Nintendo DS or Sony PSP - Which Is The Better System?
Sega Game Gear? Ha! It was about as much a challenge to the reigning king in its day, the Nintendo Gameboy, as a beer league football team would be against the Steelers. Fact is, Nintendo has been pretty much unchallenged in the handheld gaming arena since the original Gameboy, continuing right through to the DS.
Until now, that is.
With this generation of portable video gaming consoles, the Nintendo DS is facing stiff and unwavering competition from the Sony Playstation Portable, or PSP for brevity. The battle isn’t really neck-to-neck, but the Sony PSP is winning in certain regions in the world, something that Nintendo never had to endure with its previous handhelds. Surely, the Nintendo DS must realize that the Sony PSP wouldn’t just vanish in the night like the defeated Sega Game Gear.
The question in many people’s minds - particularly those who are planning to buy a portable gaming system for themselves - is this: which among the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP is the better investment?
Let’s break that question down into four sub-questions that will help us determine the answer.
1. Which console is more powerful? There’s really no contest here. The Sony PSP was designed to be a powerful unit, with two 333MHz CPUs rendering both gameplay and amazing graphics. The screen is built for widescreen gaming, and has a much better resolution than the DS. PSP games take more space as well, because there is so much more to them. Most Nintendo games are under 100MB. PSP games range from 300MB to 1.5GB. WINNER: Sony PSP.
2. Which console has more games? Many experts say that software creates hardware and not the other way around. What would you do with a highly powerful handheld if you won’t have any games to play with it, right? When it comes to depth of gaming library, the Nintendo DS is the runaway winner. Its releases outnumber the releases of its competitor by a ratio of almost 4:1. There are many development companies focusing only on developing games for the Nintendo DS. WINNER: Nintendo DS.
3. Which console has more multimedia functions? It’s true that there are so many gadgets these days that perform a specialized function. Ipods play music.
PDAs let you browse the web and manage data. Digital cameras take photos and in some cases, video. Cell phones can act as personal organizers as well as communication devices. However, many device manufacturers are trying to make their hardware do multiple tasks from a single unit.
Handheld game systems are no different. The more they can do, the more attractive they are to potential buyers. The DS has limited audio and video playback functions. The Sony PSP can handle many audio formats and can play MP4 videos as well. It can also surf the web, watch TV (with a TV tuner add-on), store data, and even act as a remote control for a Playstation 3. WINNER: Sony PSP.
4. Which system has the most exclusive game titles? Here again, it’s pretty hard for anyone to compete with Nintendo. The DS has many original properties, such as Mario, Pokemon, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Kirby, Animal Crossing and a number of others. This is one of the biggest selling points of the DS. WINNER: Nintendo.
So we’re tied, 2-2. Which system is better: the Nintendo DS or the Sony PSP? It really depends on what you expect from the handheld machine. If you’re going for functionality and raw power, then choose the Sony PSP. But if you’re looking for a memorable, an exciting, and most importantly, a varied gaming experience, then the Nintendo DS is a better choice.
