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One of our loyal members "Prodigy" has done us a huge favour by writing an awesome article with the title "Is 3G worth it?" click to find out his thoughts on whether you should pay an extra $40 for 3G.......
One of the biggest questions about the Vita is "Is the 3G worth it?" Well we here at PSV Hub have come down to a list of the pros and cons.Hopefully this helps you guys to make the correct decision for which model to buy.
Let's start with the good sides of the 3G features, which isn't much. Although those are two downfalls for the Vita's 3G, Sony has said that 3G will come in great use with Near, which allows you trade items, download game content, exchange highscores, etc. Because Near requires two Vitas and an internet connection to work. Obviously not a lot of people will be connected to a WiFi Hotspot Near your house so you're not going to get much out of Near with a WiFi only Vita.
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| Sorry! AT&T Only! |
That's where the 3G comes in handy. With the 3G you'll be able to walk around connected to 3G and be able to switch content with other Vita owners. Those Vita owners will also need to be connected to the internet to be available to exchange stuff with you. So 3G is great with Near.
Another feature Sony was talking about was that it will come in good use like with games like Ruin. Ruin is a PS3 cross PSV game. You can save your game on either your Vita or PS3 and continue on the other one. The online for it is kind of weird; your have your own territory in a game and you go attack other players' territory.
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| Near, one of the Apps that requires 3G |
You don't ever see other players in the game but you get a notification that someone is attacking your base, in order to get that notification and protect your base you have to have internet access. If you're not connected to WiFi you can use 3G to go and defend your base. Stuff like that is what Sony is trying to take advantage for the Vita. Another good thing about the Vita's 3G capability it the web. You'll be able to browse cheats for a game on the go... Sadly most of us already have this with our Smartphones, and since, it's been said, that you are limited to 20 mb downloads you won't be able to download demos or large files like that from the PS Store.
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| 3G is known to heavily drain battery life! |
Now for the reasons you shouldn't get a 3G Vita. Most people have Smartphones now, and those Smartphones are able to be used as a WiFi hotspot. My iPhone 4 is able to do this. Sadly for Americans who HAVE to get an AT&T Vita for 3G, this is almost no better then the Vita itself. AT&T limits your 3G use to 200 mb, or you can upgrade to 2 gb. If you go over you get charged extra. Smartphones use their 3G data to create the hotspot, so for every second you use that WiFi hotspot phone of yours with your Vita, you're using up that 200 mb/2 gb 3G data. Although this sucks, it is way better then paying an extra $50 for a limited 20 mb downloads.
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| You cannot download full games when using 3G |
Another reason why you shouldn't get a 3G Vita is that the Vita's 3G is not good enough for online play. It's bandwidth is too small to allow all of the online gameplay information to transfer. If you play online you'll get over your 3G limit and most likely get charged even more money. 3G also makes your battery drain. The Vita's battery has less lifetime then the 3DS (but it charges faster). Yet another reason why you shouldn't get the 3G model is because each region only has one service provider. So if you aren't already with that company you'll need to register with them.
The US's 3G provider is, sadly, AT&T. If you don't have AT&T and don't want to pay more than an already expensive $300 than don't get the 3G version. The last thing on why the 3G model is near useless is the fact that it is 3G itself... It isn't the fastest speed, and for America/AT&T users, you'll be unsatisfied (and I know this, I'm have AT&T with my iPhone 4).
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| PS Vita will also get a similar 20MB limit notification |
As said before AT&T limits your 3G data usage and is quite expensive. They'll likely be a monthly plan just like cellphones, so don't expect to save money.
The last thing that is bad about the 3G model is the overall price. Just for the Vita itself costs $300, plus a single $40 game, maybe a memory stick which going probably going to be an average of $30, and likely to have a monthly cost for limited 3G service which will be somewhere around $15-$40 a month. If all these estimated pricings are true, your Vita will cost you about $450 in the matter of 1 month of 3G service ($40), a memory card of $30 (probably 4 gb), and 2 games ($80). NOTE: The prices above for the 3G service and memory cards are esitmated, not fact. So the total cost of your Vita, when owning it for 1 month, can cost more or less.
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| Web Browsing on 3G could be slow |
So I say that if you have, or are planning on getting, a smartphone then don't get a 3G enabled Vita. If you don't then I suggest you get a 3G version IF you are interested in Near or notifications. Please note that some smartphones, like the Windows Phone 7, can't be used as a WiFi hotspot.
Remember to thank "Prodigy" for this article in the comments section below, as it saved us from being inactive for 2 days as no news has popped up recently.
So then would you be purchasing a 3G model? Is it worth it? Or is 3G worthless as you don't plan on walking around with your PS Vita? Let us know in the comment section below!
Posted in: Editorial