Gizmondo aims for PSP's market with new console

Launched in March across Europe and due for release in US territories at the end of the year, Tiger Telematics' Gizmondo is already being re-designed, with a new version due in 2006.

Speaking in an interview with Next-Gen.biz, Tiger Telematics CEO Mike Carrender stated that the company plans to better compete with Sony's PSP, which enjoyed the biggest launch weekend of any console in the UK, shifting approximately 185,000 units at retail in the first three days.

Based on a Samsung ARM9 400MHz processor and utilising an NVIDIA GeForce 3D 4500 graphics accelerator, the handheld incorporates gaming, MP3 functions, MPEG4 movie playback, digital camera, GPS chip plus Bluetooth, and GPRS for networked gaming and text messaging.

Described by the company as "a high-powered device with multiple features that aren't available elsewhere," the current version of the Gizmondo has a TFT screen which measures 2.8 inches - noticeably smaller than the 4.3 inches of Sony's PSP.

According to Carrender, "Gizmondo are looking at bringing out future generations early next year, a wide screen version of our device that's not dissimilar in the size to the screen of the Sony PSP." With a two-tiered pricing plan, the handheld will be available for USD 400 or USD 239 for an advertising subsidised model which displays up to three consumer adverts per day using Smart Adds.

Retailing at approximately USD 249 for the Value Pack, Sony's PSP would still seem to be a far more commercially viable system, although Carrender believes that 80% of consumers will opt for the ad-subsidised version and is convinced that the additional features of the Gizmondo will boost sales figures.