PlayStation Portal is Not Great but Not Terrible - A Sceptics Review

[@wodensthrone5215]

The backbone doesn't have the ergonomics and dualsense features, i use my portal a lot and its the most comfortable handheld I've used.

[@WolfKing1987]

You can still use the 3d pulse headset on the portal. I use mine all the time when I play. Just keep the dongle connected to the PS five as you normally would, and just turn it on. The audio will transfer to the portal while wearing the headset.

[@Doragon86]

A few people have recommended this and it does work well. It however does fail to work more than 10 metres away from the console, which is when Bluetooth or an option to use the 3D Pulse dongle connection directly on the Portal, would be very useful.

[@Feeniix]

I've been waiting for this. 1. Love the priorities. Handheld + EpiPen in a bag = 100% Ready for a day out. 🙌 2. I'm actually surprised it's comfortable, it looks really awkward and clumpy in the photos. Big win. 3. Portal allows sofa lay down cuddles with cats. 4. Does the back of the controller have the tiny little X,O, square and triangle symbols like the dual sense? I think they help with the grip. 5. That primary account / rest mode issue could be a pain in the butt for families. 6. Screen looks really good! 7. Lack of Bluetooth is a draft lack of functionality, especially as you point out the dongles don't fit / or work for this purpose. My other half wants one, so I am expecting to have one in the household when they're next in stock! Great review as always 🐉

[@Doragon86]

1. Can't play the handheld if dead. Gotta have priorities! 2. It's so comfy, playing the Switch after is horrible, my hands hurt. 3. Cat cuddles always = win. 4. Yes it has the PS symbols everywhere 5. Pain. In. The. Butt! 6. It's shockingly good. 7. More annoying considering the mobile phone chip inside. 8. Will be interested in your opinions when one enters the house

[@WhoKnowsZombie]

Not great? It’s amazing. I have 0 latency. I expected it to be horrible but man was I wrong. It’s awesome and I feel like I’m just playing the games on the handheld itself.

[@theproblem9938]

you must have good wifi for me its very laggy i guess i need to upgrade my wifi or sell mine sadly

[@BeHempy]

Cap.

[@ramrodbldm9876]

Lmao clown yous a bs

[@adrianesparza2684]

Everyone that is mad just has McDonald’s WiFi lol

[@kyzerpikasso841]

I preordered a month before release day. I couldn’t get it til the following day because of delivery errors but also was able to find 3rd party accessories that arrived release day so I actually had the case, sleeve, and screen protector accessories first🤣

[@neil_gg_]

It'll be interesting to see if other handhelds now copy the split-in-half controller design, now that it's been done. When airpods came out, plenty of people thought they looked weird and were impractical, but now that design is copied everywhere and people accept it without question. Epic review Doragon!

[@Doragon86]

I hope it is copied. This feels so much better than anything else on the market

[@noticeddamian]

@@Doragon86but if you check out the technical review from digital foundry the Wii u did latency much better 10 years ago 😆

[@Barnsleylad1983]

Fantastic video best one I’ve seen so far thank you

[@N7_Spectres]

Interesting video! The light, very pretty. The dongle, thinking maybe if you velcro it to the back, could have less pressure on the jack. The demo outside was cool. Overall, I think it has potential.

[@Doragon86]

Potential is definitely the word. Track record of PlayStation meeting potential after the launch window of hardware however is attrocious. We shall see

[@mmstick]

If you have stuttering and freezes, then yes it's your network. Mesh routers are notorious for poor latency and random bandwidth constraints. I have a single Huawei AX3 Pro in my apartment, which has thick concrete walls. I've never had any stutter, freezes, bit crushing, or input delay. Each access point should at least be wired via Ethernet, and the Portal must be connecting to the 5 GHz access point specifically. Bit crushing and stutter will be common if you haven't split the 2.4 and 5 GHz access points into two separate SSIDs, as the Portal tends to lean towards 2.4 GHz when it's available. But at the end of the day, a single good WiFi access point will have better latency and throughput than an average mesh network setup. It's also important to note that some people need to unplug the HDMI out to get the best input latency.

[@Doragon86]

Now tell a time poor parent to do after a full day's work, hours of travel in either direction, all of the required daily chores, putting the kids to bed, and all they want to do is capture a little time gaming. That is a major problem with the Portal, the average gamer isn't an IT service team, heck they aren't even tinkerers like you or I, and hoops like this for a device marketed as the easy option, is a failure in design and implementation.

[@mmstick]

@@Doragon86To be honest, you don't need to be in IT to be able to set up a router these days. If you can assemble IKEA furniture, then you can set up a router. The Huawei AX3 Pro that I installed comes with both a mobile app and a simple web interface. The manual has a QR code for installing the app or accessing the web interface. It doesn't get much simpler than that. Plugging the PS5 into the router with an Ethernet cable, and configuring separate SSIDs for the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands does not take much effort. The hardest part is deciding where to place a router. At least one per floor and placed in the center of each floor. If someone can't be bothered to read the manual, there's always a phone call to the handyman to do it for you. The whole part about port forwarding is unnecessary. Most routers have UPnP enabled by default. I've not done any port forwarding and yet my Portal works fine with zero stutter or connection issues.

[@Doragon86]

@@mmstick My friend, you still miss the point. The Huawei AX3 Pro is not only an aftermarket 3rd party router that most people would never purchase, it is a 2 year old device, not for sale item that most consumers would not trust following the 2019 US trade ban of the company. While there are other options on the market that do a very similar job, across Europe in 2021, so over 30 countries, more than 90% of broadband using residents used the ISP provided router. An aftermarket router is further expense to the customer that most users cannot justify at normal times, let alone during this cost of living crisis. In those scenarios, so up to or even over 90% of purchase cases of the Portal, the port forwarding is required and separation of the bands is automatic with no customer means to adjust. Add in that the Snapdragon 662 is only Wi-Fi 5 as opposed to 6, no it isn't a network situation, it is a device problem

[@CloudandConsole]

The Design is so well done, I argue Aesthetic nightmare, it looks B E A U TIFUL... Great video, Well edited, the zoom in shots are nice, Love the merch in the VR Video... wish it came with a case or a bag... but i get it, they got to keep costs down, and there goes another usb port in my ps5 for charging... I barley have enough room on the ps5 already.... thanks for showing it off, i feel like i got a real great first hand experience watching this .

[@NinjaDog578]

Beautiful, thorough and level headed review mate 😉 PS: I have zero problems with streaming since i have everything on static IPs on my network, PS5 is hardwired and portal is on the 5GHz band (also, i have zero network congestion and packet loss ). The ONLY problem for me ? That fecking (now infamous) 59.96Hz micro stutter which feels more like games dropping frames/having framepacing issues than real stutter which is on ALL games (also noticed it in your video). Remote play is literally flawless on all my other devices since they all have higher than 60Hz refresh rate screens - as soon as you drop the refresh rate to 60Hz... micro stutter is back. Its basically a Hz mismatch between the portal's 60Hz screen and the PS5's 59.96Hz output. Its been 5 months since release now and...Sony hasnt done anything to fix this which is worrying, still hoping for a FW update that either A) does something with the PS5's output or B) introduces a framepacing/no dropped frames option like Chiaki/Psplay.

[@II_leathal_II]

Great breakdown!

[@Doragon86]

Cheers dude. Hope you found it useful

[@II_leathal_II]

I did, I don’t this is for me lol

[@Pedster9]

The most informed video ive seen for this. Love my portal btw. Not for everyone but this video is really good.

[@SolaBeamz]

Have really good WiFi and plugged into Ethernet and still getting really bad frame drops and stuttering. Can the portal smoothly run call of duty or is it a WiFi issue. In which case how can I go about fixing it. Thank you!

[@Doragon86]

Even in my 6 months later review I'm struggling. The only thing I have found that makes any difference is unplugging the HDMI cable, but that's still prone to stutters and freezes, just less frequently.

[@ArsevensX]

Suggestion: you can use dongle bluetooth for Portal. Just plug it on your ps5. If you are in the range of the bluetooth dongle, you can hear the voice of the game from there

[@Doragon86]

Yeah this has been pointed out a few times and works really well. Still a workaround though which we shouldn't have to do for the cost

[@ObiRoseKenobi]

Broooo thank you for a through review I will be looking for one soon I’m set getting this

[@Doragon86]

I really hope it works for you as you want

[@CalleoPelias]

If they drop the price to $125, and add a desk clock mode, then at least it would look nice docked.

[@shen-ani-gans]

Great vid. Thanks for the info.

[@Doragon86]

Glad you liked it dude. Are you still thinking of getting one?

[@shen-ani-gans]

@@Doragon86 Absolutely if I can ever get in before they sell out..... thought you said Niche market and seemingly everyone wants one 😅

[@Doragon86]

@@shen-ani-gans apparently less niche than I anticipated 🤣

[@DadPlaysGames]

For me, single purpose devices are always going to be a hard sell. If I had unlimited money, I'd get them all but yeah :) Great video mate!

[@Doragon86]

Yeah, definitely a hard sell and it will have it's supporters, but a tad too hard a sell for me right now. I am really enjoying it when it works though 🤣

[@jstndng]

Have you tried plugging in the skull and co to your ps5, connect your earbuds and then remote play using the portal see if it works or not. Let me know. This one is a dealbreaker for me for now.

[@Doragon86]

I know that works with the Pulse 3D headset but I haven't tried with the Skull and Co. Give me 24 hours or so to test and I'll try and get back to you

[@Doragon86]

It does indeed work. You can't pair while the Skull & Co is connected to the PS5, so you'll need to pair on a phone or Switch, but with already paired headsets, works a treat

[@jstndng]

@@Doragon86 would be great if you make a tutorial about it.

[@amirpro10]

You don't need to forward or open any port.. this is an issue with your router configuration. Using a phone is out of the question since it's not even playable in that screen size. So for mobility it's either bring your tablet+duslsense+usb cable (haptics only works with wired controller) or buy a $200 device for convenient. My only complain I wish I could also connect to other gaming streaming services such as Moonlight or Steam Link. But as it seems the device is already jailbroken so this will be possible soon.

[@Doragon86]

1. Yes you do. It's on all official sites and faq's from Sony and taking those actions facilitates use of the service. 2. With a snapdragon 662 processor in the Portal anything beyond PS1 emulation will be difficult, this includes Steam Link and Moonlight

[@azarfe11Life25]

I definitely like the video All the pros and cons, variables that comes with remote play that a lot of KZbinrs don't talk about you did a very good job... Most KZbinrs are like PlayStation Portal bad this is why or PlayStation Portal good this is why...

[@Doragon86]

Thank you 😁

[@kirankara]

Love my portal. Do I wish it was oled, absolutely. Blacks could be better, but otherwise it's pretty awesome. I use a £5 Bluetooth receiver off Amazon, and I actually have a receiver from temu I picked up for 75p, but my JBL headphones won't connect which is annoying, as it's not the fault of receiver, but rather JBL not allowing connection without certain standards being present. I understand that the experience for secondary user isn't ideal, but when that's same for all similar devices, it tells you that's just unfortunately limitations of the wayt the technology works.

[@azarfe11Life25]

I would really like to know what variables are making him have issues with that set up static IP address directly connected to a router and port forwarded you still having issues.. I mean I live in Alaska and vacation in Florida once a year, My parents only have have 50mbps down and 20 upoad speed.. when I remote play for my tablet it's smooth sailing.. no issues.. He's at home and he's having issues.. I'd be highly irritated

[@Doragon86]

The Snapdragon 662 is a Wi-Fi 5 only chipset. Given the limited antenna in the Portal and the older technology, my guess would be it just can't keep up with my tab or phone that both run Wi-Fi 6/6e and have 3 times as many antenna

[@azarfe11Life25]

@@Doragon86 gotcha

[@azarfe11Life25]

The PSP with a 4.3 inch screen and a resolution of 480 x 272 what's $249 in 2005 average yearly inflation since then has been around 2.56%., That's roughly $392 at the same system came out right now. Let's keep it real people are complaining about $200 in this day and age there's a good possibility that if the portal had the same capabilities but with a almost a double size screen and a 1080p resolution the price range would be about $400 or higher. Don't get me wrong I'm one of those people who would like it too but I damn sure wouldn't be paying for it.. I would wait for the price to drop and also people aren't thinking at that price range and now it's competing with similar devices like the steam Deck and most likely the Nintendo switch 2 which comes out next year why in the hell would they want to put themselves in that boat.. This thing is being called the dad station because a lot of fathers are buying. I don't like the fact it's just a remote play as of right now but I get why they did it. They came out and said within the last two weeks that they do plan to incorporate cloud gaming. I'd much rather by the portal than lug around my tablet in a controller or play on a small ass screen with the backbone I have both but I'd rather go with a convenience with a reasonable price

[@theproblem9938]

exactly the PSP was not a streaming device, it had hardware inside and its own games that it would play off of it self with no internet connection, so i dont really understand the people comparing it to the ps portal, and tbh the portal should not be compared to any handheld consoles/pcs.

[@carloshulk442]

Thank you for the review. I realize this won’t work for me considering two issues. The profiles and not being able to connect to public WiFi do to the page. Sorry Sony you have some work ahead of you if you want more people to buy

[@Doragon86]

100%. It has promise, but promise isn't worth a purchase. The profiles and public WiFi are deal breaking for so many people

[@carloshulk442]

I can deal with the internet issue as I can use my hotspot, but the profile is a no go. I’m sure Sony will rectify that in the next coming updates

[@SuperJK05]

Fanatastic piece of accessory or extension if you could call it, I’m not a dad but as a frequent traveller, this thing rocks albeit ppl will complain about lacking bluetooth connectivity or latency reliant, isn’t backbone the same with a mobile? 😂😂😂😂

[@ramhur]

What 15 ports forwarded are you referring to? I have the PS5 connected via Ethernet and the connection works flawlessly. No ports forwarded.

[@mcslimz]

I really dont like what sony is doing by limiting Bluetooth connectivity and the price hike on PS premium. I really dont even care about classic titles and I'd prefer to not have to pay for that feature in PS+ Premium. With that said I got one today and am pretty excited to play it around the house and hide from my family.

[@Doragon86]

Very much seems 6 of one, half a dozen of the other with PlayStation at the moment. I hope there is rhyme to their reason but the silence doesn't help. Hoping you get a great experience with the Portal 😁

[@Shadow3ffect]

I love my portal. There’s nothing like playing games in bed. These portals work perfect for a single person.

[@MrRiceGuy95]

I had this thing for 5 days then returned it. My Samsung S24 Ultra with the backbone offers a better experience with its 120HZ OLED and Bluetooth headset compatibility

[@bryancorrea9686]

Think ima do a video to show how well it works on just a mobile Hotspot and I mean with the ps5 and portal on my phone mobile Hotspot only and I'll say it was waaaay better than I expected..no delay in control

[@mmstick]

I'm sure most people still own analog headphones, and most Bluetooth headphones also have analog ports. My wife's Sennheiser Momentum 4 has analog in additional to Bluetooth. Whereas I've been using my analog Beyerdynamic DT 990 Pro with the Portal, which I bought 5 years ago. Analog is still top tier in audio quality over compressed Bluetooth codecs. You have to choose between good audio quality with high latency, or low latency and poor audio quality. Both of which will drastically consume battery life.

[@Doragon86]

It's a matter of convenience and choice though. Most of us, myself included, cannot tell the difference in quality between wired or Bluetooth, we're not that in tune, but more importantly, don't care. The convenient option is always more important to the end user, so lacking that choice when the chipset is capable of doing it, is a miss for the end user

[@mmstick]

@@Doragon86This is nothing unusual though. No console supports Bluetooth outside of Nintendo, and only recently.

[@Doragon86]

@@mmstick PS4 has Bluetooth Audio. Switch as you say. Steam deck. Rog Ally. Legion Go. Every Aya neo, every GPD, the Xbox series and One consoles all have Bluetooth audio options. Add in the retro handhelds, the Lenovo G Cloud and Razer Edge you end up with a lot of current consoles with convenient and cheap audio options, many running chipsets identical to or worse than the Portal

[@Leweise]

“Ugly as sin” and “aesthetic nightmare”? I have to disagree. It’s easily one of the most beautiful handheld devices out right now-better looking than my Switch and even my Steam Deck. But honestly, I don’t think you’re the best judge of aesthetics, considering we’ve seen your apartment and wardrobe. No disrespect, that’s just your opinion, even if it’s a pretty bad one. Lmaoooo

[@Doragon86]

So your response to an aesthetic opinion is to offensively attack the person making it from behind a keyboard? Surely there are better ways to spend your time? If not I feel very sorry for you

[@Leweise]

@@Doragon86 First, it wasn’t an attack, and second, how else am I supposed to respond if not from behind a keyboard? It’s better this way than in person, where things could escalate over something as trivial as a KZbin video-which, to be fair, does open you up to criticism. But just like you have your opinion on the PlayStation accessory, I have mine. Apologies if it rubbed you the wrong way, but I’m sure the designer would probably feel the same about your comment.

[@mitch1765]

What’s crazy he never mentioned that you can use it everywhere’s when you have WiFi of course but with the other devices you can only use it on the same network.

[@mitch1765]

Also people like to say oh my phone can do that same thing but you can’t play on your phone unless your on the same network I can bring the portal to the hotel or my in laws and still play it while there.

[@Doragon86]

Incorrect. As long as you have a data connection all other devices work, even on mobile data. If it doesn't, it is because you have the mobile data option turned off in your app. Unfortunately nothing you have said here is true

[@mitch1765]

@@Doragon86 when trying at friends house network it doesn’t work it says can’t find network on my phone with ps remote play but with my ps portal I’m able to play at my friends house

[@mitch1765]

@@Doragon86 testing it more mobile doesn’t work bc it also say no connection and when doing at a friend WiFi it say searching for nearby connection stating for the ps remote play is only for local network to play your ps5

[@SuperJK05]

@@mitch1765tested with my mobile today and it works like charm 😂😂😂

[@tonygreen4866]

Garbage I hate myself for buying this Garbage 😂😂😂