Buying a PlayStation 5 and its successor, the PS5 Slim, is finally a lot easier – but are you constantly fighting over the TV in your living room when you just want to relax and play some stuff? Marvel Spider-Man 2? Sony has a solution in the form of its new remote player, PlayStation Portal, which launched last month.
The Portal is a handheld, but it’s not a handheld console per se like the old PSP or PlayStation Vita. What you actually get here is an 8-inch LCD tablet that sits between the two halves of the DualSense PS5 controller, and you can play any game installed on your PS5 on this screen by streaming it over your home Wi-Fi network. Performance reaches 1080p at 60 fps.
By now, technology enthusiasts will know that remote play is nothing new. Chances are the phone in your pocket right now can install the PS Remote Play app and perform the same function as Sony’s new £200 accessory. However, what the company is betting on is that the ease of getting a dedicated device with a larger screen and all the tech buried in the DualSense, like haptic feedback and adaptive triggers, makes it worth the splurge.
We’ve been using the Gateway for a few weeks, and provided your Wi-Fi is fast enough (Sony recommends a minimum speed of 15Mbps for high-quality streaming), it’s a fun way to stream your PS5 in any room in the world. Home, while freeing up the TV so someone else can watch Strictly during playing.
PlayStation Portal can be purchased directly from Sony, as well as through other retailers, although it’s difficult to track down one at the moment.
We’ve rounded up the best standalone rates and packages below. Our latest price and stock check was conducted at Friday 8 December.
Where to buy PlayStation Portal
PlayStation Portal Remote Operator
PlayStation Portal Remote Operator
The obvious place to start is PlayStation itself. PS Gateway Costs £199.99 They can only be purchased on their own now. Customers are limited to purchasing one device each.
At the time of writing, the product is not available to purchase directly from PlayStation, with no information on when stock will be replenished.
PS Portal Remote Player is also stored very, Amazon And Gamebut all three products are now sold out, once again, with no information on when new stock will arrive.
To give you the best chance, here are all the retailers stocking PlayStation Portal right now, plus any deals.
Your best bet is to keep visiting the above retailers daily to give yourself the best chance of getting one when more appear. In the meantime, why not check out the best PS5 deals and best PlayStation VR 2 bundles available right now?
What games can I play on PlayStation Portal?
PlayStation Portal doesn’t actually run games using its dedicated processor. Instead, it streams games from your PS5 over Wi-Fi. If a game is installed on your PS5 (and inserted into the drive if it’s a physical copy), you’ll be able to play it on PlayStation Portal.
However, there are some exceptions to this. The PS Portal doesn’t support cloud streaming (all streaming is done from the console over Wi-Fi), which confusingly means it can’t stream games that are only available to play via cloud streaming – that is, any PS3 game you can access with a PlayStation Plus Premium membership .
You also can’t play PSVR2 titles on PS Portal, and it’s not compatible with PlayStation 4.
Does the PlayStation Portal have Bluetooth?
The PS Gateway doesn’t support Bluetooth, so you can’t pair wireless headphones, like AirPods, while gaming. You can use wired headphones, and the Portal is the first device to have PlayStation’s new wireless audio standard, PlayStation Link, built into it.
This new technology promises low latency, high-quality lossless sound, and the ability to quickly switch between devices, for the first time in the Pulse Explore wireless earbuds, which launched on December 6, and will also appear in the Pulse Elite headphone that will be on sale in early 2017. 2024.
To use the PS5, you’ll need to plug in a USB dongle to connect to these new speakers, but the PS Portal has PlayStation Link built-in, so it should pair with them just like your iPhone does with the AirPods.
Do I need a PS Plus membership to use PS Portal?
PlayStation Network recharge card worth £100
PlayStation Network recharge card worth £100
Now 12% discount
You don’t need to be a PS Plus member to use PS Portal with your PS5, but without it you won’t be able to play online multiplayer games or download free monthly games to stream to your Portal from the console.
If you want to become a PS Plus member, you can currently save up to 11% on a new membership by taking advantage of the gift card trick.