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Playstation 3 Pricing, Date
by Maarten Goldstein, May 08, 2006 7:05pm PDTSony used today's pre-E3 press conference today to announce concrete details on the release of the Playstation 3. The machine will be released November 11 in Japan, with Europe, Australia and North America releases following November 17. Then there's pricing... the base model with a 20GB HDD will cost a whopping $499, while the version with a 60GB HDD will be $599. Sony also revealed more information about the controller, which no longer looks like a banana, but like the DualShock 2.
The controller for PS3 has been created by refining and improving the world's most popular PlayStation controller that has shipped more than several hundred million units worldwide, while inheriting its basic concept and design. The controller for PS3 employs breakthrough technology of high-precision, highly sensitive six-axis sensing system that does not require any devices other than the controller itself for seamless interactive operation, thus eliminating additional settings to TVs. With this technology, ways to enjoy PS3 will be further enhanced by accessing PS3 through the network, while retaining the six-axis sensing capability. In addition to the "3-posture-axis" of roll, pitch and yaw, "3-dimension acceleration information (X, Y, and Z)" can be detected in high-precision and in real-time. In addition to standard key input available in existing controllers, more natural and more intuitive play will become possible as if the controller has become part of your body.
Comments
As for lack of games early on I do not think it really matters considering how unavailable the system will be. By the time the GTA exclusivity runs up on the 360 you will actually be able to buy a ps3.
HDMI support is very important almost all HDTVs now sold have it. However, an HDMI cable itself can cost over 100 dollars so it'll be interesting to see if they actually include the cable itself or if that will tack the price up to a 700 for those wanting that feature.
People complaining about the controller being a rip off of Wii I don't even think a formal reply to this is needed. Its not a new idea. Being able to tilt a controller has been a feature on PC's flight sims for maybe 10 years now. I am not 100% sure but I believe the first PC game controller I saw to have this feature was a Microsoft one as well. Nintendo licensed what they have which is different btw, from another company. Nintendo did not invent the technology that is going into their controller. And I would like to add they did not invent stylus technology either. I was playing very creative games using touch on my palm os in the 90s.
As for long term success I do not have any proof but I would assume most logical people will agree that in the US demand for the ps3 is higher than for either 360 or Wii. And as for in Japan, Sony could launch the ps3 with zero games and an aborted fetus as the controller and it would outsell everything else. The new larger and blacker PS3 will not effect their judgement. They didn't purchase the Xbox for the same reasons people in Texas do not purchase Japanese pick up trucks. Also when the Blu-ray marketing starts to hit full steam people will care that Blu-ray is a part of this system. PS2 having Dvd was a big selling factor for its first sixth months or so.
A few years down the road I do not even pretend to know where each system will be comparatively but those responding to recent news as the death of the Playstation clearly need to step through their logic again. Those preaching Nintendo for their endless creative talent need to realize that Nintendo is a business. They have made the decisions they have made because they believe they can fill areas of the market that have demand not filled by competitors. When you lash out at somebody because they want a PSP or PS3 because of the suprior graphics or rehashed sports title, you are not supporting a friend or relative, you are just defending most likely a purchase decision you have made and getting way over-defensive. Like a beaten wife stumbling around infront of an officer explaining how your husband loves you. If you enjoy your Nintendo products excellent! I enjoy them too but jesus F*#K don't pretend Nintendo has some moral highground because they advertised implementing a controller that takes movement prior to Sony's decision to do so.
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I'm getting sick of hearing all these moans about prices for this stuff. I paid $570 for my last video card and now you're telling me for $30 more, I get a BR player too?
DIE PC Gaming! DIE!
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PS3: 325mm x 98mm x 274mm / 5kg
Xbox: 320mm x 101mm x 260mm / 3.84kg
Xbox 360: 309mm x 83mm x 258mm / 3.49kg
So, are we going to get all kinds of "PS3 HUGE!!" jokes now? Oh, and what about the idea that people were throwing around that the original Xbox was too large for Japanese homes?
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€599 = $759 !
now, that is fucked
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Don't get me wrong. Its not like SONY had any choice. Their main goal is to make Blu-Ray the standard DVD format for the next generation, and making the PS3 reliant on this technology is a sign of confidence. Owners of a PS3 will be more likely to buy Blu-Ray movies if they already have a Blu-Ray player. When customers are on the fence, they'll go with whatever requires the least investment. There is no similar impetus to buy an HD-DVD except the Xbox 360 Addon, which is of course optional.
So it would seem that the PS3 is an essential element to the success of Blu-Ray. But was the inclusion of Blu-Ray essential to the success of the PS3? Those unwilling to pay the hefty price for early players could use a PS3 instead, which could expose the console to a new gaming audience. The higher capacity discs allow for much more content to be squeezed onto a game disc, but only the most epic of games will have enough actual game content to fill a DVD9. The machine itself is going to be limited by RAM how much content will be used at any given time, so how useful really is limitless storage to developers? Unless they're using hours of FMV, I just don't see them needing the space. At best, it gives developers the opportunity not to be economical about what they choose to store on the game disc. I don't see how Blu-Ray was essential to the PS3 at all.
SONY is essentially asking their well-earned PS2 consumers to fork over the extra cash to support them in an entirely different arena. Instead of paying a more reasonable $300-$400 for two models, we'll have to pay a premium for the new nonstandard format that may not even succeed. We all know SONY has a record of failed attempts, but that doesn't necessarily mean Blu-Ray will fail. Still, if HD-DVD or another future format becomes standard instead, then SONY will never move enough Blu-Ray to pay off the initial development and they'll be stuck supporting and financing a dead format or forced to abandon an entire generation of games.
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chrono trigger came out at $75, while steep, didnt make it a bad game.
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It's the only game Sony had on display that uses the spatial control aspect of the controller. I get the feeling that not many developer even knew this functionality was going to be in the final result, but at least they had something to use to show it off.
It works pretty much like you'd expect, you rotate the controller to angle left and right, and pitch up and down. Other than that the controls are very basic, you just shoot with one button, switch between the two flight modes (a normal "plane" mode as well as a helicopter-like hover mode for when you're on the ground), change between a machine gun and missiles (I assume more weapons are obtained in the full game), and can also lock up to a few targets simultaneously with the missiles.
Flying the plane is quite intuitive, and is done entirely by moving the controller. It doesn't feel super precise, as if there's almost a brief lag time or something, which makes aiming and flying in constrained spaces difficult, but I suspect it might just need some tuning. The overall feel however is nice, it's fun to just fly around. Barrel rolls can be performed by holding down the R1 button and angling the controller either left or right.
Interestingly, I found myself frequently just letting go with my left hand, and holding the controller entirely with my right, since the left analog stick wasn't necessary and the left d-pad is only used for changing weapons (and all I had was machine guns and missiles, which can be used at the same time). It was significantly easier to make really sharp turns when only using one hand. Obviously it felt a bit awkward only holding it with my right, but the controller is noticeably lighter than the DualShock 2, likely because there are no rumble motors, which at least somewhat alleviated that.
Anyway, there you go, I'll have an "official" writeup later of this and some other games.
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What about BluRay movies?
I guess I can't buy a Japanese PS3 if I want to see things in English...
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Welcome! ... to the "Hey, I got quoted on CNN" club!
http://money.cnn.com/2006/05/08/technology/ps3_pricing/index.htm
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It's all going to come down to the games. And maybe to how long it takes Sony to lower the price.
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some observations and questions:
1., why is it impossible to build a console that is stackable? like normal DVD players, etc.? rounded surfaces suck.
2., the controller is connected via usb. you'll have to move the controller for certain games. accidentaly unplugging the cable from the controller would suck, yet they seem to use a standard usb port on the controller. i have the same port on my digicam and the damn cable comes off if you move the cam.
3., is it possible to connect the ps3 as a external bluray drive to a pc? or maybe use the ps3 a "file server" in a lan (there seems to be an ethernet port )?
thanks for your patience.
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Design - PS2 controller? lol, wow. Oh well, if it ain't broke, what's to fix? I don't think console makers realize that we WANT boxy music rack style boxes instead of this sleek crap. Oh well...
Games/movies - Will SOTC run on this thing? Could be an xbox -->xbox 360 improvement and that would be a good thing.
Hardware - Why even bother with a 60gb hard drive? Just have a base 20gb and a port to add 60gb more on to it. 40 more gigs, whoop de doo.
Overall, it's a playstation. it'll sell by the bucketloads. blu-ray added on will be a huge factor as to who wins the format war.
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"Pursuant to the introduction of this new six-axis sensing system, the vibration feature that is currently available on DUALSHOCK and DUALSHOCK 2 controllers for PlayStation and PlayStation 2, will be removed from the new PS3 controller as vibration itself interferes with information detected by the sensor."
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^^^ I love this. Because I'm mean.
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Doesn't that mean the PS3 controller will have a gyroscope in it like the Wii controllers do? So you can take the controller and swing it like a sword, etc?
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I'm a technical geek and a half.
I noticed running my PS2 through my switcher box that the quality was slightly lower than running a direct feed into my HD TV and re-wired the whole system to get optimum Component viewing...that's how anal I am about this.
Ask my about HDDVD and Blu-Ray DVD. No clue what the advantages are right now. Heck I have a pretty current TV and they didn't even have HDMI inputs for the optimum viewing.
Also, and I am sure a lot of you can also vouch for this...grab a normal "person of the street" and show them regular TV and HD TV. I shudder, but more than half don't see much of an improvement. Heck, too many times I have people look at a VCR tape compared to my DVD player an don't see that much of an improvement.
I guess Sony is just hoping there are enough of us cutting edge geeks to foot the bill for this thing.
Personally, I enjoy DVDs. SUre I would like better quality...but I won't be replacing my entire collection like I did with VCR->DVD. There are only a handful of movies I will upgrade to Blu-Ray.
It is going to be VERY INTERESTING how this round of game systems plays out.
It is a great time to be a gamer!
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I know some of you don't care (you are in the minority) - some games it makes a huge huge noticable difference - other games not so much.
Thing is - it's not something you realise is impressing you - it's just adding to your experience subtely.
I won't be getting one until the price drops (of course) and will be hesitant without the rumble.
I see taking it away very similar to going from 5.1 audio on the Xbox back to 2.0 - it's not massive but it's just silly to go backwards.
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Standard 20 gig PS3 has no HDMI port, no memorycard-port
60 gig PS3 has the stuff and the built-in much-touted wifi.
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In any case I can't wait for the Nintendo press conference.
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http://www.ps3scene.com/index.php
Much more interesting to read it that way - several things I didn't know because it's all price and controller bitching at the mo here :( (I'm to blame too)
Check out the link - good stuff
Will they have a combo of lights on of the four for them?
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http://www.shacknews.com/ja.zz?id=11692966
http://www.shacknews.com/ja.zz?id=11130733
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http://www.ukresistance.co.uk/2006/05/ps3-lie-watch-evidence-updated.html
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But to be honest, I will not be buying a PS3 at launch. For the first time , I will be waiting for a price break. Why? Let's be real... $600 for a console. I could care less if it plays Blu-Ray. Do you remember when the PS2 played DVDs? The quality sucked. I bought a $399 Sony DVD player and the PS2. Why? Because a stand alone DVD player was light years better than an integrated system.
Plus, I am now more excited on spending 1/3 or even 1/4 the money on the Wii than on this. Sony might have made a fatal flaw on this one. There is only so much people will spend on a game system. I think $400 was the breaking point.
Yes...it will sell well when it launches for the hard core crowd. But, like the X360 is going through right now, after those people buy it...the market dies until the price drops. I see stacks of x360s in the stores I go into now.
Good luck Sony...but you lost one sale until it gets down into a reasonable price range.
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