(Note- The PSp is a personal project of mine, it is not intended to be a mass-produced product and is not for sale. Thanks -Ben)

Playstation Portable!  Since it’s this site’s birthday, I thought we’d have a SURPRISE! Here it is, my latest gizmo, the Playstation Portable, or (you guessed it) ‘PSp’ for short.

Hopefully this doesn’t seem like ‘treachery’ to all my Atari-loving fans out there, but SOMEONE had to make a portable CD-ROM based game system! The PSOne, despite its ability to run off wall adapters and hook up to mini screens, just wasn’t portable enough so I had to take things into my own hands. For the whole story on how (and more importantly WHY) I did this, please click here.

Visit my Download page for video of the PSp in action and desktop wallpaper.

This unit is not for sale and I have no plans to mass produce them. Being a modern system and not ancient like an Atari, it’s a safe bet Sony would come after me for it. However, maybe they’ll take the hint and make this themselves (and have me design the case?) A portable Playstation would be aimed towards a different market than the Gameboy Advance and is certainly a more powerful system. And with a different, more adult market the reduced battery time wouldn’t be as big an issue… We can always hope.

Oh, for those who have asked and will ask, I am bidding on a Gameboy Advance-Opening Screwdriver on eBay. When I get it, I shall open my Advance and find a way to rid the world of non-backlit Gameboys!

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As for the mass production of VCSp units, it is still pending and I am working on it. This Playstation thing was just a fun ‘break’ for me…

Also, I have donated a VCSp Rev 5 to Atari Age for the Classic Gaming Relief Auction to benefit the United Way September 11th Fund. Not only is this a great cause, but you could get a VCSp without having to wait! Please visit their site for details.

I wonder if I will win the award for “Most Hyperlinks In A Single Sentence” for that…

Playstation and all related indicia are the trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment. This project was done for educational purposes, experimentation and fun, there is no intention to mass produce this ‘portable Playstation’.

I’m taking a poll of sorts. What I’m wondering is if we had thousands of VCSp’s for sale, would there be enough demand to sell them all? I certainly don’t have thousands of pre-orders yet, but what if I could promise that every buyer could get a unit right away? The units would be smaller, more power efficient and probably cost less as well. Would that ‘open the floodgates’, so to speak?

Phoenix features / main changes from past units:

I’d really like to hear from all of you on this. Please send me an email (subject- ‘support’) and tell me what you think. Your support CAN make a difference. Include all the suggestions you wish! (Note: units running off cold fusion are not feasible – yet)

Don’t forget, you can have your name on the pre-order list for when things start shipping! Any pre-orders sent now will be for a future “Phoenix” unit.

Lastly, if you have a hard time deciding between a Phoenix and a Gameboy Advance, READ THIS!

Hello there, portable classic gaming fans! The Expo was a lot of fun, it was great to meet so many of you! To see some photos I took from the event, please click here.

Also for the first time at the show  people were able to see the new VCSp Gold! The new feature I mentioned is the ability to link 2 VCSp’s together for 2 player games! (Sorry to all the people at the show whom I smoked at “Combat”…he he he) For details on the VCSp Gold and the linking feature, please visit VCSp Models.

All in all, a great show! And who knows what wonders await the classic gaming world before next year’s show…

After routing out parts all weekend and wiring all week, I have finally finished the VCSp Gold, just in time for the expo! I will also be bringing a VCSp Rev 5. The units that I’m bringing also have a new feature that will be revealed at the show… So stay tuned!

After pointless procrastination, I have decided to attend the Classic Gaming Expo in Vegas the weekend of August 11 & 12th.  Why I even had to think twice about it is beyond me…

I shall bring the following:

I will also take pre-orders at the show. Hope to see you all there!

I have teamed up with Kevin Horton, creator of the Puma (a portable Atari 2600 that fits inside a Sega Nomad case, here’s his site) to get some custom PCB’s going for the next revision Atari portable, code named ‘Phoenix’.  Hopefully this unit can be produced in great enough numbers to supply the demand.

That said, I am once again taking pre-orders! Please click here for details!

In the meantime, I am still building Rev 5’s and working on the VCSp Gold.

I was at Best Buy last week, buying all of their pocket TV’s as usual, when I saw something. The latest Casio portable, the EV-4500! This sucker has a 4 INCH screen! So, I asked the guy if he could pull it out of the box. I examined the unit and did my usual ‘guess the internal layout without taking it apart’. I deduced that it could be adapted fairly easily for a VCSp, and the thing came with free batteries so I was sold!

I then decided that this awesome TV would be used to make VCSp GOLD – the absolute best Atari portable ever made.

New Features will include:

4 inch screen, MUCH larger than the 2.5 inch screen on a Rev 5. In fact, the largest full-color screen on any portable system ever (to the best of my knowledge)

Joy pad and paddle control on the right-hand side of unit (like the old days)

Cartridges slide in the back, like a Gameboy.

TV / GAME switch. Just like the old systems had, but in this case it allows you to watch TV on the unit. The antenna pops out the top of the unit.

Classic black, aluminum & wood grain coloring.

Headphone jack.

More features & a bigger screen, but still the same size as a Rev 5.

Full-size RCA video out jacks for play on your television, no need for a special cable.

Totally new look with Real Gold Leaf all over the thing.

Pending Features (yet to be completed):

Runs off normal AA batteries with increased efficiency.

I have paused my pre-sale list as most of you know, but I am taking offers to sell the VCSp Gold. It will be completed near the end of July, and it will be a one-of-a-kind special edition. Pictures will be posted on this site  immediately upon completion. Anyone interested in buying what will no doubt be the ultimate classic gaming machine in history should contact me. When the time comes I shall take the highest offer.