Considering the PSP 3000's are only barely hacked, I think you are right, the vita will take a long time to hack as Sony have been learning on both PSP and PS3 how to beat the hackers. if your thing is actually gaming from original games it probably is just a step up from normal PSP's and worth having.
Myself, I have a PSP 2000 and I only got it for playing "backups" and I am quite happy with it even though the scene has gone quiet. My thing is being able to do things with consoles that their creators didn't want you to do.
I have a Wii that I love, A DS Lite that is a little dated and a little lacking in the graphics department, but for an auld fella like me the puzzle type games rock, a PSP that is the business even though it is gone a little quiet, and an Xbox that I have hacked but can't manage the controller, I can't quite get the two joystick thing.
In conclusion, I don't think it is a must have just yet.
Wheelo