Unboxing the PS Portal... How bad could it be? 

PSA: Follow these tips and you'll have a FLAWLESS portal experience. Don't remove the hdmi, just turnoff the tv. Set your PS5 resolution to 1080p and turn off HDR/120fps. Go to your Network name on PS5, press options and select advanced settings. Set your mtu to manual, and lower it to 1473 from the default 1500. Obviously wire your PS5 for a stable connection, and the Portal will surpass your expectations... 😎👍

I love mine. Yeah you can get remote play on other devices but I've always found it a right faff tbh. Set your playstation to log in automatically once you press the on button & you can do everything from the portal. Works pretty much flawlessly since the recent update. Been smashing through large chunks of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth & it's just as good as playing on the TV.

This a controller that allows me the play my games around my house is the perfect way to describe the PS portal

I absolutely love it. My internet isn’t the best and I usually get the best connection when the house is sleep at night. But like you, as a work from home Dad it’s the best thing ever created. Nothings perfect, but it definitely satisfies the itch across the house.

It's not bad. It is EXACTLY what I was looking for - EVERYWHERE IN MY HOME. The portal is too big to play on the 'the go', my Switch is my goto away from home device. And if it's so bad why tf it sold out...seriously? If you don't want/need one don't spend your coin....FINAL ANSWER.

Also you sitting at the chair gives great fire side chat vibes.

I agree with your perspective because I think the exact same way… I think people want a portable handheld from PlayStation so bad they’re just mad it’s not here yet .

I got mine at launch, played it for a few weeks then returned it. As a work from home father with a baby I can’t sit in front of my PS5 in my office like I used to. It’s a fine experience, I have fast internet, so lag was little to none, but the quality of the stream isn’t any different than using my backbone or using PS Remote Play on my 11 inch iPad Pro. I thought it would be different and have a native feel to it but it still feels like streaming. That one reason is what disappointed me enough to say the $199 spent wasn’t worth it.

As an owner of a PS Portal, I don't really see a big difference vs remote play with a dual sense controller. I've taken all recommendations to optimize performance (including wired internet connection to the PS5) and it still performs about the same as on a tablet. It's a neat accessory and I don't regret buying it, but it's nothing exceptional.

I’m getting mine this week, I just have to get time to pick it up. Pretty stoked to see how it goes for your experience too.

What happens when the sticks start to drift 3 months inn

I use mine on a semi tuck, all over the US… once you figure out port forwarding, on the home network, there’s usually not an issue with remote play

I have went to different people houses & flew across the country with my portal and I'm here to tell you it still plays the same depending on good wifi

I bought my PS portal for around the house. My PS5 is downstairs in the living room, So I play my portal upstairs in bed, sometimes I play it downstairs in my office. Last night I started playing Fallout 4 on the portal, it streams surprisingly well, the PS portal is light and it's so comfortable. I should mention that my PS5 has the ethernet port connected, not Wifi. On Wifi it doesn't stream as well. PS5 with ethernet connection = PS portal connects in 10 to 15 seconds PS5 with Wifi connection = PS portal connects in 2 to 3 minutes and that's with the PS portal only 1 metre away from the PS5.

I travel for work often. I use a travel router to bypass hotel’s authentication. Works fine. I’ve been thousands of miles away from home - works great. PS5 is hardwired. Portforwarded also. Played tf out of Rebirth on it.

Sony needs to release a new ps vita

I just got one 2 days ago, and I’m having a pretty great experience with it. I share my main TV with my wife, so that’s what made it worth it for me. I’m also curious to test it out in public.

I have a question would I be able to play my game on the portal with my girl plays her game on my ps5

Curious to see how it compares to Chiaki4deck when you get it set up but from my point of view if you already have a portable (Deck, Rog etc) seems redundant

Did the Chaiki app on the Steam Deck not work out for you? Or did you not getting around to trying it? I use that after making all the optimized settings and it works great and seems to work just as good as the portal or even the ps remote play app on the phones/tablets.

Honestly I think you hit the nail on the head with the purpose of the portal. I don’t have one ( steam deck owner) but yea it’s honestly an accessory for those who wanted to remote play.

You can definitely take it out and about with you. Try it for yourself. I take it with me all the time and the latency is almost the same as when I’m at home

I only bought a ps portal so I could still play games while sitting on the dunny. Since I live at my work and they have a shared wifi connection between work sites it's basically like my launch day switch but with mainstream flagship games😂

I am also late to getting the PlayStation portal, but I got it just today when I was playing my PS five

Really nice video, after watching you test it out I really don't get why people hate on it so much. I never take my Steam Deck out of the house so I get what Sony was doing with this one.

I love it when you call me Portal Poppa! 🎉

PS Portal is not a failure. It's a cash grab.

I’ve had mine for 2 months and I love it. It has its cons but they don’t destroy it for me. It’s a great device for what it is.

You dont need to unplug your hdmi. Just go into ur ps5 settings and disable hdmi one touch play.

I think you’re taking the right approach with this 👍

I fucking love mine, had the backbone now got the portal , fecking love it! Not 100 percent all the time but it is what it is

Just got mine yesterday and it’s awesome. Have had no issues so far playing fallout 4. I’m loving the fact I can be working in my office or my backyard and take a break and get some game time down.

Getting mine Tuesday. I bought a Lenovo Legion Go this past week but it’s too bulky. I wanted it to play handheld around the house but then I realized I don’t want to buy the games again on pc. Plus there’s times that you want to play on a big screen so having the same saved data is a plus.

So weird. I literally just got mine yesterday, woke up with morning and here we go, you got one too. Our lives line up so often it’s uncanny.

Sonys biggest failure? It has amazing fan reviews.

For prospective buyers out there it might be worth pointing out a few things they need to consider? The obvious one many have apparently not realised….you need a PS5. But another overlooked fact is to play your PS5 games remotely on it you need either to have the complete digital version of the game installed on the PS5 or the correct game disk of your choosing in the PS5 at the time of remote play. In other words to play more than one game without access to the PS5, or without having to keep returning to it to change disks, you need digital versions of the games installed. The Portal works as intended, with full portability, if the games are digital not disk based hard copies? I hope that helps those new by gamers to understand the potential as well as drawbacks of the Portal.

I just ordered mine, and im getting it today 😊. Super excited! (Love your content!)

I got a portal and I’m disappointed with it cos of the lag and picture quality a lot of it must be cos of my internet connection but my ps5 works on my WiFi without problems but the portal disconnects every time and I’m in the same room as my ps5 and it still doesn’t work properly

Boring. 10 minutes in the video and I still dont know what is it about.

I love mine. I agree with you that I don’t think it is a viable option to play on the go, even with a good hot spot connection. But I got mine for the same reason you did: to play at home. But this way I’m not hogging the tv and my wife can watch something she wants to watch while I play ps5.

I like this video I’m always tapping in and out of your journey with gaming and you made remember my Portal is still badass for certain reasons I love the fact I can bring haptic feedback on the go anywhere in the house

Surprisingly, I'm seeing prices that are $199.99 It's honestly not that bad of a price!

Got mines four days ago.. it was a hassle trying to connect it to my hotspot on my phone.. but once to got it connected… it was it was a problem connecting to my PS5… but once I got connected to my ps5… it was great… loving it now… ur phone must have a good signal tho.. but if u do… the lag is seamless… great buy for me…

Loving it, sitting in bed playing games without having to adjust their gfx like the other handhelds do, a no brainer if you only use it at home in my opinion.

Would love to see you try out the software that allows you to do this on the steam deck and compare the two experiences. I think it's called Chiaki

Really surprised you didn't try out chiaki for deck first. I would love to hear about that experience.

Circa 2005, I let my eldest cousin who is about 4-5 years older than me borrow my PS2 and OG Xbox for a month. I was the one who insisted. The only gaming device he had owned at that time was the OG GBA. The one without a backlight. GBA was the first gaming device he owned since the NES. He never owned any console or handheld between the NES and GBA. He usually would play a Genesis or SNES at a friend’s house. He was the first in my family to own an NES or “Nintendo” was what we called it at the time. He would later get a PSP slim by 2008 and then get a Raspberry Pi to emulate retro games on his PC. So I ask him back in 2005 if he enjoyed playing my PS2 and Xbox? He said, “Yeah.” He enjoyed playing Gran Turismo 4 since he’s into cars as he was studying to be a mechanic. But he said something interesting I never forgot and he said it almost passively. He told me they’re cool but they’re not portable. He prefers portable due to convenience. Now this was before iPhone changed the world and turned us into zombies. I remember thinking how my cousin made a great point because I did have a Dreamcast, PS2, Xbox, and GameCube hooked up to my Sony WEGA TV at the time and got so fed up with all the cords at the back. Each of those consoles needed two things plugged to it. One connected to an outlet to power it on and one to connect to the back or front of a TV (composite cables or S-video). I even had one of those octopus cables for the PS2, Xbox, and GCN, but it still got messy. Add the fact I went out a lot with my girlfriend at the time. So I rarely did play any of my consoles when I finally got home. Fast forward to Nov 19, 2006. I get a launch day Wii I pre-ordered a week before. Great fun in the beginning but didn’t touch it for several months after that initial gimmicky novelty wore off. That was the last home console I would own until May 6, 2017. After I won some money from the Kentucky Derby, I bought a PS4 slim from Best Buy for $200 because I had a $100 credit from a previous LG G5 / Sprint deal. And 6 days later, I bought a used Vita. The Vita started my exclusivity at at sticking to only portables. I haven’t powered on my PS4 slim in 5 years. My cousin already had the foresight of going only portable since the mid 00s well before the smartphone revolution. I finally decided to follow his path with that. Every gaming device I will ever purchase from now on must be portable. And must be played without an Internet connection, so no to streaming devices. I sold my Switch OLED because I didn’t want it or my Lite always needing a brief Internet connection if one of them wasn’t set to primary. PlayStation Portal has zero appeal to me because I don’t plan to ever buy a PlayStation 5. When PS5 came out late 2020 during the pandemic, I had zero anticipation and excitement for it. I was good with my Vita. Now a lot of people are saying Sony should release another true handheld but that’s easier said than done. Look who Sony will go against if say their handheld gets released in 2-3 years…. Successor to the Switch Steam Deck (or it’s successor) ROG Ally (or it’s successors, in plural) Legion Go (or it’s successors) Smartphones Tablets Many Chinese retro handhelds Possible Xbox handheld Sony tried getting into portables with the PSP and Vita and lost badly each time. Nintendo is practically unbeatable in the handheld space dating back to 1989. And it’s weird to say PSP being a flop when it still sold 82M. That’s more than NES, SNES, N64, GameCube, Wii U, and every Sega console and handheld sold. That’s more than the 3DS. Vita sold around 15M which would be a number Valve would love to reach with their Steam Deck. We know Asus and Lenovo are hardware manufacturers and can release another PC handheld almost annually like they do with their laptops and phones. They want to sell as much hardware as possible. By the time this Sony handheld is released, it would be D.O.A. They always had the stronger hardware over Nintendo’s handhelds and Sony always lost. The weaker DS outsold the PSP by 2:1. The weaker 3DS outsold the Vita by 5:1. Steam Deck is the winner for me. I say between Vita vs. Switch vs. Deck, I use the Deck 90% of the time. Then 8% for the Switch and 2% for the Vita. And I prefer my Vita slim more than my Switch Lite as an overall device and for sentimental reasons but I rarely play it for games except if I want to play SSF2 because it has a great d-pad like my PSP slim. My last save for Final Fantasy X on my Vita was back in Feb 2019. I rarely play it. It sucks I have to wait another 2 years to play Final Fantasy VII Rebirth on a Steam Deck but there should be plenty of other games to entertain me by then considering I missed out on a lot since 2007 thanks to me being more into cell phones at that time. I know the Steam Deck isn’t perfect. It has it’s share of hardware and software limitations. But it fulfills most of my gaming needs. + Affordable + Great ergonomics + Great customer support + Great community support Steam Deck is the greatest handheld ever made. A game-changer and life-changer the same way the original iPhone was.

I haven’t used mine remote, but if you have kids, you need one, I use mine all the time.

LOL Is my comment on your last video just a coincidence? I have had my portal for a couple months now, never had a problem. Works best on 5ghz and with the TV turned off and the PS5 plugged directly in ethernet. Enjoy!

I love using mine when I go visit my parents or on vacation so i dont have to bring the whole PS5 with me. I love it! I dont see it being a flop at all

This is the first unboxing and review I've ever seen of the PS Portal, don't stress being "late to the game".

I am having another baby and want something when I am laying in bed or can’t be in front of my tv/monitor. More so I just want it for a indie machine. Slay The Spire, Dead Cells, Hades etc. what you all think for my needs?

From what I’ve seen a phone can do the exact same thing thing as the portal. I think calling it Sonys biggest flop is accurate. Heck could you imagine getting stickdrift on that thing? So many downsides when a phone can do the same job. A cheap phone controller attachment would make more sense imo

Just get a WiFi extender with your internet/ cable provider if your PS Portal works but the quality is sucky. Connect your Ethernet cable to the ps5 and boom seamless connection. ❤

No !!! It's FANTASTIC for $200. Especially during inflation and when your TV is tied up 😂 and yes you can now play on Starbucks now and connect to PS5 network

Eagerly awaiting how things go. I always thought the portal got too much hate. But as someone who doesn’t have a great wifi connection, I’ve avoided it. Can’t wait to see what you think

Got one the other week. I think its dope. I only use it for the house and theres no noticeable lag. Been playing Rise of the Ronin, if there were lag I'd notice. Such a convenient device. Also, it's not a failure, the thing sold out and akways sells out when new stock drops. The haters are just people who wanted a new PSP. Edit- make sure the PS5 is connected to ethernet. Works with wifi but range isnt as good.

I play in bed the most on my portal and traveling to the parents house or my son’s dorm. Love it

I have one. All the skeptics never tried it. It’s extremely useful and a great experience for folks who want to play their PlayStation on the go. For those who say you can do this on a phone, the experience is not the same. It’s Apple to orange as far as overall experience. When someone calls me on my phone, the portal doesn’t pause my gaming experience 🤣

You can pair your dual sense with your steam deck by holding the ps and share buttons til the led flashes. It should show up in your bluetooth devices. Under available to pair click the controller. You can even map out different sides of the touchpad for radial menues or mouse movement.

Was perfect for me. Only have a phone and odin2 and they can stream but the screens are too small. I want to game while my family is on the TV and this big beautiful screen makes me happy

The PlayStation portal is a beast I live in Indiana & I was all the way in Miami Florida yes it worked perfectly xfinity internet

I have been using mine extensively for 3 months and it's been flawless. PS5 jumped on WiFi instead of ethernet and I saw buffering. Not a portal issue. I have played remote on a hotspot for hours and no issues. Great value and better performance compared to decks with remote play, in my situation.

I average needing a replacement remote every 2-3 years. When the buttons break will they be replaceable?

I use mine in bed when I want to lay down and game. I’ve done this with all my handhelds. It’s an accessory that’s it all Sony did was give you another way to play PS5 and PS4 games. All the hate comes from people that wanted a dedicated handheld.

Just got mine and I love it. I literally got mad when I had to go to work because I couldn’t play it no more 😂😂😂😂

Got it and i love it, took it with me to New York, use it on my lunch break, it’s definitely worth the money

I absolutely love my portal, I never have been able to get through my ps plus library of games if it wasn’t for this device! I have my ps5 hardwired and I am getting a near native experience no complaints from me. 😊

I was able to order one directly from Sony a couple of hours ago (so no markup). Never thought I'd be interested in one, but I've been thinking about laying in bed and playing my PS5 games, or in something other than my office (where the PS5 is set up) and so I decided to give this a try. Worst comes to worst and if I don't like it I'm sure I could sell it for a good price as they still seem to be pretty highly in demand.

very interested to see how your first week with the Portal goes.

That’s legit me right now been wanting it since release but still 50/50

What is attached to your hat i wonder !?

The only way I would buy it is if they make that independent from your ps5 console. Playing remotely over wifi with the ps5 is trash.

I love using my portal especially when Mt kids want the living room tv!

My son comes home from college this weekend and will probably take over my primary tv. I am picking this up from BB today. I think this will be great so I can sit with my wife and play while she watches tv and he monopolizes the tv with the PS5. I have tried using my ipad and do not like that experience. It is not that sit back, feet up, in your hand experience.

Ps5 connected to the internet via a Ethernet cable helps ALOT too

You look sleepy. Thank you for the video!

This vid is perfect timing. My Portal recently came in & im waiting on my 2nd one to come. Interested in your views on the device 🙌🏼

I enjoy watching your videos so much, that I watched this even with -1 interest in the item being discussed 😂 great video man

2:52 what do you mean by? *_”I was able to get an actual one”_*

I want to love the PlayStation Portal but the proprietary headphone thing is an absolute turn off.

I got this for my nephew. Only problem is I cannot use the ps5 whilst he plays on it. So now I am watching this video on the ps4 whilst he is playing roblox on the portable

I have my phone for Xbox cloud gaming this for PlayStation while I watch tv and a SD oled so I don’t need anything else, all my gaming desires are complete at the moment, I haven’t played on the tv since I’ve got it and I’ve got a 75 inch oled tv

If Playstation perfects this, you might see these in gaming tournaments.

No, PS Portal is very good. If it doesn't work well, you just have the wrong router config.

I would buy one purely for the novelty of the device, but the damn thing has been sold out since day 1.

Just got mine... its perfect for my use case...but not for everyone.

Like alway Great video! I suggest you use a logitech g cloud to play ps5 ,Xbox and pc on the couch😊. Or just wait for the psplay app come out for the steam deck, it waaayyyy better then the PlayStation remote play app and ps portal.

It’s baffling how Sony didn’t at least give a memory option to purchase and add to this Portal system that would allow you to download and have digital games on the system… even if only 1 game would fit, I’d be all in!!! Otherwise your iPhone or iPad can do the exact same thing that the Portal can do..

Let me dumb it down. The portal should have been in sync with the ps5. Meaning put the dual sense Analogs thumb sticks ❤on the portal and create the tech for Portal not to use Wi-Fi. The portal is Amazing and Awesome. It should be more integrated ❤❤ period and periodically

Let me dumb it down. The portal should have been in sync with the ps5. Meaning put the dual sense Analogs thumb sticks ❤on the portal and create the tech for Portal not to use Wi-Fi

I like mine it's not very universal everywhere but from home definitely nice

Imagine Sony adding cloud gaming in a future update, like gamepass ultimate. That would add so much value to the portal. Hopefullt we can get that once enough ps5 consoles have been sold

I'm at work rn playing on the portal works great for me even in the other buildings that have crap wifi it worked just fine

Congrats and enjoy it Julien !

"It's mirroring, wow, it's actually mirroring: ..... Ya what else did you think it did?

I can tell 30 seconds into your video, the PS Portal is not for you. It’s meant to be a complement to your PS5 while others are using the TV or if you want to take to another room or use on vacation at a place that has WiFi. Its pretty low cost so not really comparable to a native portable device

Can i use on wifi from another place?

Portal is great………but that have to fix the bitrate issue then it’s a near flawless experience

I would have loved to have a playstation portal. I was not able to get one because they were sold out. I did end up buying a G8 galileo controller for my phone and using the ps remote play app and it works flawlessly. Just make sure your playstation is on ethernet.