Lately, there has been plenty of talk about the next generation PSP, so far being called dubbed as the PSP2. During the same week when rumors hit an all time high for the device, there were also leaks about the upcoming Playstation Phone, and the internet exploded with speculations and rumors, sometimes mixing both devices into one. The first fact that needs to be discussed is that the PSP2 and the Playstation Phone are two different projects, both of course headed by Sony. While it’s no shocker that the Playstation division is working on the PSP2, Sony is also tapping into its Sony Ericsson partnership for the Playstation Phone as this is meant to be a fully functional phone that is also a gaming device. It’s very important to note that these are two different products for the fact that it seems Sony is taking completely different approaches with each. Many might jump to the iPhone/iPod Touch strategy that Apple employs where both products are very similar, yet one of course is a fully functional phone with internet capabilities all the time while the other instead relies on Wi-Fi to jump on the net, yet still boasts the same power and screen factor.

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Sony on the other hand seems to want two different products, one of which is purely a gaming device, meant to take on the iPod Touch and the upcoming Nintendo 3Ds. This gives the PSP2 an upper hand when compared to  a device like the iPhone or iPod Touch in the gaming category because the device has a singular purpose: to game. This means Sony does not have to worry about GPS and Cell chips taking up space and power, but can instead focus purely on the gaming aspect of the device. This should boast well for gamers who just want to game. This should be welcoming news for our portable gaming fans, for as fun and amazing as games can be on an iPhone or iPod Touch or Nintendo devices, none of them have the scope of current PSP games like Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker and Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7. Basically, think of the PSP2 as just the eventual successor the PSP with more power, elegance and hopefully better PSN integration. By also just being a gaming device, this leads itself to a much better everyday device for parents to buy for their kids and for the everyday person to be able to pick up versus an iPhone, which of course requires a contract, as it is suitable for anyone 8 years old and older.

But that seems to be only half of the strategy, as Sony surely realizes how popular the iPhone and iPod Touch have become in gaming, thus the creation of the Playstation Phone. First, we have to think of the Playstation Phone as a fully functional modern smart phone. Based on the architecture of the Sony Xperia X10, this phone will have full touch screen functionality, run Android apps, and more than likely sport Android 3.0 It will have an HD camera and 8mp or higher camera, meaning that you are not sacrificing your phone experience to game. This is an important part of the strategy because phones, and more specifically smart phones, that require data plans are generally meant for an older audience. This means that anybody should and will be able to own this device, unlike the PSP which is just for gaming. Furthermore, the consumers who also want a great portable gaming experience and a smart phone will now have a device they can turn to, because when it is locked, this slider-based phone has a full PSPgo-like architecture with an analogue control pad, Playstation controls, and more, making your gaming experience a true one. Developers won’t be limited to just having a touch screen to build around and for those who want to game; they can get the benefits of a fully functional gaming device as well as fully functional phone. Your lunch break will never be the same.

Part of the demise of the original PSP was that it was meant for an older, more mature crowd from the beginning. While Nintendo targeted the younger kids with cute little games, Sony was trying to bring the hardcore experience to the older demographic who wanted a nicer, fancier device with more power and more mature games. The problem was that demographic was slowly evolving with the introduction of the iPhone. They were growing up, going to work and everywhere else and they could no longer take a phone and a gaming device with them, so instead, they turned to smart phones for their gaming needs. By releasing a PSP2 to target anyone above the age of 8, Sony can focus itself as a pure gaming machine and those want that experience don’t have to sacrifice gameplay and quality. This also gives developers a clear vision of the product; it’s meant to play games on and they can focus on that, not how well will it integrate with the next OS update and all the caveats that come with smart phones. On the other hand, with a Playstation Phone, Sony can not only tap into the Android market and offer a fully functional smart phone to the market, but it can also target those who need a smart phone but want something more then a cute and fun game like Angry Birds. This will again give developers a clear focus on how to build a game. They know the specifics of the phone and can create games that are suited for that device, and not games that need to work with 20 different configurations.

While this two part strategy seems like a good vision for Sony to follow, there can be problems with it as well. Sony has tried very hard to incorporate the PSP and PS3 together. Giving the PSP the PSN store, allowing you to access your PS3, view videos, and play some games via PSP remotely (dubbed remote play) over Wi-Fi from a completely different location. In the end, they were two different platforms and most of those features never caught on or worked the way Sony had wanted them to. What makes the iPhone, iPod Touch and now iPad such a compelling experience for users and developers is that their underlying structure is the same. A game for your iPod Touch will work on your iPhone and iPad and the destination to pick up content is the same App Store that the user is accustomed to. This leads to little fragmentation. In order for both the PSP2 and Playstation Phone to succeed, they need to all tie better into each other and the Playstation 3, instead of being separate entities that bear the Playstation brand name, and a good start for them would be a better PSN integration.