I am ready for this rumor to be true:Â The PSP2 (really, at this point the fourth iteration of the PSP) will not have a UMD drive.
I wouldn’t cry any tears if UMD went the way of Betamax, Minidisc, to some extent the Memory Stick, and any other form of proprietary format that SONY loves. I’m just saying.
Don’t get me wrong. I really like the two games I play on the PSP. DJ MAX and uh. . .
I do like the fantastic screen, and the combination of Handbrake and PSPware really opened up my media options with the system. Time shifting media that I own has been the best use of the system so far. Subtitles are clear, and the motion is fluid and easy to watch. Plus the camera, the one that never made it to the United States, is pretty cool.
But I am ready, so ready, for the UMD to just fail as a media format. Never mind I have more than two dozen UMD games sitting around.  I am tired of sitting and listening to the tiny little disc spin up in its inadequate protective housing. I think I’m ready to transition to the all digital download for games. And to be honest, I think that SONY is ready for that transition as well.