Xperia Play price drop: Is it now worth your money?

There's this odd air of hatred floating around Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play.

Ask the average tech-savvy person what they think of the 'PlayStation Phone' and they will probably say one (or more) of the following three things: the slide-out gamepad is stupid, the device has no decent games, or it's just not very good as either a phone or a gaming device.

Up until a couple of weeks ago, the closest I'd got to this PlayStation-certified handset was a sideways glance at one in my local phone shop. I'd heard that it wasn't very good, and without even giving it a second look, I chose to buy a Samsung Galaxy S instead.

Now let's be fair - a few months ago, the Xperia Play was far too expensive for what it was. However, over the last couple of weeks, the price has started to bomb, to the point that you can now buy it for £154.99...on Pay As You Go. Wow.

I obviously had to check it out, and now I'm wondering why I plumped for the Galaxy S. The Xperia Play is a seriously underrated device, and for the prices it's currently retailing at, it's an extremely desirable purchase.

You may have heard that it doesn't have many games. If so, you'd be nearly right: it definitely doesn't have much in the way of unique or recent releases.

That said, the Xperia Play can definitely be filled to the brim with gaming ecstasy. Take, for example, the fact that you get the likes of Crash Bandicoot, Dead Space, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Need for Speed: Shift, and Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit all for free from the get-go.

If those aren't enough to keep you going for a while, there are numerous Xperia Play-only titles, such as Minecraft - Pocket Edition (although that is, of course, coming to all other Android devices soon).

Many regular Android releases also have specially enhanced Xperia Play versions, too, so you've got one up on all other Android users there.

Once you've made your way through all that content, you'll be delighted to discover that the Xperia Play also functions as one of the greatest retro gaming devices I've ever used.

Grab yourself a NES, SNES, Mega Drive, or N64 emulator and you're laughing, with a pick of hundreds of classic titles to beat.

Of course, most Android devices are already capable of this, so what's the big deal? The answer is simple: touchscreen-only controls simply cannot compare to the Xperia Play's PlayStation controls when it comes to retro gaming.

It feels like you're playing on a real gaming device, rather than a phone that is doubling up as something else. In fact, I got so caught up in my gaming on the Xperia Play during one session that when the phone rang partway through it, I had absolutely no idea what was going on.

The touchpads between the buttons are a little odd, and don't exactly feel great to use, but fortunately they're barely used, and not at all during emulation.

But what about as a phone? For everything non-gaming, Xperia Play is pretty much your standard Android blower.

Since picking up my Xperia Play, I've abandoned my Galaxy S - the Sony Ericsson handset performs most tasks as competently as Samsung's smartphone, and sometimes even better. For example, the battery life is far superior on the Xperia Play, and some of the interface options feel cleaner and less cluttered, too.

The Xperia Play is a little heavier than your average Android, but I can easily put up with that, if for no other reason than to flick out that keypad several times a day. Believe me - it feels cool as anything.

Of course, there are plenty of Android devices on the market that are better than the Xperia Play on paper, whether you're talking specs, camera, or screen resolution.

But I would be confident enough to bet that you won't find a better gaming experience on an Android device than the one you find on the Xperia Play. The marriage of the touchscreen and those damn beautiful buttons really is a killer combo.

If you're considering switching Android devices anytime soon, or you are a first-time Android buyer, you really should consider this beefy wonder - especially for the ridiculous prices you can pick it up for right now.