Today at a London press conference, Sony has announced its goal to unveil a slim version of the PlayStation Vita to the U.K. on Feb. 7, and it is expected to sell for £180.

The PS Vita PCH-2000 series features a re-designed system that is 20 percent thinner and 15 percent lighter than recent models. Also, the new release will substitute present PS Vita PCH-1000 models with older models set to run their course before being detached from stores.

The trimmer model, also contains a high-definition five-inch LCD screen, permits for up to six hours of gameplay, and replaces the previous proprietary charging cable with a micro USB cable.

In addition to the brand new screen and internal 1GB of memory, numerous other modifications have been made to the 2000 series of PS Vita. Perhaps most notably is extra battery life; getting an increase of 1-2 hours in all uses above the current PS Vita model. There are also alterations to the handheld's casing to make it feel very natural in a gamers' hands, not to mention, a lighter unit and smaller casing.

Sony unveiled the same system in Japan in last October.

The newly publicized PS Vita is available to pre-order starting today. Sony made no official announcement regarding a North American release date. Sony stated that each region will deal with the PS Vita on an independent basis.