I bury my gadgets under my bed every couple of weeks. I look at my electronics. It doesn't stir me anymore, but the PSVita is a different story. The device that I pull out most frequently is the one that I charge up to feel like it is part of the modern world.

I keep mine in a svelte Waterfield Designs soft case that cleans off fingerprints when it goes in so that it's smudge-free when I pull it out, revealing design details that I apparently have an affinity to see over and over. Even if it is small, the look and feel of the Vita is still good.

In mid-2011, Sony announced the Vita, a device that was unenviably poised to take on mobile phones and Nintendo's 3DS with console-like controls and graphics as well as forward--

A PS Vita’s display showing that it’s connected via 3G to AT&T’s service in 2012
Yep, there was a first-gen version of the Vita that supported 3G via AT&T.

Outside of a vibrant homebrew scene, the Vita is dead ten years after it was first released. It only took a fraction of the time it took to get there. Part of Sony's vision for theVita did. The godforsaken memory card cost a fortune and had a Microusb port. goodbye I pretend that the concept of a handheld isn't dead to Sony, because there's plenty about the Vita that can be reinvented for 2022.

Specific desires are what I have.

It doesn't need to deliver high-end performance or have a brand-newecosystem for exclusive games or apps. I want a modernized Vita with a lightweight OS that is built to supplement Sony's PS Plus plans with cloud streaming and all of that. The hardware needs to be removed and shipped. Give me a reason to stop looking at this device.

The PS Vita sitting on a table, nested between an Akira manga and several other books.
Tell me a new Vita with USB-C, microSD, and Android wouldn’t be the hottest device of 2022.
Photography by Sam Byford / The Verge

What other things do I want in a PSVita? You asked, I am so happy that you asked. I would be willing to accept a slightly wider and taller handheld in order to accommodate more buttons. I like the thickness of the Vita, which is about the same thickness as a deck of cards, but I would like to see it incorporate a proper set of L2 and R2triggers. The rest of the design should be left alone.

It's time to slap the OS on it. If you want to keep the user interface cheerful, make it stockAndroid. It would be easier for me to use it for other forms of entertainment with the latter. You can take or leave the game, but there are other things you can put in the game. It must be modern. The first model of the model had anOLED. The second iteration was Sony's switch to the liquid crystal display.

An iPhone 12 Pro sitting inside of Backbone’s One controller that has a Sony PlayStation-like design.
Traces of Vita DNA exist in Backbone’s Sony-approved iPhone controller.
Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge

I think a revised version of the game would find a bigger audience today than it did in the early 2010s. Sony plans to make its own phone games based on its popular franchises and handhelds are an unavoidable part of the business. Sony collaborated with Backbone, a third-party accessory maker, to make an officially licensed PS3 controller that wraps around an Apple device. Sony is making niche gaming accessories for its niche Xperia phones.

The last five years in technology have supplied more handhelds than I could have predicted. Several products have capitalized on the Switch's dominance in their own way, including multi-flavored Aya Neo consoles, the Steam Deck, and soon, the Analogue Pocket. It seems like an obvious idea to change the look of the device. Even if Sony doesn't see it that way, it's in the here and now with all of the portable consoles.