Those are good but Genesis 3 was an abomination.

My favourite is indeed the PSP Go. It is just so small and cute, it fits right into your pocket and it is just about the greatest retro handheld ever made. I'm actually glad it doesn't have a UMD drive, because otherwise it would be a whole lot clunkier.

Losing access to UMD games is not a minus in my book. CFW is the way to go to get all games ever released on the system, even those with no digital release. Plus you can play NES, SNES, Gameboy and PS1 games and whatnot. Yes, it's probably not perfectly legal and stuff, but I don't care. The PSP Go with CFW is one of the greatest handhelds of all time.

Just had to get that out as the PSP Go gets so little love in here. =P

As a Yank, I like how the SNES 101 (aka new model) looks compared to the bizarre robot face that the more common model looks like. Sadly, I just found out when looking it up that even the SNES 101 still can yellow over time like the standard model.

Mega Drive/Genesis looks awesome in its first two models. Model 3 doesn't look as good.

GBC, DS Lite, DSi, and PS2 slimline are the ones that come to mind. GBA SP runner up, but it was on the late side, and felt more like a proof of concept for the upcoming DS Lite than something Nintendo was getting much behind. But I will say that I wasn't much into the GBC or PS2 Slimline myself, but their impact was obvious. The DS Lite/DSi is one of my all-time most played pair of systems.

The PS1 (that replaced the big grey PSX) is a personal favourite, it is crazy durable. and a very nice looking console, probably my second favourite looking home console next to the Wii.

Worst for me:
Sega:
- Sega Genesis/Megadrive Nodel 3 with a reduction in video and audio quality, plus broken compatability with some addons.

Nintendo:
- Wii Mini, lost Internet, Gamecube and SD card support.. Which was just crap.

Microsoft:
- Xbox 360 E, lost support for Optical Audio, Component/Composite support and lost a USB port.

Sony:
- Super Slim Playstation 3, top loading optical drive, cheap and garbage plastic build quality, lost PS2 backwards compatibility, SD Card Reader, USB ports and there was no Linux support.

But the absolute peak of garbage? The PSP Go.
- More expensive.
- Smaller display.
- Lost UMD support.
- Lost compatibility with many accessories.

The runner up for peak garbage? Switch Lite.
- Smaller display.
- Integrated Joycons, which would still drift.
- No dock/HDMI output support.
- No HD Rumble.
- No IR.
- No Auto-Brightness.
- No Kickstand.
- Some games/accessories are incompatible. (I.E. Labo)
But it was cheaper, with a slight improvement to battery life compared to it's bigger LCD brother.

I think what this ultimately highlights is that console manufacturers love to release a device that can do a myriad of different things... And use that work out what sticks with consumers before making "cutbacks" to hit lower price points and improve reliability/power consumption/thermals... Unfortunately it doesn't always align with consumers.

What are your picks for the best ones?

Top loading optical drive is a bonus in my book for PS3 super slim. The thing has been reliable as I have had it since 2012. I hate that every console went slot loading. More to go wrong. Top loader just a spring to replace if it goes bad which is almost never.