Sony PlayStation 3 Revealed

Sony has unveiled its new PlayStation 3 console, calling it ‘a supercomputer for computer entertainment’. The PS3 is powered by NVIDIA’s new RSX ‘Reality Synthesizer’ graphics chip providing ‘movie quality’ real-time gaming, and a powerful new ‘Cell’ processor, which Sony claims is 35 times faster than the chip inside the current PlayStation – and twice as fast as the one inside Microsoft’s Xbox 360 next-gen console.

BBC – The PS3 will use the Blu-ray disc format, which can hold 50 gigabytes of information – the equivalent of six DVDs. It will also have a small removable hard drive, though Sony did not say whether it would come as standard. The PlayStation will come ready to be hooked to the internet, either via a built-in Ethernet port or via wi-fi.

CNet – According to the company, the new console will have wireless controllers, a detachable 2.5-inch hard drive, slots for compact flash and Sony’s memory stick media and a built-in Wi-Fi connection that can connect to the Playstation Portable. The system will include USB 2.0 and gigabit Ethernet connections, and will support games made for previous generations of PlayStation systems, executives said. It will include support for up to seven controllers at once, providing much-expanded possibilities for multiplayer games. The core processor will run at 3.2GHz, rather than the previously reported 4GHz.

Reuters – "Sony’s console looked like a next-generation game machine and in comparison to the graphics of the PS3, Microsoft’s looked like Xbox 1.5," said Takashi Oya, analyst at Deutsche Bank. But speed in games is often as much a function of the way the games are written as it is the capacity of the hardware, and Sony’s drive to leapfrog the Xbox 360 technology comes as the Japanese electronics giant concedes what could be a valuable several-month head start to Microsoft.

DailyGame – Having now been to both Microsoft’s and Sony’s press conferences, we can say that of the two systems, the PS3 impresses us the most. We have yet to see the Nintendo Revolution, and we have yet to actually play games on any of the systems, but judging from the early information and the titles we’ve seen on video, Sony is most certainly not taking the next generation of consoles lying down.

Sony’s PS3 will be available in black, white or silver and is due to go on sale in spring 2006.