This review is the final out of four parts of the PlayStation Vita review. To read part one click here. To read part two click here. To read part three click here.
While the look, feel and user experience is important, the overall enjoyment of the system can be determined only by using the system for multiple hours.
When the system is started for the first time, owners are greeted with a startup screen, equipped with annoying and repetitive generic music. Owners are then asked to type in their name, date of birth and email address. This is the first time users get to the use the systems touch QWERTY keyboard. The buttons for each letter are big and can be used easily whether one has small or big hands. Next the owner is asked if he or she wants to make an AT&T account. If the owner chooses to, the Vitas internet browser opens and takes one to the sign up page. This is where things go wrong. The flash on the site causes the Vita to lag and makes the sign up a major hassle.
Some who buy this 3g version of the Vita will experience a glitch during the first hour of owning the Vita. Once in a while the Vita will freeze completely during the initial setup. The screen will become unresponsive and the system will refuse to turn off. One will have to wait for the system to run out of batteries for the system to actually shut down. Then the owner will be forced to wait for the Vita to recharge before attempting the setup again. The fix to the glitch is only possible after the setup is complete. Sony released an update that repairs the fatal error. After the update the glitch will never occur again.
Anyone who owned the previous PlayStation Portable systems will be disappointed by the battery life of the Vita. With the brightness set to its lowest setting and the power saving options on, the system will only last for about five hours. Luckily it doesn’t take too long to recharge the system. Sony is also releasing an external battery that will substantially increase the battery life. Still something seems wrong when a portable system needs an external battery for acceptable battery life.
The Vita has two cameras, one on front and one on the back. The cameras themself are great but the software they run on makes the images end up with an evident blue tint. Gray skies will appear blue and green roofs will appear blue green. This situation occurs when using either camera so don't expect to be taking any high quality pictures until the software is updated to fix the blue tint.
These problems impair the overall experience when playing the PlayStation Vita but not enough to make it a miserable experience. The Vita gets a 4/5 for overall experience.
When adding the scores together the PlayStation Vita gets a score of 17/20 or 8.5/10 for those who want to compare the score to IGN or similar sites. The Vita is beautiful system with an amazing build, beautiful screen and a high quality music playing app but there are a few problems that impede the the system. If Sony manages to fix the few problems the Vita has then there is a good chance the people could experience a near perfect system.
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