At long last, Sony’s new handheld PlayStation Portal has launched in India. The device, meant for streaming PS5 games directly from the console over WiFi, arrives in the country almost eight months after its international debut, but the question remains - is it something Indian gamers will drool over?
The PS Portal remote player has been priced at Rs. 18,990, which is pretty steep for something that can’t play games remotely. Sure, you’re getting an 8” LCD screen strapped to a DualSense controller, but it’s also heavily reliant on an internet connection. Cloud streaming seldom meets the quality you get from native gaming, so who is this device for?
For the same price, you can get a Nintendo Switch OLED if you know where to look in India. Nintendo’s handheld makes more sense for Indian gamers, despite expensive games. The PS Portal is an accessory created to boost the PS5’s engagement metrics.
Despite that, the Portal has been selling consistently well in India through parallel importers. It shows that desi gamers are clamoring for a handheld Sony device, even if it requires a whole console worth Rs. 50,000 to work. And the fact that it has been selling, even at inflated prices closer to a PS5 Digital Edition, you have to hand it to Sony for cultivating a dedicated audience that loves its hardware.
Most recently, I saw Sony India showing off the PS5 Slim and hot exclusives at Comic-Con to fans, and if there’s one thing I took away from the experience, it was that Sony understands the needs and wants of its desi fanbase.
Sony says that the PS Portal will be available from Sony Centres, Amazon, Flipkart, Croma, Reliance, Vijay Sales, Blinkit, and “other participating retailers.” As I understand it, supply will be limited. We’ll know soon enough how it sells in India for the price.
I can’t personally speak to the device’s quality and use case until I’ve used it myself. We’ll see if Sony will send one over to me. While I’ve used the PS5’s remote play feature on devices like the iPhone and iPad, the experience there wasn’t good enough to convince me to drop 20k on a dedicated device for it.
From what I understand, the PS Portal doesn’t have any dedicated chip or secret sauce to make the cloud streaming experience better. But if it’s good enough for my daily Tetris Effect sessions before going to bed, maybe that’ll be enough.
The PlayStation Portal is now available in India through official channels at Rs. 18,990. Let’s see how well desi gamers welcome the device.
