PS Vita accessories strengthen battery life

I have a friend who lives in Hong Kong, and he had great pleasure in telling me his girlfriend had just bought him a gift, a PS Vita. Now after some initial gloating (can you blame him) he said to me that his model came with a memory card included, which we found strange. We has assumed this was not an option for those in the US or UK (when it’s released).

However, looking on the official Sony website, this will be an option for US customers. The price will be $329, and for that you will have the PlayStation Vita 3G/Wi-Fi version and a 4GB memory card. It obvious right away the price is a little on the expensive side, and the size of the card is a little small. You can purchase more; although you can only use Sony banded cards.

Thankfully this is not the case with PS Vita accessories, as you can get a selection of products, as well as those designed to strengthen battery life. One such accessory is the Nyko Power Grip, much like the one we looked at for the Nintendo 3DS. It’s no secret that Sony has an issue with the battery life of their latest handheld, but you will be happy to know the Power grip not only improves your gaming experience, but in theory could increase the life of the battery from 3-5 hours to an estimated 15 hours.

Once you sit your PS Vita into this grip it takes on the shape like a PS3 controller; although it is a little cheaper, costing just $24.99. Remember, Nyko claims this to be a rough figure, but even if it boasted battery life by double, this one device could help sales of the new handheld. Many of our readers were not only put off with the price of the Vita, but the battery as well, so at least one hurdle has been jumped – well kind off – you still have to have an add on, which some gamers might not like.

As you will be spending a lot of your hard on money on one device, some of you may want to purchase third-party accessories, which will not break the bank. Nyko Technologies certainly has you well covered, as they have the Power Armor Kit, which is designed to keep your Vita safe in its custom hard case. Included is an AC and car charger, as well as a cloth to keep the screen clean – you will be using this a lot.

If you are at home or going on holiday, then you need a dock to not only charge your PS Vita, but also allow you to enjoy music or videos. This is where Nyko’s Speaker Stand comes in. For just $29.99, you also get a wireless remote, which looks a lot like a car fob. The styling of the dock matches Sony’s latest handheld, so it looks like a perfect marriage between the two.

There’s still so much about the PlayStation Vita we don’t know; however, an article here looks at many other aspects of this handheld games console. We have to say, some of what they report is common knowledge; although we did find it interesting to know the person who designed the original Sony Walkman was involved with the design of the Vita – not sure this will have the same success.

For those who are not certain on exactly what features the PS Vita has, then maybe watching a video will bring you up to speed? This was taken during CES 2012, and all we are going to say is ‘OLED display’ enough said – although not great for viewing in direct sunlight.

What kind of future do you think the PS Vita has?