Sure, we all already know that the PSP2 is coming, and that it will include a touchpad, but Sony hasn’t officially confirmed it yet, so we don’t REALLY know at all.  But we do know.  We just don’t officially know.  Well, now we officially know.

In a New York Times interview, Sony exec Kaz Hirai spoke about the future of Sony’s handheld console, and essentially confirmed that the PSP2 will have touchpad controls of some sort;

"Depending on the game, there are ones where you can play perfectly well with a touch panel, but you can definitely play immersive games better with physical buttons and pads…I think there could be games where you're able to use both in combination.”

In the interview, Hirai also talked about the PlayStation Phone, and while he didn’t quite confirms its existence, he hinted at its eventual release;

"We don't want gamers to be asking, 'what's the difference between that and a PSP?' We have to come up with a message that users will understand. It would have to be a product that keeps the PlayStation's strengths intact."

Neither of these pseudo-confirmations are particularly surprising, but it’s always nice when we get validation on what we essentially already knew.  I’m no fan of the PSP in any of its forms, but I have high hopes for the PSP 2.  The addition of a second analog stick went a long way towards convincing me to care about Sony’s next handheld, and the touchpad may have pushed me over the top.

[Source - Destructoid]