was the key for me.

80 gig?