Playstation Phone, Xperia Play, Get In-Depth Inspection

Sony isn't expected to discuss the PSP's successor until later this evening, but news of Sony's other Playstation portable, the so-called Playstation Phone, has already surfaced.

Engadget has gotten a hold of the Xperia Play, a smartphone not expected to make its debut until next month's Mobile World Conference. The phone features of 4-inch multitouch display, a Playstation-esque gamepad, and a pair of circular touch pads.

Engadget's preview follows a long series of leaked images and videos of the device, which, until now, hasn't been explored in such detail. Though Endaget was unable to confirm the rumors that the device was running on a Qualcomm MSM 8655 chip, the site did analyze many of the phone's other features. Little about the device's gaming capabilities was revealed, however.

Like Sony's imminent PSP2, the Xperia Play will enter into a mobile market already saturated with gaming offerings from Nintendo, Apple and Sony.