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At the PlayStation Japan press conference earlier today, Sony revealed a new, slimmer PS Vita as well as the PS Vita TV, a device that lets you play PS Vita games, besides other stuff, on your TV.
The new PS Vita, model number 2000, is approximately 20 percent slimmer and 15 percent lighter than the current device. That aside, the three standout differences are the addition of 1 GB onboard memory, the OLED display being replaced by LCD, and an extra hour of battery life.
The new Vita will be available in Japan in multiple colours – yellow, pink, white, gray, lime green and light blue.
The 1 GB onboard space is welcome and will allow users to download apps and smaller games without buying a memory card, but replacing the OLED display with an LCD one is a little strange. That said, Sony says the advances in LCD technology have ensured that there’s no drop in display quality.
The PS Vita 2000 launches in Japan next month for 18,980 Yen (Rs 12,400 approx).
PS Vita TV: Play Vita games without a Vita
Sony also today announced the PS Vita TV, a device that connects to your TV and allows you to play select PS Vita games on your TV using a PS3 controller.
It’s essentially for those who want to play PS Vita games on their TVs but don’t want to buy the handheld itself. With the sudden spurt of indie support the Vita is getting, this device could find quite a few takers.
PS Vita TV will support 480p, 720p and 1080i resolutions. It lets you slot in your PS Vita game cards and memory cards, and it will support video services like Hulu as well.
PS Vita TV will also support PS4 remote play, and support for the Dualshock 4 will be patched in later. Why you would want to play PS4 games on your TV via PS Vita TV rather than directly is beyond us though.
The device will, however, only work with select PS Vita games. We assume games that rely heavily on touch controls won’t be supported, unless of course we can use a Vita itself as the input device. Sony Japan has released a list of games that will be compatible at launch, but expect that to grow once the device is announced for Western release.
PS Vita TV is launching first in Japan on 14th November and is priced 9480 Yen (Rs 6,200 approx).
When contacted by Eurogamer about European (and consequently Indian) releases for both devices, Sony responded, We’ve not made any announcement about whether the 2000 series & Vita TV will be releasing in the UK / Europe.” It is likely though that both will make their way to India.
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