Smartphone vs PS Vita Gaming. Is The PS Vita There Yet?
Are you trying to decide between buying a PS Vita and a smartphone for gaming purposes? The PS Vita may be a good device with potential, but can it really go head to head with a smartphone?
Game Selection and Pricing
There are a few games that are available on both the PS Vita and smartphones (I will not include Windows Phone as a smartphone throughout this article due to lack of development as of yet).
As you can see, in all cases you will pay more for the PS Vita version of a game than you will for the same game on a smartphone. The only cases where all prices are the same, are with PlayStation Mobile games. The big one that gets to me is Angry Birds. Yes, the Android and iOS versions probably have in-app purchases available, but surely they don’t add up to $40.
Emulation
How can you forget about emulation? First of all, there isn’t any device out there that can produce perfect emulation, and PS Vita and smartphones are no exception to to that. For every system that you can run an emulator for on PS Vita there is an equal for smartphones (I’m talking a bit more specifically about Android right now). Let’s just put aside emulator performance and whatnot, but what it takes to start playing games from your childhood. For a smartphone, all you have to do is download an app, gets some ROMS, and you’re done. That’ll take maybe 15-20 min. On the PS Vita, buy a PSP game, try to find an exploit using a buffer overflow (yes, I could go more into detail, but that isn’t the point right now) port VHBL or TN-V/ARK to it, then download an app and transfer some ROMS. That is all minimum one day of hard, stressful work. See all of that time taken just to play some of your hayday games? All of that without taking into account that your smartphone probably has way more memory and will most likely run the games much smoother.
Basic Advantages Smartphones Have Over PS Vita (and vice versa)
Let’s make this one quick. Your smartphone probably has a faster processor, more RAM, cheaper storage, longer battery life, and a long list of other things over your PS Vita. It also has the ability to text and make calls.
But the Vita has some stuff going for it too. Physical gaming buttons, analog sticks, and other gameplay optimizations. There are also a lot of games worth playinng on PS Vita that you won’t get on smartphones, and in some cases, any other devices.
Pricing
For all of these pro and cons off both devices, money also has to be a factor.
Now, the question is for you to answer. Can the PS Vita really stand up to a smartphone head to head in terms of gaming?
That’s all for now from me, The Jay Doctor. Leave your thoughts n the comments below, I’m looking forward to reading them. Feel free to follow me on Twitter, where you can hear the latest gaming news and also enter in my monthly PSN code giveaways. You can follow Wololo while you’re at it too (use the links below).
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vita is my first choice to play games not phones.
I play survivalcraft on my Moto G and Hotline Miami on my vita, emulators on my Moto G and Borderlands 2, Killzone merc and Blazblue CSE on vita.
I try to use the best of both of my devices, never ever try to enter on that “wich is better?” place.
physical controls (with analogs) > touchscreen only
(even tou vita have touchscreen games, but you know what i mean)
Hmm. What about those Moga controller for android.
less than 35$. (MOTO G +MOGA = 200$)< PS VITA
Well, this is a no-brainer. Smartphones have games as an afterthought. Sure, tere are some cool games on smartphones but best smartphone games blend in comparison to the ebst VITA games. Oh, and touchscreen as an only controller limits the types of games that are viable on the device (no one will convince me that Metal Slug 3 is an enjoyable game on Android :P).
Excellent point. You cant play games for any extended period of time on a smart phone – its to uncomfortable. The Vita is like a Lazy-Boy® when comparing the two for comfort.
Aye, but with a cellphone (at least Android, that’s rooted) you can either use a PS3 controller or MOGA with universal drivers, and you’ve got your physical buttons.
And with an unrooted device and a usb on the go cable for 3.99$ you can use an wired xbox 360 controller.
Just right out of the box.
No voiding warranty if you still have one.
No complicated bluetooth pairing.
Just good old plug and PLAY.
Makes playing mario kart ds on my android tab a joy. 😉
vita is my Favorite …………and wololo plz heck vita for play android game …..or other phone game
yeah, wololo, please heck it! heck!
Hecks! we need more vita hecks!
Oh, what the hack…
heck yeah!
I’m just gonna take my hacksaw and cut this ridiculousness right here.
Dragon Quest VII on smartphones and not on Vita.
This game will be perfect on Vita. So why square remake it to smartphones?
I think that for the publishers, the Vita is already on ICU 😐
My opinion is that, even though yeah, the smartphone might have more memory, faster processor, more RAM etc, it’s a smartphone. An all-around system, while the Vita is a dedicated portable gaming machine, with parts choosed specifically for that.
P.S My opinion tho, don’t hate! :l
In fairness, Terraria is also the ps3 version included
I like gaming on my Galaxy S3, but only Casual Games or Adventures (like Broken Sword Series). Games like Uncharted would never work without aditional controlling devices, and I won’t carry those around with me all the time. So why not have both 🙂 and for emulation, nothing goes over the good old PSP. Even ScummVM runs there, the touchscreen on the smartphone comes here more handy, tho.
Hey this is a pretty nice article. All I can say in Android’s Development is much better than the Vita’s. Well it’s not fair to compare, since there’s only 2 Vita models, and idk how many Android models (a bunch of them). And so obviously, there would be more development going on since Android is also open source. In my opinion I’d pick an Android over a Vita. I mean just look at the pricing of the games for vita compared to the smartphones. :/
To start, we are comparing apples & oranges, “THE” PS Vita (one and only) against a broad selection of smartphones… I’m sure if there were thousands of Vita iterations all different from each other in hardware, we’d have grounds for compare/contrast. IMO, the Vita with gaming in mind, is solely good at playing Vita/PSP/PS1 games. We can compare/contrast the smartphone (in general) with the Vita quite simply. Vita has dedicated controls. Again, the smartphone (in general) doesn’t, that is a deal breaker for some. I like dedicated controls, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have a smartphone without controls. For that we got Moga/Gametel/Hama/Ipega… the list goes on. I’d move on from the Vita, even when we obtain full hardware control. The best we’ll get is better emulation (all it seems everyone wants currently), I feel sorry for my Vita. I own a few Vita titles that are good (IMO), and PSP (TN) emulation looks great! What more can we get outta the Vita, if it was DOA from the beginning?
The JXD S7800B is really nice, tho its not a phone but it runs android and got analog sticks, and d-pad + shoulder buttons. Bought it after i got my vita and can’t say i have been playing much on my vita since then :/.
Everyone who likes their vita should get the JXD. Great hardware inside. Emulates. snes,nes,n64,gb,gba,ps1,NDS, and PSP games
okay, NO. i’d rather go with Xperia Z2
why? Xperia Z2 cost 3-4 times more. and got no buttons. the 7′ screen on the JXD is really good.
I’ve also been trying to get my hands on that JXD S7800B, but I’m in S. Africa… and you know…kids starving and sh!@+.
But seriously I can’t seem to find that JXD over here and don’t really trust the “shipping” over here. lol
i did google JXD S7800B south africa and found one site named “awesometablets” check it out. dunno if the sites legit but it should be ok
I too have a JXD 7800B. I’m in Australia, and it cost AU$195 in total. That’s roughly US$185.
It’s a mad unit, with an awesome 7 inch screen. I’ve had a Vita since launch and honestly barely used it other than for PSP emulation with an old Uno exploit some time ago (Gravity Rush and Super Stardust HD are quite amazing, however.)
The JXD is a killer device for playing MAME in bed just before nodding off.
I Love my JXD..! I ‘like’ my Vita.
if vita can completely hack or got cfw. i dont care about smartphone. hope can see that as soon as possible…
IMO smartphone perfect for F2P games similar to PC situation *cough* piracy *cough*
while Vita for retail games.
There are mobile phones with physical controls. My Current mobile is a Much G2 phone.
Its 5 inch screen , one simple joystick & 4 buttons (and you can map the controls to the games)
If thats not enough there’s the Much i5 which has full on controls with 5 inch screen.
Both phones are Chinese.
But like others here I’d rather play games on my ps vita. But if I don’t have my Vita with me ,
my phone will still do the job.
Jxd S7800B i recommend this to you.
Id like to see you try and get ps3/2/1 streamed to android even in 15 yrs time
Not sure what you mean. There are PS1 emulators for android that run at full speed easily.
sony no respect for vita = me no respect for vita. It’s just a expensive piece of ***.
port etxreal to psp
and it will be there
you can’t play ffx on smartphone so vita win lol
What’s the point of this comparison? Phone games are not good, and I don’t think anyone can argue that. The only reason they’re more popular is because they’re cheap/free, plus you don’t have to spend money on hardware because most people already own a phone.
I agree that android games in general suck. But playing emulators on your phone opens up
a huge catalog of good games on various systems.
I always laugh when this topic comes up. A device like a iPOD or a Phone is not going to compete with a handheld that was designed specifically for gaming by a console manufacturer.
If you want the ultimate gaming experience you would want good controls which is something the average smart phone wont be equipped with. And you would hope the processing power and gfx capabilities would be higher on a portable game system.
A android phone will be better than a 1989 Gameboy or Lynx or Gamegear or Turboexpress but It will not stack up against PSP PS VITA 3DS no way.
Vita always comes first to me for gaming due to physical buttons. I refuse to play any games on my xperia, touchscreen only games? no t
Smartphone is ok for anything that does not require too complex controlls. Buy atm I’m playing Dragons Crown on the Vita and a game such as this would never be possible on a smartphone.
I like to play old JRPGs on the Vita. And you might, say that due to the very simple controls (up, down, left, right, enter, cancel, menu) an emulation of a controller on a touchscreen is sufficient. But even for such a simple-to-control game, I strongly prefer the Vita (Also the official PS emualtor offers some benefits over self-made emus in the case of PSOne titles, such as savegame transfer to the PS3). And the Vita has Persona 4 Golden which is one of the best JRPGs of all time, that you won’t find on a smartphone, anyway.
But that whole topic is debatable. I think it is by far better to catch up some classic RPG when you have time on the go instead of wasting your time with stuff like candycrush.
Now, on the other hand, games like Dragons Crown, Uncharted or Gravity Rush that really use the Vitas controls in a complex (console-like) way, are far more immersive. I just noticed that again today in the train. If you war the earplugs and play in a train, you can totally lose the sense of time and feel as you would feel in front of your TV. That is something that a smartphone will never deliver.
so..our beloved psvita …bought it with happy feeling in first day…was actually a *** smartphone gaming console with gaming button?? *** sony?? i want a aaa titles on vita just like those psp days not a mini games that run on almost all android device??
I love the JXD S7800B physical buttons emulators galore 7 inch touch screen a Quad Core Processor. Blows the psvita out of the water to me 😀
ah.. well, dem smart phone can’t survive for 5 hours of gaming without a lifeline called powerbank i guess ? :3 and i don’t think smartphone can play the upcoming recapture game called “freedom wars” so.. Yeah, Vita 😀
we still have the “unused” accessory port.. maybe we can inject some extra RAM/VRAM in there… oh and the prices.. yep, the prices are too expensive.. maybe now with unity, prices may go down..
When android gave support for ps3 controller i bought a shell plygg my phone. Played gta s.a .forgot vita forever
I can only stand playing certain games on a phone, none of which are games from my childhood. Phone just isn’t meant for playing games like that to me.
To summarize the post,
Phones are completely better in every single way except some buttons compared to the VITA. But, it’s up to you to decide…Oh jeez…
So yeah: the smartphones has better games and better controls? Yeah, right.
LOL, you’re so full of it. Games? Nope. Have fun playing Flappy ***, while I play some Killzone on the go, or Uncharted. The only thing your phone has going for it, is that it was cheaper. The Vita is clearly better. I don’t play crappy minigames, that phones are flooded with. I have only seen two official apps that are full featured games, without being ripoffs. Call of Duty : Zombies, and Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies. Have fun with your cheap phone, I’ll stick to where there’s actual games worth playing.
My biggest gripe between Smart Phones and Hand Held consoles is the gaming price, especially when it comes to Angry Birds >.<
I own a Vita for console like games. Smartphones just don’t have the same games, mobile games are cheap, and usually crappy. Smartphones can be as powerful and as cheap as they want, they still don’t have actual games. If I want to play a gears of war rip off (Shadow gun), I’ll buy a smartphone. If I want to play the actual game, I will get a console. There is no reason to game on phones. The hardware is there, the software isn’t.
Well you can buy a physical controls accessory for your smartphone, like this one http://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Controller-Android-Wireless-Joystick/dp/B00BT71S4K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1403541867&sr=8-1&keywords=ipega+gamepad .
Smartphone games are great, but riddled with Ads, and not as content complete as console games, but what can you expect for the price? Mostly free. Sweet deal.
I choose a smart phone or tablet over PS VIta solely based upon the lack of games worthy of my money. So far the only game I have ever bought on VIta is my exploit game, and that was to enable me to play games from other consoles. Vita is garbage and Sony knows it. My PSP does everything I need my Vita to do, and the memory cards are dirt cheap compared.
I have a JXD 7800b and that also plays most things perfectly well, including PSP and PSX. Vita loses for me.
Because my phone battery doesn’t last long on 3G, my phone spends most of its time disconnected from the web, which has the side effect of eliminating ads on apps.
there is no comparison between the two. one is a real gaming device, while the other is a touch screen toy. for serious gaming, there is no competition between the two platforms. smartphones and tablets will never be able to hold a candle to a real gaming machine.
[Are you trying to decide between buying a PS Vita and a smartphone for gaming purposes? The PS Vita may be a good device with potential, but can it really go head to head with a smartphone?]
I personally prefer “touch” physically para jugar
The phone is not to play
😀
http://fotos.subefotos.com/86d0a02faea52ed443f8138946f7202dx.jpg
or more in particular
porting etxreal or just et to unity
that way it will run on the mobile platform lol
Please stop. Smartphones can’t touch any dedicated handheld. I’m kinda getting tired of the way you write articles. Seems like they’re trying to provoke a reaction instead of being simple and informative. I feel like I somehow found myself on the Huffington post or Cracked or something. I can tell your articles apart just from the titles. It’s not a good thing.
After spending a year with a yinlips (chinese android gaming device – psp knockoff), I can say that the ps vita is everything i dreamed the yinlips would be and so much more. everything from the dpad to actual analog sticks to solid quiet buttons to a solid design to an amazing screen (the oled on older models), and on and on. yeah it was alot more work to get TN-V on it, and getting games and emus on is a hassle, and the memory is crazy expensive – for me this is the perfect emulation machine for everything i need.
What kind of article is this? Why would you compare PS Vita with smartphones? Who wants to play microtransaction games with virtual controls? Even by looking at the Motorola G, which is pretty cheap. I still have no desire to buy it, because it’s not a gaming device. It is a smartphone and the games suck anyway, filled with microtransactions.