Is Sony About to Revolutionize Android's Gaming Market?

By Mike Schuster Aug 12, 2010 11:20 am

Sources indicate Sony will introduce a PSP Go-style smartphone running a future version of Google's platform.

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Coming on the heels of yet another report showing Android (GOOG) gaining ground against Apple (AAPL), BlackBerry (RIMM), and Nokia (NOK), Sony (SNE) is rumored to have its first Android smartphone in the works. But unlike any run-of-the-mill device, this one aims to completely revolutionize mobile gaming on a smartphone.

And from the sound of things, it won't be another N-Gage.

Sources told Engadget that a Sony device is in the late stages of planning and will be a "cross between the Samsung Captivate and the PSP Go." The phone will have slide-out controls -- similar to the Motorola (MOT) Droid's keyboard -- and reveal a directional pad, analog touch controls, and your standard PSP 4-button, 2-shoulder button layout. The phone specs sound more than adequate: large display, WVGA or better, a possible 5-megapixel camera, all powered by 1GHz Snapdragon CPU. Along with the Android platform, the smartphone will allegedly be branded as both an Xperia and PlayStation device. Early word says the phone looks "pretty damn sexy."

But most exciting, the as-yet-unnamed smartphone will be running as yet-unreleased Android 3.0, aka Gingerbread, and launch a new area of the Android Market meant specifically for its supported games. According to Engadget, the device will be graphically on par with the PSX or PSP and possibly offer such titles as God of War, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, and LittleBigPlanet. But with the smartphone's GPS and augmented reality support, the possibilities are downright mouth-watering.

A network carrier wasn't specified and although a launch date isn't yet nailed down, the smartphone could appear as early as October of this year. While unlikely, there's a chance that it could be addressed in Google's Android announcement today.

This Sony-Google team-up has the makings of an industry-wide game-changer. The Nintendo DS proved the continued marketability of mobile gaming consoles by selling over 130 million units, and Apple is now adopting that trend with cheaper smartphone gaming available at the iPhone's App Store. But Nintendo DS was never intended to be a phone, and neither the iPhone nor iPod Touch -- with their onscreen controls obscuring the action -- were optimal for mobile gaming.

If Sony and Google can successfully combine the two markets -- as well as ride the wave of support, popularity, and developer migration that Android is enjoying -- it could have a serious impact on sales for both mobile gaming and smartphones.

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