Sony PSP has been soundly beaten by Nintendo DS in the sales field of portable game gears. Some diehard PSP partisans still faithfully stick to this bulky instrument. For speciality purpose, like portable navigation.

Sony PSP, with GPS receiver attached on the top.

PSP has an optional GPS unit, the GPS Receiver, and the combi works fine as a navigation device with navigation/map software. Presently, the most popular of them in Japan is Zenrin's "Minna no Chizu" (Everybody's Map), the newest edition being ver. 3.

Zenrin is a Japanese map giant which, effectively, has cornered the Japanese navigation map market (in both hardcopy and digital format).

Zenrin's minna no Chizu 3 on Sony PSP screen. Zoomed in to Tokyo Central Station.

Minna no Chizu 3 for Sony PSP comes in the form of two UMD disks (Sony PSP's media). One for the starter disk, the other for map data.

The digital map covers only Japanese isles, but Zenrin will soon expand its scope to Asian areas, at least.

PSP edition is compatible with Sony's GPS Receiver (of course!) and the self-positioning system using a database of wireless LAN spots, "PlaceEngine (PE)".

You can run Minna no Chizu 3 with only UMD, but it would be not that interesting. To extract the full power, installation of map data into PSP's Memory Stick (MS) is a must. For this, you need an empty space of, at least, 1.7GB in your Memory Stick. Also, a long and arduous procedure this map data installation is... it would take almost 1 hour!

The map's zoom-in, nine scales, is a mediocre performance, not an impressive affair anyway. The most useful function for PSP model could be the pedestrian navigation and its route searching. While you are on foot, or on two wheels (bicycle, not recommended for motorcyclists for obvious reason), you can search your shortest route through obscure backalleys and holes in the fence, at least, within
a radius of 10km.

Now, pedestrian route searching!.

Oh no, real-time navigation with self-position constantly in the center is not possible on PSP. This is not a dedicated pedestrian navigation gear. If you need your position, push X button on the PSP. The calculated position appears on the map instantly, either by GPS receiver or by less accurate wireless LAN positioning, PowerEngine.

Minna no Chizu 3 for PSP wil be sold with a very affordable price tag of 6,090 yen (US$60).

 

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