The PSP 2 is rumored to be ditching the UMD drive that has been carried over numerous generations of the PSP. It has been known to be a battery-sucking component of the PSP since optical drives have a spinning motor. What’s puzzling with this move is, what new media will Sony use? I would guess it would be something proprietary again.

Quoting from Dave Perry’s (Earthworm Jim developer) Twitter account:

I hear Sony FINALLY has the PSP 2. And thank goodness, they’ve removed the stupid battery-sucking UMD disc drive. I’m excited!

The image shown above is what the PSP 2 supposedly will look like (but I would bet it is a Photoshopped image). In my opinion, the sliding mechanism is a pretty bad move. Sliding devices have always been prone to breaking. What if you drop the PSP, would the screen part separate from the body? What if you’re a hardcore gamer, that would mean sliding the mechanism gazillion times, possibly leading to failure of the ribbon cable connecting the screen to the body? Plus, sliding mechanisms will get loose over time no matter what.

More information elsewhere:

• Gadget Rumor: PSP 4000 Sans UMD (Gadget Review)
• RUMOR: New PSP Won’t have UMD Drive? (Game Stooge)
• PSP 2 To Ditch UMD (JGadgets.com)
• PSP 2 To Drop UMD Drive? (NextGen News)
• PSP 2 won’t have a UMD drive (SlipperyBrick)
• PSP 2 To Have No UMD Drive (Sony Insider)
• PSP 2 is ready and UMD-less, claims Earthworm Jim developer (TechChuck)