[source: http://www.computerandvideogames.co...eogames.com/news/news_story.php(que)id=103014 ]Friday 2nd April 2004
SONY SHOCK: PS3 PLANS LAID BARE!
SCEE President drops bombshell: two versions of PS3 planned, broadband distribution model revealed
20:40 SCEE President and COO David Reeves has
made astonishing remarks on his company's plans for the next generation of console hardware, in a revealing interview posted on the official PlayStation website.
With Microsoft having unveiled its software-driven strategy for next-gen at last week's GDC, Reeves revealed incredible plans for the future of PlayStation, setting the scene for a thrilling battle which will see the two rivals fight it out from markedly different strategic positions.
On the subject of PSP, Reeves suggested that games on Sony's forthcoming PSP handheld will be region free - that is, a title purchased in one territory, like Europe, would be playable on a machine from another territory, such as Japan. No suprises there.
It seems that PSP movies will likely remain region protected however, although this is yet to be confirmed.
Speaking on the potential of PSP's movie playback functionality, Reeves said: "I think they [the movie distributors] will come up with quite a few surprises, so that you'd want to buy a movie on UMD as well as having it on DVD. Maybe."
Now for the real meat. Speaking on Sony's next generation home console, Reeves said: "There might be a normal PS3 for gamers, who just want to play the movies and have better games," he commented, suggesting that a "home server" version of the PlayStation 3, "maybe with a hard disk drive", could retail for "whatever it might be, 600 or 700 Euros."
A standalone games machine could obviously be sold at a more competitive price, with Reeves using the example of those gamers who would prefer to "pay 200 Euros for a new generation games machine".
Two versions of PS3? A gaming version retailing for 150, and a 'deluxe' version for over 400, designed to be integrated into a home entertainment set-up? Sweet Jesus, the war is on.
Talking about the coming E3 presentation in May, Reeves hinted that the PSX and PSP might not be the only new products to be showcased.
"Something we haven't talked about, is that we made a change from PlayStation to PSone, so we may, in the course of time, make some cosmetic changes to PlayStation 2 and come out with something that's a little bit sexier, but probably no changes to specs or anything like that."
Sony has already registered "PStwo" as a trademark.
Reeves spoke further on PSP, disputing the comparison between Sony's forthcoming handheld and Nintendo's long established GBA. "It's not, as people have said, a new Game Boy," he said. "There are so many other features that you can add onto it."
Reeves also confirmed that the PSP has had its memory capacity boosted; the PSP "will have 30MB of RAM, now, which it didn't have before."
Talking up the power of the handheld, Reeves suggested the PSP was a potential PS2-beater. "I think what Phil [Harrison - head of Sony's London studios] would say is that people who get an early start - probably someone like Square - will take it beyond PS2," he claimed.
Crucially Reeves also mentioned Sony's "ultimate goal" for PlayStation 3: "To get into electronic broadband distribution". By 2006, when Reeves anticipates that all of Sony's currently in-development hardware products should be available, Sony hopes users will have always available online access along with viable broadband distribution.
"It's going to have to be 2Mb or 3Mb, something like that," he said. "Ken [Kutaragi]'s even talking about 30MB! And when it gets to that, then it is broadband distribution, and people then can just download whatever game they want. But it's got to be secure, and that's where DNAS [Sony's online security protocol] comes in."
This massive statement has huge potential ramifications for the industry at large and is likely to cause a storm among retailers, with the suggestion that Sony plans eventually to sell its games as downloads, cutting overheads, cutting out the middle men and, ultimately, cutting the cost to the consumer.
We suggest taking a long, deep breath and thinking about all that for a moment.
We contacted Sony Europe for clarification of the above key issues: a spokesperson had no initial comment and said they would get back to us, but no response to our enquirires had been received at the time of writing. The original interview, which is believed to have been posted up to two weeks ago on Sony's Irish PlayStation site, has now been removed, fuelling speculation that it was posted by mistake, resulting in a massive leak.
Microsoft says the next-generation is about software not hardware; for Sony the opposite could well be true. Either way, gamers may well have a choice between two clearly disctinct options come the release of Xbox 2 and PS3. The fight is on.
CVG Staff
"SONY SHOCK: PS3 PLANS LAID BARE!"
- Thread starter Wunderchu
- Start date
Megadrive1988
Veteran
seemed cvg felt like they needed to add some 'punch' to a relatively low-key interview. 
marconelly!
Veteran
Man, that CVG site is the lowest scumm of gaming internet. Right down there with gamedreamz.com and xboxgamers.com ...
http://ie.playstation.com/features/featureStory.jhtml?storyId=105294_en_IE_FEAT&linktype=FSOF
Removed my ass... Let's mystify and rumorize everything we can, shall we, CVG...
http://ie.playstation.com/features/featureStory.jhtml?storyId=105294_en_IE_FEAT&linktype=FSOF
I was wondering when people would take the OTHER stuff from the post quoted in "PSP has 30MB of RAM" and comment on it. Not that anyone has really commented on it yet... But hey, now we have a place to do it in!
The "multiple models" is something that I'd been contemplating about as a launch (or shortly-after-launch) strategy since the PSX was announced, so I can certainly see it getting some follow-through.
Might Blue-Ray be another feature that could get split between the models? Offhand that would be more unwieldy than no-HD/HD, but it's perhaps an option.
The "multiple models" is something that I'd been contemplating about as a launch (or shortly-after-launch) strategy since the PSX was announced, so I can certainly see it getting some follow-through.
Might Blue-Ray be another feature that could get split between the models? Offhand that would be more unwieldy than no-HD/HD, but it's perhaps an option.
Jvd:
Hahaha, ROFL!
Spot on!
I believe we have 50% of the rumor threads killed right there.
Hahaha, ROFL!
Spot on!
I believe we have 50% of the rumor threads killed right there.
Nuh-uh! I have it on good authority that the PS3 will be made out of fried Spam!
Megadrive1988
Veteran
here's another, less hyped version of the same info
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=pub&aid=3238
Sony set to grow PlayStation hardware line-up - Reeves
Rob Fahey 20:00 02/04/2004
"PStwo" style redesigned console at E3, multiple flavours of PS3 down the line
Market leader Sony is planning to diversify its PlayStation product family significantly in the coming years, with the company set to show a remodelled PS2 at E3 next month and multiple versions of the PS3 on the horizon.
Speaking in an interview on an official Sony website - which has now been pulled, and was apparently made public in error - SCEE president David Reeves strongly suggested that the PSP handheld and PSX home media centre would not be the only new PlayStation hardware devices on show at E3.
"Something we haven't talked about, is that we made a change from PlayStation to PSone," he explained, "so we may, in the course of time, make some cosmetic changes to PlayStation 2 and come out with something that's a little bit sexier, but probably no changes to specs or anything like that."
The PStwo console is likely to follow in the footsteps of the PSone by being significantly smaller, and the redesign would allow Sony to maintain a healthy price point for the PS2 platform going forward. Packing the PS2 components into a small case wouldn't be difficult at this point - after all, the company has effectively done just that to create the handheld PSP.
On the topic of the PlayStation 3, Reeves revealed that the company is considering launching multiple versions of the next-generation console, catering for a variety of different requirements and price points.
A version of the console described as the "home server" version would follow in the footsteps of the PSX media system, with "all-singing, all dancing features with maybe a hard disk drive" and a retail price take of "whatever it might be, €600 or €700."
However, for those just seeking a new games machine rather than a fully fledged home media server, the company could offer a stripped down system catering to the needs of those who "just [want] to pay 200 Euros for a new generation games machine," Reeves said.
Reeves also confirmed that the company is investigating the possibility of electronic distribution of content over broadband for its next generation system - describing the pursuit of this as the "ultimate goal" for the PlayStation 3, and stating that Sony hopes to see always-on network access and viable broadband distribution in place when the PS3 becomes available in 2006.
"It's going to have to be 2 or 3MB, something like that," he said, speaking about connection sizes - which are currently generally at 512k (0.5MB) in most UK broadband-enabled homes. "Ken [Kutaragi]'s even talking about 30MB! And when it gets to that, then it is broadband distribution, and people then can just download whatever game they want. But it's got to be secure, and that's where DNAS [Sony's online security protocol] comes in."
I found the comment about PSP being *effectively* a PS2 put into a small case to be rather interesting. PSP is not exactly as PS2, it's better in many areas, though not quite as 'brute force' as PS2.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=pub&aid=3238
Sony set to grow PlayStation hardware line-up - Reeves
Rob Fahey 20:00 02/04/2004
"PStwo" style redesigned console at E3, multiple flavours of PS3 down the line
Market leader Sony is planning to diversify its PlayStation product family significantly in the coming years, with the company set to show a remodelled PS2 at E3 next month and multiple versions of the PS3 on the horizon.
Speaking in an interview on an official Sony website - which has now been pulled, and was apparently made public in error - SCEE president David Reeves strongly suggested that the PSP handheld and PSX home media centre would not be the only new PlayStation hardware devices on show at E3.
"Something we haven't talked about, is that we made a change from PlayStation to PSone," he explained, "so we may, in the course of time, make some cosmetic changes to PlayStation 2 and come out with something that's a little bit sexier, but probably no changes to specs or anything like that."
The PStwo console is likely to follow in the footsteps of the PSone by being significantly smaller, and the redesign would allow Sony to maintain a healthy price point for the PS2 platform going forward. Packing the PS2 components into a small case wouldn't be difficult at this point - after all, the company has effectively done just that to create the handheld PSP.
On the topic of the PlayStation 3, Reeves revealed that the company is considering launching multiple versions of the next-generation console, catering for a variety of different requirements and price points.
A version of the console described as the "home server" version would follow in the footsteps of the PSX media system, with "all-singing, all dancing features with maybe a hard disk drive" and a retail price take of "whatever it might be, €600 or €700."
However, for those just seeking a new games machine rather than a fully fledged home media server, the company could offer a stripped down system catering to the needs of those who "just [want] to pay 200 Euros for a new generation games machine," Reeves said.
Reeves also confirmed that the company is investigating the possibility of electronic distribution of content over broadband for its next generation system - describing the pursuit of this as the "ultimate goal" for the PlayStation 3, and stating that Sony hopes to see always-on network access and viable broadband distribution in place when the PS3 becomes available in 2006.
"It's going to have to be 2 or 3MB, something like that," he said, speaking about connection sizes - which are currently generally at 512k (0.5MB) in most UK broadband-enabled homes. "Ken [Kutaragi]'s even talking about 30MB! And when it gets to that, then it is broadband distribution, and people then can just download whatever game they want. But it's got to be secure, and that's where DNAS [Sony's online security protocol] comes in."
I found the comment about PSP being *effectively* a PS2 put into a small case to be rather interesting. PSP is not exactly as PS2, it's better in many areas, though not quite as 'brute force' as PS2.
Not if your close to the CO, the server that is shuttling packets your way has a ton of bandwidth dedicated just for you, and your line is pretty clean.
Then again, we won't see 30+mbs connections being the norm for another 10 years. Fiber is the future though, xDSL technology will be phased out by the major tele companies for Fiber(Look at Verizon).
Megadrive1988
Veteran
this time, it's 1up.com's take on the same SCEE interview
http://www.1up.com/article2/0,2053,1560808,00.asp
http://www.1up.com/article2/0,2053,1560808,00.asp
Paul said:
Guys, guys... There's a company in Sweden that's offering 26Mbit/s VDSL since many months, and copper tech is still evolving! Why invest in fibre when the phone network still has a lot to offer and already reaches every home?
Because copper is an absolute waste of investment, Fiber is the future, it's what everything will come to one day. Companies like Verizon aren't going for faster forms of xDSL, they are taking steps to upgrade right to fiber.
Keep in mind, I'm talking about the USA, I do know that other countries readily have VDSL for purchase.
we here in belgium are are test piloting it since a 6 months and are planning to launch nationwide by the summer.
in the first step it will be 8mb down,1.5mb up stream compared to the regular 3.3down,192up Adsl.
Later on, the speed will be increased to i think 16mbit/s..
(I'm talking about "we" since it's my job )
in the first step it will be 8mb down,1.5mb up stream compared to the regular 3.3down,192up Adsl.
Later on, the speed will be increased to i think 16mbit/s..
(I'm talking about "we" since it's my job )
Paul said:
Why?
Why? That just sounds like hype to me. Building up a fibre network to reach every home will be a tremendously costly investment, a TREMENDOUSLY costly investment actually. And, as the copper lines are already there and tech to push ever more data through them each year, why go through all that bother? Nobody needs hundreds of mbits per second of capacity, and no service provider would reliably be able to offer it either. Even 30mbits/s to a couple thousand customers adds up to gigabits upon gigabits of aggregate bandwidth needs, the internet just isn't built to handle that kind of a load.
I myself have 8mbit downstream, 800kbit upstream ADSL, and I have only found a handful of sites capable of delivering even 500kB/s in download speed, much less upwards of a megabyte. My record was 722kB/s from a scene.net file mirror, maybe it could have climbed even higher but the demo I snagged was only like 8MB and it was over in just a few seconds.
I think a national fibre network is even more unrealistic for a country like the US, it will simply cost too damn much with no practical gain to show for it. xDSL or similar tech will suit us just fine for years and years to come, a decade at least I'd have to say. With 30mbit/s VDSL one downloads an entire standard CD image in less than 3 minutes, I think we can live with that for a while.
My subscription was 512kbit bidirectional originally. I made one phonecall and upgraded it instantly to the new speed, using the very same modem I got when I signed up way back in december 2000. Very neat, very convenient...
Of course, to use VDSL I'd need a new modem but right now it suits me great.Meanwhile, back in the UK, we can have bits trickle down our wet-string connection at a rate marginally faster than writing the numbers down on the back of an envelope and posting them.
Funny thing is, doesn't Japan fairly commonly have 50M/s fibre connections to homes these days? Most people I know in Tokyo have insane connections, and they cost less than mine does... It seemed almost impossible to get less than 10-15M/s. Fastest I've seen in the UK is about 6M, and you have to sell a lung to afford it.
I don't really buy all this stuff about the internet collapsing under the weight - the wider connections people have, the more stuff shifts away from centralised servers and (back) over to peer2peer distribution. So long as the telecoms companies own infrastructures can cope, then the internet as a whole ough to survive.
Funny thing is, doesn't Japan fairly commonly have 50M/s fibre connections to homes these days? Most people I know in Tokyo have insane connections, and they cost less than mine does... It seemed almost impossible to get less than 10-15M/s. Fastest I've seen in the UK is about 6M, and you have to sell a lung to afford it.
I don't really buy all this stuff about the internet collapsing under the weight - the wider connections people have, the more stuff shifts away from centralised servers and (back) over to peer2peer distribution. So long as the telecoms companies own infrastructures can cope, then the internet as a whole ough to survive.
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