Sony PlayStation Portal is the legendary PSP’s successor in spirit, almost

Ask any 90’s kid about the most iconic gaming devices they grew up with, and chances are Sony’s PlayStation Portable is a part of the list. The iconic PSP, first launched in the summer of 2005, allowed gamers to take their gaming with them to a friend’s home, to college, or on a picnic.

With the advent of technology, gaming largely migrated to gaming PCs and traditional consoles in the pursuit of more powerful hardware. Now, almost two decades later, Sony is coming up with its next handheld console, but it’s not quite the same.

Sony just announced that the PlayStation Portal, which we’re sure many will mispronounce as the PlayStation Portable. The handheld console will stream PS5 games over Wi-Fi on an 8-inch, 1080p LCD display panel. The PlayStation Portal will be able to refresh at up to 60fps, great for some smooth gaming.

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“PlayStation Portal will connect remotely to your PS5 over Wi-Fi, so you’ll be able to swiftly jump from playing on your PS5 to your PlayStation Portal,” said Hideaki Nishino, senior vice president of platform experience at Sony Interactive Entertainment, as per a report by The Verge. The report also suggests that the Portal will be limited to streaming games from a PS5 console, at least for now.

The Sony PlayStation Portal quite literally looks like someone cut a DualSense Controller in half and sandwiched a display in between. While the design may come off as too-DIY for some, it does get the best features of the DualSense controller. This includes adaptive triggers, which are more immersive than regular triggers, and haptic feedback, which gives you a feel for the game when in the action.

You will still need a PS5, and more

The Sony PlayStation Portal’s ability to stream PS5 games (and not natively run any games) means users who do get the handheld console will still need the non-portable PS5. This makes the handheld portable to a degree, but only when you’re around your PS5. Unlike the older PSP, which had its own games and store, the new Portal will only be an extension of your main PS5.

This puts the PlayStation Portal behind rivals like the recently launched Asus ROG Ally or even the Nintendo Switch series, which are known for their ability to natively run games, without the need of any external device. What’s even more hard-hitting is that while the PlayStation Portal supports media playback, even that will not be able to run locally. Basically, everything that the Portal is capable of, will be over Wi-Fi.

That’s also not the end of the Portal’s limitations. The handheld will also not support PS5 Plus Premium’s cloud-streamed games, so you’ll only be able to mirror games that are stored on the main console. You’ll also need an internet connection speed of 15Mbps (or at least 5Mbps) for a good experience.

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Lastly, the PlayStation Portable will also not feature Bluetooth support, instead going with the PlayStation Link tech which will allow it to pair with upcoming PlayStation wireless earbuds, a product that’s also still officially under wraps.

PlayStation Portal pricing and availability

The fact that the PlayStation Portal will be chained to your Wi-Fi network, beating the whole point of portability, may not upset many though, as the device will be priced at just $199 (approximately Rs 16,425), putting it much below independent handheld consoles like the Asus ROG Ally.

Availability in India is a mystery as usual, but right now, Sony hasn’t even revealed when the PlayStation Portal will be available in the West. If rumours are to be believed, the console may start shipping in November this year, but for now, we’ll just have to wait for an official update from Sony. Thankfully, you can still grab the PlayStation 5 in India post a recent price-drop.