Sony’s PlayStation Portable, or PSP, has the unique feature of accepting a memory stick for extra storage. Having a memory stick inserted offers lots of different benefits to the user, from using the PSP as a portable media player to playing games without having a disc inserted. Users who do not know which kind of memory cards for PSP to buy, however, may encounter problems, as not all flash-based storage is alike.

The first three generations of the PSP, referred to as the PSP-1000, PSP-2000, and PSP-3000, respectively, accept a proprietary memory stick called the Sony Memory Stick Pro Duo. It is a smaller version of Sony’s Memory Stick Pro, and a Memory Stick Pro will not fit into the memory card slot on any PSP. The PSP Go, released in the United States in October 2009, accepts a different form of Memory Stick referred to as a Memory Stick Micro. This even smaller memory card complements the internal storage in the PSP Go. You can get both Memory Stick Pro Duos and Memory Stick Micros in sizes up to 32 gigabytes.

One of the largest benefits of having a Memory Stick installed is being able to download games directly from the PlayStation Network onto your PSP without having to make a trip to the store or wait for it to be shipped to you. Running games from the Memory Stick instead of the UMD drive will also cut down on loading times and save battery life.

Many other Sony devices are compatible with the Memory Stick Pro Duos and the Memory Stick Micros accepted by the PSP. Sony digital cameras are known to use Sony’s numerous flash memory solutions, and Sony Ericcson phones will frequently accept Memory Stick Micros as extra storage for media. A newer Memory Stick, the Memory Stick XC, has been announced and will support maximum sizes of two terabytes, but it is currently unknown if future PSPs will make use of this more advanced format.

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