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Nintendo DS Lite 
Design: The titanium DS clamshell design opens up to a dual-screen gaming experience, giving the system its name. The keypad setup, shoulder buttons, and directional button are similar to other Nintendo products, so existing Nintendo users should be very comfortable with it.
Size: The DS Lite is slimmer than the original DS model, although it's bulky when compared with the Game Boy Advance or the Game Boy Micro.
Screen Resolution: 256x192 pixels with 260,000 colors. More isn't always better. The two screens lack in resolution compared to the PSP, but they have minimal glare and the bottom screen is actually a touch screen. You can use a stylus or a thumb piece to navigate around it for writing messages, drawing in PictoChat, or other innovative, game-specific uses. The DS Lite also has adjustable brightness settings.
Media and Memory: The DS Lite has a dual-slot design for the game cartridges, meaning that it has backwards compatibility with the Game Boy Advance -- a big plus for your wallet if you already own lots of GBA games.
Connectivity: Wireless connection capability allows gamers to play with or against each other as well as chat and send messages via PictoChat. For direct connections (LAN play), you must be within 150ft. in open space, but only 30ft. when there are walls between. However, Nintendo has recently brought the DS online, allowing users to play against others via the Internet. All you need is a WiFi hotspot or wireless network in your home. Also, if you want to download new games and even use the device as a type of PDA, supposedly Nintendo will release V-pocket, making the DS palm-compatible in the very near future.
Audio: The audio on the DS makes a big difference with two large speakers that react like a surround sound setup would.
Battery Life: Great battery life on this baby, lasting 10 solid hours and then some, which is better than the PSP. |
PlayStation Portable
Design: The slick PSP resembles its full-size PlayStation counterpart except for the analog nub, which doesn't protrude like on a normal PS2 controller. The non clamshell design leaves the screen exposed, but you can buy a plastic screen guard.
Size: While the PSP doesn't have dual screens, it does have one massive 4.3" screen, which makes gaming on this device a real treat and not at all hard on the eyes. The system is slender but long, and thus tough to carry around in your pocket.
Screen Resolution: 480x272 pixel resolution and 16.77 million colors. While not impressive compared to a PS2, the PSP is pretty accomplished for Sony's first shot at a handheld system and it definitely outshines the DS. The screen doesn't have any touch functionality like the DS and it tends to attract smudges and fingerprints.
Media and Memory: The PSP requires UMD discs (they look like mini discs) for watching movies and playing games, but they aren't rewritable. You then need a separate Memory Stick to store games, game saves, music, photos, and video. The $250 PSP Value Pack comes with a 32Mb Stick, however, this is hardly enough to store more than one game save and a couple songs. Extra storage, such as a 1GB Stick ($70-$100) is expensive, but it's the only way to get the optimum use of the PSP's many features.
Connectivity: With built-in WiFi, you can access the Internet via the Web browser anywhere there is a wireless connection.
Audio: Sound quality is okay, but not comparable to listening to a dedicated MP3 device like an iPod.
Extras: The PSP does more than just play games. It can play movies, MP3s, M3Us, WAVs, and AAC-formatted files, but not songs downloaded from iTunes. It can also display photos that are stored on a memory chip (TIFFs, PNGs, JPGs, GIFs, and BMPs). |
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