Are handheld consoles dated?

While browsing around, I came across an article at VideoGamer.com. In the article, according to the chairman of UKIE, which stands for UK Interactive Entertainment, they believe that Sony and Nintendo should stop their efforts in making new handheld consoles and instead focus on putting their games on cellphones instead. Taking (At least Nintendo, since Sony does make Cellphones) out of the hardware game for handhelds and make them focus more on content only.

While I agree with them that cell phones are making their own ripple in the gaming industry, and more and more developers are making content exclusive to cellphones, including big names like SquareEnix, I myself still prefer a good ole’ handheld to playing something on a cellphone. That may be a bit biased since I am not big on cellphones and own a basic on myself, but I do prefer the variety of design and gameplay that handhelds provide.

There is also a bit more flexibility and creativity when they create the new hardware for handhelds. Yes, you can use the touchscreen on your cell to make a virtual gamepad, but it is still rather limited compared to actual hardware designed for that purpose. As the author of the article said, these games are designed around their hardware, take that away and you lose some of the complexity and freedom that came with the design, and make it so they have to ‘dumb’ it down a bit.

What do you guys think? Should they drop out of the hardware race and focus on cellphones? Are handhelds dated tech that should be dropped in favor of cellphones?

You can read the full article here: www.videogamer.com/news/sony_and_nintendo_should_stop_making_consoles_ukie_2.html