Sony Computer Entertainment America announced today that its PSP (PlayStation Portable) Handheld Entertainment System will launch in North America on March 24, 2005. The Foster City, California based company also revealed that the PSP Value Pack will carry a suggested retail price of $249.99 U.S/$299.99 CND.
The U.S. value pack will ship with various items bundled with the PSP hardware, including a 32 MB Memory Stick Duo, headphones with a remote control, battery pack, AC adaptor, soft carrying case, cleaning cloth, movie/music/game video sampler UMD disc, and a full UMD copy of the Sony Pictures Entertainment film, Spider-Man 2. The cleaning cloth and Spider-Man 2 movie, which will only be bundled with the first 1 million units, were not available at the Japanese launch; and the demo disc was only handed out at select stores. [Story continued below]
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Sony Computer Entertainment America is aiming for a total of one million North American units to be manufactured by the end of March. In comparison, the December 12, 2004 Japanese launch had 200,000 units on day one, with a total of about 500,000 units shipped at the end of December.
"PSP will evolve and elevate portable entertainment, giving users the freedom to play full 3D games, watch movies, listen to music and connect wirelessly on their terms, their time and their place," said Kaz Hirai, president and chief executive officer, Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. "More than ever, today's consumer demands access to entertainment outside the home without compromising quality. With more than 100 PSP game titles currently in development worldwide, and the ability to download and listen to digital music and view feature films with breathtaking screen quality, PSP lets users control their entertainment options, all in one package."
The price point for North American games will be $39.99-49.99. For more PSP information, please read our massive PSP FAQ page or Import Review by using the links below.
