SONY PSP SLIM & LITE

After more than a year of waiting, I finally cashed-in and boutght myself a luxury device, the SONY PlayStation Portable (PSP) SLIM & LITE. This is the newer (released in 3rd Quarter 2007) of the earlier PlayStation Portable (PSP), which has a few significant improvements (particulary battery life, size and weight) without not much hike in price. Read on to find out more. I have previously contemplated over getting the PSP for myself despite knowing that I hardly have time to play due to my growing photography interest. After I gave up the idea to get a PSP, I bought myself my Nikon D50 DSLR and my photography interest took to a next level, until my present Nikon D200. Back then, I only had the support of my brother and Guan who were trying to 'poison' me to get a PSP, which I rejected.

So what made me buy a PSP now?

For months, I have been thinking of a gift for my 'Royal Highness', Fio. I thought a Nintendo DS LITE (NDSL) would be a cool and fun device for my lovely lady. She isn't much of a gamer and never played much console games. The stylus-operated device and simple interactive gameplays will be easy for her to catch on with the gaming fever that is taking the world at large. I had done my homework over the past few months and was ready to get the console yesterday (Saturday, 22nd of September 2007). I went to a few game shops to double-check the market rates and was almost paying for an add-on accessory of the NDSL when I decided I should try out the device. Hence, I randomly picked a shop in Sim Lim Square to test the NDSL console and eventually buy the console from. I was like a child who is totally new to console gaming, after stopping at PlayStation 2. I had some difficulty fiddling with the NDSL and when I finally ran a demo game after much effort and waiting. The rude store owner snatched the demo console from me and passed harsh remarks, "You can try more if you have the intention to buy! Even a 9 year-old child knows how to play!". I was totally put off by his harsh and rude remarks. I felt like throwing a stash of cash in his face and make him kneel before me (sounds like a scene from "300"). I held back my anger and told myself that it was not a good day to buy a console.

At that time, my buddy, Laurens Pang, who was with me, felt the same as I did. I then made a remark, "Thats it! Let's buy a PSP! TOGETHERNESS! I need someone close to play it with me! That is going to be you". "Mai Lah! Though I wouldn't mind...", he replied with glitters in his eyes. "All I need is for you to say, 'ON!'", I exclaimed after some persuasion. At that moment, I believe that I felt a moment of dead silence as the words penetrated into his head and ricocheting inside his brain. "ON!" This word from him, though simple and short, it shook the intense scenario like an earthquake of unimaginable scale on the Richter! The reason I felt that way, was because Laurens had never been an impulsive buyer in his life. This is the first! I took his word for it and we headed to buy it a reputable shop recommended by my brother and Ah Bee. In Togetherness, with firm hand-shake gripping tight, encouragingly rubbed-shoulders, we embarked on a brotherly FORCE IMPULSE ACT to counter my intended DESTINY!

I am now a proud owner of a SONY PlayStation Portable SLIM & LITE (PSP-2000CW; Japan Export Set) while my brother, Laurens Pang is one too with the same Ceramic White (Asia Set). Togetherness, we are the Cool PSP SLIM & LITE Bros!

SONY PlayStation Portable SLIM & LITECERAMIC WHITE VERSIONPSP-2000 CWInitialized on 22nd September 2007, SaturdayPhotography by Nikon D200 with Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 and Nikon SB-600Photography by William Tan
The Box ArtMy SONY PlayStation Portable (PSP) handheld console is of the Ceramic White version. Though this colour already existed for the 1st generation PSP, but I have felt in love with it since its release."Being WHITE is COOL!"I have chosen this Ceramic White colour over the new Slim & Lite metallic colours, Ice Silver, Rose Pink, Felicia Blue and Lavender Purple and also the regular Piano Black and Blue. Another reason for choosing Ceramic white is because the new metallic colours all have a sparkling glitter dust that makes the material looks 'toy-ishly' plastic rather than metallic. See all colours here. My console is the Japan export set, hence my model number is PSP-2000 CW. Other countries will bear a different number at the last digit, e.g. US will be PSP-2001. The colour of the console is also stated, hence mine is PSP-2000 CW, while eg. Lavender Purple will be PSP-2000 LP.
Re-designed NEW Hardware Specificationsvs 1st Generation PSP

• Better Wi-Fi connection
• Faster loading times by storing UMD data in temporary memory.
• Internal memory (RAM) increase from 32 MB to 64 MB
• Improved battery life due to lower power consumption, and battery recharge over the USB data connection. However the old, higher-capacity PSP battery will still be compatible and using it will give an increased battery life, but the battery cover will not close when using the old battery due to the larger size.
• Weight has been reduced by 33%
• Unit is 19% narrower (slimmer) in thickness
• A video-out port for displaying on a TV (max. 640x480, 4:3 or 16:9)
• Improved responsiveness of d-pad and buttons
• WiFi switch moved to the top of the console.
• New UMD loading tray design.
• Removal of the infra-red port.
• Speakers repositioned on the front of the PSP near the top of the screen.
• Memory Stick slot has been relocated
• The PSP-2000 models will use the same screen as the PSP-1000 models

The ContentsThe contents inside the lovely white box includes a 5V 2000mA AC Adaptor and cable, PSP-2000 CW console, Getting Started Guide, Operations Manual and Warranty documentation and 3.6V 1200mAh battery.HORI Screen Protector and SanDisk 4GB Memory Stick Pro Duo are added to the core console during initialization at the point of sales.

Product Specifications

• Model Number: PSP-2000 CW
• Color: CERAMIC WHITE
• Dimensions: Approximately 6.7 in (W) x 2.9 in (H) x .9 in (D)
• Weight: Approximately 189 g / .42 lbs (including battery)
• CPU: PSP CPU (System clock frequency 1 - 333MHz)
• Main Memory: 64MB
• Embedded DRAM: 4MB
• Display: 4.3 inch, 16:9 Wide screen TFT LCD
  480 x 272 pixel, 16.7 million colors
  Maximum luminance 180 / 130 / 80cd/m2 (when using battery pack)
  Maximum luminance 200 / 180 / 130 / 80cd/m2 (when using AC adaptor)
• Sound: Built-in stereo speakers
• Main Input / Output: IEEE 802.11b (Wi-Fi)
  USB 2.0 (mini-B)
  Memory Stick Duo™
  Infrared Port
• Disc Drive: UMD Drive (Read only)
• Main Connectors: Memory Stick Duo™ Slot
  USB connector
  DC IN 5V connector
  Headset connector
• Keys / Switches: Directional buttons (Up/Down/Right/Left)
  Analog Stick
  Enter keys (Triangle, Circle, Cross, Square)
  Left, Right shoulder buttons x 1
  START button, SELECT button, HOME button x 1
  POWER/HOLD switch x 1
  Display button, Sound button, Volume +/- buttons x 1
  Wireless LAN switch (ON/OFF) x 1
  OPEN latch (UMD) x 1
• Power: Lithium-ion Battery AC Adaptor
• Codec: [Video]: "UMD": H.264/MPEG-4 AVC Main Profile Level3
  [Video]: "Memory Stick": MPEG-4 SP,AAC
  [Music]: "UMD": linear PCM,ATRAC3plus™
  [Music]: "Memory Stick": ATRAC3plus™,MP3(MPEG1/2 Layer3)
• Security: (Encryption) 128bit AES (Copyright protection technology) MagicGate™
• Access Control: Region, Parental Control
• Wireless communications IEEE802.11b: Infrastructure mode
  Ad hoc mode (connection up to 16 consoles)

PSP-2000CW Product GalleryA COOL gadget like this deserves a worthy product gallery. Here are a series of pictures documenting parts of the PSP Slim & Lite Ceramic White version shot by Nikon D200 with Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 with Nikon SB-600.Left: The PSP-2000CW Slim & Lite retained much of the designs of the 1st generation PSP, except for the 19% slimmer chassis.Right: The iconic PSP fonts and 'silver ring'.

Left: The 4-button directional control and analog joystick are found on the left of the console alongside the Memory Stick Pro Duo (MSPD) access LED and WLAN access LED. Along the edge of the console are the eye (for straps) and MSPD access bay.Right: Along the bottom of the screen are the command buttons, Home, Volume (-,+), Screen Brightness, Music, Select (not shown in image) and Start (not shown in image). Along the edge, the serial barcode can be located.
Left: Along the bottom right-hand corner edge of the console, the 5V charging port can be located and beside it is the Power On/Off/Hold trigger.Right: On the bottom lef-hand corner edge of the console is the 3.5mm audio output port and the TV-out port. The TV-out port requires a special component cable to display a 640x480 display on TV/LCD displays with either 4:3 or 16:9 (Wide) displays. Hooking the game up to an LCD TV will be challenging its graphics which has proven itself worthy!
Left: The iconic 4 play buttons of the Playstation are located on the right-hand side of the console alongside the Power LED (orange=charging, green=active) and On Hold LED.Right: 1SEG Tuner Port can be located on the top of the console. 1SEG allows the addition of Digital TV 1seg add-on tuner/receiver peripheral, which allows watching of TV programmes (so far Japan use only). The mini-USB port allows data transfer to the console and also charging of the battery (a new feature to the PSP Slim & Lite). The USB cable is not supplied, but no worries since I have plenty from my cameras and memory card readers. The Wireless Local Area Netowrking (WLAN) trigger button can be located on the top as well. 2 modes can then be set from the control menu, IEEE802.11b Infrastructure mode (for hooking up to an access point) and Ad-Hoc mode (for hooking up multiple PSP consoles without a central access point). On the rear of the console, the groove to facilitate the opening of the UMB slot can be found. No eject buttons, only manual usage.
Left: The UMB door swings open and is limited by two arms, revealing the UMB slot. In the slot, the pick-up (BluRay) lens and the disc-clamping wheel are the two prominent parts.Right: The MSPD access bay on the edge of the right-hand side is pulled out and support by rubber arms, exposing the MSPD slot. I have purchased a SanDisk 4GB MSPD MagicGate™ to save my data.

"I LUV MY CERAMIC WHITE PSP SLIM & LITE!"
"You need to own a PSP Slim & Lite to be COOL!"

CRAP! I seem to have forgotten about the gift for my 'Royal Highness'!

I hope my love for her is sufficient!

She has been really understanding about my battle over deciding to buy a PSP.

So I must sincerely respect her for it!

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Singapore Gaming Gadget Handheld Console Sony PlayStation PlayStation Portable PSP PSP Slim & Lite Ceramic White UMD