http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry3890.html
Here comes the PlayStation 4 to save the day
Jan 30th, 2009, 8:16 am
Sony does not seem to have had a very happy Xmas if the various
reports floating around the web are to be believed. Indeed, the third
quarter financials which includes the holiday season show that the
flagship PS3 console managed to sell some 440,000 units less than for
the same period in 2007. This at the same time that Microsoft is
claiming a bumper sales harvest for the competing Xbox 360 despite the
well recorded hardware problems. With the Xbox already being updated
to the new Jasper version to solve those red rings of death issues,
and rumours of the Xbox 720 doing the rounds, Sony could do with some
good news itself.
Unfortunately, no matter which way you spin it there is none. In fact
the PS2, the PS3 and the PSP all performed badly compared with sales
for the previous year. Even allowing for the economic woes we find
ourselves in, this is bad news when you consider that the gaming
industry seems to be doing pretty well overall. Certainly Microsoft
and Nintendo do not seem to have the same sales problems that Sony
face. Sales of the PSP dropped by 680,000 units and the PS2 (which is
still selling relatively strongly as a budget buy) dropped by 2.88
million units.
While most industry pundits are now asking if Sony can afford not to
slash the cost of a PS3 in the face of these figures, I wonder if
there is another solution: the PS4. There has already been much
speculation regarding possible release dates for the PS4, but now it
looks like we might actually get an idea of what such a beast will be
like after a leaked development document found its way online.
The original leaked document in Japanese can be found here while a
roughly translated version resides here.
Perhaps the biggest surprise, if this document is to be believed, is
that the PlayStation 4 will not be an all new machine, but rather will
build upon the existing CELL processor architecture with the Cell
Broadband Engine (Cell BE). This is actually good news, I reckon,
because it will keep costs down which is something Sony has not done
in the past. It would also enable games developers to hit the road
running, without the entire new development cycle and investment
required when everything changes. If this document is legit, Sony
might just have stumbled upon a strategy that can save the day.
Best of all, there's a date mentioned in the document for release
which kind of gels with previous rumours of 2011 so we might not have
that long to wait to find out.
Sony, of course, flat out denies everything.
http://www.alleyinsider.com/2009/1/rumor-sony-ps4-plans-leaked-and-it-...gets-ca
Rumor: Sony PS4 Plans Leaked, And It Targets Casual Gamers (SNE)
Eric Krangel | January 29, 2009 7:28 PM
flux_capacitor.jpgTake this one with a massive dose of skepticism,
folks: A site we're not familiar with called gamingfront.net claims to
have a leaked report from inside Sony (SNE) explaining the technical
specs and thinking behind the so-called PS4, successor console to the
PS3.
The report is riddled with broken English and reads like someone used
a service like Google Translate before posting it on the web with no
editing.
We called Sony about the supposed leak. Reps were familiar with the
report, and flatly denied there's any truth to it.
The takeaway:
* The PS4 will be based off existing PS3 tech, a departure from
what Sony did with both the PS3 and PS2, which started over from
scratch. That will save Sony in manufacturing costs and perhaps lower
the retail price. Compare that to the PS3, which cost a whopping $691
to build when it first hit market.
* Sony is described as internally acknowledging its "high
performance on the high initial investment" strategy has failed in
light of the success of Nintendo's Wii.
* Sony will also develop the PS4 with an eye towards making the
console easier to write games for, a huge complaint of game
publishers.
* Better performance, obviously.
Like we said, we don't necessarily believe this report, but we mention
it because it's already shooting around the Internet like lightning.
But when we think about we'd like to see in a PS4, the combo of low
price, raw power, casual player-friendly, and easy to develop for all
sound dead-on to us.
If anyone can provide any context on whether this makes any sense, or
if the untranslated bits (proper nouns?) mean anything, comment below
or email ekrangel DeleteThis @alleyinsider.com.
http://www.ps3center.net/news/2250/first-details-of-ps4-emerge/
First details of PS4 emerge
Posted on January 29, 2009 by Nick
We all knew it was coming. It was inevitable. Sony started work on
the PS3 almost immediately after the launch of the PS2. And now the
first details of the PS3's heir have hit the net, at least according
to a Japanese tech site.
It seems Sony is still planning on using the Cell processor. Though
the Cell has been a source of ire for many developers, the fact that
the PlayStation 4 will continue to use it gives them an added reason
to continue to try to figure out the answer to the console's
metaphorical DiVinci code. The document states that Sony will
continue to invest in the Cell, making it more powerful, but also
streamlining the architecture a bit as well. The number of SPUs will
also be cut down in the PS4 as well. This could also be in an effort
to make it less difficult to program for.
http://i40.tinypic.com/bdu06c.gif
http://www.tawkn.com/?page=site-newspost&news_id=1283
From the pics and info above, it appears that Sony is currently
working on a 32nm chip that will most likely be featured in the PS4,
however, if developed early could these chips possible make an
appearance in future PS3 and lead the way for a price cut as well as
even cooler systems? We shall see. Since Sony is deciding to stick
with the cell technology, developers should be much more comfortable
with the hardware which means better games and easier development from
the get-go.
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