The Portal may look a little awkward and clunky, but it isn’t too hefty. It weighs about 530 grams, which is over 100 grams heavier than a Nintendo Switch OLED but more than 100 grams lighter than the somewhat chonky Steam Deck. Compared to a Switch with standard Joy-Con controllers, the tradeoff in weight is made up for by its large grips that are comfier to use for extended play sessions.
I’ve initially played a handful of hours with various PS5 games (Resident Evil 4, Armored Core VI Fires of Rubicon, and Astro’s Playroom, to name a few) in my limited time with the PlayStation Portal so far. One thing I can certainly say right off the bat is that it feels familiar. At various points in the last two years, I’ve tinkered with using Remote Play to stream games from my PlayStation 5 to my PS4, my PC, various Android devices, an iPhone, an iPad Pro, and even a Steam Deck using open-source software Chiaki. The PlayStation Portal offers mostly the same experience as what I’ve seen with those other solutions, except being purpose-built streamlines the process.
The games that lend themselves best to game streaming — primarily single-player experiences that don’t require twitch-y reactions with frame-perfect timing — still seem to be the best fit on the Portal. And just like when you’re streaming on an iPad or other device, there will be times when it looks near flawless as well as times when you notice some prominent artifacting by looking slightly closer. And of course, there can still be times when shit just goes haywire or the Portal doesn’t immediately connect to the PS5 — because Wi-Fi, am I right?
I need to continue using the PlayStation Portal to see if more differences appear between using it and something like a Backbone One controller. My first impression is that this device is primarily for PlayStation diehards who want a simple, dedicated tool for streaming games around their homes. It may be for when the main TV is in use or to take games to other rooms like the bedroom or the bathroom (if you’re okay with flagged devices), but $200 is a little pricey for such a single-use accessory to a $400–$500 game console — especially when there are many other options available that you may already own.
Photography by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge