PS3 info

[TWINKIE']

PS3 to ship without HDD?

SCE's chief technical officer says company still pondering whether to ship its next-gen console with a detachable hard drive; 2006 launch still on track.
In an interview published in the latest issue of Famitsu, Sony Computer Entertainment corporate executive and chief technical officer Masayuki Chatanai revealed his company is undecided on whether the PlayStation 3 with ship with a compact 2.5-inch hard drive. He said that Sony adopted a removable hard drive format for the PS3 for the convenience of users, as it will allow them to snap it on other PlayStation 3s if they want to share media files, just as Xbox 360 owners will be able to. However, while Microsoft's console will come standard with a 20GB "outrigger" hard drive, meaning developers will be able to incorporate it into their game designs, it's unclear if Sony's console will have the same functionality.


When asked if the there was a possibility the design of the prototype PS3 controller--already derisively being called the "batarang"--might be changed before launch, Chatani replied that there may be some "minor changes." However, he said that its form factor will probably stay the same.

As Sony revealed during its presentation at E3, the PlayStation 3 can be played with up to seven wireless controllers, an odd number for game consoles, which usually favor enough ports for evenly matched teams. Chatani revealed that seven controllers were the maximum number of Bluetooth wireless connections the PS3 could handle. He said additional controllers could be added by plugging them into the PS3's USB slots.

The PS3 comes with six USB slots, three times more than the PS2. The machine also comes with a Memory Stick slot, a compact flash slot, and an SD card slot for additional external media. However, the PS3 does not have a Memory Card slot, despite its backward compatibility with the PS2, raising the question of how players will transfer game saves.

As SCE president Ken Kutaragi said in a recent interview, Chatani said he expects the PS3 to be an "entertainment machine," though he emphasized, "make no mistake--games will be the killer app for the PlayStation 3." Chatani said that he also plans to give the console powerful Internet-based communication functions to encourage owners to use it daily.

Chatani commented that the PS3 is still at a prototype stage and has room for improvement in graphics and physics. Nvidia CFO Marv Burkett also revealed last week that the RSX graphics chip for the PS3 is also still under development and has yet to be finalized. The tech demos running at E3 last month were shown using current-generation PC technology with similar capabilities to the RSX, which is rumored to be a combination of a GeForce 6800 Ultra SLI GPU and/or a next-gen desktop graphics chip from Nvidia, which codesigned the RSX.

Chatani also said the PlayStation 3 will follow a similar release schedule as the PSP, hinting it may be playable at the Tokyo Game Show this fall. Sony showed trailers of PSP gameplay at E3 in May 2004, and then it presented the machine in playable form at TGS the following September, before its release on December 12. He confirmed that Sony is still aiming for a spring 2006 US launch for the PS3, with a possible simultaneous launch in Japan. The console would debut just under six years after the October 2000 US launch of the PlayStation 2 (March 2000 in Japan) and 11 years after the original PlayStation hit the North American continent in 1995 (December 1994 in Japan).

By Staff -- GameSpot

[[SS]Rator]

So, will it have a built in HDD in place of the detachable one?

[TWINKIE']

i dont think they even know yet ........''Sony Computer Entertainment corporate executive and chief technical officer Masayuki Chatanai revealed his company is undecided on whether the PlayStation 3 with ship with a compact 2.5-inch hard drive. He said that Sony adopted a removable hard drive format for the PS3 for the convenience of users, as it will allow them to snap it on other PlayStation 3s if they want to share media files"

Can't they use memory cards that will hold enough space to use insteasd of a hard drive? There are cards theat you can put in your camera that are 512mb and I think they go bigger.

[TWINKIE']

i have a 512mb card for my psp and i know i could upgrade to a 1gig if i wanted to just didnt wanna pay 130 bucks for it at the time

[AGROS]

all i know is if i pay $300(cause i am not paying more than that) for a consel then i hope to get all the goodies with it. I know sony will do something with it, even if an internal memory. Well i hope thats what happens and i hope they have learnt their lesson form the PS2's HD.

[Ostler]

I heard they are still having trouble with the piracy protection and if you burn the games they may be able to work

I don't mind paying what ever it costs, although I'm not going to buy it until there is something I want to play on it. I like the idea of being able to select if my money used on the initial purchase is going to be used towards features i may not use. If the system comes with a hard drive that price increase will be rolled down to us as the consumer. If I'm not going to use a hard drive then there's no need to pay for it.

Originally posted by TWINKIE'
[b]

However, the PS3 does not have a Memory Card slot, despite its backward compatibility with the PS2, raising the question of how players will transfer game saves. B]

Someone will put out an adapter that will allow us to plug in PS1 and PS2 memorycards, if there isn't already.

[Ostler]

I wonder if there isnt an adpater for the memory cards that maybe there will be a way to transfer frm ps2 HD to the Ps3 one. Maybe through Firewire or fiber optics?

[LuNcH]

HELLO..Well i know they have mention very briefly that there will be a new feature coming out similer to xbox live,i think i read something on it here recently on the playstation web site,if i come across it i will post it up here for you guys to read..Anyways so im sure that they will have something either via the inter net or through a line link maybe between the ps2 and ps3..

[TWINKIE']

on the ps1 you were able to buy a dax drive for your pc. This made it able to back up your saves on your computer all you did was plug in your memory card into it and it would transfer saves to your hard drive maybe you could use this then to transfer the save to the new Memory Stick, compact flash card, or the SD card the memory stick might be the same one they use in the psp the sony pro duo stick this would be so if you had the psp version and the ps3 version of the game you could save on both systems and not miss a beat. sony has said this would be a possibility if this does happen i'll be cool i have the 512 pro duo stick already

Like I said, "An adapter."

I thought it was called a Dex drive.

[TWINKIE']

dex dax same shiznit

[[SS]ProXimo]

I think Sony is looking at makin the HDD an option because of cost. The cool thing is that the PS3 comes built in with a HDD slot that you can just slide one in. Many people will not be interested in spending more for an option they don't believe they will use.

This makes the pricing more flexible. The PS3 Hardware is very powerful and gamers need to understand that it's very unlikely that Sony can sell it for $300. It has very powerful components that make it the ultimate gaming machine.

The RSX GPU alone will cost a PC user more than $1,000 to match it's capabilities.

Let's wait and see what happens, but I don't think it's all that bad of a move. Make the system more affordable and buy the HDD if you think your going to use it. Many gamers are not Hard Core and will be happy without an HDD.