According to game site 1up. com's reports, the Sony will likely release a revamped version of its PlayStation Portable (PSP) at the Entertainment Software Association's E3 conference in Los Angeles this June.

The PSP has been one of Sony's blockbuster products, with its sales touching 50 million. However, with increasing competition, Sony needs to make attempts to keep going strong. With all the exciting games lined up for the year - like MotorStorm Arctic Edge, LittleBigPlanet, Rock Band Unplugged, Assassin's Creed, and Madden NFL
10 - it is apparently a practical move on Sony's part to upgrade its hardware.

Citing unnamed sources familiar with the proceedings, 1up said the new handheld - likely to be called the PSP Go! - will feature a slide-out control set, and will be available in 8 GB and 16 GB versions. The device will likely hit the Japanese markets in September and the US markets by October or November.

As per 1up speculations, the new PSP might be improved on the lines of Sony's fading Mylo 2 device. Supporting a touch screen and a camera, the revamped product would offer substantial competition to the new Nintendo DSi, the iPhone and iPod Touch. However, going by the information leaked, the new PSP might overlook a popular request from gamers - that of the inclusion of a second analog stick!