Sony announces PlayStation Portal remote play handheld

Sony has officially announced its handheld device, the PlayStation Portal remote player. This means you can play PlayStation 5 games anywhere, but it requires you to have the PS5 console itself along with Wi-Fi connectivity.

PlayStation Portal remote player, new wireless audio protocol

It sports an 8-inch Full HD LCD with 1080p resolution. The screen refresh is capped as 60Hz, however. And the controllers have the same layout as with a DualSense.

Flipping it around, it has a USB Type-C port and a 3.5mm audio jack.

One caveat though is the absence of a Bluetooth capability on this device. Sony instead introduced a new wireless audio technology dubbed as ‘PlayStation Link‘.

The company claims that the new technology delivers low latency and lossless audio. It also allows easy switching between multiple PlayStation Link hosts. Including the PS5 with the USB adapter and PS Portal.

Sony also unveils Pulse Explore, Pulse Elite wireless audio wearables

To leverage on the new wireless audio tech, Sony also announced two new audio wearables.

Sony Pulse Explorer

The Pulse Explore and Pulse Elite use custom-designed planar magnetic drivers. These provide an audiophile-level listening experience that’s typically reserved in premium headphones for professional sound engineers.

Oddly enough, these said wearables support Bluetooth connectivity. These can simultaneously connect to a PS Link supported device—in this case the PS Portal—and to your phone.

Sony Pulse Elite

“While playing on PS5, gamers can instantly answer a call and hear it through the same Pulse Explore earbuds,” says Sony in its blog.

Price and availability

The PlayStation Portal is priced at USD 200PHP 11,737INR 16,950EUR 190CNY 1,456, set to debut later this year. While the Pulse Explorer and Pulse Elite are priced USD 200PHP 11,737INR 16,950EUR 190CNY 1,456 and USD 150PHP 8,803INR 12,712EUR 143CNY 1,092, respectively.

Other specifications of the remote player are still under wraps, including the release date.