Sony has finally come out with its replacement for the PlayStation Portable, and it's impressive. The PlayStation Vita takes the PSP's signature design and adds more processing power, optional 3G, dual analog sticks, and an amazingly bright, colorful OLED screen. The result: a handheld gaming device that eclipses the PlayStation 2 in power, and comes very close to the capabilities of the PlayStation 3 . Sony made some strange decisions with the Vita's media playback abilities and Web browser, but for gaming it's incredible, making it our Editors' Choice for handheld game systems, and a significant step ahead of the Nintendo 3DS (4 stars, $169.99).
Editor's Note: This review is based on tests performed on the Sony PlayStation Vita (3G/Wi-Fi) model. The Wi-Fi only model ($249) is identical to the $299 3G/Wi-Fi model, without 3G connectivity.
Design
Out of the box, the PS Vita looks like the PlayStation Portable at first glance, but the overall build quality of the PS Vita is much better, right down to the small details. Without a pop-out door for UMDs or a sliding design, the PS Vita feels much more solid than the PSP, and despite their small size the analog sticks have just enough give for responsive control without feeling loose. Besides the proprietary USB port and headphone jack on the bottom, every port and slot on the PS Vita is covered by a door. The top edge holds the game card slot and an accessory port, the bottom edge holds the memory card slot, and the left edge holds the SIM card slot. The handheld weighs a solid 9.8 ounces, and at 3.3 by 7.2 by 0.7 inches (HWD) it's almost the same as the PSP in shape.
The layout is pure PlayStation, with a direction pad, four face buttons, Start and Select buttons, a PlayStation button, two shoulder buttons, and two analog sticks. The top edge of the PS Vita holds the power button and volume controls. While there are only two shoulder buttons instead of four like on the PlayStation 3 controller, the front touch screen and back touchpad have enough input for no-compromise control, unlike the PSP with its single analog pad. The back touchpad sits seamlessly on the back of the PS Vita, without a frame or bezel, while two rubberized grips give your fingers a comfortable place to rest when you're not using the touchpad.
Hardware
The 5-inch OLED touch screen is gorgeous. It's bright, colorful, and extremely sharp. Its 960-by-544-pixel resolution makes it almost exactly equivalent to many current-generation large-screen Android phones, and not quite as high-resolution as the iPhone 4S or several 720p Android phones on the market. But at five inches, the PS Vita's display is more than sharp enough to lend a satisfying impression of high-definition video to a movie or game. The screen is also multitouch, so you can pinch to zoom in the Web browser, the map software, and in games.
The front- and back-facing cameras seem identical, and are only slightly sharper than the cameras on the 3DS. The Vita might compare favorably to the camera phones of a few years ago in image quality, but if you have a decent smartphone, there is no reason to use the Vita's camera for anything besides video chat and AR (augmented reality) games.
As a nice touch, the PS Vita supports Bluetooth devices just like the PS3, including stereo headsets. I paired my Logitech Wireless Headset to the Vita and could hear the background music of the menus and the dialog in Uncharted: Golden Abyss easily. If you don't have a Bluetooth headset, the PS Vita still has a 3.5mm headphone jack and onboard stereo speakers.