PlayStation 4

Sony (SNE) has offered backwards compatibility with the PlayStation 2 and select models of the PlayStation 3, however it was rumored that older games would not be supported on the PlayStation 4 due to the move to an AMD chipset. But according to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the company isn’t prepared to leave the classics behind with the release of its new gaming console. Sony will reportedly use technology that it acquired from cloud gaming firm Gaikai last July that can stream older games to the PlayStation 4. It is unclear how the company will charge for streamed games but it may be the case that users will be forced to purchase online versions of games they physically own. More →

An image published by Destructoid on Thursday supposedly revealed a prototype of the controller for Sony’s (SNE) upcoming PlayStation 4 gaming console. The device pictured looks like a traditional PlayStation controller with a directional pad, two analog sticks and four buttons, but it also includes a small touchpad and a blue light that resembles Sony’s PlayStation Move motion device. The controller was said to be one of the prototypes that Sony tested for its next-generation console. The story was later confirmed by sources speaking to Kotaku who said “the photo is the real deal,” but it “may not represent the final form of the controller.” More →

Sony (SNE) is scheduled to announce its next-generation PlayStation 4 console at a press conference in New York City on February 20th. Recent rumors have pegged the system as a gaming powerhouse with 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and 1080p HD resolution in 3D at 60 fps, however this may not be what the company is aiming for. According to a report from the Nikkei, Sony hopes the Playstation 4 will act more as a home entertainment “nerve center” than a dedicated gaming system. An unnamed company executive reportedly said that the console’s main selling point won’t be its high-end specs, but rather the new styles of play it will introduce and its ability to connect and share to mobile devices. The PlayStation 4 is rumored to launch in October and could cost more than $400.

Sony’s (SNE) next-generation PlayStation 4 console is set to be unveiled during a press conference on February 20th and while pricing details are not expected at the event, a new report claims to shed light on the upcoming console’s cost. According to the Japanese paper The Asahi Shimbun, Sony’s new console may cost more than 40,000 yen, or $426 USD, when it launches ahead of the holidays this year. Pricing may vary by region, and an earlier report suggested that the next-generation Sony console will cost between $350 and $400. The PlayStation 3 was priced at $599 when it launched seven years ago in 2006.

The long, painful wait will soon be over. Sony (SNE) on Thursday evening circulated invitations to the press and bloggers for a press conference in New York City on February 20th. The company did not reveal any details, but it did confirm that we will “see the future” of PlayStation in a teaser video released alongside the invitations. Needless to say, we’re all expecting the company to unveil its next-generation PlayStation 4 video game console during the event, and multiple unnamed sources have reportedly confirmed as much to The Wall Street Journal. Recent rumors suggest the new PlayStation may launch in October with 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage and 1080p HD resolution in 3D at 60 fps. BGR will be on hand covering the event live but in the meantime, Sony’s teaser video follows below. More →

A Sony (SNE) executive may have revealed the company’s upcoming plan to announce its highly anticipated PlayStation 4 console. Hiroshi Sakamoto, deputy senior general manager of Home Entertainment at Sony, said in an interview with Chilean news website Emol that the company could announce its next-generation gaming console in May. It had previously been speculated that both Sony and Microsoft (MSFT) would unveil their latest consoles at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June. An earlier announcement would allow the PlayStation 4 to receive more press, however, rather than competing with the Xbox 720. Sakamoto said that an “announcement may be in [E3] or even earlier in May,” adding “in that time we expect to deliver great news, but we must wait until May at least.“

I love all game consoles equally. My Xbox 360 is used equally as much as my PlayStation 3. The Wii — oh, I’ll just leave it at that. The current generation of consoles is all but over — 10-year life cycle be damned — and new consoles are rumored to be coming next fall. If not next fall, then in 2014. Whatever is the case, Sony (SNE) can’t afford to lag in third place again. Sure, the Xbox 360 and PS3 are neck-in-neck in global lifetime sales, and the Xbox 360 did have a one year head start, but coming off the disappointing PS Vita, “confidence is less high” that Sony will deliver a console next year in time to compete with Microsoft (MSFT), according to Kotaku.

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While Nintendo (NTDOY) has been busy innovating with unique controllers on the Wii and Wii U, Sony’s (SNE) DualShock controller for its PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3 has remained virtually the same since 1997. A newly discovered patent reveals Sony might be planning on a radical overhaul of the DualShock for the PlayStation 4 that’s rumored to arrive next year. U.S. patent 20120302347A1 details a “hybrid separable motion controller” that resembles a DualShock controller with two PlayStation Move sensor balls attached to it. Much like how the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controller combo separated the left and right hand input, the Sony controller patent goes one step further by allowing the two halves to be split and combined at any time – all without reducing the amount of buttons available.
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With gamers getting antsy for next-generation consoles, VG247 is reporting that development kits for Sony’s (SNE) PlayStation 4 (code-named “Orbis”) have already been sent out to developers. VG247′s sources claim there are four versions of the dev kit and the one just shipped out is a “modified PC” based on AMD’s (AMD) A10 APU (Accelerated Processing Unit) that combines a CPU and GPU on a single chip to run games in 1080p resolution at 60 frames per second in 3D without any slowdown. Dev kits are said to have between 8GB and 16GB of RAM, 256GB of storage (it’s not clear if that’s SSD or a hard drive), an optical drive for Blu-ray playback and all the standard inputs/outputs found on the PlayStation 3 including HDMI, Ethernet and Wi-Fi. More →