Report: PSP2 has 3G support, PS Phone event next month

According to Andriasang, Nikkei is reporting that among other things, the PSP2 will have a touch screen (a feature we all expected) and another feature that comes a bit out of left field — full 3G support, provided in Japan by NTT DoCoMo. The service will be for downloading and networking games, media, and apps, but it won’t work for phone calls. A standard wireless LAN connection will also be an option. No details on payment plans, variant PSP2 models, or potential providers outside of Japan are available at this time, though we may find out more when the console is unveiled on January 27th.

The other big news here is that the PlayStation Phone will formally be announced sometime in February. As we’ve seen in pre-release video, the machine will run on Google’s Android OS, and use PSP-style button-based controls.

Awesome news about the 3G. I hope the service comes to future home consoles too. That said, does anyone else think it’s weird for Sony to announce two portables around the same time? Seems like bad business. On one hand, it’s confusing to the casual consumer, and on the other, it’s also forcing people to choose between the PlayStation Phone and the PSP2. Competing against yourself is never a good idea.

[Thanks, Matthew!]