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"   What&amp;#039;s new with PlayStation Vita? At a first glance, the Vita is incredibly similar to the PSP, with a landscape brick form factor, 16:9 screen, trademark PlayStation face buttons and a single pair of shoulder buttons. However, there are all kinds of bells and whistles that make it a considerable upgrade. Its most immediate and impressive feature is the screen, a five-inch OLED interface that consumes much of the device&amp;#039;s presence. Outputting in high definition, visuals look sharp and defined, text incredibly crisp, and coupled with a considerable graphical upgrade approaching that of the PS3 (it&amp;#039;s not quite there, but even in these early days it can get close) and you have a device that&amp;#039;s simply stunning to look at. Physically using the device is a pleasure, too. Its larger form factor makes it comfortable to hold, with both face and shoulder buttons easy to access. It&amp;#039;s deceptively light considering the size and amount of gizmos and features hidden inside, most likely due to gutting out the UMD slot in favour of SD-style cards, weighting around the same as a Nintendo 3DS. As you&amp;#039;d expect from a Sony device, Vita has the same robust build quality. There are some drawbacks, though, such as the easily-smeared glossy finish, as well as a reported low battery life that lasts at around five hours.   New ways to play - back touch and that all-important second analogue stick Not only is the screen dazzling to look at, but it&amp;#039;s also equipped with multi-touch. Although such a feature is commonplace in phones and tablets today, the combination of physical buttons and a touch-screen in very close proximity could pave the way for interesting new mechanics, and many launch titles already require players to switch between the two. While using touch to intuitively change weapons or directly collect items is common, Uncharted: Golden Abyss has you slash at the screen to cut down passageways, while custom tracks in ModNation Racers can be drawn with your finger before being tested with traditional controls. The menus of the Vita itself are also touch-driven. However, the most practical addition is that of a second analogue stick, something sorely lacking on the original PSP, making the transition of console-style games - notably shooters - to the device far more practical. Also gone is the awkward slider design, with proper analogue sticks in their place that protrude slightly out of the device. Despite their small size, they feel comfortable and accurate, and don&amp;#039;t look to catch easily when the device is slid into a pocket or bag.      While both the touch-screen and second analogue stick make ports from both tablets and consoles more viable, the Vita does offer a new form of input with back touch. Most of Vita&amp;#039;s back surface - specifically the same area and size as the front screen - is touch sensitive. The most common application so far is to poke objects into the screen, such as bridges and platforms in LittleBigPlanet and Escape Plan. While it&amp;#039;s difficult to know exactly where your finger is placed, most games add a cursor to help keep track of its location. Uses of back touch so far appear to be of the novel variety, but there is potential for some truly unique applications that wouldn&amp;#039;t be possible on any other platform. Better connected, more immersive There are a shower of other inputs, too; front and back-facing cameras create all kinds of augmented reality possibilities, from photographing new textures for LittleBigPlanet to playing a fighting game with human races in real-world locations in Reality Fighters, as well as the more practical opportunity to use video chat over Skype. Tilt controls can provide additional immersion to racing games, or like the 3DS, allows first-person aiming (Uncharted: Golden Abyss&amp;#039;s sniping, for example) to be more surprisingly subtle and precise than an analogue stick. There&amp;#039;s also an electronic compass that adds more accuracy to another of the Vita&amp;#039;s selling points - 3G. Selling in WiFi only and 3G models, while Vita has the obvious benefit of being able to download new game content, media and play multiplayer wherever you go, there are also a number of social features that rely on an internet connection.  The most interesting is Near, allowing players to detect others in real-world locations. While 3DS&amp;#039;s excellent StreetPass feature has you get physically close to another system to communicate, Near operates in a wider vicinity, and lets you view surrounding player profiles, their current games and to send messages and challenges. Other features include Party, allowing friends to group up, use cross-game party chat (something the PS3 has yet to offer) and enter games as a team; LiveArea, which allows messages to comment on other games and sessions and Activity, which is an updated feed of accomplishments such as Trophies and high-scores. A hefty launch ahead - in both games and in cost Console launches in recent years, from Xbox 360 to PS3 and 3DS, have been accompanied by some fairly disappointing software offerings, but Vita is set to have one of the most impressive yet. A new and original Uncharted entry, futuristic racing classic Wipeout 2048, fan-favourite Everybody&amp;#039;s Golf and a portable ModNation Racers are all set to be big attractions on day one, and that&amp;#039;s just Sony&amp;#039;s own titles. Expect Virtua Tennis, Super Monkey Ball, Rayman Origins, F1 2011 and much more to be available, both in traditional shops and to download from PlayStation Network. You can view a gallery of the confirmed launch lineup to date below.   However, one of the biggest barriers to entry will be the device&amp;#039;s cost. Starting at \u00A3229 / $249 for the WiFi model and \u00A3279 / $299 for 3G, the base handheld easily rivals that of a home console. And that&amp;#039;s not also factoring the cost of memory cards, proprietary in nature and are required for new content downloads, ranging from 17.99 for 4GB to \u00A344.99 for 16GB, as well as the games themselves, which start at \u00A324.99 and creep up to \u00A344.99. While the costs are undoubtedly high, our hands-on with the Vita shows a very impressive handheld for your money, one full of potential and from the get-go has some great software to go with it. Like the 3DS has proven, the dominance and portability factor of smartphones can&amp;#039;t replicate the precision and quality of software and hardware tailor-made for gaming, and the PlayStation Vita is set to continue this trend. PlayStation Vita will be available from February 22 in North America and Europe. It was launched in Japan during December. View images of PlayStation Vita&amp;#039;s launch lineup below: "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/news/a359156/playstation-vita-hands-on-with-sonys-new-handheld/>