Smartphones and tablets compete fiercely with portable game consoles. Almost everyone has a smartphone, while some of them are able to produce graphics at the level (or even better) of the PSP. Why buy a game console if you can enjoy playing on your favorite phone while traveling in the subway or on public transport? The question is logical. But if Angry Birds or "Become a Millionaire" is all that interests you in the world of modern games, then it's really not worth buying a portable console.

Usually, a portable console boasts more
more interesting games than any modern smartphone
 

But even the most advanced phone or tablet loses to an inexpensive portable set-top box in terms of management. On the contrary, modern portable devices are initially sharpened for the most convenient and long-lasting game. They can boast of a special ergonomic body shape and the necessary set of controls, among which two analogue sticks are often provided.

Most of the models also have a number of other features, including listening to music, watching movies or surfing the Internet. This allows you to save the battery of the phone, so that at the most inopportune moment it does not turn out that you cannot make the necessary call because of a dead battery. Even the most modern smartphone can hardly be called a serious competitor for the same PSP, if the range of games, their quality and the fascination of gameplay are used as an evaluation criterion. After all, games for smartphones are rather a pleasant addition, less. When as for consoles ― this is the basis of the basics.

Sony vs Android devices

As already mentioned, the variety of modern portable game consoles in fact, it is quite fictitious. If we talk about the east european segment, the most popular models can be divided into two opposite camps: solutions from Sony and solutions based on Android OS. At the same time, the latter almost completely copy the design of the Sony set-top box and, in principle, do not even hide this. When it comes to choosing a portable set-top box, then in the vast majority of cases it all comes down to this choice.

Sony's console remains one of the most interesting offers:
convenient housing, excellent games, additional media capabilities
 

The situation can be compared with the confrontation between home consoles and a personal computer. So, the solutions created in the depths of Sony have fixed hardware, for which absolutely all games are sharpened and optimized. This saves the user from having to choose games for a specific filling, provides him with an excellent platform and a number of interesting exclusive projects that have always been one of Sony's strengths. Among them are such hits as Uncharted Golden Abyss, Killzone: Mercenary, Metal Gear Solid and Little Big Planet.

The device also has a built-in browser, messenger, social network clients, camera and a number of other programs. A very interesting feature of Remote Play deserves special attention, which allows you to play games from the PlayStation 4 home console in streaming mode. And if you have one at home, then the PS Vita may be the best option. It will serve as an excellent entertainment centre both at home as an addition to the home console, and in any other place as a wonderful portable device with many features.

In turn, there are a lot of consoles based on Android OS, they have different costs and different fillings, which directly depends on which games the user can play and on which graphics settings. The situation is quite similar to a PC, isn't it? But at the same time, Android remains a full-fledged operating system, which provides the user with much broader functionality, including a wide variety of additional applications.

Quite a lot of exclusives are being created for this platform, where else without them? It is possible to mention such franchises as Dead Trigger, Modern Combat, ShadowGun, etc. But here's a remarkable moment: these games are available for the entire Android platform and with a sufficiently powerful smartphone or tablet, the user may well pass an hour or two behind them. The inconvenience of control in this case can be solved with the help of special controllers. Thanks to them, the user can connect his smartphone with a gaming manipulator, getting a kind of portable game console.

The jewel in the Android collection

Nvidia Shield has the widest potential, but completely
it can only be used in conjunction with a home PC
 

One of the most successful gaming solutions on OC Android was the Nvidia Shield portable game console. It is a gamepad connected to a 5-inch LCD display. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the console is the ability to play PC games that are broadcast directly from the computer. So, having launched the same Skyrim on his home PC, for example, the user can continue the game already on the console.

But this requires a high-speed Internet connection and a graphics card no lower than GeForce GTX 650. Unfortunately, this advantage is only available within your Wi-Fi network. Playing Crysis 3 or Battlefield 4 while sitting on a bus or subway car will not work. But the console can be connected to the TV and play your favorite games lying on the couch. If you do not take into account the possibilities of streaming from a PC, then as a portable solution, Nvidia Shield is not too different from the same bundle of "smartphone + special controller".

What is Nintendo?

Speaking of portable game consoles, it is impossible not to mention the company Nintendo, and with it one of its latest developments — the Nintendo 3DS. The main feature of the Nintendo 3DS is the ability to create a three-dimensional image effect without using stereoscopic glasses. The software part allows you to adjust the "intensity of three-dimensionality", and the built-in camera provides the possibility of 3D shooting

The device also boasts quite original games that use the unique capabilities of the console, including the camera. But this, by and large, is where its advantages end. The console is not very popular in the east european market.

Sega and Dendy portables – for those who want to remember
old games with 16-bit graphics and intrusive music
 

Sega and Dendy ― classics in a modern form

And finally, let's add a drop of nostalgia. Once upon a time, Sega and Dendy consoles with their terrible graphics and obsessive music accompaniment were the dream of every child. And not only children played them, but also their parents. Mario, Tanchiki, Bombiermen, Contra — many still remember and love these games. In the 90s, it was hard to even imagine that over time it would be possible to take these small consoles, tightly tied to heavy televisions, throw them into a backpack and continue playing on the way to school. Today it is quite real.

There are many portable Game Boy, Sega and Dendy platforms on the market, which will allow you to remember the old days when many gathered with friends at the TV and played for hours on end. And in the morning they shared their impressions and tips, telling how to fill up that big boss at the end of the level or exchanged cartridges.

And in the dry balance there are only three options

Portable consoles can significantly brighten up time during tedious travel or daily commute to work. The choice of platform depends on the preferences and needs of the user — each of them has its pros and cons both in price and functionality. But in fact, the entire range can be conditionally reduced to three groups. Sega and Dendy can't boast of modern gameplay and colorful graphics, but they will surely appeal to fans of old games. Android OS models are essentially hybrid devices that combine the capabilities of a set-top box and a traditional tablet computer, which provides them with broader functionality. PlayStation was originally conceived and positioned by the manufacturer as a game console. It has a number of advantages, including high-quality exclusives, optimization of all games for a certain hardware, as well as a very interesting Remote Play function.