In an effort to reach a different audience, Sony has partnered with Lonely Planet, an international publisher of travel guides, to create interactive travel guides. Using portable PlayStation consoles, travelers can get information through the Passport to ... series on six European destinations: Amsterdam, Barcelona, London, Paris, Prague and Rome. The guides offer insight into restaurants, clubs, attractions and language. It also helps travelers plan their itineraries using calendar, map and slide show functions.
However, toting around a dog-eared paperback travel guide may not be completely passe. I haven’t had an opportunity to see the guides, but according to several reviewers, the guides lack the depth of traditional travel guides. “In London, for instance, the live music scene is almost completely ignored, and the solitary theatre recommendation is an insult,” wrote Nigel Kendall of The London Times.
Although I haven't seen the guides, I'm fairly confident they'll include information on the major tourist sites, such as Charles Bridge in Prague and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam .
Kendall also questioned whether travelers would feel comfortable pulling out a pricey PlayStation console in a foreign city. While I agree that travelers need to be extremely careful, I also realize most don’t leave their expensive cameras or iPods at home just because they fear they’ll be stolen. I could certainly be wrong, but I think a PlayStation console would be less appealing than a nice digital camera.
Personally, I think the guides sound like an interesting idea. Of course, I’d have to get a PlayStation first, but I can see the appeal to this type of high-tech, portable guide. My laptop is great, but a little bulky and it’s not always possible to find a wifi hot spot, which would be necessary to get the information.
If depth is the problem, Lonely Planet can certainly beef up the content, and from the sounds of their press release, they intend to do just that: “The partnership sees the next step in the evolution of the travel guide, creating an immediate and accessible travel resource with a dynamic mix of film, audio, photography and copy-based content. A dedicated website www.PSPpassport.com will offer further content to be downloaded, ensuring the guides are continually relevant and up-to-date.”
The guides cost about $40 (USD), and are currently only sold in Europe, Africa, Middle East, Australia and New Zealand.
