170°

10 Best Handheld Game Consoles Ranked by Sales

Since the 80's there have been great handheld consoles, but which is the best one? Here are the 10 best handheld consoles ranked by sales.

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hackernoon.com
IMissJimRyan1019d ago (Edited 1019d ago )

I'm not sure if I'm overinterpreting the title of the article, but it seems strange to me that a top 10 handheld console ranking is a top 10 best selling handheld ranking.

For me the title should be, as there is no mention in the article that the author thinks these are the top 10 handheld consoles and that they ranked them by sale:

"Top 10 best selling handheld game consoles".

VenomUK1018d ago (Edited 1018d ago )

I agree. A bestselling list is separate from a best quality list.

Wow, the DS man it sold 154 million! The Switch will hit 100 million this year and I think could have legs enough to beat the PS4 sales by the end of next year.

Orpheo1019d ago

Nintendo's Switch is on this list, but shouldn't be. The Switch is neither a standard console nor a handheld, but a hybrid of the two, which places it into its own unique category.

RPGer1019d ago

It is a handheld. Just calm down and get the lite which is very handheld and saving us from wording playing od Nintendo fans. That thing have zero commons with any console that ever existed. Is uses full handheld screen, you can absolutely play all games on the go (except very few inferior games), it has battery, it has momery card and not Drives etc. Just because it has dock mode doesn't mean it is console, Vita can play on TVs. Phones as well via adapters, docks or wireless, and laptops.

Every arguments which Switch fans they bring up "on the go". Japanese people buying it to play Mario, Zelda and Pokemon while on transportations like buses and trains (really thousands). It is a hybird portable that can be played on TV. Literally you can have Switch without a screen at all, so it is a portable like PSP and 3Ds.

Orpheo1015d ago

While Nintendo's Switch Lite is a purely portable platform, the original Nintendo Switch is a hybrid console, there's no denying that. For the sales comparison to be genuine, therefore, sales between the original Switch and the Switch Lite should be split and then compared.

Also, Sony's PlayStation Vita cannot be played on a TV, computer monitor, or any other larger screen unless you hack the device; therefore, the PlayStation Vita is a purely handheld device. What you're likely thinking of is Sony's PlayStation-TV (otherwise known as the PlayStation Vita-TV). Sony's PlayStation-TV did not have a screen and so is not a portable device, but a microconsole. As such, it would be correct in counting PlayStation Vita sales in the handheld sales competition while eschewing sales of the PlayStation-TV, just like it would be correct to consider Switch Lite sales in the handheld sales competition while eschewing sales of the dockable Nintendo Switch.

Neonridr1019d ago

It's whatever you want it to be really, hence the appeal. Some people dock it and never take it with them, is it still a handheld?

Orpheo1015d ago

It is a hybrid of a console and a handheld, thereby warranting its own category. Just because someone has the option of using the Switch as a handheld doesn't mean that they will, and the opposite is also true. Nintendo's Switch Lite, which is undockable, purely a handheld and so would fit in the sales comparison. Sales numbers would then have to be split between the original Switch and the Lite, and only the Lite's numbers used for a fair comparison to be made.

Profchaos1018d ago (Edited 1018d ago )

It's a handheld that you can dock. PSP could do this and Sega Game gear could do this.

It's more that they designed a dock that works really well as a selling point to justify it being underpowered compared to the pro and one x

Yui_Suzumiya1018d ago

I have the lite so it's just for portable gaming for me. I have a PS3 and PS4 for big screen gaming.

Agent751018d ago

The PSP was a handheld that could be plugged into a TV. The Switch is no different. Big screen gaming on the PSP back in 2005/06, you could say Nintendo snatched the idea of Sony.

ZeekQuattro1018d ago

I mean you could plug a cartridge into the SNES and play Game Boy games on TV with added colors in 1994. Nintendo might of gotten the idea from someone else but it certainly wasnt Sony. Lmao

Orpheo1015d ago

There is a major difference here.

The original PlayStation Portable was launched in North America in 2005 with no ability to output video to a TV. It wasn't until Sony's second revision with the PSP-2000 series that video and sound were able to be sent to a larger screen via the PSP composite, S-video, and component cables. This second revision was released 2 years after the original model. Even then, the cables and handheld units were never bundled together outside of special store promotions as the cables were considered purely as accessories, not part of the main system.

In the case of Nintendo's Switch, this is completely different. Every dockable Switch comes standard with a dock. This is because the Switch dock is not an optional accessory, but part of the main package. In fact, that is why this iteration of Nintendo's system is called the "Switch," because it can switch between console and handheld modes. This makes the Switch neither truly a console or a handheld device, but a hybrid of the two. This is in contrast to the Switch Lite, which is purely a handheld. If only Switch Lite numbers were used for the sales comparison, then that would be accurate.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 1015d ago
autobotdan1018d ago

Nokia Ngage the 2nd greatest handheld game console of all time. 2nd only to the legendary Tiger Electronic handheld Double Dragon 2 the Revenge

thecodingart1018d ago (Edited 1018d ago )

This article has a ton of inaccuracies… like the actual sales numbers

specialguest1018d ago

The Turbo Express was way ahead of its time. It was literally a handheld console that played the same TG16 hu-card. It never took off, because of the high price tag and the TG16 eventually dying out

https://i.imgur.com/tdPUphU...

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80°

Behind The Dangerous Stunts Of Nintendo’s Iconic Mario Commercials

Two married costume designers share stories from a decade of traveling the globe with Nintendo.

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gameinformer.com
264d ago
110°

Bowser Is Canonically 34 Years Old

In a YouTube video showing Nintendo Switch owners how to create a Nintendo Account, Nintendo of America revealed that Bowser is canonically 34 years old.

jznrpg325d ago

I saw Bowser when I was a kid and now I’m older than him , sigh.

Brazz325d ago

Wow, i'm as old as Bowser!!

Stanjara325d ago (Edited 325d ago )

He looks 55 to me.

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100°

Nintendo Is A Bad Company, But We Can't Help Loving Them Anyway

TG: “Most of us also grew up with Nintendo, likely forming a nostalgic connection with games that have long been crowned as our personal favourites. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker was an experience that shaped my view on open world fantasy, and Super Mario 64 changed my life like it did for millions of others. These titles have earned their place in history, and remain loved to this day for so many worthwhile reasons. We replay them and beg for remasters all while delving into their worlds time and time again because they mean that much to us. It’s a shame then that the company behind them often kicks its own sweet darlings to the curb.”

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thegamer.com
Magog334d ago

I never got the love for Nintendo games personally. The annoying vocalizations and ugly character designs do nothing for me.

Kosic332d ago

Don't forget the constant hand holding with tutorials. Learn this new ability by pressing Y, now prove that you can press Y 8 times before you can move on....

Tapani333d ago (Edited 333d ago )

Another very weird article.

Nintendo is a great company by almost all possible normal measures. The biggest one being: their own staff is happy, and they seem to be very happy, well compensated and retain rate is solid. They are also financially very stable, profitable, and cash rich, so shareholders love them.

Overall it is an extremely creative group of people, and their mission statement is fantastic as well "to put smiles on the faces of everyone we touch. We do so by creating new surprises for people across the world to enjoy together." The social impact is also massive, not to speak culturally. Additionally, they have a really strong core business, high customer retention rate and loyalty. Nintendo's reputation is extremely good, I think in the US alone they are 9th most reputable company, their customer service is better than the average company. Plus, the press gives them a pass, because they are Nintendo. But there's a reason why they do that, it's not "because they are Nintendo", there are more layers to the argument.

Then, then there's the random negative gamers online...and their "reputation" which is inside their heads. And their western ideas of how a Japanese company should behave or what they should do. But they have no right to ask a company to do anything for them, because they can vote with their wallets.

There's a small vocal community online who dislikes Nintendo for what they are, but then again, there's always a small vocal community that dislikes something.

Nintendo also disagrees with the Western world about IP, but most people call Westerners "hidoi!" when they emulate Tears of the Kingdom and do not experience it the way Nintendo wanted them (even if it is not the best visual way), because it is a matter of principle to them (Japanese are very much against anything close to plagiarism, and there are laws that are tight about creative works copying etc.)

The Western Braveheart "freedoom!" shouters need to understand that it is not an American company, nor they need to behave like one. They can have their own fights based on their principles (against emulation). And they very well may lose the battle with that and change, or find a new audience.

In the end, it is so very simple. Don't buy the products if you don't like a company, but there's no need to paint a picture that is unrealistic about Nintendo either.

MadLad333d ago

I hate virtually everything about their business practices, actually. Suing everybody for virtually anything, shooting down fan projects, games they never let devalue, their online infrastructure and how they handle BC.

They're lucky they make great games, because that's the only thing I feel they do right.

gold_drake333d ago

my issue with them, is the complete refusal to have decent tech for us.

and their odd censorship and lawsuits for modders.