Sony Unveils the PS Vita TV and Slimmer Vita Handheld

Dave Knott writes "Sony today announced the PS Vita TV box. Measuring 6.5cm by 10.5cm, it can play Vita games on your television, stream content via HDMI or wirelessly, and play all the existing PlayStation Network content available on the standard Vita platform. This is seen by some analysts as an attempt by Sony to compete with such devices as the Ouya and Apple TV. The PS Vita TV is so far announced for a Japan-only release in early 2014 at a price of approximately $100 US. In related news, Sony also announced a lighter, slimmer, more colorful iteration of the standard Vita handheld console." The $100 model does not come with a controller; a $150 model was also announced that will include a Dualshock 3 and an 8G memory card.

Comments

multiple account support!

[neuro88]

I think this is a great idea if they can finally start allowing your vita to have multiple accounts at once. Currently, the only way to switch accounts is to reset the thing to factory defaults (which involves watching an annoying video when it starts for the "first" time), as well as format your memory card. This is pretty inconvenient on a portable, but would be flat out ridiculous on more of a home console type system.

Re:multiple account support!

[fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

This is Sony: everything they know about 'sharing' they learned from RIAA fishing expeditions...

Re:multiple account support!

[fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

Try to adopt a historical perspective:

The last time we were peasants who paid our feudal masters for the right to toil on his lands for a pittance and own next to nothing, we had bubonic plague and didn't have cable TV. Truly, a triumph of the human spirit!

Re:Vita?

[ackthpt]

Is this thing still around? I thought it had gone the way of the Zune.

Hey Sony, you could sell more of these if you just hid the ads online in your customer database and waited for someone to hack you again.

Maybe you could hack it and install Ubuntu on it. (c:

Re:Vita?

[fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

Its Vita signs are weak; but it isn't dead yet.

Re:What about the third dimension?

[glavenoid]

It doesn't even *have* a 3rd dimension, you insensitive clod.

Re:What about the third dimension?

[ackthpt]

I have read the third dimension is 15mm.

Gonna take an awful lot of these to reach the cookie jar. Perhaps they could come out with an e-reader with some nice thick books on it.

Japanese release, eh?

[fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

I'd be curious to know how (though probably never will) regional price sensitivities will factor in to the decision to launch or not launch a device such as this in various areas:

Especially now that 'current-gen handheld' is dangerously close to 'surprisingly endurable even on a large TV, if TV-out exists, and probably shares many components with common cellphones', the notion of shoving a cost-optimized version of one into a box along with a component video cable and calling it a console in markets too price sensitive to be good sellers for your 'serious' console might actually work pretty well. However, outside of the hardcore, it might work a little too well even among people who could afford your 'real' console; but really just want to putz around on something so why pay more?

I wonder if that will factor into Sony's regional release strategy: a screenless, battery-less, not wildly powerful Cortex-A9/SGX543 ARM SoC board isn't likely to be getting more expensive as time passes, and online sales from the back catalog are likely to be either pure profit or pure cost recovery of a game that flopped long ago; but having such a potentially-aggressively-priced option on the market might not help move newer products...

Dying handhelds

[TJamieson]

This seems to be Sony's hedging of their bets that maybe handheld gaming devices are in their dying days. They get to turn the Vita into a pseudo-console/PS4 accessory and keep developers on the Vita platform in general. Maybe this is what Nintendo should be doing instead of a 2DS?

Re:Dying handhelds

[luther349]

vita did shitty due to its like 3 good games and overpriced memory. Nintendo is kinda in the opposite hear there 3ds is doing awesome the wii-u is collecting dust.

Re:Dying handhelds

[maccodemonkey]

This seems to be Sony's hedging of their bets that maybe handheld gaming devices are in their dying days. They get to turn the Vita into a pseudo-console/PS4 accessory and keep developers on the Vita platform in general. Maybe this is what Nintendo should be doing instead of a 2DS?

Nintendo's problem is really that the Wii U doesn't have any games. 3DS games are designed for dual screen and touch, so you can't put those on a TV, and a Wii U accessory to stream the games that don't exist for the Wii U solves nothing.

The approach they are taking is probably the best course of action: Fix the lack of games on the Wii U.

Re:Dying handhelds

[aiadot]

Dying handhelds are a thing of the NA and EU (I don't like the "west" generalization). In Japan, handhelds are the main platforms. The thing is that for a global company like sony to release a region exclusive console simply doesn't make sense in the big picture(specially now under the "One Sony" plan). That is why in my opinion the VitaTV can potentially be a stroke of genius.

1) In Japan there are these popular PS3 accessories called Nasne and Torne which help integrate the PS3 and the TV more allowing TV show recording alongside a few other minor features. The vita TV seems to be the PS4 version of these devices.

2) In the US and EU, handheld is not as popular anymore and, as a result, many devs don't have that much of interest in them either. On the other hand, smartTV boxes are a hot topic and there is no killer product in the market yet. A playstation smartTV could be the killer device in this still underexploited market as it is the only one the fuses a huge variety of game genres, media consumption and affordable price. If it succeeds it could attract devs to the vita platform even if they are not directly targeting the vita handheld. Japanese devs would be more likely to bring their games overseas (the Vita has a very good library in Japan), American and European devs their own Vita exclusives games.

3) Developing countries. The PS4 and the Vita are just too expensive for the average citizen of countries like China/Brazil/India/Russia/etc(for many reasons including local politics). A cheap PS2 level home console that could still play newly released games could help sony get a huge share in these regions.

If wasn't for the proprietary memory, the vita ecosystem could easily dominate the market.

Re:Dying handhelds

[tlhIngan]

1) In Japan there are these popular PS3 accessories called Nasne and Torne which help integrate the PS3 and the TV more allowing TV show recording alongside a few other minor features. The vita TV seems to be the PS4 version of these devices.

So THAT'S where Microsoft got their Xbox One ideas. Only a matter of time before it records, or maybe that's why the Japanese release is delayed... built in video recording...

Re:Dying handhelds

[Osgeld]

funny psp was shitty due to its like 3 good games, overpriced memory, and a new model every freaking year with all new accessories

seems they did not learn much from psp

Re:Dying handhelds

[Sockatume]

And practically for free, too. They already have the hardware suppliers and game developers and software catalogue. It'd be a mistake for them not to cover the "microconsole" market when the risk is so low.

Re:Dying handhelds

[Sockatume]

There's a PS3 TV device in Europe called Play TV. It is not very successful but it has a niche as a cheap way of making a PS3 into a PVR.

Re:Dying handhelds

[luther349]

true at launch the psp had the same problem but it had a massive library of good games by the time it ended granted that took like the first 5 years of its life to get there. also sandisk closed thpse overproce cards and made cheap ones the price on pro duo went from insane to nearly overnight. as for the new models there was a reason for this. psp 1001 model original fat model with ir quit bulky and heavy and power hungry.it was also known for the umd door spring to fail. psp 2000 slimmer lighter ir removed it was unused anyways umd door no longer spring loaded. and used less power allowing for a smaller battery. ram was also expanded for faster load times. psp 2001 same as a 2000 but with a new motherboard to fix the Pandora battery hack. psp 3000 same as a 2001 but with a built in microphone for voice chat. psp go umd drive removed memory card format changed and went for a phone style slide desine for smaller form factor sonys attempt at a online dlc only system it was a complete fail and sat on shelves. the 3000 was also still being made and sold as i said it was a experiment. but it did not matter what psp you got other then the go all the games would play fine in all of them.

Re:Dying handhelds

[Therad]

The problem is that most 3ds-games have dual screen in mind so nintendo will not be able to ditch one screen.

The 2DS strategy is simply a trick to get more children to play nintendo games. It is more durable than 3DS and no 3D (if you are afraid that your children will be damaged by that)

Re:Dying handhelds

[Aerokii]

Nintendo's already sort of bridging the gap- it's a fascinating strategy really. They've got a console that works on a TV, but can also be played using only its own controller with built in screen. In addition to that, they're working on improving integration with their current handheld, the 2/3DS for games such as the upcoming Smash Bros, allowing multiplayer between the handheld and console versions. Personally I'm still torn on whether or not to get both!

It's a bit risky- they're not the most powerful console on its own, and tablets/phones have hurt the traditional handheld gaming market, but the 3DS has been doing very well lately with a lot of really great games (I haven't really put Animal Crossing: New Leaf down since I got it.) It will be very interesting to see where they go from here.

Re:Dying handhelds

[gl4ss]

well they could do a supergameboy kind of accessory for wii u..

Re:Sounds good

[TechyImmigrant]

What's wrong with the OLED?

Re:What about the third dimension?

[mcgrew]

I'm offtopic here, just wanted to say I agree with your sig.

awesome!

[Gravis Zero]

it's like buying a half-assed PS3 with equally half-assed games! games designed for a small screen are not going to translate well to a large screen. i'll stick to my PS3 and (soon) PS4.

Re:awesome!

[10101001 10101001]

it's like buying a half-assed PS3 with equally half-assed games!

I'd say it's more like the GB Player all over again, but as you note without the massive good collection of games.

games designed for a small screen are not going to translate well to a large screen. i'll stick to my PS3 and (soon) PS4.

See, the former is not the issue in theory*. The latter is more the issue. If you're likely to have to buy a bunch of games anyways to enjoy the system, you might as well get a full console. The catch, of course, is if the games are cheap enough (that's Ouya's approach, anyways) then you can get away with getting a lot of potentially casual gamers to plunk down some relatively cheap cash (a $100 unit) to play some casual games. Somehow, I doubt Sony will do that because it's liable to enrage the small fan base it already has who will feel cheated either in having to repurchase games or that their library has effectively depreciated in value by 90% or something.

*Well, that's the rub. PSP came out as being a very high-end handheld. As a result, it was a sucky battery-life handheld. But at the same time, its move towards a console makes it a sucky console-power platform. Really, Sony just doesn't seem to get the whole point that the PSP is just too much of a middle-ground to be any sort of major success. It doesn't help that Android has heavily invaded their high-end handheld position or that the Ouya is basically the same concept. Really, the only reason the GB Player didn't have the same sort of blow-back as I see this having is the GB player (1) finally allowed people with adult hands to, for long hours, play GBA games, (2) there were a lot of decent GBA games, (3) there was never an expectation that the GBA was some sort of new-age, wow graphical experience (it was in many ways the answer to people's desire for a portable SNES), and (4) the GB Player was a relatively cheap add-on to a system which basically went hand-in-hand with having a GBA in the first place--ie, already being a somewhat devote fan towards the company--(and I'd argue the biggest flaw with the GB Player was more to do with not supporting multiple games simultaneous, split screen, on-screen link-up, or having a decent long link cable).

So, yea, a very wordy way of say I mostly agree though I think there's room to quibble over some of the details.

Re:awesome!

[Anonymous Coward]

It's too bad Ouya turned out to be such a massive fail.

Re:awesome!

[Sockatume]

You are not the target audience. Sony already has your money. The untold millions who might buy a $100 Android phone or tablet over a Vita or PS4 are the real audience.

Re:awesome!

[gspeare]

I don't have a PSP and wanted to play Valkyria Chronicles 2 on a real screen with a real controller. This sounds like exactly what I was looking for...except for the Japan-only part.

Re:What about the third dimension?

[glavenoid]

Yeah, you know the old system I'm talking about. It's been so long since they changed it I wonder if many of the remaining members here remember it, or were even around at the time. I don't know if I'm crazy or what, but IMO the moderation system in general really started skewing towards more punitive moderations once the metamod system changed, since many people just gave up trying to figure it out and couldn't negate the unfair moderations on well-reasoned though unpopular opinions.

Since I'm complaining, I'm unreasonably annoyed there's no way to undo a normal moderation anymore without leaving a comment, thus removing all mods in that thread. What idiot decided this was a good implementation?

Sony does surprisingly well

[rsilvergun]

they don't sell a lot at once, but they sell consistently for years and years. Plus with a smaller base of software they can count on what they do put out selling nearly 1 to 1 with the console. Basically, it's the same model Nintendo had going with the Gamecube.

I already have one

[Anubis IV]

It streams video to my TV from Sony's video delivery platform, plays Sony games on the TV, does Netflix, etc., etc., etc..

For some reason they call it a Playstation 3 though...

Re:Vita?

[Stormwatch]

Took me a bit to get the pun, because you're pronouncing it wrong. It's "vee-tah".

Shoot it in the face.

[atari2600a]

ny portable playstation product doesn't want to live. No one cares how solid the platform is. No one cared how solid a neo-geo platform was either, or even how simple it was to program for the Game Gear because it reused 99% of the SMS platform. NO ONE'S GOING TO BUY IT, JUST LIKE NO ONE BOUGHT THE LAST ONE.

Re:Now all they need....

[Dzimas]

Is to convince people to BUY PS Vita and it's games. It has the worst adoption rate of ALL handheld games, Even the out of date PSP still outsells it.

Then it's a good thing that the Vita TV will also play PSP and PSOne games.

Lack of touchscreen is not a problem.

[goruka]

If using the DualShock 3 poses the problem of lack of touchscreen for some games, I'm sure Sony will allow using a PSVita as controller, so you can actually.. oh, wait..

Re:Vita?

[luther349]

just like with early psp they have been hacking the via right along but then sony patches it. it was not until hardware flaws and of course the keys where found did permanent easy psp hacks come along. i know lots of people who still have there originals due to the better game library and no other reason. original psp where lets face the handhelds for grownups and of course hackers thats was small to start with and now is being beaten out my tablets and phones.lets not forget the massive overpricing of the memory cards.

Re:Sounds good

[Stormwatch]

TN LCDs can be kind of yellowish too, IPS LCDs are better but more expensive.

Re:What about the third dimension?

[The Grim Reefer]

6.5cm by 10.5cm by what?

...Nothing. It only exists in 2 dimensions. They did say it was thinner, didn't they? ;-)

Re:What about the third dimension?

[The Grim Reefer]

Actually, I don't even understand what the point of the new meta moderation system is. It seemed more like "additional" moderation the last time I bothered. But it's been so long since I did it that all I remember, was that it made no sense to me.

Theres the winning strategy

[Osgeld]

That made so many people just shit rainbows with their psp! Wasteland of shovelware, half the features are broke or useless and what does Sony do? release a slim model, that doesnt work with any of the shit you already have.

Good job guys, thats how you dominate the handheld market, not that pussy shit like Nintendo did ... backwards compatibility for damn near 30 years and a great library of games, no sir! its fucking usb cables and controller sales!

Re:Theres the winning strategy

[CronoCloud]

what does Sony do? release a slim model, that doesnt work with any of the shit you already have.

But if you already have a PSP, why would you need a new one?

And although Nintendo's portable platforms did have some backwards compatibility later versions of some of the handhelds reduce it. The GBA Micro doesn't play GB or GBC games for example. There's also no GBA slot on newer DS's.

Re:Theres the winning strategy

[Aerokii]

You're right regarding backward compatibility- but at least having the OPTION is nice. Sure the 3DS can't play GBA games, but it still does DS games just fine. Likewise did the GBA happily play GB games... the Wii played Gamecube, and the Wii U played Wii. I don't need to be able to plug NES carts into the Wii U, but at least continuing to support the previous gen is nice. One less thing for me to hook into the TV.

As a man with a broken PS2, the main thing holding me back from buying one of the cheap new models of PS3 is that lack of backwards compatibility. It's disappointing, but what can you do.

Re:Now all they need....

[Osgeld]

who cares, psp already does that as well, on your tv, whats my incentive to shell out more money for 5 games that dont suck

Re:Sounds good

[Sockatume]

They described it as best-of-class at the conference, so I'm sure it's IPS.

Re:What about the third dimension?

[Sockatume]

Five thousand kilometers. Or, y'know, much less than the other two dimensions, from context.

Re:Now all they need....

[Chris Mattern]

Then it's a good thing that the Vita TV will also play PSP and PSOne games.

Only selected PSOne games. And you'll have to buy them again. Got a PSOne game on CD? Got a PSP game on UMD? Vita don't play that. Here, buy it all over again to get the download.

Re:Now all they need....

[CronoCloud]

True, but once you do, you can have it on multiple devices at once.

Re:Say no to sony streaming.

[CronoCloud]

Just like pirates to use some "l33t" format like .mkv when living room media devices don't support it. Use MPEG4 containers.

A lot of people are missing the best feature

[brunes69]

A lot of people are harping on about how lame this is without noticing the most important feature of this device.

This device can do anything a Vita can do, *INCLUDING PS4 REMOTE PLAY*. IE, with this device you can play your PS4 on your bedroom TV while the PS4 is in the basement. This is a huge feature because it basically makes you able to extend your PS4 to any room in the house for $100.

Furthermore, this works over the internet, just like the Vita. So you can bring this tiny little box on trips and hook it up to the hotel TV to play your PS4 games on the road.

It is a HUGE product. I think Sony is not marketing it properly because no one is understanding all the features.

Re:A lot of people are missing the best feature

[Therad]

Will the games play remotely without a disc in the PS4? And will it stream fullHD (since vita doesn't have it)?

Re:A lot of people are missing the best feature

[avandesande]

This could be really cool if it could 'split screen' multiplayer FPS across televisions. This would be like having to PS4s.

Re:Now all they need....

[Sockatume]

I imagine that people who already own a lot of PSP and PSone games will just play them on their PSPs and PSones. I haven't had the latter since the early '00s and never owned the former so they're actually a big part of the Vita's appeal.

Never succeed

[davidmcg]

I was one of those who purchased a PS Vita sometime ago. I found the selection of games to be mostly casual style games. The cost of the games is prohibitive to anyone but those with disposable income. I've seen a number of games on there cost upwards of £29, where the same game can be bought for IOS for a lot less (£2 or below). Until Sony sort this out, it's always going to be a niche player (if that) and nothing more. It a shame, as the hardware is the PS Vita is powerful enough to have some serious killer games on there. I'm selling mine if you're interested :)

Re:Now all they need....

[Lumpy]

REally? where do I insert the disc?
Oh wait, you cant.

Seriously, Vita should have been huge

[TheSkepticalOptimist]

While many people won't admit it, most people usually enjoy fingering something in the back to give them enjoyment.

Re:Say no to sony streaming.

[CronoCloud]

MKV is obviously not the best container format if it doesn't work in commonly available consumer devices.

Or do you think that people who use FLAC and Ogg Vorbis are "1337" poseurs too?

For the most part, yes, I do consider them poseurs. Just like the college educated hipsters wearing 50's bowling shirts and drinking PBR.