So, I own a vita (though due to a lack of games and not wanting to pay a fortune for a proprietary memory card higher than 16gb I never use it), I got a N3dsXL about two weeks ago (it could be on better shape, though the screens are pretty much scratch free, unless you bring it under a light) however I've noticed that both have a fair amount of processing power (especially the vita; though Sony killed it) people keep saying the future of handhelds is mobile, but that is BS unless you are a "whale" and have cash to throw down on pretty much every mobile game out there designed to milk you for cash and you have a power bank (or two) to recharge the battery on your smartphone. When we get into chemistry and thermodynamics it seems that lithium-ion/li-po/lithium-ceramic batteries are about the best we can get as they are extremely energy dense, about as far as you can go before going from battery to explosive. You can even see battery manufacturers trying to get into the phone business with brick like phones (the energizer phone) so phones are limited for portable gaming and really are for casual titles only; hard-core titles tend to cause heating issues and massive battery drain.
There are hybrid consoles (the switch) but they are nowhere near as compact and resilient as the Vita or 3DS is. Points to Nintendo for making a console that survives young children. Though I really don't like giving them money; I'll buy used games instead, or use CEMU. This is due to their extremely high online prices, but I digress. I grew up with handheld consoles. I had an original game boy, a game boy pocket (I never got a game boy colour, a death of a parent meant I had to get handed down stuff from relatives) but I always loved my handhelds. I got a pre owned GBA from GAME (basically a UK gamestop) and enjoyed playing that; I got the rechargeable battery pack and a frontlight+magnifying glass IIRC. (Cont)
Handheld consoles will eventually just be phones made by Sony/Nintendo/possibly MS/etc.
Christian Sanchez
I mainly used it for castlevania and older pokemon games, I was still fairly young then. I remember the release of the DS and the PSP (I missed out on both early; too much of a poorest and wanted to build my first PC; though I picked up a DS lite cheap from a cousin when I was 18),.then a year or two later when it launched. The DS and then the Vita were both great consoles, I could play them at home, or more importantly on public transport. They weathered well and I didn't need to bring chargers. However the console market seems to be mainly restricted to home consoles, with.the switch being a delicate home console with a fairly limited battery life. It costs a whole lot more than handhelds too and is more delicate. I can't just shove it in a jacket pocket like I could my DS-L or Vita or my new (new) 3dsxl. Are there any new handhelds on the horizon? Or am in looking at a market that will likely lose all online functionality in the next few years and then begin to fade into obscurity?
Brody Turner
The Vita is so easily hackable I can’t believe you don’t have a use for it.
Jose Cooper
There are rumors of a smaller, cheaper, more robust switch but we haven't heard anything from Nintendo yet. As I only really play handhelds being in bed or at a friend's than outdoors or on public transit, I'm very satisfied with the switch's current iteration and am interested in an eventual performance upgrade, though I understand your issues with it of you're more interested in the latter uses I mentioned.
Ian Sanders
Battery tech can't really keep up. Lithium ion batteries look like peak energy density. Unless we discover a radically new power method for phones then phones as a console won't work out. Handheld consoles worked well as they didn't bother wasting power on unnecessary stuff and they had extra space courtesy of buttons/joysticks, so they could fit a bigger battery. With a phone you get a bigger screen, which uses battery faster if size increases. Maybe with specced firmware updates phones could have a "game mode" but then they go from phone to console and would likely lose phone functionality. As I said in my OP, battery companies like energizer made their own brickphone because of the battery problem. A problem that if you look at thermodynamics, will likely never be solved.
Juan Martin
Nintendo said after the switch they would be focusing on handheld only consoles. The switch is only selling because it is a handheld in japan and the wii u flopped hard enough on them while the 3ds saved them.
Anthony Stewart
No, the golden age is over thanks to smarthphones and high costs.
Carson Roberts
I will have to look into this. My Vita (original OLED vita 1003) has been collecting dust for about 3 years. Still, it's in good working order though. Barely a.scratch on her. I mainly used it for S ranking peace walker on every level with dual sticks. By hackable do you mean hardware hacks (e.g. Getting rid of that godawful card slot and switching to micro SD, or software, so I can play homebrew, etc? Or both?
Parker Adams
I really hope this isn't true. It seems to be more of a manufacturer and developer greed issue. There would be plenty of older games that could come out on a smaller, sturdier handheld than the switch. Manufacturers would maybe have to be creative with battery placement, though I could see it done, maybe. Phones seem to just be getting bigger and thinner, which doesn't help battery life. I would take a phone that was twice as thick, has more battery life and could run good games rather than mobile trash.
