The PS VITA

So while I was in Japan, I bought a PS Vita for cheap. The wifi only version. Apparently the Japanese don't really like the system cause there were tons of 2nd hand VITAs on sale for cheap. There were more 2nd hand VITAs on sale than 3DSes it seemed. After using it for a week, I kind of understand why. 

First, let's talk about the system itself. It has 2 touch pads/screens. One on the front and one on the back. So it's like a DTS instead of a DS. Which would be nice if I could even find a good use for the back touchpad. It seems very awkward to use and the one game I play that uses it (Shinobido2) doesn't use it very well. But then again, Shinobido2 doesn't use the front touchscreen very well either. Could be because it's one of the first generation games and programmers aren't very used to the touchscreen yet but why can I not touch the screen to select choices in Shinobido2? Meh. 

Also, wtf is with the cameras? I can (sorta) understand if the front camera was only 0.3 mp but BOTH cameras? WTF. Who even uses 0.3mp cameras anymore???? Sony that's who apparently. Also, the same thing can be said for the internal battery. WHY SONY WHY. It's not going to stop the hackers, it just annoys the rest of us.

For that matter, why does Sony have to use a goddamn proprietary memory card again? Because it's  Sony. Like.no.other. They imagine.create. Again, hackers will find a way around this and the rest of us have to suffer in the meantime. Especially since those things sell for crazy prices. For this, fuck you Sony. Fuck you whale. Fuck you dolphin.


Meanwhile, the PS Vita doesn't even have backwards compatibility with the PSP. Again, I'm not quite sure why.  Instead, they've started using cartridges for their games now. After 10+ years, Sony finally starts with cartridges. Which would be great if I didn't still have a fairly long load time with the cartridges. Although to be fair, that MIGHT just be Shinobido2 since DreamClubC doesn't seem to have that issue. Shinobido2 also suffers from occasional freezing as well -_- Despite all the complaints I have about it, it's still one of the more interesting games I've seen on the PS Vita...yeah, kinda tells you something.


Although I'll have to give props to Sony for making it region free. (I'm looking at you nintendo)


Another issue is the 3G version of the PS Vita. I didn't buy a 3G one but my friend did. You might have heard me mention it in my original blogpost about Japan. Apparently the 3G version is locked to specific telcos. Yeah. So he can't use his 3G. And he paid extra for it too. Kinda sucks for him and I'm going to have to wonder about the reason why. 


Also, what is with all the damn manuals being ONLINE??? Considering there is at least a fair bit of space in the Vita for them to install so much crapware on it originally, why not include the manuals as well?? Seriously, I was wondering about how to do a LOT of stuff on my vita and I couldn't find out because Japan has really few free wifi spots. Which reminds me of something hilarious. For some reason, while in Odaiba, my 3DS can automatically connect to a free internet wifi signal without me having to set anything while no other handheld device could find the damn wifi signal my 3DS was connected to.


Also supposedly the PS Vita can play MP4 AVC / MP4 H.264 but nope, couldn't transfer the files and play them. Still had to convert the files. 


Which leads me to my other point. Why is there no way to see how much space I have left on my memory card? I've checked settings and it's not there as far as I can tell. Seriously Sony? WTF. I would like to know how much space I have left since apparently transferring 6 episodes fills up a 4GB memory card. 


And let's not mention the USB/charger cable that Sony gives you. It's crap apparently. It's a usb cable that can connect to an adaptor that can plug into wall sockets and that can also connect to your PC to connect via content manager. Now it seems like you should be able to charge your PS Vita via the PC right? WROOOOONG. Using the normal cable that Sony gave me, I wasn't able to detect a charge on my Vita at all. So was it because the USB socket couldn't give out enough power to power up the Vita? Apparently not, because I bought a 3rd party USB cable (mostly just in case I lose the original cable and it was cheap) and guess what? IT WORKS PERFECTLY FOR CHARGING. So yeah, WTF Sony. 


Another thing is that they apparently lock the games now so that if you buy it 2nd hand, you will not be able to unlock the achievements/trophies. Seriously Sony, what a miserly way to prevent people from buying 2nd hand. Good thing I don't care about trophies anyway. I just think it's an asshole thing to try. Granted, not as bad as certain other companies in the same industry but still asshole.


So what can Sony do to improve the PS Vita? I'd say put in UMD compatibility and use a normal SD card like Nintendo but those have no chance in hell of happening. So actual possible improvements?

1. Put the damn manuals in the damn machine
2. Don't make the 3G locked to specific telcos
3. Seriously, upgrade the camera dude. The Vita is a gorgeous machine that takes really really crappy photos. 
4. Stop making me convert episodes and play the damn episodes normally.
5. Give better cables
6. Stop making me transfer files via content manager. It's a shitty program. 
7. Stop with the 2nd hand cockblocking shit. Seriously, stop it.