[PS Vita] PS Vita 3G/WiFi Review

[Lethal_NFS]

Last night I eagerly went to the midnight launch of the PS Vita First Edition bundle at Gamestop. With the bundle I decided to pick up Uncharted: Golden Abyss and Mod Nation Racers. This review will not be covering any PS Vita games as I will be focusing on the unit itself.

Hardware = 9/10

The Vita is a very solid machine. It weighs about as much as the slim PSP but has a much more solid feel to it. The dual analog sticks take some getting used to since you do not have the same range of motion that you get from the PS3. I found myself using the touch screen with Uncharted because the right analog stick is so close to the action buttons on the right side. My thumb would seem to pass over the X button. Those are my only gripes with this unit as of now. Everything else is pretty flawless.

The OLED screen is beautiful! There is no need to go in to too much detail as I am sure you have seen or heard others talking about the 5" OLED screen.
The cameras are not that great and will probably only be used for games and such. My camera on my phone destroys these dated cameras.
There is also a built-in microphone that I have not tested yet.

Battery consumption = 6/10

Right out of the box I managed to burn through the battery in 2hrs. I decided to knock the brightness back to the middle and disabled bluetooth. I did have "Near" running in the background which is a neat app that shows you who around is playing on their Vita and what games they are playing.
After adjusting some settings I am now getting about 4hrs of battery life.

Edit - After a few full charges the battery life has gotten much better. I maxed out at 6hrs and 11mins on a full charge.

The operating system & Apps = 8/10

The PS Vita has some pretty cool features. I did have some problems though which I will be explaining shortly.
I already mentioned the app called "Near". Anywhere you go you can find someone near you on their Vita.



One of the cool features of the 3G plan is that you can use the pin point accurate GPS systems. The PS Vita actually has a GPS chip built in to the 3G version of the Vita. Also with the 3G plan you get fun extras like finding treasures left by other people. For example, if I take my Vita to Walmart and I leave a treasure/gift at the front door, someone with their Vita can find that treasure if they pass that location with their Vita. The other person will have to have the 3G version though. These are just some little fun extras that can be really cool if people actually use it.

Trying to activate my 3G with AT&T was not that easy. I followed the steps, added my information, added my debit card info, and did everything correctly. Three times I got an error saying the service could not be activated. I decided to try one last time and on the 4th try I was finally able to get my 3G service up and running. I only did the one month 250mb for $14.99 just to test it out and to get my free game after 30 days.

The PS Vita has a nice built-in snapshot capture by holding the PS button and pressing Start. However, I could not get my PC to access my Vita. I am running Windows 7 64bit. The PS Vita media app installed on to my PC but I could not access any of the pictures I have saved. I decided to jump on the web browser on my Vita and log in to Dropbox. I was actually able to upload the pictures to Dropbox but I was only able to do this by choosing the "basic" upload method. Even then I was only able to upload a single picture at a time. I had to quit the browser and log in each time I wanted to add a picture. If I didn't, the browser would just hang while trying to upload a second picture.

Edit - If you are having problems connecting your Vita to your PC, click the link below and install.
http://cma.dl.playstation.net/cma/win/en/index.html



The PS Store is is pretty simple to use and very similar to the PS Store on the PS3. You can search Vita only games or PSP/Vita only games if you like. You can access your previous purchases and download them to your Vita if they are compatible. Right now it is mostly just "Minis" that you can transfer.



Trophies are great on the Vita. You can earn double trophies. If I play WipeOut on my PS3 and earn trophies, I can earn the trophies all over again on the Vita and get double trophies. You can view your combined Vita/PS3 trophies together, or you can view only your Vita trophies. Also, any trophies you earn on your Vita will be added to your official PSN card but it will not show the icons for them. But they do make your overall trophy count go up.

I thought there was supposed to be some free games for the augmented reality cards but I could not find these games on the PS Store. I also could not find the Netflix app and such that were supposed to be available.
Because I received the PS Vita one week early, I am assuming that some of the games and apps are not available yet because the actual release date is 2/22/12. I am hoping that these will then be available.





PS3/Vita remote connection

I have always been a fan of this feature and now the Vita gives you the ability to do so much more. I was able to play many games on my PS3 right on my Vita. And because the screen is so vibrant and crisp, the games actually looked better. I really noticed how amazing the screen was when I was streaming a movie to my Vita. This is awesome for those laying in bed and want to mess around with their PS3 without getting up to see the tv. You can also do this from anywhere in the world with a wifi connection.

Cross gaming is also another cool feature. You can play against PS3 gamers while you are playing on your Vita. I have not tried this out yet but it sounds great.

Overall score = 8/10

Despite some early on issues, I feel this unit is a very solid handheld and has a very promising future. The graphics in some of these games are fantastic and the apps on the Vita are very cool. I am very much looking forward to the future apps announced as well. The game controls are not bad but will get some getting used to. Overall I am very happy with my purchase and I am sure anyone else that buys the PS Vita will be happy as well.

Pros:
* Very solid machine
* Beautiful 5" OLED
* PS3 quality graphics
* Some cool day 1 apps
* Ability to play backups and emulators from modded PS3

Cons:
* Battery life sort of sucks
* Right analog stick is little too close to the action buttons.
* Unable to connect to my PC (possible user error)
Install from this link to fix problem connecting to pc. http://cma.dl.playstation.net/cma/win/en/index.html

[BoyBettaKnow]

Just in time for me to read whilst eating my dinner, fantastic. Good work man! +rep

edit: I need to spread some around before i can give you more it seems

edit 2: Really good informative read, thanks for taking the time out to do that, much appreciated.

[Lethal_NFS]

Just in time for me to read whilst eating my dinner, fantastic. Good work man! +rep

edit: I need to spread some around before i can give you more it seems

Thanks bro! I will most likely be adding to it the more I use my Vita. I only got to mess around for a few hours so far.

[Sylar]

This was a really good read man, thanks for posting your thoughts

[The Cage]

That was a great read thanks for the review

[Lethal_NFS]

I am glad you guys enjoyed it!

[mudshark]

Is the browser as poo as being reported?

[floetry]

The designer actually didn't want the right stick under the action buttons. But sony dismissed his plea and told him to put it there anyway

and now, many people are commenting how they are hitting the action buttons when they meant to go for the stick, or vice versa lol. Sony, just listen to the guy!!

[Lethal_NFS]

Is the browser as poo as being reported?

It actually is not all that bad. I browsed Google images and and it seemed to work pretty good. And it did let me use Dropbox.

The Welcome Park is so damn addicting!!! Took me forever to get all the trophies in the picture puzzle mini game. That crap was so hard.

[AaronSOLDIER]

Does Skyrim work with Remote Play?

[Ghost-Rhayne]

Can the Vita remotely turn your PS3 on and off? Also thanks a lot for the review! Much appreciated.

[Lethal_NFS]

Can the Vita remotely turn your PS3 on and off? Also thanks a lot for the review! Much appreciated.

Yes it can, through a wifi connection.

Skyrim does not work with remote play. I only tested PSN games through remote play but I do not think there are any disc based games that work yet.

[Marcsony]

Thanks for the review cheers rep+

[Ghost-Rhayne]

Yes it can, through a wifi connection.

Skyrim does not work with remote play. I only tested PSN games through remote play but I do not think there are any disc based games that work yet.

That's fucking INSANE! Looks like I am upgrading from 500GB to 1TB HDD and putting all mah music and vids on it. That is such an amazing feature to be able to turn the PS3 on and off. Mind officially blown!

[AaronSOLDIER]

Yes it can, through a wifi connection.

Skyrim does not work with remote play. I only tested PSN games through remote play but I do not think there are any disc based games that work yet.

Alright sounds good though for PSN games. What about full games bought off PSN (like Red Dead Redemption for example)? Or just smaller PSN games

That's fucking INSANE! Looks like I am upgrading from 500GB to 1TB HDD and putting all mah music and vids on it. That is such an amazing feature to be able to turn the PS3 on and off. Mind officially blown!

You can do that with the PSP...

[Lethal_NFS]

That's fucking INSANE! Looks like I am upgrading from 500GB to 1TB HDD and putting all mah music and vids on it. That is such an amazing feature to be able to turn the PS3 on and off. Mind officially blown!

Yes it is pretty neat. Lets say you go out of town and your mother or wife add pictures to your PS3. You can view those from your Vita from anywhere. Same with music and videos.

The PSP was limited as to what all it could do with remote play. The PSP could not play games outside of it's wifi connection. The Vita can play games off the PS3 from anywhere.

[Ghost-Rhayne]

Yes it is pretty neat. Lets say you go out of town and your mother or wife add pictures to your PS3. You can view those from your Vita from anywhere. Same with music and videos.

It's just incredible. This is a feature that I'll use A LOT.

Between that, "transfarring" (lol) and the innevitable push by Sony to have their disc games streamable to Vita, that is badass.

[Chille]

Yes it can, through a wifi connection.

Skyrim does not work with remote play. I only tested PSN games through remote play but I do not think there are any disc based games that work yet.

I know one game that should work, and thats lair because the orginal psp can remote play that game, also does ad hoc party ap work with vita?
Anti-Sopa Pro-Zodd

[Lethal_NFS]

I know one game that should work, and thats lair because the orginal psp can remote play that game, also does ad hoc party ap work with vita?
Anti-Sopa Pro-Zodd

I am not sure about the ad hoc party. I am going to test out some disc based games now. I will report any games that I find working.

[AaronSOLDIER]

Try Killzone 3, it should work since it was officially demod by Sony working on Vita.

I want it just for this feature lol

[floetry]

hows the 3g?

[SupraGaz]

Sounds brilliant mate thanks for your review. Only a few more days for us in the UK to get our mitts on it now

Is motorstorm RC on the store to download?
If you have cash in your wallet on the PS store, does this show on the vita?
Can you see yourself making use of the 3G function to justify the extra cost? I have a wifi currently pre ordered but interested in 3G owners opinions to see if the difference is worth it. Over in UK it is £50 difference between the wifi/3G.

Thanks again.
Gaz

[Chille]

I am not sure about the ad hoc party. I am going to test out some disc based games now. I will report any games that I find working.

Only game that i think might work is lair, as it was designed to use remote play

Anti-Sopa Pro-Zodd

[floetry]

Try Killzone 3, it should work since it was officially demod by Sony working on Vita.

I want it just for this feature lol

Sony said that was just a tech demo. Nothing really works yet(as far as disc based games go)

[Lethal_NFS]

Ok this is pretty damn cool! I am able to connect my Vita to my modded PS3 and play backups and emulators. I will make a video of me playing Killzone 3 from my Vita