PS3 to get PVR functionality with TV tuner add-on

[Shifty Geezer]

It was talked about as something PS3 could and possibly would handle, and for the doubters, here it's talked about officially for the first time...

"We're also hoping next year – about the same time that Freeview launches its terrestrial broadcasting service – to release a digital tuner for the PS3, turning it into a programmable TV recorder," said Light.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=27220
The scope is questionable. Is it just FreeView only programming (the tuner part is FreeView) or can it handle direct video in from cable/satellite? We'll have to wait on details, but I think this shows Sony is serious about the one box solution. PS3 = Gaming console, web browser and media shopping, movie playback, and PVR. Whatever living-room functions could be added, they probably will over the life of the machine. Value wise it looks incomparable. All they need is better monitor support so PS3 fits more readily into people's bedrooms!

 

[Titanio]

Interesting. MCV speculated that this might be one of Sony's announcements at Leipzig. I wonder if it is possible they would launch this earlier in Europe (i.e. by Christmas), given that freeview is available in a number of countries here already.

 

[Vic]

This could be awesome.

One interesting point is the partnership Sony and Sky announced last week to provide VOD for the PSP. However, would Sky partner with Sony to provide satelite services in countries such as the UK and Italy? Surely the PS3 would be a rival to Sky+, with its upgradeable HDD and video streaming capabilities?

 

[Blackraven]

What makes this different then from the PS3 IPTV 80GB version sold in Korea?!?!?

 

[betan]

What makes this different then from the PS3 IPTV 80GB version sold in Korea?!?!?

I am not familiar with Freeview, but I assume tuner is for RF (air) waves as opposed cable signal.

 

[Simon F]

I am not familiar with Freeview, but I assume tuner is for RF (air) waves as opposed cable signal.

Freeview is free-to-view, terrestrial DVB in the UK.

 

[lefizz]

Freeview is the British term for DVB-T. Its called freeview here cos its a way of getting digital TV without a monthly subscription. Of course we do have to pay about $300 for a tv license anyway but still.

 

[sevanig]

Freeview is the British term for DVB-T. Its called freeview here cos its a way of getting digital TV without a monthly subscription. Of course we do have to pay about $300 for a tv license anyway but still.

TV License?? U have to get a license to watch free to air tv, man thats so lame...
I guess in Australia we get 5min worth of adds every ad break...

 

[Arwin]

Basically $275 of that $300 is paying for BBC though,right?

 

[archangelmorph]

Basically $275 of that $300 is paying for BBC though,right?

Yup..

Personally I wouldn't mind paying so much if the BBC actually broadcasted programming that was worth watching.. But for the past several years BBC television has been going downhill..

Nowadays though I don't even have a TV since I don't have time to watch anything..

 

[betan]

Freeview is the British term for DVB-T. Its called freeview here cos its a way of getting digital TV without a monthly subscription. Of course we do have to pay about $300 for a tv license anyway but still.

Tuner won't be cheap then.

Is Freeview mostly 576i?

We will probably see a new PAL SKU with bigger hard drive sometime late this year early next year.

TV License?? U have to get a license to watch free to air tv, man thats so lame...
I guess in Australia we get 5min worth of adds every ad break...

Seriously, BBC license is a great deal overall.

 

[Simon F]

Tuner won't be cheap then.

They could be cheap. A USB DVB-T tuner for a PC is about £30-40. The license fee (in the UK) is per household so if you already have a TV...

Is Freeview mostly 576i?

It is, and is encoded with MPEG2. Some of the BBC broadcasts exceed DVD bit rates so the quality can be quite good.

The BBC were experimenting with HD transmissions for a while (still might be) using (IIRC) H.264

 

[bystander]

The scope is questionable. Is it just FreeView only programming (the tuner part is FreeView) or can it handle direct video in from cable/satellite?

I imagine it's probably only Freeview. To record the Sky or Virgin Media you need to be able to put the Conditional Access Module in your PS3. I can't imagine Sky or Virgin media being particularly pleased if the PS3 works like a PVR through their cable/satellite boxes (especially when they like to charge customers for that functionality!). You could possibly do something under Linux on the PS3, but obviously it won't get any offical support.

Alternatively (for cable\satellite) it could just record the raw video stream, but then you only have the basic functions of a PVR (record, play, live rewind, timer recording etc). There wouldn't be any integration with the EPG and benefits that brings.

Anyway I'm most interested if it could be compatible with HD Freeview whenever/if that gets off the ground.

 

[Simon F]

TV License?? U have to get a license to watch free to air tv, man thats so lame...
I guess in Australia we get 5min worth of adds every ad break...

What? Does the ABC now have advertisements? I guess it always was a bit "underfunded" (I remember when it stated that taxpayers paid ~8c/day) so the programming is not going to be as good.

Having said that, even the commercial stations in the UK have relatively few adverts and they are generally well spread out.

 

[betan]

They could be cheap. A USB DVB-T tuner for a PC is about £30-40. The license fee (in the UK) is per household so if you already have a TV...

Interesting, I always thought BBC fee was per TV. Good for consumer, but I wonder how they avoid abuse of the system, or they bother at all.

 

[Rangers]

THis could be cool. The HDD is already there. But the tuner needs to be able to accept Cable TV or else it's pretty useless.

I wouldn't mind MS copying this, but then again the add on would be at least 99, and the 20GBHDD is too small for this. So it's probably pretty irrelevant.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Having said that, even the commercial stations in the UK have relatively few adverts and they are generally well spread out.

Unfortunately Freeview is bringing in evil advertisement systems from abroad. Some channels have the mind-numbingly stupid ads 5 minutes into the program and 3 minutes from the end, with no interval, so viewers remain hooked between episodes. Even worse is the interruption of adverts at breaks the story wasn't written for. In an episode in three acts, with 2 cliff-hangers and fade-to-blacks, you'd have thought that's where the ads would come. In part it's a fault of US programmes designed for breaks every 5 minutes, and us having less adverts overall, but even on UK programmes they interrupt at the wrong times.

So here's hoping PS3 recording has quick and easy ad skipping!

 

[scooby_dooby]

So here's hoping PS3 recording has quick and easy ad skipping!

It's all about the software for me. If Sony can nail it I'll probably use this over media centre next year, save on those power bills.

That's a big if though, alot of PVR programs I've used are problematic.

 

[archie4oz]

Personally I like the IPTV solution more, since it doesn't require any additional hardware other than your network connection, or any of the other sillyness that's require by satellite or cable providers. The only caveat is having the bandwidth...

Still I wonder if any of these solutions will ever amount to anything. I mean it's not the first time for Sony to talk about this and even demo it, and not do anything with it (thinking back to the 1999 demo of a PS2 working as a DVR with a SKY PerfectTV satellite reciever via the iLink connector).

 

[wco81]

I don't know about this. I keep the PS3 off when I'm not using it because of the power consumption and noise. I remember someone doing calculations about how much it would cost to keep the Folding going 24/7 each month.

My Direct TV DVR is much quieter and will record even when it is "off." It costs $6 a month to use. It has a 250 GB hard drive and can record two HD channels. Plus of course, it gives you access to all the content that an OTA DVR couldn't.

Meanwhile at least in most of California, you can get AT&T IPTV, using Microsoft's platform. I believe they're still limited to one HD channel at a time. Their bundled pricing isn't that much better than getting satellite TV and cable Internet.

Plus I haven't heard too many reviews yet but they're probably constricting the bit rates for that HDTV channels.