Loco On: 5 Reasons Why SONY Needs to Change the PSP’s Internet
Loco On is a weekly column written by Get Loco founder and blogger locoroco, who also does a weekly podcast and monthly newsletter for his LocoRoco-based blog.
When the PSP was first released in America, SONY touted the fact that owners could access the internet to a degree never reached by any other portable device. The widescreen and processing capabilities would allow for e-mail, digital distribution, and other vast possibilities. 2 years and a few weeks later, the PSP’s internet is a hassle to use and obviously tedious. The very few formatted PSP websites have been abandoned due to the lack of response (which is also due to the fact that 60% of PSP owners have no clue how to get their internet working) and many ex-PSP internet users have abandoned the system due to the cellphone-like keypad (except without the lovely tactile buttons to use). With SONY focusing on improving the hardware and software via firmware upgrades, it would be about time for SONY to do something about the internet…
5) Most people want to access the internet, but don’t know how. I hope that SONY knows that very few people ever read manuals. Very few people understand what “Wi-Fi” or “Network Settings” mean. Very few people are willing to try over and over again until they get it. PSP owners are looking for an easy way to get the internet working, so why not start with an automatic internet lookup at the beginning of the internet–being that the PSP will not let you in without an internet connection. SONY will then direct you to a “wireless router” and explain it. An informative guide on the way to the internet would help out the novice Wi-Fi user get acquainted with how to use this complex system.
4) The Internet is possibly the most important aspect of every electronic today. In a generation once sparked by consumer electronics, like clocks and telephones, we’re now seeing it being an Internet generation more than ever. Internet applications, internet games, etc., etc. are scattering the world and allowing this system to harbor millions of people who all speak to each other on numerous levels. If more people are using the internet on the PSP, the PSP finally becomes a multi-task device. It avoids the “it only plays games well”-moniker it has received recently.
3) Changing the way we Internet changes the way people do websites. These days, webmasters use complex systems and coding to create perfect websites–such as Flash, etc.–many of which our mobile systems can’t handle. If SONY is able to revolutionize the way we do Internet (like they’ve revolutionized the way we do videos with the DVD and now the Blu-Ray), more people will buy the PSP causing more websites to create PSP-formatted websites. Thus, the whole Internet becomes PSP-intertwined and we’re all happy.
2) “All-in-one” devices are all the rage. Devices that can access the Internet, play games, play videos, and access photos (take them and maybe even use a GPS system) would clearly sell–if they could do things right. For one, SONY needs a portable keyboard and upgraded microphone/headset for internet capabilities and they need to consider adding a Skype or AIM plug-in for users across the globe (or possibly a widget or app of some sort that would allow for Skype or AIM to be accessed; the Mylo did it).
1) Because we live in an “always on the run” society. Internet has helped us all in truly inexplainable ways. Internet helps people who are always in a hurry to access information; whether it be e-mailing a document, playing a quick game, or checking a popular website. Items like food and drinks have adapted for people on the go; why shouldn’t the Internet do the same? The PSP needs an upgrade that will start up the internet faster, pull up pages faster, and interpret data faster. It really needs to use as much of its stunning processor as it can for the internet to work.
These 5 reasons are perfectly logical explanations for why SONY needs to buck up and change the way PSP owners do Internet. Otherwise, it’s simply a waste.
Until next time,
—loco.
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I totally agree. The PSP’s internet could have defined the system as a multimedia wonder. Instead, Sony has ignored almost everything that the community has asked for.
Great read though!