Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) this week announced the launch date of the highly-anticipated PlayStation Vita portable game console and also revealed the final specifications of the device. Apparently, the PS Vita will become available in Japan in mid-December, 2011, and will have shorter battery life than the predecessor, PlayStation Portable (PSP).

Sony PlayStation Vita will become available in Japan on December 17, 2011, with pre-orders starting on October 15, 2011. Available at ¥24 980 ($325) for Wi-Fi model and ¥29 980 ($390) for 3G/Wi-Fi model, PS Vita at launch will be accompanied with 26 software titles along with a broad selection of peripherals and accessories. PS Vita 3G/Wi-Fi model will support data communication prepaid plans provided by NTT Docomo.

In addition, Sony also revealed precise specs of its PS Vita this week. Apparently, the new game console will only work for about 3-5 hours during gameplay, for 5 hours during video playback and for 9 hours while music playback. By contrast, the PSP could work for 5-7 hours during gameplay depending on brightness of the screen.

Earlier this year Amazon began to accept pre-orders onto Wi-Fi and 3G/Wi-Fi versions of PlayStation Vita in the U.S. and promised to ship them on the 31st of December, 2011. BestBuy Canada also initiated to accepti pre-orders on the consoles with the plan to release them on the 30th of March, 2012.

Sony PlayStation Vita is based on a system-on-chip with four ARM Cortex-A9 cores, PowerVR SGX543MP4+ graphics engine (accompanied by 128MB of memory) and a memory controller. The new portable game console has 5" multi-touch OLED screen with 960x544 resolution, typical set of PSP buttons, two cameras (front and rear), Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity, GPS, six-axis motion sensing system (three-axis gyroscope, three-axis accelerometer), three-axis electronic compass, Bluetooth 2.1+EDR controller, integrated speakers and microphone as well as multi touchpad located on the back side of the system. For the first time, a portable entertainment system will feature two analog sticks, which enable a wider range of game genres to be brought into the portable experience.

Tags: Sony, Vita, Playstation, PSP