You know YouTube, right? And GameVideos? How about Grouper? I've honestly never head of them until now. The service is pretty much like every other video uploading service, except Grouper is now owned by Sony Pictures. Sony paid $65 million to own these obvious Sony fanboys (watch the video after the cut). Like Google Video, all the videos available on the site can be downloaded in PSP format, but even cooler than that, there are PSP-compatible RSS feeds, so you can have crazy viral videos, or some "sexy" videos delivered to your PSP on a daily basis. In fact, checking out the RSS feed, you'll have access to hundreds of videos on 2.80+ PSPs. It's sorta insane.

[Via DownloadSquad]

David Carony, executive editor at CNET, has a lot to say about Sony, the PSP, and their newly announced mylo. Sony's attempting to market the device at a whopping $350, which is ridiculous when many, if not all of its features can be implemented in the PSP, or a PSP redesign. With the right accessories and firmware upgrades, the PSP can do every thing the mylo can... plus it can play games. And at $199, it would be a bargain for the consumer. Here's a list of what Carony believes will make the PSP better:

1. Skype support to make Internet (VoIP) calls (using the SOCOM headset).
2. Support for Slingbox (a competitor of Location-Free TV). Sony could make some bling by not selling hardware, but selling a Slingbox application.
3. Built-in IM applications, similar to mylo's support for Yahoo! and Google.
4. Better e-mail integration.
5. Keyboard accessory.
6. Video output for TV.
7. Stop making Connect so crappy. Where's the revamp?
   

These are all great, plausible and reasonable upgrades that Sony can provide. If Sony actually took these suggestions to heart, I know a ton more college students and business people would pick up a PSP. Let's hope Sony has the brains to follow through on some of this.

[Via PSP World]

So you ripped open your PSP and put in a GPS system in it. Now what? You get MapThis! from Deniska. The program uses Google Maps, so it should work all around the world. The maps are customizable, and can even show satellite and hybrid maps. Interestingly, the program works on every version of PSP (albeit a bit differently), so those with firmware 1.0 or 2.7 can enjoy Deniska's ambitious project.

You can see a video after the cut.

Will we see a phone feature appear on the PSP soon? Tom Keating of the VoIP and Gadgets blog seems to think it will. In fact, he considers this more an inevitability than mere speculation. He also suggests that companies like Google are in line to come up with some sort of VoIP service for PSP considering that intergration of IM applications like Google Talk are already headed for handheld devices. And since Google Talk, like the even more widely used Yahoo! Instant Messenger, already has voice built in, it's only natural to expect that a microphone peripheral (say the SOCOM headset) will take advantage of that avenue and allow for phone-like capabilities on Sony's prized portable.

Having a phone attachment on the PSP, especially a free one, is such a neat idea it makes me feel like donating to charity. Of course, several issues need to be addressed. One, the phone attachment needs to be reasonably sized so as not to make the PSP unmanageable. Two, power usage needs to be improved since the PSP's WiFi feature is notorious for its energy suckage. Also, if this development gets pushed back a a year or two, there's always the chance that Sony will do a redesign and integrate these enhancements. Come what may, we're just oh-so-happy that even if Sony isn't maxing out the PSP's abilities, other people are at least trying to on their own.

[photo via iceteks.com]