There are three types of products: trend-setters, trend-setter competitors, and failures. For example, the Nintendo DS was a trend-setter, and the original PSP was a competitor, and the iPod Touch was a trend-setter and the Zune HD will be a competitor. I can't help to wonder what the PSP Go! is supposed to be. It might be a trend-setter, it could be a iPhone/iPod competitor, but it might just end up being a total failure.

The leaked PSP Go specifications are intriguing. It is 43% lighter than the current PSP model, and it has no UMD drive. It includes 16GB of internal storage and expandable memory via the Memory Stick slot. The 3.8 inch screen will slide up to reveal the gaming pad, buttons, and analog thumb stick. Because of the lack of UMD drive, all games will be downloadable along with with music, movies, and (possibly) movie rentals. to be honest, it isn't offering much that the iPhone or iPod touch does not.

What is going to make or break the PSP Go is the PS3 and Playstation Network integration. If the PS3 is fully expandable through the Go, and if you can make use of PSN, Netflix, and Hulu, the Go will be a killer. If it failes on any of that, I am afraid it will be a dismal failure.

By the way, this week is E3, and PSP Go news will be swirling. I will be updating with all the important gaming news throughout the week.

If the PSP could integrate mobile phone capabilities and become sleeker, it would be a definite winner.

Via Gaming Console Network