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lilwill157 | New York USA
TOKYO--One of the anticipated products at Sony Computer Entertainment's TGS booth was the PlayStation Portable's GPS receiver, which is coming out in Japan in just two months on December 7. The peripheral was available for viewing by the public for the first time at Sony's TGS booth. But, unfortunately, an eyes-only experience was as far as it went. Four PSP units with GPS receivers were on display in a showcase, but they weren't available for hands-on and photography was strictly prohibited.



Sony's GPS unit for the PSP was shown off to the public at TGS.
From what we saw, the PSP's GPS unit seemed fairly portable. The receiver is extremely compact at less than two square inches (45mm x 41mm x 17mm), meaning it's a little bigger than an average person's thumb. Plus it supposedly only weighs 16 grams, which is about half an ounce (0.56oz).

While there wasn't any new GPS software at TGS, we got to see the four titles that Sony announced will support the GPS unit last month:

Minna no Golf-jou (SCEI, 2007) Minna no Golf-jou is a spin-off of SCEI's popular Hot Shots Golf series, and it functions as a map utility for real golf courses. The software includes data of all golf courses in domestic Japan and lets the golfer check out everything from his distance to obstacles, as wells as the greens. The software can also be used as a management tool for keeping track of score data.



Note the relative size of the GPS unit compared with the PSP itself.
Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (Konami Digital Entertainment, December 2006) Metal Gear Solid's new PSP action adventure game will make use of the GPS receiver to search for and collect new characters that can be recruited as soldiers.

Planetarium Creator Ohira Takayuki Kanshuu: Home Star Portable (Sega, October 2006) Sega's constellation navigator is coming out two months before Sony's GPS receiver, but it's going to have support for the peripheral. Using the GPS receiver, players can acquire their current location and display the exact stars that they should be seeing up in the sky.

Navigation Soft (Edia, December 2006) This standard car-navigation software features all the roadmaps in Japan. Aside from searching for car and walking routes, the software can also be used as a directory to search for nearby shops and other facilities. The maps and database can be updated using the PSP's network capabilities.



Here it is on a white PSP.
Product detail:

Sony PSP GPS Receiver (PSP-290)

Release date: 12/07/2006

Price: 6,000 yen ($51)

Comes with case accessory


Hardware specs:

Reception Frequency: 1575.42MHz (L1 ban, C/A code)

Reception System: 20 Channels

Reception Sensitivity: Following: -153dBm, Captured: -140dBm

Position Update Interval: Approximately 1 second

Position Precision: 5m (2DRAMS, -130dBm)

Hardware size: 45mm x 41mm x 17mm (Width x Height x Depth)

Weight: Approximately 16 grams

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my question is will the GPS work in other countries to cause i will be going to the Dominican Republic for vacation so i wonder if it will work there?????/
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Replies

09/27/06 parkerfresh
it should work everywhere, but you might have to download updates for whatever country you are visiting.
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09/27/06 yoyo_pete
I heard that mapping is only going to be in Japan.... (according to some random magaizine I browsed at B&N) In Japan, streets are winding and have no signs. It's nearly impossible to navigate without GPS. In the rest of the world it is just a novelty.

Well that is kind of upsetting. I really want GPS navigation. All though these are release items. I find it hard to believe that some manufacturer is not going to put out something for other regions... At least for the big PSP markets.
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09/27/06 mOOsE
typical sony, one day their proprietary designs or japan-exclusive products will bite them in the @ss.
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09/27/06 sabledrakon
Who knows, maybe they'll open up the mapping to the large atlas compamies. I know I could use a GPS map of the states for when I'm in a new city. I want friggin OnStar with my PSP if I buy the GPS addon damnit.
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09/27/06 BestOfWest
seems kind of cool butyoyo pete is right its just a novelty nothing to waste cash on
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09/28/06 Chance
Huh? Novelty? For someone that doesn't ever drive or travel..yeah...maybe. I happen to really NEED this device for any number of reasons. I need to be able to find address's for work. My twin brother lives 1/2 way across the country in a state I never visit. When we vacation..we drive.. To me this would be a great reason for alot of ADULTS to buy a psp. Shrug.. it's all in your perspective.
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09/28/06 BestOfWest
umm they wouldnt buy it for that if they needed a gps they would go to something way better like onstar or something
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09/28/06 Chance
Wow.. since I'm 39 and a professional.. I feel confident in telling you that you are wrong. You're assuming onstar is better. Onstar isn't portable. Onstar is only in certain vehicles. Onstar doesn't play movies or mp3's. Alot of adults want a psp & a gps.. so it's a nobrainer..especially if they, like me, can write it off on thier taxes.
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09/28/06 bambu8
i have a bluetooth gps receiver that connects to my nokia 6630 and my pocket pc. it was my best purchase pocket pc when driving, nokia when biking it gives me my speed distance traveled and a safe way home. yoyo pete, bestof you should try it and then trade it back in so i can get it for cheaper! lol
i cant wait for this damn thing, a cool new toy! it seems like i never use my psp for games.
i just wish the design looked more like it belonged with the psp same thing with that ugly camera.
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09/28/06 sabledrakon
Chance, I know that having something similar to OnStar on my PSP would help out. I can't navigate for crap, so when I'm out traveling, I need something to help me get and keep my bearings. GPS for my PSP wouldn't be a novelty at all, I'd put it to use just like all the other features of the PSP. Now if anything, the camera is a useless novelty item.
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09/28/06 bambu8
camera, hmp! novelty, ah.... do you own a camera phone? i rest my case
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09/28/06 sabledrakon
No, I don't. I own a Nokia 1100, it has no camera. I don't see the point of slapping a camera on everything under the sun in the first place. If you're going to take pictures, buy a damned camera that'll work better than one built into a cell phone for the same price.
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09/28/06 bambu8
you need to dable with mms and when 3g finally gets here in the us it will blow your mind and you will not hesitate to jump in the band wagon. i have relatives overseas i already use my psp to chat and check my e-mail with them and if i can slap on a camera and get to video chat with them on my psp like i get with the silly pictures of my nephews on my phone its well worth it.
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09/28/06 sabledrakon
Why would I want to? As much as I'd like a "do it all" device, I know that one that's actually worth the money is a while down the road. I've tried camera phones before, all of them were horrilble. If I really want a picture of something, I have a digital camera for that. If I want to call someone, I've got a cell phone. Just because you can mash two devices together doesn't mean it's going to be good or better. Sony got lucky with the PSP, and I hope they keep it up. But adding a camera to a portable gaming system isn't all that great. Besides, with the PSP camera, were getting stuck with what, a 1.3MP camera. No thanks, I'm happy with my current digital camera.
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