PSP versus iPhone


I bought a PSP a few years ago for use when I was on the road. At first, I played it every day, working the console until my hands inevitably cramped up. I eventually purchased a case for it which also doubled as a grip and second battery, which seemed to solve the problem. Thing is, the games are really expensive, and sometimes I feel like I’m just a bit too old to carry the thing around every day. That, and the PSP hasn’t changed enough in the past five years for me to justify buying a new one, so it sits in my cabinet, waiting for the next long flight when I might decide to put it in my bag.

Above is Sony’s latest PSP commercial, and this one is aimed at the iPhone. First, let me say that I love the Marcus PSP ads. They’re well done, well designed, and hit the target audience pretty well. Problem is, the target audience here appears to be fifth grade boys. This seems to be an attempt to discourage older guys from buying a “kids toy,” and I’m not quite sure why they’d do that. Anyways, the commercial says that the iPhone is made for kiddie games, and not “real” gaming, like the PSP.

As someone who owns both, I can say that yes, the PSP is an official gaming console, and yes, the iPhone does play kiddie games. Although the iPhone does have certain limitations, it’s worlds more convenient. I bring my iPhone everywhere. My PSP sits in a cabinet. Do I really want to bring two devices everywhere when one of them does both?

Now the trick here is for Sony to build a PSP phone. That could potentially do some damage. Until then though, this ad is just a lame attempt at hitting the market.


Kokou Adzo

Kokou Adzo is a stalwart in the tech journalism community, has been chronicling the ever-evolving world of Apple products and innovations for over a decade. As a Senior Author at Apple Gazette, Kokou combines a deep passion for technology with an innate ability to translate complex tech jargon into relatable insights for everyday users.

3 Comments

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  1. There are a lot of people who own PSPs, and are under the impression that it is a better gaming machine than the iPhone 4. People usually love what they have, and hate what they don’t have 😉

    But just checking the facts, it’s hard to justify the claim that a PSP is a better gaming machine than the iPhone 4:

    – PSP display resolution is 480 x 272 pixels, vs. the iPhone 4’s 960 x 640 pixels (less than 1/4 the resolution of the iPhone 4)

    – PSP has a much slower CPU, 333MHz vs. the iPhone 4’s 1GHz CPU (only 1/3 the speed of the iPhone 4)

    – PSP has a dimmer display than the iPhone 4

    – PSP is less pocket-friendly than the iPhone 4

    – PSP has no built-in storage (you need to carry around a bunch of game disks with you), while the iPhone 4 can store up to 32GB of games

    – PSP has a much shorter battery life than the iPhone 4

    – PSP is basically only a game player, while the iPhone 4 is a great game player that can also do many other functions (phone, GPS navigation, email, shoot photos & video, etc.).

    With all of these areas where the iPhone is far superior to the PSP, it’s ludicrous to consider the PSP to be a “better” gaming machine than the iPhone 4.

    The only other thing that PSP owners bring up is a differentiator (not an advantage)… that the PSP has many physical buttons instead of having a multi-touch interface.

    But most people who have advanced to and use the multi-touch interface of the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch find it much more intuitive and precise than having to use PSP’s more than 20 buttons. For iOS users, NOT having a overabundance of physical buttons is a BENEFIT.

    But like Windows users who denigrate Mac users but have never used a Mac themselves. PSP users defend their less powerful, less useful devices, while denigrating the iOS devices that are far superior to their PSPs.

  2. One more thing…

    There are less than 1,000 games available for the PSP.
    There are approximately 40,000 games available for iOS devices.

    It’s would be futile to call the small amount of games available for the PSP as being better than the iPhone (which has more than 40 times that number).

  3. Yea, but the iPhone has fart apps that count as games, soo….. STFU quality over quantity. The PSP has a slower CPU yes, but it handles almost as many IPS. no, not the screen, insturctions per second. The GPU in the PSP wipes the iphone across the floor. 33 MILLION triangles per second vs 12 million tps on the iphone. yea, better graphics. lol. Also the iphone relies on OPENGL, a translator, where the PSP supports games in c. yea, direct access to CPU. means better games. I have an iphone, and love it. but the PSP has way better graphics, games, and formfactor (BUTTONS!!)