DJ_Longfellow

This is for a Group Marketing Project. This is just a sample of the MARKET RESEARCH that I'm looking for.

Ok, I'm looking to get some suggestions on what people would like out of a handheld system. Get creative, compare to the PSP/DS/iPod. We are trying to get a sampling of what people like and dislike about the current handheld systems on the market.

So, this is basically what would the consumer what to see in a handheld system (gaming mainly, but other functions also...). What price would you expect to pay? Features? Extras? Anything?

Also, feel free to critize and praise the current handheld systems if need be.

Thank you for all that reply.

lordwow

Depending on what it does... I think $200 is about the maximum I would pay for a portable device. I bought an 20 Gig iPod about 2 years ago for about $250, and it was not worth that much in my opinion.

A great portable system should have: A good REPLACEABLE battery (preferable a Lithium or similiar one) for a few hours of battery life.

Gaming should have quick load times as playing time may often be short bursts of time.

Also durability is a must, it should be able durable enough to be dropped or played for extended lengths of time without falling apart. Screen Scratches (common on both the original DS and the iPod, I don't know about the PSP, but I'd assume there also) would be a great thing to protect against.

Finally, its marketing focus, IMO should be on fun. See the hype surrounding the Wii recently? People are itching to have geniune fun with games, sometiems at the expense of graphics. Gameplay and Innovation are a must right now.

Hope that helps!

fujishig

I can give you a rundown of what I like/dislike about the current portables:

Nintendo DS:
+Huge library, including great GBA games
+Use of stylus makes games interesting
+Great battery life, great sleep mode implementation
-No real analog stick, stylus is a poor substitute
-Second screen is not really all that necessary... I think a single screen portable is fine
-A little bulky and ugly... remedied with DS lite

PSP:
+Beautiful screen. I like how most of the real estate is taken up by the screen
+Better graphics
+removable storage... useful for putting mp3s/videos on it
-Still a little too big to truly go against the ipod
-Game library is pretty sparse
-Really needs two analog pads, and the nub is not the best
-Disc based media means a lot of spinning and some bad loading times

I would love a micro-sized system, or maybe something just a little bigger (PDA sized?) if we're putting in dual analog sticks. Control pad, four face buttons, two shoulder triggers should be standard. Cartridge based system, maybe even games on memory cards/sticks (which we would never really see implemented because of piracy fears). Screen should take up most of available real estate. Don't really need dual screens, but keeping stylus functionality for possible simple PDA functions (address book, calendar) would help. Wireless, of course.

Supermallet

I think any portable system would need a small nuclear reactor at the back to provide a full lifetime of nonstop play.

Chris_D

- A touch screen is absolutely essential (like DS or PDAs). Anything else is just backwards.
- Solid but simple digital controls, with at least 4 buttons (but not too many!). The digital pad should be as comfortable as possible.
- A flip design to protect the screen(s) or some other sort of sliding cover.
- Wireless and bluetooth connectivity.
- Calendar, alarm, email, and address book functionality along with windows/osx software for synchronisation (eg. outlook, apple address book etc).
- A decent amount of built in flash (no HDD), 1-4 gig would be nice (like the iPod nano). Most of this should be for the users media like photos and music, but some could be automatically reserved for use by games (like on the xbox).
- Ability to plug in an external memory card for extra memory.
- Video playback (like iPod Video).
- Support for browsing the web eg. Opera
- A downloadable game service like XBox Live Arcade, or the upcoming Wii stuff. Simple but classic games (arcade, 8bit, 16bit) for $5-10.
- Support for off the shelf games on a catridge format (like the DS).
- An analogue stick is not particularly essential imo, and I'd rather have the real estate used for other stuff than have a half-assed analogue controller like the one on the psp.

DJ_Longfellow

Thanks for the responses....so far, so good. Keep them coming. I may post later what we are thinking about doing (maybe borrowing a namebrand but I don't want to say yet to skew opinions)

Thanks!

PixyJunket

For me, the ULTIMATE portable system would be one that had great games to play. That is all.

fujishig

So if it was as big as a suitcase and had a battery that lasted only an hour at a time, it'd be fine as long as there were good games for it?

chess

GBA Micro is the ultimate portable system.

Truly portable, can be carried as an afterthought...even in your pocket.
Library of brilliant games from a wide variety of genres
Bright clear screen and long lasting battery