Reviewed: May 27, 2006
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Manufacturer
Nyko
Type: Case & Speakers
System: Sony PSP
Rating: 8.0
Features
MSRP: $79.99
The Nyko Theater Experience for PSP turns your PSP into a portable theater and will likely make you the most popular person on your next plane or bus trip, at least with the person sitting next to you.
The Theater Experience is a unique case design targeted for those who watch a lot of movies. It’s bigger than most cases, but that is because it is also the home to a pair of hi-fi stereo speakers, an angled stand to prop your PSP up at a decent viewing angle, and a 7-hour rechargeable battery built right into the case itself.
The case also features dual headphone jacks so you and a friend (or even a stranger with headphones) can share a movie or music without disturbing others. And if you do want to play a game you can remove the PSP from the theater case and still keep it connected to the battery with the included extension cable.
The aluminum case looks awesome and the black neoprene interior grips and protects your PSP. The bottom of the case has long rubber pads that keep the case from sliding around on smooth surfaces and the internal stand tilts the PSP to a perfect viewing angle. Multi-color LED’s on the exterior indicate various power modes and the status of the internal battery. The latch is super-secure and won’t pop open during a minor impact.
We all know by now that the internal speakers on the PSP are pretty weak. Even at full volume you can barely hear your games or movies if there is any ambient noises, and cranking it up that loud can also cause distortion.
The speakers in the Theater Experience are excellent quality and use the added power of the case to really crank out some surprising sound. I stuck in my UMD copy of Final Fantasy Advent Children and was blown away by the sound quality of this setup. It’s not quite up to the level of Logitech’s PlayGear Amp, but for a theater-case hybrid, it gets the job done.
$80 is a pretty stiff price of admission to this theater, but when you consider that Nyko’s Charger Case (without the speakers, tilt-stand, and headphone splitter) is $70, you are getting a pretty good set of extras for only ten more dollars. Even so, you have to really plan on watching a lot of movies while on the go to justify this luxury item for your PSP.