PSP Vs. Nintendo DS: Which is the Best Handheld for You?

Handheld consoles are great for gamers. They're relatively cheap, portable, and don't require a television to play. But if you're in the market for a handheld game system, it can be hard to choose which one you want. You've got three choices really. There's the two that you probably already know about, the Sony PSP and the Nintendo DS. There's also one your probably don't know about, the GP2X. Here's a breakdown of the three handhelds.

The PSP is brought to you by Sony, the maker of the Playstation. There was a lot of talk when Sony released the PSP. It was a much needed new entrant into a market previously dominated by Nintendo. The PSP is more powerful than the Nintendo DS. It's graphics and performance lies somewhere in between the Playstation and Playstation 2. It's game selection is excellent, about on par with Nintendo's. Battery life isn't that great, but you'll get a good 4-6 hours of gameplay. The PSP is perfect for those looking for a console gaming experience in a handheld. Unfortunately, you'll be paying for the better hardware. The PSP, retailing at $199, is more expensive than the DS. You can find it for a lot cheaper than this though. Games are also slightly more expensive. The PSP will also function as a media player, unlike the Nintendo DS. If you're willing to pay more for more performance, the PSP is your best pick.

The Nintendo DS is the next in Nintendo's long line of handheld game systems. It's not nearly as powerful as the PSP, but what it lacks in power, it makes up in innovation. The DS has two screens, one of which is a touch screen, that most games utilize well. Some games also utilize the built-in microphone for gameplay. Game selection is also excellent, some would argue even better than the PSPs. Another huge plus for the Nintendo DS is it's low price. The Nintendo DS retails for only $129.99. The games tend to be cheaper as well. Even though you're sacrificing performance, gameplay isn't adversely affected due to the innovative control scheme. If stunning 3d graphics aren't necessary for you, and you won't be using it as a media player, the DS is a good choice.

The last handheld is one that most have never heard about. It's the GP2X created by GamePark Holdings of South Korea. The latest model is the F200. The GP2X is built to cater to homebrew and commercial developers. It runs Linux, meaning anyone can develop games and programs for the GP2X. As such, there's a large community making free and open-source games and applications. Unfortunately, seeing as the GP2X isn't very popular, there's very little commercial development. Game selection suffers from it. There just aren't any good games for this system. It makes up for all that, however, with its large support for emulators, letting you play games from other older systems like the SNES. Performance-wise, the GP2X lies in between the DS and the PSP. Price-wise, the GP2X can't be beat. It retails for only $179.99, which is more than the DS. But games and applications for the GP2X are usually completely free.

In the end, it's up to you to look at the game selection for yourself and decide which one sounds the best. If you still can't decide for yourself, I'd suggest the Nintendo DS. It's an excellent value when compared to the others, and it's innovative gameplay can't be beat. No matter which one you choose, you'll get a lot of fun out of it.