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PlayStation 6 and PlayStation Portable future visions

 The recent PlayStation video about the "simulated" technology in development between AMD and Sony engineers that will power the PlayStation 6 was interesting from a geek point of view. But from a gameplay perspective, there is - IMO - no need for a PlayStation 6 for another few years. Especially with the limp Xbox is-it-isn't-it launch .  April 2026 Update:  Compatibility with PS5 and PS4 games seems to be locked-in, as anything the PS6 full fat hardware the portable versions should be able to do as well, with near-invisible trade-offs at the silicon level.  Prices are firming up too with estimates around the PlayStation 6 handheld at between $500 to $700 and a PlayStation 6 at $700 to $1,000, depending on the deepening silicon crisis and Sony's budgeting wizards.  Only a few developers around the world could afford to take advantage of it for AAA+ budget games. Everyone else is still barely cutting the skin of the PS5's power, and most western smaller/indie o...

Anbernic's "Vita" says thanks for the memories

 I vaguely recall when the iPhone launched, Steve Jobs saying "...and we've patented the shit of out it." So, I was a bit surprised a few months later when poor knock-offs were flying out of clone factories in what became the Android scene. 

Update: Pricing is now live, starting from a reasonable $99 in black or some weird grey colour (below, looks more champagne to me) for early birds. The Pro model (also available in white) starts at $139, with future prices up by $10, if not more. 

Anbernic Vita

Therefore, I'm not too surprised that Anbernic thinks they can shit all over the memory of the Vita, and PlayStation won't do anything about it. After all, they've stolen pretty much every handheld design, including the PSP Go, for their Android retro knock-offs, so why not steal the names too? 

Early video reviews give this knock-off a bit of a kicking over some poor design and performance trade-offs, basically it does not play Vita games. Makes me wonder why Anbernic didn't approach Sony and ask to recreate the Vita's store with third-party and indie games to at least give it some credibility. 

Update: An improved version of the Vita3K emulator is doing the heavy lifting here, with optimizations improving some game performance. 

On the other hand, we also have Anbernic showing off a bunch of Vita and PSP games in play, so what's the reality?

Well, Sony legal might jump in with a Trademark (which they still hold) dispute, but likely only to squeeze some cash out of the Chinese firm. Which any Chinese court will laugh out of the room. 

Anbernic Vita

Anyway, that aside, what we have is a lookalike Vita, available in, ooh, black and white. How original. In standard and Pro versions, likely with a juiced up processor and more RAM.

Anbernic Vita

As a retro-box, I'm sure it'll be lovely. But despite the name, its just another generic box of parts in a fast-fragmenting and overloaded market, so is unlikely to stand out in anyway from the many rivals. Cold, alone, unloved, just like the original Vita, so they got that right.  

Currently playing on my Vita/PS3/PS4/PS5


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