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[Gantz]

I'm seeing a lot of people on the forums and even news sites referring to hand-helds as consoles now. It's kind of annoying. It's like calling a desktop computer a laptop. They're not the same thing or am I wrong?

 

[DarienA]

I'm seeing a lot of people on the forums and even news sites referring to hand-helds as consoles now. They're not the same thing or am I wrong?

So that people can justify comparing the sales #'s.... and because the PSP is priced like a damn console.

 

[HooDoo]

Because they're portable consoles ?

 

[Temujin]

Because they're portable consoles ?

Yeah, just call em PORT-CONS instead of hand-helds.

ports...geddit?






don't hit me

 

[callous]

Yeah, it's wrong.

I mainly blame Nintendo fanboys who wanted to make 'their' numbers look better this generation.

 

[DDayton]

None of the modern systems have been "consoles" -- heck, the closest thing to a "console" device is the DS, really, as it is the only thing to vaugely contain a "control panel" on the unit and seperate from the main screen.

"Console" comes from the fact that the first home game systems were game consoles -- a small unit with a bank of buttons, controls, and switches. Modern systems don't really resemble a console at all, but some stuffy folks insist on using the term "console" as an attempt to distinguish between game system hooked to an external display and portable systems with a self contained display.

I do think that the gaming public at large would tend to use the word "console" to refer to any gaming platform -- "what console is that game coming to". Let folks use it as they wish... there's really no "wrong" way, as there is really no right way to use it when referring to game systems anymore.