So, my PS Vita showed up Monday and last night my memory card showed up. So last night was my first real experience with a Vita ever. Here is a tl;dr of the night:

•Spent 45 minutes wondering why battery wasn't charging. Turns out I didn't push the cable in far enough.

•Updated firmware!

•Headed straight for the PS Store and bought Hatsune Miku Project Diva.

•Spent 90 minutes downloading only to realize halfway through it would be faster to download games via my PS3.

•Played some damned Project Diva! Love it!

•Bought P4 Golden and downloaded that.

•Also installed Hotline Miami, PS All Stars and Soul Sacrifice.

•Fiddled around with Hotline Miami and SFxT

So, all in all my initial impressions were pretty positive. It fits really awkwardly in my hands but I'm sure that is just me not being used to holding it. I do have a question though can you not see individual save files for games if you want to delete JUST the save file and not the install?

My other takeaway is I should have gotten the 64GB card. 16 GB seems manageable but seven games later and I'm already maxed out nearly. I do plan on starting either P4 or Conception 2 soon.

@demoskinos: Bigger cards are better, but you can also use multiple cards and it's alright. I keep all my PS+ games on one card and my PSN and Vita games on another.

You can view individual save files through the content manager if I remember right.

And you'll get used to holding it.

Enjoy your Vita!

If i remember right you can see your save games in the content manager app that is pre installed
edit: or not, I can see my psp save data but not vita saves so I cant help you there dude.

They recently added to the content manager a memory card management thing that lets you see your PSP, PS1, PSMini and PSMobile saves all in one place, but sadly Vita game saves aren't there. I'm not sure what the deal is with that.

Here's a fun game for you.

Next to the lid that you flip open to insert your Vita games, there is another lid next to it. Open it. See whats inside. Question life.

@grantheaslip: I'm pretty sure you can copy saves to a PS3 or PC, but it's a whole shitty process on PC and it's not working right for me right now. It's not as easy as just plugging it in and copying files.

Trade it for a 3DS and Bravely Default!

Nah but Vita is sweet.

Do you have larger hands? I have very long fingers and an overages palm, and find that it's a little awkward to hold because of my fingers. I can't even imagine the new slim model. But after a while you'll not notice it :) It's an amazing system.

Also, here's a tip for you that I'm not sure is really real or has been purposeful or not - on each Vita cartridge, there is a little indent on the side. You can use the edge that this indent makes to easily open the cartridge slot. I'm not sure if it was made for that but it fits perfectly.

Bet she runs real well man, congratz on the vita.

I also thought that was for the sim card for the 3G version

@jesus_phish: Yeah...at first I thought that is where the memory card went. NOPE.

Well done on the vita duder. persona 4 golden is worth the asking price alone if you ask me. But there are so many other great things out there worth investing time in. If you haven't played them yet and your into that kind of thing. Try the recent rayman games. They really pop on the system and truly suit being portable.

@demoskinos: @falserelic: That's what I thought. I thought it was just a place holder and never tried to open it because I honestly didn't notice it could open. Then I opened it one day a couple of weeks ago by mistake and saw it.

My guess is its something for factory testing or they just whacked it on for later. I'd love to know for sure though.

@xyzygy: Yeah, I'm like 6'3" with pretty decently sized hands. Specifically getting to the triggers feels weird to me right now. But I'm sure I'll adapt.

Yeah, the 16 GB card is a bit of a pain. Lots of game management. It's not bad if you tend to stick to one game until you are done with it but if you like to play around with multiple games then a bigger card is a must.

i'd like to get the slim in my hands but i have a feeling it'll feel fragile and flimsy in comparison to the phat.

@demoskinos: It took me a while to adapt to the Vita, and I'm short (5'4"), but I've had it for about 6 months now and don't have any problems at all with it. Interestingly, I find that I hold it differently depending on what game I'm playing (holding it wide with mostly my fingers for Persona 3 and 4, a meatier, traditional, "grip" for more action-based games like Luftrausers and Dragon's Crown). Also, it's super expensive, but the 64 GB memory card is awesome and will hold everything.

I hope Sony will eventually add a *My Library* tab for digital games, so I can easily see my Vita games, even those I haven't installed at the moment. In the PSN store, you can browse your download history, but pretty much everything shows up there, PS3 games, addons, everything.

At first, I found the Vita somewhat uncomfortable and I didn't feel like I had perfect control. I got used to it pretty quickly, and it was surprising to me how awesome those mini analog sticks and buttons really are. The shoulderbuttons are hot garbage however (dunno if they're better on the new Slim version), but I got used to them too.

I guess when my phatty wears out, I'll be gettin' a Slim too.

@demoskinos: Now go play Gravity Rush!

Or else.

My 64 GB card came in yesterday. I had forgotten where I had put in my 32 GB one, so I opened that slot first, then the bottom one. Still wondering what this is for.

Yeah its not the SIM card slot because that is on the left hand side by the D-pad. So who the hell knows.

The PSP had a slot on top that wasn't used for anything until three or four years later when the GPS and camera came out. It also had that IR port that wasn't used for anything other than a homebrew app that turned the PSP into a remote control for your TV. I figure this port on the Vita will get used for something eventually. I think I saw documentation somewhere that called it an Accessory Port.

Wasn't the port on the PSP just a mini USB port used to transfer data from PC/PS3 etc. and not some crazy proprietary thing like on the Vita? It is listed as being an "Accessory port" but since the port has been removed from the slim version odds aren't good that they will make and sell something that only works for the old models.

Yeah, that stuff is really annoying. I get that you may want it to not download if it's sleeping while not connected, but as long as the charge cable is connected I can't see a reason at all for it to pause downloads when it goes to sleep. Took me about 3 days to download Final Fantasy X-2 because of it pausing all the time.

@lego_my_eggo: The center of the port is a mini USB but it's sandwiched between two other notches for additional connections, which is sandwiched between some holes to screw accessories in place. Kind of like how the headphone jack has an additional notch in the side for the microphone/volume control data connector.

My vita came in recently as well. Still don't have a memory card yet (probably gonna get a 32gb). I will say that I found the thing to be much lighter than I was expecting. It's probably because the last handheld I had was a 1st generation PSP. Also gets fingerprints pretty easily so I'm thinking I might get a screen protector (leaning towards Hori). Reading about the Vita slim, I got the impression that the original was a lot bulkier (and it may be in comparison) but it feels pretty light to me. I guess it just depends on what you're used to holding.

What's weird is that I remember that happening when I first got the system and it hasn't happened since. Maybe there is a setting somewhere. Maybe it's "Use WiFi in Power Save Mode"?

@mosespippy: Nah it's not that. I have that set, but some time last night my Vita stopped downloading P4G with about 10% left to go. I'm hoping that the next firmware update for both the Vita and the PS4 brings in the ability to download the games to your PS4 and then transfer them to the Vita. I understand they don't want to let you do it with a PC, but with the PS4 and Vita being touted as companion devices, it only makes sense that it eventually ends up as a feature.

Erm... it downloads stuff just fine while on stand-by.

It takes bit an effort for the first night, you need to be delicate. Touch it gently, until it boots up, and try to avoid touching the rear part of Vita, it's very sensitive.

With proper configuration, you can also play PSOne RPGs with just one hand, now that's role playing for you.

Other games that you might wanna consider are Final Fantasy Tactics, the rest of Persona series, and Tactics Ogre, and maybe Disgaea. Have fun, be gentle with it

I'm kinda tempted with Hotline Miami specifically. The Vita now feels like a little indie PC without lugging around a laptop with cables to hook up a usb controller. Would you rather play some games on Steam on PC? Like Stealth Inc and Hotline Miami, I own both of them and enjoyed them on PS3.

@crithon: Isn't Hotline Miami cross buy? It plays great on the VIta anyway and sounds brilliant through headphones.

I think you need to out the wifi setting on the opposite of what makes sense or something like that. Mine downloads no problem when I turn of the screen.

The mystery port is an unused accessory port that they removed in the slim version.

Saves files will be deleted too if you delete the game. Only ways to save a save file is to upload it with ps+ or copy the whole game to a ps3 or PC with the content manager.

I played through Hotline on the Vita, best way to play it. Awesome with headphones on full blast.

I'd suggest getting one of those 3rd party hand grips to anyone that plays for long stretches and isn't totally comfortable with the Vita, I got one on a whim after two years and it's especially sweet with games that use both analog nubs.

And Diva f.

I think the saves are tied into the game and not separate files for some retarded reason. So be careful about uninstalling games fully that you intend to pick up again in the future.

I believe you can backup your saves using a ps3 (prob on a ps4 also). I can't remember exactly how it works, but it was super time consuming on the ps3 when I worked it out.

@rowr: Well, I found out how to upload to online storage for individual saves which you CAN do so I'm not so worried about that and its most likely a rare scenario I'd want to delete a individual save file because most games you can just New Game and overwrite the old one but its always nice to have the option, you know?

Huh, yeah, disabling "Use Wifi in Power save mode" made it use Wifi in Power save mode. Kinda crazy that the system's been out for 2 years without them correcting that description.

A neat little thing I stumbled onto recently. You can listen to podcasts and play games simultaneously. Pretty damn sweet for friends of podcast-listening.