Phil Harrison interview

[Titanio]

Eurogamer have an interview up with Phil Harrison:

http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=64667

The coolest point from the interview is that you can upgrade the HDD using any 2.5" drive. Sony won't even be selling their own HDD peripherals, you just get a standard one!

 

[slider]

Dammit, beaten again. Had seen this earlier at gamesindustry.biz:

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=16969

but assumed someone would've already posted it. I wonder when I'll ever START a thread....

He comes across as pretty relaxed. Not surprising as he's a realtive veteran of this sort of thing. Great news on the HDD though. I wouldn;t be surprised if Sony did end up having a range of their own labelled drives.

 

[Type_Raver]

Heres an autosig' worthy quote:

Phil Harrison:
"...but by adding motion sensitivity to the controller... Well, we didn't start the wave, but we've kind of jumped onto that wave."

 

[rabidrabbit]

How do you transfer your existing data to the new upgrade HDD?
There's no place for two HDD's, is there?
Wait, what if the HDD bay is indeed empty and the inbuilt HDD is there elsewhere!

I like Phil Harrison interviews, he's always quite honest and at the same time very professional in his statements.
Some might take it as "Sony arrogance", I think it's cultivation

 

[Shifty Geezer]

In which case they should have an option for a PS3 without HDD to add you're own. Not in game stores where naive consumers don't understand, but for the geeks who want 180 GBs in there from the start!

 

[Shifty Geezer]

ATA, not SATA? How does that affect price and performance?
This is worth including too

[The motion sensing controller] has been thought about since about 1994, but in reality, you can't make some of the ideas that we have because the technology is not available in sufficient quantity or at a low enough price, and you kind of have to wait for certain things to converge. We had the concept of PlayStation Portable for many years before we could actually deliver it at a price and at a standard that was acceptable.

Certainly on PS1 I was talking with friends and family that it'd be great to have motion sensing, and I guess they were doing the same

 

[Titanio]

How do you transfer your existing data to the new upgrade HDD?
There's no place for two HDD's, is there?
Wait, what if the HDD bay is indeed empty and the inbuilt HDD is there elsewhere!

The guys at 1up.com mentioned that a Sony spokesperson told them that you'd be able to connect 'things' via USB, like flashdrives etc. It would not surprise me at all if you could connect any external HDD via USB to either back-up data from your internal PS3 HDD or for regular storage on a more permanent basis. Harrison's comment "it is a computer afterall" suggests things may be fairly open in this regard..

 

[one]

ATA, not SATA?

Kutaragi said "SATA" in March, I hope it's Phil or Eurogame that confused them...

Anyway, I assume you can connect even a 3.5" drive with an appropriate cable.

 

[Phil]

Wow, excellent interview. I really like Phil Harrison. He should have been given more time at the E3 press conference.

 

[Dave Baumann]

I'm going to guess that the drive that ships in PS3 will be the same make as 360 (initially) - and it may have been 360 that drove the costs down to allow it in the PS3. Reading some of the 360 book last night it turns out that once MS hit upon the idea of using 2.5" drives they realised they could drive the cost down further by taking out components specifically there for laptops (i.e. anti shock detection mechanisms) and they asked a manufacturer to do this (I forget who). If the drive is the same, then I would also expect the 60GB version to turn up for 360 sooner or later.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Anyway, I assume you can connect even a 3.5" drive with an appropriate cable.

Reminds me of people squeezing 3.5" drives into the Amiga A1200 case . So much more economical though, it'd be a good thing to do.

 

[inefficient]

I guess there will have to be tools for formating and setting up your ps3 HD.

I wonder if it would be too difficult for your mainstream consumer. I supposed 3rd parties could step in and sell "ps3 ready" HD in large sizes.

 

[London Geezer]

I guess there will have to be tools for formating and setting up your ps3 HD.

I wonder if it would be too difficult for your mainstream consumer.

Well, as with any other HDD based electronic thing, from iPods to PVRs, a big flashy message when you turn the unit on for the first time saying "Your drive needs formatting. Press any button to proceed" should be easy enough for anyone without very serious learning disabilities to understand. They don't even need to do that, you could just turn it on for the first time and get an automated message saying "Formatting Hard Drive, please wait". No action needed, really autistic-proof. With all due respect to autistic people.

 

[!eVo!-X Ant UK]

I guess there will have to be tools for formating and setting up your ps3 HD.

I wonder if it would be too difficult for your mainstream consumer. I supposed 3rd parties could step in and sell "ps3 ready" HD in large sizes.

I dont think so, i would imagine that PS3 would auto detect if the drive is'nt formated and then PS3 could format it automatically. If would'nt be that hard to implement i should imagine.

- You plug the drive in, then a few seconds later you get a messgae from PS3 saying its needs formatting

- A screen comes up asking " do you want to format the hdd? "

- You click "yes" or "no"

- Wait a few minutes and job done.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

You'd need the OS installed too, assuming it's a little more than a big empty disc . Ship the console with an Install BRD, give a message to insert that disc when the HDD lacks the OS, and talk them through the process. There's lots of scope for a fairly idiot-proof system. With no legacy support to worry about Sony can design and develop from the ground up with non-geeks in mind.

 

[London Geezer]

You'd need the OS installed too, assuming it's a little more than a big empty disc . Ship the console with an Install BRD, give a message to insert that disc when the HDD lacks the OS, and talk them through the process. There's lots of scope for a fairly idiot-proof system. With no legacy support to worry about Sony can design and develop from the ground up with non-geeks in mind.

Why can't the OS be pre-installed? They would save money on install discs if the HDDs were already formatted and with the OS already installed.

 

[Npl]

Why can't the OS be pre-installed? They would save money on install discs if the HDDs were already formatted and with the OS already installed.

You mean formatting and installing HDDs aint costing time & money ? (a pressed DVD costs next to nothing)
What if the OS or HDD got damaged somehow - through transport, failed update, or user error?
How do you want to update the OS if you have unsold stock with older Consoles (like Sony until November) - reinstall HDD or simply bundle up-to-date DVDs?

 

[London Geezer]

You mean formatting and installing HDDs aint costing time & money ? (a pressed DVD costs next to nothing)
What if the OS or HDD got damaged somehow - through transport, failed update, or user error?
How do you want to update the OS if you have unsold stock with older Consoles (like Sony until November) - reinstall HDD or simply bundle up-to-date DVDs?

Yeah you're right, i was focussing on the idiot-proof element without thinking of how silly it would really be...

 

[Shifty Geezer]

Why can't the OS be pre-installed? They would save money on install discs if the HDDs were already formatted and with the OS already installed.

If they don't provide an OS disc, you can't upgrade your HDD! I'd bundle such a disc with the machine, but have the current installed HDD preformatted and ready to go. The disc is there for upgrading. And, if it's anything like an MS OS, the annual/biennial system clean and reinstall

 

[_xxx_]

I wouldn't expect an OS disc even in my wildest dreams. Highly doubtful.