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PSP vs. DS Six Months On

Posted by Zonk on from the choose-your-poison dept.

Gamasutra has a follow-up to a previous Question of the Week about the PSP and the DS. The question this past week was: "Which handheld do you think is winning the most hearts, and which the biggest marketshare in each territory?" From the article: " My personal view of the PSP hasn't changed at all. It's not what I'm looking for in a portable system. Seriously, who actually wants to watch a movie on a tiny screen? The DS genuinely has more options for innovation when it comes to unique software, but because the general masses are easily influenced by what is cool, I can foresee less developers spending time on creating innovative software on the DS in an effort to cash in on the popularity (and mass marketing) of the PSP. Still, the DS has sold quite a number of units, also, where I currently reside, the PSP has only just launched recently, so it's still hard to say. -Anonymous "

10 of 153 comments (clear)

  1. Price Drop by Avacar · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Personally, I took advantage of the PSP vs DS to buy a used Game Boy Advanced SP. Sure, I'm years behind on the handheld, but I'll wait out this current battle, and buy in once it is more affordable and has enough interesting games on one of the systems to really pull my interest.

    I do look forward, though, to seeing what a Zelda or Mario game on the DS would be like (and I don't mean a port).

  2. Re:Gee, this is hard. *snicker* by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Let's see...

    DS == good games, nice little portable
    PSP == movie-playing gimmick with few or no games

    Yeah. Gee, whatever would one choose?

  3. Damnit people, leave Zonk alone! by nmaster64 · · Score: 5, Insightful
    What the hell is with all the people bashing Zonk in the last couple posts? No one was bashing when interesting stuff was posted about the X360 or PS3...but when Nintendo gets it's 15 minutes of fame everyone goes whining about the admin being biased and what-not.

    Christ, you people need to grow up. The man is doing his job, leave him alone. He's supplying information, that's what he's there to do, and he's doing a damn good job, so back off. This subject is offtopic anyway (my own post included, I won't exclude myself from the blame).

    1. Re:Damnit people, leave Zonk alone! by oGMo · · Score: 3, Insightful
      What the hell is with all the people bashing Zonk in the last couple posts?

      Because he seems to post things with an inflammatory bent, espcially pro-Nintendo stuff. Now don't get me wrong: I love Nintendo. I grew up with Nintendo. I still have my NES and most of my carts. But come on.

      Things seem to often fall like this: "Microsoft is OK, Sony Sucks, and Nintendo is Where It's At." Always? No, not always. But enough that some people would be upset enough to bash him, obviously.

      I haven't seen many or any people who are really anti-Nintendo, especially on slashdot. So you have to take a serious look at what's going on if a lot of people start complaining about someone who publishes a lot of pro-Nintendo stuff, stuff they don't necessarily disagree with. They have issue then with something else, and maybe it's legitimate.

      The man is doing his job, leave him alone. He's supplying information, that's what he's there to do, and he's doing a damn good job, so back off.

      It seems a number of people disagree.

      --

      Don't think of it as a flame---it's more like an argument that does 3d6 fire damage

  4. Uninformed response by Bastian · · Score: 3, Insightful

    (not that uninformed is bad - perceptions of people who own neither system are what will ultimately decide which becomes dominant.)

    Now, here's what I see as the difference between the DS and the PSP:

    1. The PSP costs twice as much.
    2. The PSP won't fit in my pocket as easily.
    3. The PSP's battery life is so short that it's not really all _that_ portable. For example, it probably won't be able to keep me entertained for the length of a long flight.
    4. With the PSP, I'm paying for oodles and oodles of features that I know I will not use.
    5. I can play all those Game Boy games that are still on heavy rotation on the DS.
    6. The PSP costs twice as much.

  5. PSP best for homebrew by StonedRat · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I love my PSP, but only for homebrew, emus, etc. God knows why Sony wish to stop people using the PSP for the only thing it's good for.

    --
    "Religion is the most malevolent of all mind viruses." - Arthur C. Clarke.
    1. Re:PSP best for homebrew by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

      Sony takes a hit on every PSP they sell. They make money on every UMD they sell. If people can play with the hardware without buying any software, then they dont make any money. I think God is not the only one who knows why they do it...

  6. Re:DS Baby! by cowscows · · Score: 2, Insightful

    I'm going to add another observation on the DS. I don't have a PSP, so I can't fully compare them, but here goes my comment anyways.

    When I evacuated for the hurricane a couple weeks ago, I ended up staying with some of my girlfriend's family, including six kids ranging from the ages of 1-12. Our two DS's were very popular with them, and were the cause of much fighting and grabbing. Portions of the DS even spent some time in the one year-old's mouth.

    When it was all said and done, neither of them were damaged in any noticeable way, and they're both entirely functional. Surprisingly enough, I was even able to find all of the games after a mildly extensive search of the house.

    The DS is a solid piece of hardware for sure. I don't think twice about throwing it in my bag and going about my day.

    --

    One time I threw a brick at a duck.

  7. Re:In a nutshell... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    I agree with everything there except:

    "third party add-ons don't count"

    Why the hell not? The point is playing the video, not who you bought it from.

    PSP screen is bigger anyway, so it's still a better portable video player.

  8. Firmware; movie selection by tepples · · Score: 3, Insightful

    the PSP has the better screen and homebrew possibilities.

    The supply of PSP units with 1.50 firmware on the used market is dwindling fast as homebrew players snap them all up on eBay, and the 1.51 or later firmware is not cracked to my knowledge. The most common Nintendo DS firmware, on the other hand is fully cracked ("PassMe" and "WiFiMe"), and even the new version in Chinese units and some Japanese units has a preliminary crack for it.

    The DS is cheaper, but the PSP can play movies.

    The Nintendo DS plus a portable DVD Video player is $250 just like the PSP, and there are a lot more lawfully available feature length movies on DVD Video than on a PSP compatible format. In fact, Disney/Pixar's Toy Story is the only G-rated movie available on UMD Video in North America. Read More...