With the high price ticket that’s attached to the Sony PS3, it’s hard to imagine that Sony is actually selling the game system at a loss. But, the company has already accumulated losses of over 3 billion dollars due to their strategic pricing.
The idea is that you sell the game system below manufacturing cost and re-coop the investment through games and long term sales. A marketing strategy that has backfired on the major electronics company with record low sales!
While many consumers had to wait for the price of the PS2 to decrease before purchasing one, the higher priced PS3 is totally beyond their budgets. And, competition from the Xbox and WII’s are giving Sony a run for their investment.
Both the Xbox and WII’s have proven to be very popular with consumers. And, both are cheaper to manufacturer than the PS3, resulting in higher profits for both companies.
With the losses incurred during the release of the PS3, even if the game system picks up speed now, it will still take years to see a large profit. Sony has stated that it will be another ten years before they release another next-gen system.
So, how does Sony plan to generate quicker profits from the PS3? They are going to make extra features available for the game system and at least one should be available sometime later this summer.
One feature will be called Life with PlayStation. The service will feature a spinning globe menu that users can spin and pick a location to check the weather and read current news events from around the globe.
It’s been reported that the globe will also allow the user to view satellite images of weather and cloud patterns. A feature to store movies and photos is suppose to be included in Life with Playstation, although exact details haven’t been released yet.
Launching a PS3 movie download service is the second plan Sony has to re-coop some of it’s investment. The service scheduled for a summer release will be in competition with both the Xbox Video Marketplace and Apple’s iTunes Store.
Sony hasn’t released much information on the services it plans to add to the PS3 as of yet. But, an official statement, more information and a proposed release date is expected to be made public at the big E3 trade show in July.
For now not even rumors of agreements with any of the major movie studios have surfaced. Of course, it’s almost a sure bet that the company will use their own Sony Pictures to provide the majority of the movies made available for download.
Sony’s movie service is also expected to be made available for other devices such as mobile phones, computers, portable video players and Bravia LCD televisions. And, the consumer might even be given the option of moving the content between different electronic devices.
Sony along with other gaming console manufacturers have talked for quite sometime about turning their advanced systems into entertainment hubs. The release of PS3 movie downloads is just the beginning of the game consoles evolution into something more than just a gaming system.
Many PS3 owners use their console to watch DVDs, which is why a movie download service may work. But, not many people are going to run to the PS3 to check the weather and not many people will even need, or want to know the weather on the other side of the world.
However, it’s quite possible that these won’t be the last of the features that we see added to the PS3. After all, an entertainment hub is more than just movies and weather, Sony could probably do very well in adding music to the PS3 lineup.
PlayStation and Xbox fans should know by now that Nintendo Wii is beating them in record numbers in terms of sales. Years ago, when PlayStation and Xbox were kings of gaming industry, we have to content ourselves by using gamepads to play. I mean, if we want to actually play a game of tennis or bowling, we would actually want to go outside right? With buttons, I can be as ruthless as I want without even batting my actual eyelids.
But now, things have changed. People wanted to actually place themselves in video games. Instead of buttons, why don’t our arms move and our characters mimic our movements? The idea seemed crazy for serious gamers but for a casual gamer who just want to have some fun, its magic. Even though there are lots of serious gamers there who might stick to games that require skills, millions are looking at games that can actually be fun instead of spending hours figuring out how to increase their characters’ HP level. So Wii took over the gaming world by storm with their cute characters and family fun gaming. PS and Xbox will just have to watch their sales go down.
Gamers who would like to have a piece of action could buy Wii for themselves. However, Wii will cost you. Besides, we have to admit, some of the games are not as attractive as in PS or Xbox in terms of extreme actions. As much as we shun it in real life we’d like to kick the butt of our enemies even if it’s only in online gaming. Wii doesn’t have enough games that will make us think and stick it out with our characters for many hours a day. If you’re ready to trade your PS or Xbox 360 to slug it out and forget the great games your soon-to-be-former-console has to offer, you go ahead. ‘Cause I know I won’t.
Why? Cause there’s a gadget called BodyPad. This product is not from the official PlayStation and Xbox creators but its one great addition to your present console.
BodyPad was created in Europe by some independent developers. After years of research and development, they were able to figure out how to coordinate your body movements to the actual movements of your characters.
All you need to do is to attach straps in your body: one in each hands, another in your arm, another in your stomach and both legs. These things are on remote but it will never have any lag as the receiver packs in a massive 2.4Ghz of transmission. If you’re just standing near to it, there won’t be any problem.
The games are only limited with supported game titles, but the title list is really impressive. You can play Dragon Ball Z, a couple of Tekkens, Battle Arena, Street and Virtua Fighters, Knockout Kings and a whole lot of dance revolution. Now let’s see how Son Gouku actually feels like to do a kame hame wave…
The price? For 79Euros (around $130) you can actually have two of these control systems. Compared to a whole new set of Wii, this price is already a catch. Now your game nights will never be the same again.
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The portable PlayStation has released its newest “remodeling” of its own. With serious competitor Nintendo DS and DS Lite rocking the country and the world of handheld gaming, Sony has to pull more sleeves to the PSP on the road faster than DS. It has come up with the remodeled PSP, available in September, 2007. There are external changes and add-ons that you might like. Under the hood, it has also changed quite a lot of things that you will find amusing and even beneficial in enhancing your handheld gaming experience.
Let’s start with what you’ll see and feel. The thickness of the portable player has been reduced as PSP claims up to 19%. While they were at it, we think they should have gone for 20-25% or else it will not be noticeable. For first time owners of PSP, they wouldn’t even notice this change. With 19%, it wouldn’t even create a sensational buzz among the PSP followers if this was the only good thing about the new PSP. It’s only noticeable for those who already have, or have tried PSP for a long time to notice the difference. If it may add up to the sleekness of the PSP, it could be from between zero to at least 1 in the gauge of ten.
Another physical change on the PSP is its weight. It’s not that PSP is rock heavy, but Sony has made some minor changes in its hardware components. It’s now 33% (why all the odd numbers) lighter than its predecessor. Now this is something noticeable although if you take a look at it online, you wouldn’t even see the difference if they’re placed face down. You have to hold it to believe it. Since the PSP is already quite light, thank you very much, it wouldn’t really upgrade its desirability level to its peak. But we appreciate the changes.
The best changes in PSP so far are the added things that you can do to it. Instead of sticking your eyes closely to the monitor of the PSP, why not make it bigger this time? The new PSP can now be plugged into your television. Your portable player will not be so portable anymore but from the fact that it can be played on wider screen at 480p, but this change is a total thumbs up for the PSP. We recommend you watch movies in this thing but not in playing games. When you use your TV for games, the letters are quite big, and you’ll think you’re watching a text only channel.
Aside from the TV-out option, the RAM of PSP has been doubled. That means the loading time of games in your PSP will be faster. It’s not that the present generation of games will lag the PSP; this is just a preparation of something bigger that will come.
With all the changes of the PSP, the price fortunately didn’t change a bit. For the “classic” color of PSP, it’s still going to be near $170. If you want something artistic, the company has also come up with a Star Wars edition at $200 a piece.
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The long awaited PlayStation 3 is finally here and by now, you can actually go down to your local store and find one on the shelf. Since the PlayStation 3 is finally available to the majority of the public, you need to know which PlayStation 3 accessories you must have.
More Controllers – The PlayStation upgraded its multiplayer capability and now supports up to seven controllers. Most games still only support around 4 but with more and more games coming along with multiplayer support, you’re going to need a controller for all your friends. Another great feature of the PlayStation 3 is the introduction of wireless controllers. With 7 people playing your favorite games, you’re going to need the wireless ability so you’re not all huddled around the video game unit. A Sony brand PS3 controller will run you about $50 or there are non-Sony brands selling them for around $40.
Router – Sony will finally be including some online game play features similar to what XBOX has been doing for awhile. The one advantage XBOX has had over Sony is online gaming capability with XBOX Live, but Sony will now be competing with their own online game play. In addition to online game play, you can also download demos and use the built in browser to navigate the web right from your television. Perhaps the best feature of their new online set up is that they have pledged to keep at least basic online gaming free. In order to connect, you’re going to need a router. Your best option is to go wireless although it will run you a few extra bucks.
HDMI Cable – You bought that expensive PlayStation 3 for a reason! Probably because it has high definition gaming and a Blu-ray player to play high definition movies. Well unfortunately for you, the PlayStation 3 only comes with composite audio and video cables which don’t deliver high definition resolutions. HDMI is known to be the best quality high definition cable so an HDMI cable is definitely worth the investment. You can go all out and buy a big brand name cable for upwards of $100 bucks or you’ll probably be fine by checking out your local department store’s electronics department and picking on up for around $40.
PlayStation 3 Blu-ray DVD Remote – The PlayStation 3 was meant to be used for more than just gaming. The addition of a Blu-ray DVD player was a huge selling point for a lot of people. Yes, you can use your controller to fumble through the DVD menus but if you plan on watching a lot of movies on your PlayStation 3, you’ll want to invest in a DVD remote. The remote is much simpler to use for all people.
PS2 Memory Card Adapter – If you are a diehard PlayStation junkie, you probably have a mound of games saved on your PS2 card that you aren’t quite done with. The PlayStation 3 has a built-in hard drive so there was no reason to put a memory card slot in. With the PS2 memory card adapter you can hook it up to the USB port and put all your old PS2 games, which you can oh-so conveniently play on your new PlayStaiton, right on the built in hard drive of the PlayStation 3. You don’t have to worry about losing those hours upon hours of hard work just because you upgraded to the new system.
These cool accessories will keep you and your PlayStation 3 happy for quite some time. Don’t forget to pick up a few games as well.
It appears that Nintendo may have even doubted itself and the Wii against the much anticipated Sony Playstation 3 and Microsoft’s XBOX 360. Many believed that Nintendo’s more simple gaming system didn’t stand a chance against Sony and Microsoft’s newest high end gaming machines. Nintendo’s President, Satoru Iwata, admitted that the shortage of the Wii console was “abnormal” and promised to increase production of the Wii which would increase deliveries in the upcoming months.
Many predicted a short lifespan for the Wii console due to its tough competition. Sony Playstation 3 and Microsoft XBOX 360 both offer state of the art graphics, high definition gaming and an option to play high definition movies. Although the price tag for these two systems is record breaking for the gaming world, they have had no problems selling their own systems. Out of the three gaming manufacturers, the biggest surprise has come in the popularity of the Nintendo Wii. Although it doesn’t offer some of the high end features of its competition, it offers a new style of gaming that gets users off the couch and more involved. The gaming control has changed form a paddle to a want which can be used for different purposes depending on the game. The wand is motion sensitive so you can swing it like a golf club, tennis racket, sword or other object to control your player on the screen.
Nintendo has definitely enjoyed this new found popularity as its sales have nearly doubled due to the demand for Wii and DS portable, their handheld gaming machine. Nintendo’s net profit boosted $1.74 billion. Nintendo Wii encountered some early problems with their controls because the motion sensitive wand would often fly out of the gamers hand resulting is some damaged walls and TV’s. Nintendo quickly resolved the problem and has not felt any effects of this slight road bump. The Wii has outsold Sony Playstation 3 which encountered some of its own, more serious production issues. Part of Nintendo’s Wii success is its aggressive pricing, making it a much cheaper option than its competition. The Nintendo Wii starts low at $250 while the XBOX 360 starts at $399 and the PlayStation 3 tops the list at $599. Both the XBOX 360 and PlayStation 3 offer two different customizations of their systems, hard drive size being the biggest difference. The Wii’s low pricing makes it an attractive option for those non-hardcore gamers that are looking for more traditional graphics and a new approach to video game consoles. Nintendo also has a strong following from its many years of video game production.
Nintendo seems to know what the video game world wants. In addition to the Wii production, Nintendo currently produces 2.5 million DS portable game machines every month. They have sold more than 40 million since it was introduced in 2004. The DS gaming machine has its own unique style like the Wii featuring a touch panel and easy to play games for users of all ages.
Sony and Microsoft - These two major gaming console giants have long been battling against each other for supremacy and their present arena is between the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360, upgraded versions of their original predecessors. Even before their release, a lot of marketing strategies is involved in hyping up the best of what these consoles have to offer. What it will boil down to, in the long run, is will the games for both consoles be better developed and have a better playing experience now that they have the best platforms (at this time) to execute with? Here is a point-by-point comparison of the two consoles’ current specifications.
Processor – PS3’s 3.2Ghz Cell vs. Xbox 360’s 3.2Ghz G5
The processor is the core hardware for both systems. It determines how much power the console has to process complex calculations in less time which is altogether very important considering you’re dealing with complicated 3D graphics for both systems. That said, theoretically, the PS3 can do more since it has 7 synergistic processing units, while Xbox 360 has 3 even though they’re both clocked at 3.2 Ghz. However, since the PS3 is more complicated to program games for, Xbox 360 will have more games in its initial line-up compared to PS3.
Also, relevant to processing speed is the floating point performance measurement of teraflops. The PS3 has 2.18 tfps and Xbox 360 has 1. Again, these values translate to world realism and the physics side of the game. Its effect will be seen on how real the background is in terms of natural movement, like with trees and rain and wind. It also functions with large yet independent movement of groups as seen in massive armies, and gives added realism to explosions and basic destruction.
It all really depends on how game developers will exploit the powers of these two consoles and how fast they can churn the games for the eagerly-awaiting gamers market.
Memory – PS3’s 256MB XDR @ 3.2GHz vs. Xbox 360’s 512MB GDDR3 @ 700MHz
What all this means is that the bigger memory you have, combined with a fast processor, the faster you can process and display complex graphics, which affects the overall framerate speed of your game. In this case, the PS3 has half of the installed memory of the Xbox 360 but can process data faster. It’s like trying to swallow a large chunk of data and your processor determines how fast you can chew it. Which will be faster – a small chunk chewed at 3.2Ghz or a big chunk chewed at 700 Mhz?
Graphics/GPU – PS3’s 500Mhz NVIDIA vs. Xbox 360’s 500Mhz ATI
The impressive graphics displays of both PS2 and the Xbox have already shown just how powerful these consoles are. Just how much can they outdo themselves in this department lies in the hands of two equally powerful yet totally different graphics processors. Sony, however, is packing for the future as it incorporates High-Definition output for the PS3 which means you’ll be able to enjoy better graphics display, not just for the games but for other uses as well, if you also have High Definition TV (HDTV).
Storage – PS3’s 60 Gb HDD vs. Xbox 360’s 20 Gb HDD
These two console giants are really packing it in with whopping 60 and 20 Gigabytes of removable/detachable storage for the PS3 and the Xbox 360, respectively! And if that’s not enough, there are memory cards for both, memory sticks for Sony and additional memory coming from USB ports – 6 for the PS3 and 3 for Xbox 360. This is more than what the average user will ever need.
Media Type – PS3’s BLUray Discs vs. Xbox 360’s DVD-9
Most game discs nowadays are stored on DVD-9’s much like those of the Xbox 360. What Sony has got going for them is that they’re also the manufacturer of BLUray which is a high-definition storage disk capable of holding 54 Gigagbytes of data. This type of storage can be a potential necessity in the future.
Controllers – PS3’s up to 7 vs. Xbox 360’s up to 4
The form and figure of the controllers are basically the same for the Xbox 360 except for minor modifications in the color scheme. The PS3’s controller looks somewhat like a stealth plane with a more streamlined figure compared to its predecessor. It all depends on you where you’ll feel more comfortable. It is astounding and surprising as well that Sony has included as much as 7 potential physical connections, using Bluetooth, for its PS3, while Microsoft has up to 4.
Sound – both sporting 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound
Online potential – Both consoles feature Ethernet and Wi-Fi capabilities. They come in handy when playing online, or for non-gaming activities like downloading music and videos. Microsoft has an edge because it already has an online network in place.
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