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PSP And DS Duke It Out
With the looming launch of Sony's handheld console, X-Play has a series of articles comparing and contrasting the new and shiny portable gaming consoles. The articles are broken into three parts, The PSP vs. the DS, The DS vs. the PSP, and The Final Verdict. From the final article: "Are two screens better than one? Are graphics all that matter? In this third and final edition of my Sony PSP vs. Nintendo DS editorial, I'll compare each handheld bit-by-bit and determine which of the two is worth your hard-earned cash."
Also, PSP games cost $50, compared to the $30-40 DS games. Not to mention the cost of memory sticks, if you want to use the PSP's MP3/media viewing features.
Ive had a DS since xmas and I havnt been able to play it much. Ive done a little bit of mario 64 but thats it. there are no games out yet. sprung isnt my idea of a game. Right now its just a $150 alarm clock. I'm still optimistic though. wheres my pokemon puzzle league
really bored? My blog
Fast forward to a year or so ago. Comcast had a TV network named G4 (a console gaming oriented network). Needing more market share, they bought the Tech TV network and quickly changed hosts and show formats to better push thier "marketing agenda" to draw more advertising dollars.
Feeling a bit betrayed because their once-beloved TSS/CFH had changed dramatically, many now have hard feelings about what the (former) nettwork has evolved into.
Nitpicky, I know, but the DS has 802.11something wifi in addition to its (presumably) proprietary short-range protocol. Just no games that use it yet. Are there any PSP games yet that use the wireless connection for Internet play, or are they all currently short-range, too?
Honor Among Slackers. A veri
Twisted Metal does internet play out of the box.
I have a DS and a Japanese PSP and several games for each (including one US game - Wipeout Pure - for the PSP). In response to a few of your concerns I can say the following:
:) YMMV.
- First party development
The PSP has better launch titles than the DS currently has DS-specific games. I say this as a Nintendo fanboy (my opinion will change when Kart and Zelda games are released).
- The discs.
My PSP has handled the not-exactly smooth NYC subway for a month w/o skipping (the disc only spins during loads, not continuously during play). This could be an issue with movies, but that is what high-capacity MemoryStick Duos are for.
- The battery life.
Battery life is decent, enough for one or two gaming "sessions" (i.e. 1+ hrs. of gaming in one sitting) a day. If you want to whip out the PSP for a quick race or ten (of Wipeout, for instance), while sitting in the cafe, battery life is not an issue.
Technically, the PSP is superb and the screen is to die for. The games will be there, though PS1/2 games may not make the console->handheld transition as well as SNES titles did. The cost is going to set folks back $350+ (assuming they want to use their new toys), and whether folks are willing to pay is the real issue.
Let's get drunk and delete production data!
Well, so long as you don't mind having no multiplayer on GBA games and no option to do any of the link-up features with the Gamecube. Oh, and as long as you don't want to play original Gameboy or Gameboy Colour games.
Let's face it, Nintendo's implementation of backward-compatibility on the DS is pretty half-arsed.
It depends on the size of the memory stick. You can get over 200 songs on a 1gb stick. Power consumption when reading from the memory stick isn't an issue. The UMD access and the screen is what drains the battery. If you turn off the screen and only access the memory card I'm sure it will last for several hours. The PSP is actually lighter than the DS (9.2 vs. 9.7 oz). It is heavier than an Ipod which is 5.6 oz.
Just to correct some facts:
PSP games are $50
First party PSP games are $40, third party are $50. That's current pricing anyway, we can expect changes I'm sure over time.
1 GB cards start around $150, but you still get less than TV resolution
Actually, they start at $110. And a 512mb (which will easily hold a couple of hours of video at excellent quality) starts at around $55. The picture quality on DVD rips is stunning, the screen on the PSP really is top notch.
---- Den ene knappen er powerknapp, den andre er Bender voice knapp "Bite My Shiny Metal Ass"
You need a $40 3rd party extension, but that's still cheaper than the PSP. And it has good reviews too. This was an SP product that happens to work on the DS due to backwards support. The good thing about this is that it isn't controlled by Sony like their fucking UMD that no one else can use. Anyone with a flash card reader can use the DS for movies. The downside is that it's another item to carry with you which is bad for those without big pockets or bags. Given that the old GBA roms are a known format, I'm guessing that there will be a lot more third party apps for the DS than with the PSP. Particularly when someone figures out how to get the DS to play games over WiFi without a physical disk. This is a known feature of the DS, but it's not a public spec yet.
--
Want a free iPod?
Or try a free Nintendo DS, GC, PS2, Xbox. (you only need 4 referrals)
Wired article as proof
Can the optical drive in it read/play mini-DVDs/mini-CDs?
No - it can only read UMD discs.
Can you use the craptacular cheap Memory Sticks (not the Memory MG Sitck Duo Extra Gate Super WHAT THE FSCK?!!/Denis Leary) ones?
No, it will only take DUO (which means small in Sony speak) cards - either Pro or not-pro, that doesn't matter.
if i can drop two or three lowly compressed DiVX movies on a 1 Gig stick, i'm in
Yes you can, I do that already. It's not strictly-speaking Divx (it's some baseline mp4 codec) but there are plenty of free (beer) tools which will do the conversion for you.
FYI, I use a 0.5gb card and get a couple of hours video on it at high quality, cost me $60. A 1gb is about $110.
---- Den ene knappen er powerknapp, den andre er Bender voice knapp "Bite My Shiny Metal Ass"
HAHAHAHAHHA!!! Have you not read what the target demographic is for game systems these days? Talk about being out of touch with reality....
Keep Austin Weird!
Of course when you provide dollar figures that are way off, the DS does seem a better value.
In Canada, the DS is $200, PSP with one free game is $350. The games can be purchased for about $50. Therefore, the system is more around $300 in cost. As for DS games, those are much cheaper at around $35-40.
If a user is interested in purchasing a 1GB card, you can buy those easily for $100 if you are willing to possibly wait a week or two for a sale.
Sony seems to be making the PSP slightly cheaper here. Probably a good idea seeing as how the DS hasn't been selling well at all. Despite all those claims of stores selling out of them, there was always an ample supply at every store I ever checked here.
Remember, all of these prices are in Canadian dollars.
You may not have noticed it, but the DS' screen is _much_ better than the Gameboy Advance SP. Try playing something like Pinball of the Dead on both systems. My scores actually improve when playing on the DS because of its superior screen; the sprites are much larger and the screen doesn't blur when there's a lot of action.
It was NOT battery life that killed the Lynx.
What happened was its creator(Epyx, you may remember their games), after developing such a wondersystem, ran out of money to distribute and market it. So they turned to Atari. Atari didn't have money at that point either(between the comatose 7800 and moribund ST) and they never learned marketing, either. Their only successes were early on with the 2600 and arcade titles, where being first was all that was needed. They simply couldn't get the Lynx into stores in a timely and well-promoted fashion.
Compare that with the Nintendo juggernaut of 1989 and it's no surprise that I ended up with a GB myself.