Why PSP isn't just for the boys
The P!nk PSP could inspire a more gender balanced future for Sony's console
What do you get if you cross a successful, attitude-laden, strongly independent singer-songwriter with Sony's leading portable tech gizmo?
Well, a very bright gizmo, everything you need to start using it, and an exclusive PSP disc crammed full of P!nk's greatest and latest music videos, including a previously unavailable track as well as an unseen interview.
The price for all this cherry-flavoured goodness? £169. But you also get some perspective - and that's free.
When you place the new P!nk PSP against the original black model (our review of which you can read by clicking here) you realise why the PSP may have struggled to convince female buyers to part with their cash.
Visually, it's a desirable machine - but it's probably fair to say most of you who agreed with that statement are the same ones who get excited about the aesthetics of your LCD TV. And that type of individual doesn't tend to be female (to speak in generalisations impossible to avoid in these discussions).
The beauty of the pink P!nk model is that it's a lot more communicative about the PSP's other abilities – the fact that it can double as an MP3 player, plays home video or feature films, stores your favourite digital photos for you to take with you wherever you go, and enables you to get on the internet to either browse your favourite sites or download the latest content.
And, crucially, its brighter new appearance also suggests how much fun all this can be.
But if games are what you're after, fear not. The PSP has a continually growing catalogue that features an ever broadening range of games, amidst which you'll find delightful unique puzzle games LocoRoco and Lumines alongside more traditional choices such as Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07.
True, with its emphasis on home console spin-offs like the superlative Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror, it's fair to say the PSP's games library is not yet as diverse as the DS' line-up. A more positive spin could be that the PSP offers new gamers a more accessible taste of many of gaming's finest moments.
If you've come to the world of PSP as a result of the colour change, welcome. If you're still thinking about it, why not get our firsthand experience of what it's like to live with one for a year?
Either way, we hope you stick around – there's plenty more fun to be had.
