PSP gains Skype, PS3 hits 3.9 million sold
updated 04:20 pm EST, Tue January 8, 2008
PSP gains Skype
Sony has confirmed that its PSP handheld will soon support Skype, the free VoIP program. Like the desktop versions of Skype, the PSP version will allow people to make free calls to other Skype users, and paid calls to landlines and cellphones; for convenience, contact lists and account details will be viewable (and alterable) without first connecting to a PC. The PSP client will become available with a system update later this month, and will add a Skype icon under the home menu's Network category.
The company is meanwhile claiming to have reached 3.9 million sales of the PlayStation 3, following a holiday sales period it defines as running between November 23rd and December 31st. During the holiday season alone, it sold 1.2 million consoles. The PSP sold 1.4 million new units though, and even the company's PS2 system sold 1.3, despite having first been launched in 2000.
The PS3 continues to lag behind Microsoft's Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii. The Wii in particular has been a runaway hit, continually selling out of the approximately 1.8 million new units produced each month. The console is $150 cheaper than the least expensive PS3, and roughly $30 cheaper than the lowest-end 360.
