Handhelds:

Nintendo Game Boy Advance: The Game Boy line of portable game players has been around for a while with the Game Boy, Game Boy Color and now the Game Boy Advance models. Small in size, this is perfect for younger children ages 6 to 10. Plenty of games rated E for Everyone.

The Nintendo DS is a new product offering and suitable for children slightly older due to the great great graphics and more games in the T category. The DS also has games like Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory which have been cleaned up for the Teen audience and T ratings.

Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) is also a relatively new offering (2005 release) loaded with great graphics and processing power. Hardcore gamers will appreciate a high end portable device but not necessarily the new disc format and current shortage of titles.

Bottom line: The Game Boy Advance is a great starter for the young gamer. When they are ready to move up, the Nintendo DS is a great choice for the pre-teen and teen especially since the DS also plays the Game Boy games.

If you are a teen or post-teen, and will enjoy more mature games, then you should consider the Sony PSP.

Consoles:

Nintendo Gamecube has been available for several years and is positioned as the console for the younger set. Pleny of young child friendly games.

Sony Playstation 1, 2, and 3: The most populare game system in the world, the playstation is aimed for the pre-teen and up market with many of its games geared towards the teen market. The PS2 is the current model and the latest games have some stunningly realistic scenes and features. The PS3 slated for Spring 2006 will keep the Playstation console at the leading edge.

Also, the PS2 offers a number of great accessories such as the Eye Toy, dance pads, microphones, and online adapter leads to a number of innovative and addictive game options.

Microsoft Xbox and Xbox 360: The Xbox is the most recent of the three main consoles. Microsoft, using off-the-shelf computer parts, created a console quickly to compete with the PS2. Through a focus on the teen and post-teen gaming crowd, the Xbox has excelled with titles like Half-Like and Halo and with their online options.

The Xbox 360, scheduled for the late 2005, will be a redesigned console geared towards high end game play as well as a starting point for managing the home's entertainment systems.

Bottom line: The Playstation is our pick. The few Xbox only games are a regret but we can usually pick up versions of those games for the PC. Xbox may also have a better online environment for their games now but we expect Playstation to continue to improve and we love the PS2 online games. The PS2 currently has the most games available and everything we see points that the new PS3 will be toe to toe equivalent to the Xbox 360 in technical specs.

It comes down to games and game play, we can easily recommend the Playstation.

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