Sony Computer Entertainment Japan has announced that its new PSP is going to hit Japanese shelves on September 20.

Sony had formerly announced that it would ship worldwide in September but this is the first date.

The PSP Slim will sell for JPY 19,800 and fans can chose from six colours - Piano Black, Ceramic White, Ice Silver, Rose Pink, Lavender Purple and Felicia Blue.

Sony hope that the redesign will help it regain some ground against Nintendo's DS - the new PSP is 33% lighter and 19% slimmer than the original. It also has a video-out port so users can connect to their TVs. Not only that but loading times have been speeded up.

Sony has also said that following the launch in September there will be different SKU's for each region, with North American consumersbeing offered a limited edition Daxter PSP Entertainment pack with a Star Wars branded model coming in October.

Entertainment Packs in the U.S will sell for $199.99, with standalone units retailing for $169.99.