Internet rumours now strongly suggest the new PSP will be dubbed ‘PSP-GO!’ and almost certainly to be unveiled at the E3 US trade show in June.

American gaming website 1UP.com is claiming “sources directly involved with the new system” have spilled the beans regarding Sony’s new PSP. According to 1UP’s informers Sony will show off the new PSP during the E3 games industry trade show taking place from 2-4 June.

The new handheld is likely to be called “PSP-GO!” in line with “GO!” branded PSP products such as “GO!VIEW” and “GO!CAM”, but this is still guesswork on behalf of the guys at 1UP. What seems more certain is that the UMD disc drive will be a thing of the past (not that it was ever much of a thing for the present) and that download games, including over 100 PSP ‘classics’, will be the way forward from launch.

There will not be a second analogue stick, contrary to the wishes of hopeful gamers, but the sliding control panel that slips below the screen has been pretty much confirmed by 1UP’s sources. Otherwise the control set up remains the same. It is thought likely that there will be two versions offering either 8GB or 16GB internal memory. It is suggested that the new PSP will launch with Gran Turismo Mobile in Japan this September, followed by the US in October / November.

Sony says ‘no comment’.