The system will be released in November...and the price will be around $400
Here are some facts:
When will PS3 come out?
November 2006 Worldwide. This was confirmed at the PlayStation Business Briefing 2006, where a lot of information was finally revealed. A Spring 2006 launch was the original plan from E3 last year, but problems with finalising Blu-ray copyright protection specifications delayed the launch.
What features will it have?
The PS3's specification has remained unchanged since E3 2005, although we have not seen any playable games as yet. We have put up the full list of technical specifications so you can see a detailed list of everything.
How much will it cost?
This generation of consoles is expected to be the most expensive in history. The Xbox 360 hit the $400 mark when it launched last year. With all the new technology in the PlayStation 3, you should expect it to cost at least $400. And with a 60GB hard drive confirmed to ship with every console, this is a more than believable price.
Will PS3 play PS2 and PS1 games?
Ken Kutaragi has confirmed 100% backwards compatibility with PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games. The PS3 will upscale legacy games into high definition, much like the Xbox 360 does with original Xbox games.
What will PS3 look like?
The PS3 design was unveiled at Sony’s E3 conference. It has an “outward feel” compared to the Xbox 360’s “inward feel”. The console is approximately 13.5 inches in length and 3.5 inches wide as reported by IGN. This in contrast to the PS2 design is much larger and is closer in size to the original Xbox in size. The console’s “outward” design gives it a larger footprint for the console to stand vertically on its own without an add-on stand. The drive bay sits on the right side like the PS2 but instead of using a tray the discs slide into the drive much like a car CD player. Also the drive sits slightly back in the design giving the console a reminiscent look to the original Nintendo Entertainment System. Finally, the console has the words “PlayStation 3” across the side in a font that is very close to the font used in Sony Pictures’ Spiderman movie.
How powerful will the PS3 be?
On paper, the PS3 is 2x more powerful than the Xbox 360 and 15x more powerful than the Nintendo Revolution is predicted to be. It has a processing capacity of 2.18 TFLOPS, which is put into context when you realise that some of the fastest computers in existence can only do 36 Terraflops. It is said to be 35x more powerful than the PlayStation 2 is. Unfortunately, we have not seen any playable games, and so it's difficult to judge on anything other than the official specifications. Hopefully E3 2006 will give us a better idea of what to expect.
Will PS3 games be playable online?
PS3 games will be playable online, and the "basic" service will be free. This may be a similar system to Xbox 360's Silver and Gold services, but Kutaragi did suggest the basic service would allow games to be played online. Extra online services will include the ability to download games to the 60GB hard drive.
Is the hard drive required?
Yes, the 60GB hard drive, that will ship with each PlayStation 3, will be required. Sony has been telling developers to assume the presence of the hard drive.
