PlayStation’s Remote Play has finally gone live for the Sony Xperia Z3, Z3 Compact and Z3 Tablet Compact. In the coming weeks, both the Xperia Z2 phone and Z2 Tablet will also be made compatible. The service works almost identically on the phones to how it does on the PS Vita: just download the app, sync it to your PS4 and you’ll be able to use your Android device as display in lieu of an assumedly-unavailable television.
It’s a great option to have if you can’t always get full use of the TVwhen you want it. In a demonstration at the beginning of October, we found playing on the flagship Xperia Z3 handset to be about as flawless as we could expect.
There's also the GCM10 Game Control Mount, which connects to the top of a SP4 remote and holds your tablet or phone in place with the power of suction, effectively turning the rig in to a portable console with full PS4 capabilities.
Playing through a mission of the Destiny single player, it was easy to see enemies and there was absolutely no lag.
Keep in mind that this was a professionally set-up demo, so setup wasn’t part of the experience, nor did we get to check out how the connection would handle you moving in to another room, but for the most part it was thoroughly impressive.
Sony is coming in to its own
Back when it was still Sony Ericsson, and for quite a while after, Sony struggled to find a way to make its smartphones unique and viable. The ill-fated Xperia Play was a first attempt to use its huge PlayStation arsenal to draw the ever-growing number of gamers, but it was a clunky device that only supported out-dated titles.
This is a far smarter approach. Sony now actually makes great smartphones and tablets. On top of the fact that they’re actually just good devices, they’re waterproof and have great cameras.
Now they also have Remote Play, which is a big enough feature that any PS4 owner would be mad to not at least consider a Sony Xperia Z3 device when next they’re in the market.
Remote Play isn’t going to corner the market for Sony, but it is going to be enough to make gamers and parents alike pay attention. This is something that no other smartphone or tablet offers: the ability to free up your communal TV without interrupting game-time.
How do I get it?
It’s easy, just download it from the Google Play store. Currently only the Xperia Z3, Z3 Compact and Z3 Tablet Compact will be compatible, the latter of which is yet to be released. The Z2 and Z2 Tablet will reportedly get an update soon.
The app is free to download, but if you want the controller mount you’re going to need to fork out around AU$39 from mid-November.
To sync to your PS4, all you need to do is connect to your home’s WiFi account and follow the options in the PS4 menu.
Alex Angove-Plumb
Digital Content Editor
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