The PS Vita is Sony’s second and most recent dedicated handheld, launched in Japan in December 2011 and in the West in February 2012 as the successor to the PSP. It paired a 5-inch screen and twin analog sticks with front and rear touch input. Sony ended production in 2019, but the PlayStation Vita still has a loyal following for its library and portability.
Where the PlayStation Vita came from
Sony revealed the system in January 2011 under the codename NGP, short for Next Generation Portable. It took the PlayStation Vita name at E3 that June. The handheld reached Japan on December 17, 2011, and North America and Europe on February 22, 2012.
In the US, Sony launched two versions. The Wi-Fi model cost $249.99, and a 3G plus Wi-Fi model with an AT&T data option cost $299.99. Launch games included Uncharted: Golden Abyss, which showed that the PS Vita could run a console-style PlayStation adventure on the go.
Hardware and specs
The original PCH-1000 used a quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 CPU and a PowerVR SGX543MP4+ GPU, with 512 MB of RAM and 128 MB of video memory. Its 5-inch OLED touchscreen ran at 960 x 544. A rear touch pad, front and rear cameras, motion sensors and Bluetooth rounded out the package.
Games shipped on small proprietary PS Vita cards, and saves and downloads used Sony’s own memory cards. Those memory cards were expensive compared with standard microSD cards, and reviewers at the time criticised the pricing. If you buy a used console today, check whether a card is included, because Sony no longer makes them.
The two models compared
| Feature | PCH-1000 (original) | PCH-2000 (slim) |
|---|---|---|
| Screen | 5-inch OLED | 5-inch LCD |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi, or Wi-Fi + 3G | Wi-Fi only |
| Internal storage | None | 1 GB |
| Charging port | Proprietary | Micro USB |
| Release | Dec 2011 (Japan) | Oct 2013 (Japan) |
The slimmer PCH-2000 is about 20% thinner and 15% lighter than the original, and Sony quoted roughly an hour more battery life. Some players still prefer the PCH-1000 for the deeper blacks and richer colours of its OLED panel. Sony also released PlayStation TV, a small box that played many Vita games on a television, in Japan in November 2013 and in North America in October 2014.
Player tip
The PCH-2000’s 1 GB internal storage is small, but you can still use it to play cartridge games and keep saves without buying a memory card.
Games that defined the library
The Vita’s best-known games came from both Sony’s studios and Japanese publishers. Persona 4 Golden, Gravity Rush, Tearaway, Killzone: Mercenary and LittleBigPlanet PS Vita are the titles most often named as essentials. Indie games such as Spelunky and Hotline Miami also found a home there, often with Cross-Buy, which gave you a PS3 or PS4 version and a Vita version with one purchase.
The Vita also supported Remote Play with the PS4, letting you stream console games to the handheld over Wi-Fi. For a while, PlayStation Plus included Vita games in its monthly lineup. That ended in March 2019, when Sony stopped adding PS3 and Vita titles to the service. Today, coverage such as our “ps plus november 2026” article tracks PS5 and PS4 games only.
Decline, store closure and end of production
Western support for the Vita slowed sharply after 2014, as Sony’s first-party studios shifted their focus to the PS4. Japanese publishers kept releasing games for longer, which is why so much of the late library comes from Japan.
Sony has never published an official lifetime sales figure for the PS Vita. Estimates in press coverage vary widely, and you should treat any single number with caution. Sony ended shipments of the handheld in Japan in March 2019, which marked the end of production.
In March 2021, Sony announced that the PS Store on PS3, PSP and Vita would close that summer. After a strong backlash from players, it reversed the decision for PS3 and Vita in April 2021. The PSP store closed as planned. At the time of writing, you can still buy and download games from the store on the Vita itself, but Sony has given no long-term guarantee.
Heads up
A PS Vita memory card is tied to one PSN account. Using it with a different account requires formatting, which erases everything on the card.
The Vita’s legacy
The Vita did not reach the PSP’s level of commercial success, but its influence is clear. Rear touch and cross-save ideas appeared in later PlayStation hardware, and PlayStation Portal, released in November 2023, brought back the idea of playing your console games on a handheld. Unlike the Vita, though, the Portal is a remote player that streams from a PS5 and cannot run games on its own.
On a possible true successor, Bloomberg, a proven reporting source, said in November 2024 that Sony was in early development of a portable console to play PS5 games. Sony has not confirmed this. For the wider hardware picture, see our “playstation 6” coverage.
FAQ
Is the PS Vita still worth buying?
Yes, if you want its exclusive library and Japanese releases. Prices on the used market have risen, and you also need to budget for a Sony memory card, which is no longer made.
Can you still buy games on the PS Vita?
Yes. The PS Store remains available on the console itself after Sony reversed its 2021 closure plan. Purchases through the web store and mobile app were removed earlier.
What is the difference between the PS Vita 1000 and 2000?
The 1000 has an OLED screen and an optional 3G model. The 2000 is thinner and lighter, uses an LCD screen, adds 1 GB of internal storage and charges over micro USB.
Does the PS Vita work with the PS5?
Sony does not offer official Remote Play support between the PS Vita and the PS5. Official Remote Play on the Vita was designed for the PS4.
