Sony unveiled the PlayStation Portal last year as a Remote Player for its PlayStation 5 gaming console. Now, the company has just announced this handheld in the Indian market. The PlayStation Portal lets you play your PS5 games over your home Wi-Fi and promises to offer a console level experience in a portable form factor.

Sony PlayStation Portal Specs

Sony’s handheld basically looks like a DualSense controller with an 8-inch LCD display slapped on it. The device can connect to PlayStation 5 seamlessly and remotely turn on the console with a press of a button. Users can then start to play their favorite games on this gadget with minimal delay. The PlayStation Portal connects to your home’s WiFi, so you can experience console gaming without needing a TV.

This screen has a FHD resolution and 60Hz refresh rate. It is compatible with both PS5 and PS4 games (need to be running on PS5). However, the Portal does not support VR headset required games, titles that require peripheral gadgets, or PS Plus Premium streamed games. Just like the conventional DualSense Wireless controller, the handheld supports haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. It is worth noting that your PS5 needs to be powered on or in Rest Mode to be paired with the Remote Player.

Pricing and Availability

Sony’s new PlayStation Portal Remote Player is priced at 18,990 INR (roughly 227 US Dollars). It will be available for purchase starting from 3rd August 2024. You can purchase this device at Sony Centers, Flipkart, Amazon, Vijay Sales, Reliance, Croma, BlinkIt, and other partner retailers.

Last year, I wrote a piece regarding the PlayStation Portal, talking more in-depth about this handheld. Some aspects didn’t make sense and I wished for PlayStation Plus support on this device. But that does not seem to be the case.

The post PlayStation Portal launched in India: Sony’s remote play console drops for Rs 18,990 appeared first on Gizmochina.

Sony recently announced the PlayStation Portal gaming device. It is basically a handheld device that allows you to play your favorite PlayStation 5 titles on the go. But the new product wasn’t well received and raised many questions.

So let’s have a look at what the PlayStation Portal is meant to be and why its existence doesn’t make much sense.

Sony PlayStation Portal: What the brand envisioned

The PlayStation Portal was built to be Sony’s first dedicated Remote Play device. The idea was that you could simply carry this handheld device and play exclusive AAA titles from anywhere in the world, as long as you have a stable WiFi connection on this device as well as your PS5. But for $200, even PlayStation fans are divided over the PS Portal. To put it simply, the handheld has an 8-inch display sandwiched between a DualSense controller. Unlike the Razer Kishi and Logitech G Cloud, which support game streaming services, the PS Portal is one of a kind as it only runs with your PS5.

This makes it quite different from existing handheld consoles in the market.

How is it different from handheld gaming consoles?

The Nintendo Switch, ASUS ROG Ally, and Steam Deck are perfect examples of gaming handheld consoles. These are full-fledged, standalone portable consoles that do not require another dedicated machine to run games. Thanks to beefier specs, handheld gaming consoles can run AAA titles while retaining their portable form factor.

Although portability does come at the cost of performance, this is where the PS Portal stands out since it is more of an accessory to enhance your PS5 experience because it only runs with the console’s Remote Play feature.

The choice to limit the Portal’s functionality opens up a lot of questions. In fact, given that your smartphone can be a possible alternative to this, you could argue that the Portal is flawed.

Why the PlayStation Portal doesn’t make sense?

There are many reasons why this device is receiving backlash online, but let’s focus on three specific points:

• First of all, the functionality the PS Portal offers is already pretty accessible. If you have an Android smartphone or tablet, a Windows PC, a Mac, an iPhone, or even an iPad. You can enable Remote Play on your PS5 and get a similar experience. To make matters worse, Sony also sells the $100 PS Backbone, which ditches the screen and replaces it with your smartphone, meaning you get a collapsible controller, which is more portable than a full-size DualSense controller.

• Secondly, many fans were confused over why the new handheld doesn’t feature support for PlayStation Plus. The online games library service is available on the PS5, so it would make sense that you could run games from the subscription on the Portal as well. Unfortunately, gamers are locked into only playing titles that are locally installed on their PlayStation 5.

• Lastly, the PlayStation Portal received significant criticism for bringing what many consider an anti-consumer design choice on the handheld. This device uses PlayStation Link, which is a proprietary wireless connection for Sony’s latest PlayStation audio accessories. In other words, the PlayStation Elite headphones and PlayStation Explore earbuds. So Sony is locking you into getting either one of these devices which cost over a hundred dollars, rather than allowing basic Bluetooth connectivity.
  Fortunately, a 3.5mm audio jack is available, so at least a wired connection is possible with regular earphones.

But is there anything that could make the Portal better value?

Sony should expand the Portal’s functionality

A simple price cut won’t raise the appeal of this handheld, as Sony already sells the DualSense Edge controller for around the same price. The handheld will still see demand from a small group of consumers, which includes gamers who don’t wish to use their smartphones for gaming. The Portal can be made more appealing by adding support for PlayStation Plus. This feature may be added later down the road. However, there’s also a chance that Sony’s upcoming Project Chronos (next-gen 4K game streaming service) will be supported after it’s announced. This can help boost demand for the product as well.

Apart from this, newer iterations of the PlayStation Portal featuring Bluetooth connectivity would help make the device more attractive to many. These two methods might have the most immediate impact, but Sony can likely make many more improvements to appeal to a broader audience that tends to prefer gaming with portability.

With the recent launch of various handheld consoles and the massive success of the Nintendo Switch, it is clear that the console market has great potential in this segment.

RELATED:

• Sony adds three new games for PlayStation Plus in September
• Sony to slash PS5 pricing in India by Rs 7,500 on August 24
• Sony PlayStation 5 Slim full design revealed in leaked video
• Redmi K60 Ultra vs OnePlus Ace 2 Pro: Specs Comparison
• How to Remove Blur from a Photo (5 Best Ways)

The post What is the Sony PlayStation Portal and Why it doesn’t make any sense appeared first on Gizmochina.

After initially unveiling its plans for a remote gaming device back in May, Sony has now released the PlayStation Portal, previously known as Project Q. The device is essentially a handheld extension of your PlayStation 5 since it cannot render the games natively. More details can be found below.

PlayStation Portal

The PlayStation Portal is essentially a glorified Remote Play machine. Sony has previously confirmed that the device will rely on Wi-Fi to stream games from your PS5 console. Yes, it means that you will need to own a PS5 to play games on the PlayStation Portal. As long as your PS5 WiFi connection and the WiFi connection at the location you are playing are strong, you won’t face any issues gaming on the handheld.

As there is no Bluetooth available on the Portal, you won’t be able to use any of the shelf wire earbuds/headsets with it. That being said, it has a few solutions for audio. First, it features a 3.5mm audio jack so you can use wired earphones with it. Another solution for audio is the dual inbuilt speakers. The third option is Sony’s new hardware which runs on its new PlayStation Link connectivity standard. These are the Pulse Elite headsets and Pulse Explorer wireless earbuds.

On to the specifications, the Portal features an 8-inch LCD screen that can stream games at 1080p 60 FPS. The controller onboard is essentially a Sony DualSense with all of its features like the haptic feedback. It uses a USB-C port for charging, and as mentioned above, has a 3.5 mm audio jack. Details about the processor and battery are still under wraps.

Pricing & availability

No launch date or pre-order date has been revealed as of yet, however, the console will cost US$199 whenever it launches.

RELATED:

• Sony’s $199 PlayStation Pulse Explore earbuds offer lossless audio and low-latency performance
• Sony to slash PS5 pricing in India by Rs 7,500 on August 24
• Sony PS5 Pro surfaces online, specs hint at major upgrade

(Source)

The post Sony PlayStation Portal handheld remote-play console unveiled, costs $200 appeared first on Gizmochina.