PlayStation TV Review | IGN

The PlayStation TV lets you play Vita games (physical and digital alike) and PSP/PSone classics on your television, acts as a Remote Play hub for beaming your PlayStation 4 content around the home, streams movies and TV shows, and plays PS3 games from the cloud via the PlayStation Now service. That's a lot for a $100 device that fits in the palm of your hand, right?

[fhizikz]

Getting this as a companion for my ps4

[darthv72]

Getting this to replace my PSP Go and play PSP/Vita games on a TV.

[TomShoe]

Remote play is awesome, but the lack of Netflix and 1080p steaming hurts it's value some.

I'd say it's like the Vita. It's not for everyone, but usually those who get it love it.

[bouzebbal]

the problem is, once again, Vita is clearly becoming a PS4 companion and nothing else. PS TV would have been a great deal if you can remote play your PS4 from everywhere in the world with a DS4 because i travel a lot.
The lack of supported games kills it for me, especially since it doesn't support the biggest Vita games (uncharted, tearaway, killzone, LBP, gravity rush...)

[badz149]

@abzdiine

er...KZM is supported. they just released an update to support PSTV just awhile back.

[bouzebbal]

@badz149: ok thanks i didnt know, but still weak support. helpful bubble for you

[Conzul]

No 1080p kills it for me.
I would have happily bought it for 50-100$ more, just for 1080p capability. My TV is so big that anything less than 900p looks repulsive. Try again Sony.

[ThatOneGuyThere]

I wanted to get this to replace my Roku. Maybe I should wait until they release Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu?

[Spotie]

It was never meant to compete with or replace such a thing.

[u4one]

yeah don't do that. this thing is if you want a few Vita/PSP games and only want content from Sony.

[ThatOneGuyThere]

thats a silly comment, given that all of Playstation's other products support such services. The fact of the matter is, those 3rd parties just havent created the apps for the Playstation TV yet.

[BattleTorn]

I was going to, but have no decided to save for a second PS4 instead.

[guitarded77]

I'll probably got that route too. I have a Vita and a PS4, and the PSTV would be a good fit for our home, but I think I'd like having a second PS4 on the other TV more so.

[Sly-Lupin]

Ideally Sony should patch in PSTV functionality to the PS4. If they can't be arsed to do B/C, they could at least let us play PSP/V games on a big screen.

[Xb1ps4]

Figures they would fvck it up... And good god will Sony ever learn a lesson about memory cards already?!

[turdburgler1080]

This is what we call dropping the ball...twice now. First psnow and then this. Man sony are you drunk on your big lead? Get it together.

[gangsta_red]

"...but my network is solid and I wouldn't spend another dime on PlayStation Now for Wi-Fi play."

Interesting, has anyone else had this problem when playing over a Wi-Fi connection? I am surprised no one had this concern even though OnLive had similar issues when playing multiplayer.

Looking at that UI, I just have to wonder is Sony incapable of making an attractive UI to navigate through? I swear it's so bare bones and just plain unappealing.

Well that's a shame that IGN didn't have a good experience with it, I think we can chalk this one up to another early adopters beware as the Vita TV seems to need some time to grow and expand into something more.

[ThatOneGuyThere]

I remote play on my Vita at home all the time. It runs great with an occasional hiccup here and there. The PSTV being wired will make a huge difference.

[guitarded77]

The remote play works pretty good for me too. I wouldn't play a competitive twitch shooter with it because there is some latency, but for games like Final Fantasy XIV it's great. And yeah, a wired PSTV would alleviate that problem.

[Eonjay]

I used it over Wifi and for me it works flawlessly with amazing picture quality. For me it works better over wifi than Remote Play. The UI is fine. The games look amazing but it needs better app support and more support for Vita Games. My review is 8/10 pending an update for Netflix. It doesn't need to expand into something more, it just needs the current apps updated.

[ruefrak]

I have used PS Now on my PS TV over wifi quite a bit and works GREAT. Remote play may not be the best on the PSTV, but it's PS Now support is top notch. Just as good as the PS4.

[Scatpants]

I had issues with wifi so I bought one of those powerline range extenders. Works good now.

[Sly-Lupin]

The XMB is the best UI under Windows. Simple, clean, efficient and customizable.

So to be fair, its only recently that they've become incapable at designing new UI. Instead, they seem overly focused on trying to replicate the Android/iOS aesthetic.

[TheStrokes]

I still have my 60GB ps3 (1tb) along with my ps4!

Win-win with no lag.

[Protagonist]

From the article.

"the strength of your Wi-Fi setup is a very strong factor to consider."

So what was your point? it clearly doesn´t have anything to do to with the PSTV. And it is not a Win-win for gamers ho wanted to play Vita and PSP games on the BIG screen.

-----------------

Netflix? ughrrrr... Had it for a month, never went back.

[George Sears]

No Netflix, Hulu Plus support, and to top it off it doesn't do what it is intended right because of incompatibility with many top games. Whoever buys this now are really nothing but beta testers.

I'll stick with my Vita but nice try Sony.

[ocelot07]

People like me who imported one last year where the beta testers. When barely any Vita games where supported. No US/UK accounts allowed ect. The PS TV has come a long way since I got mine in December 2013.

[NarooN]

It's come a long way, yet it's still not up to snuff. Don't see the positivity there.

[ocelot07]

Maybe for you it not up the snuff. But for me it is. I think it is a great console that allows me to play my PSP,PSone titles and stream PS4 titles to it if I wish to do so. Plus play Vita games. Really enjoying Minecraft and Killzone on it.

[XabiDaChosenOne]

Hows bright idea was it at Sony to not have this thing support 1080p and no netflix and hulu at launch? Jeez Sony...

[MajorGecko]

sony going full retard

[silvacrest]

sony want you to buy into their video and music services first yet again, when they realize no one wants to do that they will add the typical apps we expect

[Irishguy95]

Just more misleading from them

Fool me once(Ps3) - Shame on you
Fool me twice(Ps4) - Shame on me
Fool me thrice(PsNow) - Sheep

It's important never to buy into the hype Sony give out on their products. It takes them years(I do mean YEARS) to actually achieve what they reveal with their consoles. I wouldn't say they 'break' promises, but they certainly delay them for a long *** time. Business is business afterall.

[MajorGecko]

don't forget the vita's "console in your pocket" promise which turned into a big FU

[vongruetz]

After having the PSTV since Tuesday, and playing it extensively, I disagree with so many aspects of this article that it's amazing.

First, just like when the PS4/XB1 launched, assigning a numerical score to a constantly evolving machine is stupid. It doesn't have an app this week and so you ding its score. What happens when that app comes next week? Features will be added. Apps will come. So right now you can't give it a score. You can just say what it does.

And more than anything, it plays Killzone Mercenary on the big screen and it is fantastic. The UI is not clunky, but easy to navigate, especially if you are used to a Vita. It makes finding a game infinitely easier than the PS4.

It's not complete yet, but it is definitely a really great box at the moment.

[baodeus]

So shouldn't people be waiting until it is complete or at least have some more apps/function that could replace other streaming devices?

[vongruetz]

All I'm saying is that you can't give a score to something that is constantly moving. Whether it's the PlayStation TV, the PS4, or the Xbox One. The PS4 is not the same system it was at launch and so the "score" they gave it a year ago is useless. But that doesn't mean they'll ever go back and change it.

I think with consoles, just tell people what it does and does not do. The PS TV has a lot of flaws at the moment, but it also has some tremendous positives that get glossed over or ignored in this review.

[Scatpants]

Wait if you feel like it. It streams my PS4 to my bedroom perfectly so i'm happy with it. Any other features are just gravy.

[Cupid_Viper_3]

Hey man, I'm going to tell you how I wholeheartedly feel about most online publications mostly based in the US and UK.

It is my opinion that those websites are incredibly biased against Sony. The root of it all? I'm unsure when this trend started, but it was very obvious last gen, and you can still see a lot of it this gen still.

The rule of the game is this; anything that mostly benefits Sony/PlayStation MUST be judged differently from anything else. Meanwhile, the competition's flaws must be downplayed. For 8 whole years, IGN and pretty much all other webaites ignored the fact that MS released a console with 54% failure rate. Instead, they shifted the conversation towards Xbox live vs PSN, and started the whole pixel counting thing, along with Eurogamer.

So now that the PS4 has a clear edge in terms of raw power, the topic has inexplicably changed to Gameplay>Graphics. It's as if they want you to to forget that they use to score PS3 multiplatform games lower than their Xbox 360 counterparts because it has 20 less pixels.

And then you had the whole: "Exclusives don't matter thing" when the PS3 was pushing them out one after another. And now that there's a slight semblance of parity in numbers of exclusives between the two fairly young libraries for both consoles, exclusives matter again. And suddenly, the Xbox one is inexplicably being touted for its exclusives, which it had NONE of from March 12, until the release of FH2 in September. 6 MONTHS of zero exclusives, and it's all fine and dandy. Meanwhile, it's all about the "updates bro" didn't you get the memo?

DriveClub release with a broken online, and some of the low scores you can't really argue with, but even before the sever issues it was already being marked down for not being an open world game, and for being delayed. Now, I will offer to buy the biggest troll (1 from each camp) a brand new copy of Project Cars if I'm wrong in the fact that when it does release, it won't be marked down for being delayed and not open world.

Finally to get on topic, if this device was called XBOX TV, it would be reviewed by IGN quite differently. Missing apps would be just that, missing apps that would be added later on. There would be such a forgiving nature about the review that you could mistake it for a PR release.

[Harold_Finch]

You sound like a bit of a paranoid loon

[Mrveryodd]

Please show me where you got %54 from.

[Cupid_Viper_3]

@ Mrveryodd

http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

http://ca.ign.com/articles/... <--- Even IGN themselves reported 54%

http://gizmodo.com/5344302/...

http://kotaku.com/5339555/r...

http://www.p4rgaming.com/mi...

http://consumerist.com/2009...

The links go on and on... you should google it, it's really eye opening.

[Torque_CS_Lewith]

XD lol!

[DoctorJones]

Whenever something made by Sony is reviewed negatively on this site there's always some nut job claiming a conspiracy theory.

[marlinfan10]

lol here we go, some more conspiracies. you ever think that things don't score well because they're just flat out not that great? oh wait, everything sony does is perfect, if its not scored 100/100 then MS payed for the reviews!!!

[NarooN]

They give scores to systems when they launch and that score reflects their feelings on the system *at that point in time*. It doesn't matter if the system will get new features and get revised further down the line -- how can you honestly give a score to something based on theory and not actual substance? Rating a system on features it's "supposedly" gonna get and not what it has at the time of the review is what is actually stupid.

If you disagree with the score, there's nothing wrong with that. But it's not like the review is some set-in-stone fact or anything, all reviews (unless otherwise stated to be based solely in objectivity) are subjective viewpoints anyway.

[BattleTorn]

I was super stoked for PS TV.

But seeing as I was primarily getting it for remote-play.

I figured for $100+$60(PSTV+ a DS4) I can get a laggy remote-play, in 720p.

Or for additional ~$240 I could get a whole nother PS4 - and get 1080p lag-free gaming.

Might seem excessive, but I think I'm going to bite the bullet. Cause if I don't I may end up doing this after I dislike the PS TV anyways.

[OrangePowerz]

Woth a proper network setup the remote play isn't laggy. I have one since the Japan launch and it's all down to the network setup.

[Knushwood Butt]

I've had one since the JP launch too, but gave up on Remote Play a long time ago. Are both of your devices wired to your network?

[ocelot07]

Completely agree. If you can't go wired. Then the next best thing is homeplugs/powerline adapters. Wifi is rubbish. I have my PSTV upstairs and remote play absolutely fine. A couple weeks ago I brought my PS TV to a relatives (around when the Destiny Beta was on). I downloaded the beta via my hang kong account on the PS4. When I got to my relatives I connected it to the router via ethernet and was able to play things like Warframe and Destiny fine with no lag.

[OrangePowerz]

Jep wired, I hate WiFi and any device that has a ethernet port is wired at my place.

[alwayzbusi1]

Why the hell would you need to buy another DS4 to remote play your PS4? What are you playing your PS4 with now? telekinesis? Just take your current DS4 to the other room and use it with your PSTv or pay 300 more for a second PS4.

[BattleTorn]

I already have enough grief constantly swapping out 1 of 2 my charging DS4s. I figure I need a third for the other room.

Plus, hey maybe I could get a coloured one too.

[Anon1974]

I don't anticipate any issues with my network and I'm onboard for the PS4 remote play. Seems like a no brainer for me. I get a PSTV to play my Vita collection on the TV and be able to play my PS4 on my secondary TV. For me, that's well worth the price tag. And that's really what it boils down to, the price. This is a $99 videogame console. Right out of the gate of course there's going to be limitations. It's ninety nine bucks.

What do you expect? On a few retail sites I see it listed under "PS4 accessories". If you've got a PS3 or Xbox, you don't need one of these. If you've got a PS4 and don't need an extender, you don't need one of these. If you have a Vita, you probably don't need one of these. Of course it's not for everyone.

However, if you want a PS4 extender and have a good network or a want a cheap console to throw in the kids rooms, or want to play your Vita games on a larger screen, or want a cheap console to leave out at the cabin for rainy days, etc...the PSTV is cheap and gets the job done. I probably spend more money in a month on coffees.

[XanderZane]

This pretty much says it all. Another rushed product from Sony that's incomplete. First it was the PS4 rushed with over 1/2 a dozen issues. Then PS Now rushed with no monthly or yearly subscriptions and overpriced rental for games you already own.. Not we get the PSTV with all these faults.

"In theory, yes. In practice, however, Sony's microconsole currently proves less beneficial than advertised. Many Vita games don't work at all (including some of the biggest titles around); PlayStation Now is a mess over Wi-Fi; and video-streaming services like Netflix and Hulu Plus aren't available. Also, the Vita interface isn't the most useful or visually appealing fit for a larger, touchless screen. It's a little box with a lot of possibilities, but the PlayStation TV experience lacks refinement and doesn't feel like it was quite ready to launch."

They can keep it. I won't waste my money on PSTV or PSNow. Not even worth my time or money.

[OrangePowerz]

If the PS4 is rushed what does that make the X1?

PS now is in Beta.

Not all Vita games not working on Vita TV is down to the lack of touchscreen.

Netflix and Hulu apps are up to develop by, well have a guess. Netflix and Hulu.

[Death]

It wouldn't make the Xbox anything, but the Xbox also felt rushed when it released.

PSNow is not in beta. They have a working business model in place that requires payments.

Netflix and Hulu are a no brainer for the device and should be working at launch.

[meganick]

PS Now is not in beta. A beta is only open to a small group for reasons of testing and gaining feedback to help finalize something for release. PS Now is available to everyone, hence not in beta.

[Funantic1]

@OrangePowerz
XanderZane never mentioned anything about the Xbox One. But I knew that the PS TV wasn't for me since it doesn't support all Vita, PS3, and PS4 games. From what I've seen more of the older or less than impressive/reviewed games are supported.

[XanderZane]

The XB1 was rushed as well. This article is not about the XB1, so there was no need for me to mention it. There are two reasons Sony is rushing PSTV to the market. 1) They are desperate for money 2) Sony doesn't want to miss the holiday rush. They don't care if the product is fully ready or not. As long as fanboys are willing to open their wallets, that's all they want to see. PSNow is not in Beta. Everyone can use it. They have gamers paying full price to use the service already. It's craqzy that they don't have Netflix or HuluPlus as part of their app. Especially when the app is free to download.

[Sm00thNinja]

Funny thing is feature wise the Xbox One is trouncing the PS4 rushed or not it's truly come into its own. As for PSTV never had any interest I'll just buy another PS4 if I want a PlayStation experience in another room in my household

[MajorGecko]

i have a ps4 (had a vita but sold that garbage), and if you think Sony is doing better support then Microsoft you are kidding yourself.

Microsft just updated DLNA and MKV support for video files...i cant even charge my tablet on my ps4 without battlefield glitching out, the PS4 is barebone's ATM you cant even play a simple MP3 yet.

waiting for people to disagree to facts

[Knushwood Butt]

I've never had an issue using the Vita interface via my TV.

[Knuckle Duster]

This opinion is from experience! Total waist of $! Sent mine back to Amazon after one unsatisfactory moment after another. Games were glitchy and laggy and no netflix or Amazon prime = no go for $99!

[Anon1974]

If you wanted Amazon Prime or Netflix, why'd you buy this? That's like saying "I wanted to buy a toaster to watch Netflix, but all it did was make toast! What a waste!" And games were glitchy and laggy? What games? Playing over wi-fi? Did you try using the recommended network setup?

Perhaps you should have taken a moment to inform yourself as a consumer before you opened your wallet?

[Blink_44]

If this could play more vita games, I would be all over it.

[Thomaticus]

You know there'll be updates to the PlayStation TV; Once it begins to get more features I'll pick it up. Hopefully, IGN will take another look at PSTV as it evolves.

[Sly-Lupin]

Here's a question: can the PSTV handle multiple PSN accounts? If it could, that would certainly make it more appealing for me (for the digital imports).

[DaBooth]

Hey Sm00thNinja aint you so lucky as to be able to afford a second ps4 not everyone can afford to chuck cash at another machine so they can play in another room or there kids rooms. Dont you just love all the one up manship on here. Sony ya doing a fab job in my house and yes even drive club rocks people are so demanding because there spoilt lol

[Father__Merrin]

this is an excellent PlayStation device can't wait to see it grow. PlayStation users always have the best stuff!