US PlayStation Vitas to Have 20MB 3G Cap
Back in September, news broke that the Japanese version of the 3G PlayStation Vita would have a 20MB download limit on the 3G network. While products like the iPhone also have a 20 megabyte file size download restriction, many gamers were upset that it would cause problems because downloadable PS Vita games are set to be far larger than iPhone apps – for example, Uncharted: Golden Abyss will be close to 4GB. Sadly, Sony have now confirmed that the same limitations will be set for US 3G Vitas.
At GDC Online, Sony’s Chris Norden confirmed the limit, but said that the 20MB cap comes from Sony’s 3G partner, AT&T, rather than from Sony itself. Back when the Japanese lock was announced, a representative did say that it could be increased in the future, but wouldn’t offer specifics. No limit has been announced for European Vitas, but don’t get your hopes up.
Will this affect your decision to buy a 3G Vita or a Wi-Fi only one? The 3G vita will cost $299, while the Wi-Fi only PlayStation Vita will cost $249.
[Via]
10 Responses to “US PlayStation Vitas to Have 20MB 3G Cap”
It makes me think the 3G must be free to the consumer. I’m getting the Wifi only but I can’t see anyone ever getting the 3G model, paying $30 a month and having a 20mb file size cap.
So what’s the point of the 3G model. You’d think Sony would have had these answers, caugh restrictions known regarding AT&T before even starting production of the Vita. Guess not, I need a job.
looks like i’ll be saving 50 bucks. i was going to get the 3g model, but now i dont see the point. they should have never went with at&t. what’s weird though is that what made me decide to get the 3g model in the first place was based on some research i did. i went to at&t’s website looking to see about how much a data plan would cost me. and they had listed that a “non-smartphone” plan was $15 per month for unlimited data. so i dont see what the problem is now. with a 20mb cap, it should be free, especially if you can get unlimited for $15. honestly i think sony should renegotiate their contract, or go to another carrier, because at&t is screwing them out of a lot of money.
For anyone that has a smartphone you know how much carriers charge for data.
Did anyone actually expect to be able to download a full retail game over 3G? In fact never mind being able to, who in the hell would want to? By the time that 4GB Uncharted game downloaded over 3G you’d be hearing news about the Vita 2.
As for the 3G model, not touching it. If I want to connect to anything via 3G I’ll tether my WiFi enabled Vita to my Samsung Galaxy S II in WiFi hotspot mode.
I cant figure it out either, why the hell would anyone want to download anything over 3g? I would just wait til i get home and use my WIFI. People still don’t seem to understand what a download cap really is. The 3G feature is to be able to play online anywhere (although I am skeptical of how well this actually works), not for downloading. The cap in question here only limits the size of the games you can downoad. if it is that big of a deal to be able to download a huge game while on the go, just stop by your local McDonalds and use the free WIFI! Or you could do what i will be doing, Wifi tethering on my phone
Not to mention that constantly having that 3G radio turned on constantly will be a major battery drain so by the time you’re done downloading that 2GB+ game you’re not going to have any battery left to play it.
Wanting to be able to download full retail games in that manner is not only slow but completely impractical and is an impossible expectation.
The 3G functionality seems to be more aimed at using the social functionality of the Vita such as that Near application, web browsing etc.
Wifi at home for downloading games, wifi tether to my Android phone to use social features while on the go and use up the data allowance I already pay for with my phone’s data package.
Simples.
Looks like I’ll be joining the rest of you guys and doing the wifi tether instead of getting the 3g model. With my rooted phone I won’t have to pay any more than I do now. Or, pay an additional $10 a month for the tethering plan and increase my data cap from 2gb to 4gb. I’m positive that $10 for 2gb will be way cheaper than anything att will be offering for the PSV as well. Plus, As far as I can tell thus far I have no 20mb cap on downloads either.
Also, in my town 3g speeds are pretty good, as fast as my cable when my provider decides to throttle my speeds. According to a speed test.net test at least.
I wish Sony would be upfront about their devices because people seem to have such high expectations, but don’t realize that there are restrictions that are already in place,
- The 20MB cap has been there for awhile for most 3G carriers, so this isn’t something new.
- There is also probably no way that you would be able to play games on it because 3G is pretty slow.
- Chances are AT&T will put a 2GB cap on the data anyway, so downloading games would have been a waste.
The only real reason to get the 3G model is if you don’t have a smartphone and you plan on carrying your PSV everywhere.
Yup it’s official. I’m not getting the PSV till 2 things happen.
1) The PSV 2000 or w/e it’s called comes out (the model with bugs fixed and more upgrades)
2) The 3G limit goes up and/or another company offers 3G.
The restriction is on downloading files above that size which would be games and patches.
For anything meaningful you’ll be wanting to download it over wifi anyway because downloading over 3G is just so horribly slow. The 3G functionality on the Vita is more for using the social applications of the device rather than being intended for downloading something like Uncharted which is like 4GB.
Personally I think you’re being unreasonable.