PS3 General Discussion

[Jedi2016]

Yeah, I know. But, this is all NEW info. Not the ML BS stuff. This has yet another Sony spokesman, the second BTW, to say there "MAY BE" delays with the system. One, can be seen as BS, but now two have come out to say it? Uh-uh, it can't be BS this time. Plus, Kyodo news broke this story, and they are very reliable.

Hm. I don't think that's how the timing works out.. I think that particular quote was made after the ML report, but before the AACS was finalized. Like, earlier-that-day "before".

The end result is the same. The ONLY thing they were ever "waiting" on was the finalization of the Blu-Ray software like AACS. And that's DONE. Over. The End. Ready for production.

There will be no "delays".

 

[Solid Lifters]

Hm. I don't think that's how the timing works out.. I think that particular quote was made after the ML report, but before the AACS was finalized. Like, earlier-that-day "before".

The end result is the same. The ONLY thing they were ever "waiting" on was the finalization of the Blu-Ray software like AACS. And that's DONE. Over. The End. Ready for production.

There will be no "delays".

Actually, it was never said what they were/are waiting for, but I surmised it was AACS. It most likely was, but Sony isn't saying.

I think they could be waiting for something else, or they would have started production, already. Like the man in the interview said, now's a bit too late to start taking orders if Sony was expecting to make their launch date.

With the interviewed Sony spokesman saying there might be a delay, again, the second one to say so, there must be something Sony is still waiting for. Like you said, the AACS was finalized a week ago, and now this spokesman is saying there could be delays of some kind.

I wish we got a hint to whatever the hell he was referring to.

 

[Jedi2016]

Do you have links to the two separate articles? Because I only remember the one. Sony did respond twice to the ML report, but only in the first response did they mention the possibility of a delay. And in both reports, they reaffirmed that they were still on-track for a Spring release. Whatever delay they were thinking of was clearly a small one, that wouldn't even push it beyond Spring.

And chances are, they have started production. Cell chips and RSXs and Blu-Ray drives are probably being spit out of some factory somewhere even as we speak.

 

[Tenacious D]

Well, the Blu-Ray drives themselves may not be pouring off an assembly line, but roms which read the encoding probably are. One thing I was wondering about is if Sony had second thoughts about Blu-Ray disc region encoding, and if this is the holdup, or part of it. I'm hopeful that Sony went through with the decision to make at least the U.S. and Orient one region for Blu-Ray media coding. So far I haven't heard any different on that, so let's hope.

Also hopefully, my guessed at release schedule is the latest the PS3 will appear around the world. It looks like the holdup involves just a few minor details, since it looks like all the parts are ready to put together, or close to it. I'm getting hungry for true high definition graphics with a GT logo on screen.

Except.... if Sony is doing some fake foot dragging to have some exceptional third party games available at launch, might that be it? A PS3 with nothing worthwhile to play on it won't be a big seller... hrm...

 

[tha_con]

Well, the Blu-Ray drives themselves may not be pouring off an assembly line, but roms which read the encoding probably are. One thing I was wondering about is if Sony had second thoughts about Blu-Ray disc region encoding, and if this is the holdup, or part of it. I'm hopeful that Sony went through with the decision to make at least the U.S. and Orient one region for Blu-Ray media coding. So far I haven't heard any different on that, so let's hope.

Also hopefully, my guessed at release schedule is the latest the PS3 will appear around the world. It looks like the holdup involves just a few minor details, since it looks like all the parts are ready to put together, or close to it. I'm getting hungry for true high definition graphics with a GT logo on screen.

Except.... if Sony is doing some fake foot dragging to have some exceptional third party games available at launch, might that be it? A PS3 with nothing worthwhile to play on it won't be a big seller... hrm...

If Sony offers a few good launch titles, then backwards compatib ility will hold it over.

I figure you've got:

KH2
MGS3:Subsistence
FFXII
Valkyrie Profile 2
Dragon Quest VIII Spinoff
FFVII: Dirge of Cereberus
Secret of Mana 4

I'm sure there are other games coming out between now and then, but those are some key titles that have big names and will sell, and even if PS3 is out, users can play them on PS3 instead of PS2...with "possible" upgraded visuals (but I'm skeptical).

 

[Solid Lifters]

Do you have links to the two separate articles? Because I only remember the one. Sony did respond twice to the ML report, but only in the first response did they mention the possibility of a delay. And in both reports, they reaffirmed that they were still on-track for a Spring release. Whatever delay they were thinking of was clearly a small one, that wouldn't even push it beyond Spring.

And chances are, they have started production. Cell chips and RSXs and Blu-Ray drives are probably being spit out of some factory somewhere even as we speak.

No, Sony is not yet producing any RSXs at this time. They haven't paid any production royalties yet to NVIDIA, according to business financial reports several days ago, and wont do so until May. So, that means they haven't been made yet. Maybe, that's the holdup?

 

[LaBounti]

I guess the latest dev kits still have 7800GTx's in them then. Could the RSX be a smaller faster version of the 7800GT512 chip? Thats my only theory since the RSX is/was in its rumored state the 7800GTX512 chip nicely coded as 7800U.

 

[Sprite]

I guess the latest dev kits still have 7800GTx's in them then. Could the RSX be a smaller faster version of the 7800GT512 chip? Thats my only theory since the RSX is/was in its rumored state the 7800GTX512 chip nicely coded as 7800U.

Its roumered to be based on the G71 core (thats the 7900 cards - released in march).

G71 is at 700- 900 (but will only needed to be running at 430 to be comparable to the G70)
and the RSX is at 550

so if the speculation is true, its a bit faster than a 7800, but roumers have also touted a clock frequency upping and a memory frequency upping.

 

[Omnis]

Sony to acquire HD-DVD know-how through joint-venture with NEC

http://www.tgdaily.com/2006/02/27/sony_hddvd/

Tokyo (Japan) - While Sony maintains its support for Blu-ray and the company cannot be expected to change its position in the foreseeable future, the company has laid the foundation to have access to the competing HD-DVD format as well. An optical disc drive joint-venture with NEC, one of the leading developers of such drives, could become a safety net for Sony - just in case Blu-ray fails.

Sony's announcement comes just about a month after we learned that Toshiba, the main proponent behind HD-DVD could have access to Blu-ray through a joint-venture with Samsung: TSST (Toshiba Samsung Storage Technology) is currently developing a Blu-ray drive for Samsung, which is scheduled to announce the device in the US sometime in Q2 of this year.

Solid Lifters ftw. This could possibly be part of the PS3's delay... A joint-format laser.

 

[a6m5]

Good find, Omnis. Whether it has anything to do with PS3, this is very interesting. I sure did not see it coming.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Sony to acquire HD-DVD know-how through joint-venture with NEC

http://www.tgdaily.com/2006/02/27/sony_hddvd/



Solid Lifters ftw. This could possibly be part of the PS3's delay... A joint-format laser.

It's the reason for both the HD-DVD delay for the XBox360 and quite possibly the delay for the PS3, if there is going to be one, that is.

Like I said so many times before, Sony and Toshiba were talking in private with each other to come up with some sort of solution. And here it is. It was with NEC, who also works close with Toshiba.

 

[LaBounti]

PS3 will have the blu-ray format reguardless of what HD-DVD's camp does. It should have nothing to do with the delay, the drives that will be used in the ps3 will be for the ps3. This format war has zero to with the ps3 architecture. Even if blu-ray movies fail it will still be the base format for ps3 for game makers to use if they want.

If UMD moveis fail it wont cause the psp to not have anymore games on the format.

 

[Driftster]

BTW... UMD movie's is probably the lamest idea ever..but....Nerds/little kids will eat it up...Like Pokemon and anime

 

[Sprite]

BTW dont know if you guys herd it today,Sony (Blue-Ray) & NEC (HD-DVD Camp) have gone into buisness together making optical storage. Now this dosnt seem like a too big of a deal, but Sony will own 55% of this new venture and will more than likley turn NEC over to the Blue-Side this leave HD-DVD with probably one less high end consumer product manufacturer in the ranks. Sony are sure making life difficult for HD-DVD.

What dose this mean? well probably nothing but its a sure sign that sony are adiment that this storage option will survive, unlike there failing UMD and Memory stick lines.

edit
sorry omnis, didnt read your post

edit #2
well it looks like i see the new differently to you guys, this has nothing to do with the delays, as they were in talks with NEC since early last year, and im sure it wont effect HD-DVD and BR that much, they are just making sure that other developers who had both feet in one camp, are now standing firmly square in both.

 

[tha_con]

It's the reason for both the HD-DVD delay for the XBox360 and quite possibly the delay for the PS3, if there is going to be one, that is.

Like I said so many times before, Sony and Toshiba were talking in private with each other to come up with some sort of solution. And here it is. It was with NEC, who also works close with Toshiba.

This has nothing to do with Sony and Toshiba talking in private, because they gave up on a "solution" as we've proved before.

This is Sony talking to NEC, a third party affiliate of Toshiba for the HD-DVD format, and Toshiba talking so Samsung, a third party affiliate of Sony for the Blu-Ray format.

 

[Solid Lifters]

PS3 will have the blu-ray format reguardless of what HD-DVD's camp does. It should have nothing to do with the delay, the drives that will be used in the ps3 will be for the ps3. This format war has zero to with the ps3 architecture. Even if blu-ray movies fail it will still be the base format for ps3 for game makers to use if they want.

Yes, it will cause a delay. Sony will want to put the HD-DVD capable Blu-ray drives in the PS3, for certain. That could cause a delay, and what's possibly causing the delay rumors.

It doesn't make sense if Sony spends over a billion dollars on HD-DVD laser a driver production, and then chooses not to support it with the PS3.

 

[Tenacious D]

Actually, I think Blu-Ray and HD-DVD use the same blue laser. The main difference is in the decoding software in the roms. All our entertainment whether CDs or DVDs or video games are basically software, so what these companies are deciding are how the data are defined between the two formats, how the region encoding will be implemented - or not, stuff like that, and the drives will mostly be the same except for the controller and decoder chips.

 

[a6m5]

I think HD-DVD uses red laser.

Edit:
Sorry, my mistake. I thought I read that it used red, but I guess HD-DVD does use blue/violet laser.

 

[Solid Lifters]

Lionsgate Release Movie Titles & Prices For Blu-ray Launch


SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Lionsgate
(NYSE: LGF; Toronto), the leading independent filmed entertainment company,
today announced plans to release 10 titles on the next-generation
high-definition Blu-ray Disc (BD) to coincide with the arrival of the first
commercially offered BD players in stores. The first wave, available at
retail on May 23, will include CRASH and LORD OF WAR, priced at a $39.99 SRP,
and THE PUNISHER, SAW and TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY, marked at a $29.99 SRP.
The second wave with five additional titles will follow shortly thereafter
with a June/July date still to be determined. These BD titles include
RESERVOIR DOGS, TOTAL RECALL, STARGATE and FRANK HERBERT'S DUNE priced at
$29.99, while THE DEVIL'S REJECTS will be available at a $39.99 SRP. The
announcement was made by Lionsgate President Steve Beeks.
"There has never been a home entertainment experience available to mass
audiences like Blu-ray, and Lionsgate is pleased to be providing some of our
top-line product at launch for consumers to enjoy," said Beeks. "As a
company, we have always been at the forefront in utilizing technology to offer
consumers the best viewing experience. Watching a film in your living room is
about to radically change forever and we can't wait to maximize Blu-ray's
technological capabilities and see for ourselves how far we can take the home
movie-watching experience."



Sony Announce First Movie Titles For Blu-ray


CULVER CITY, Calif., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Pictures Home
Entertainment (SPHE) is targeting May 23 to deliver the first wave of Blu-ray
Disc (BD) titles at retail, it was announced today. Delivery will coincide
with the launch that day of the first commercially available BD player from
Samsung Electronics, which will be followed shortly by BD players from Pioneer
and Sony along with a BD compatible VAIO PC from Sony.
SPHE and MGM Home Entertainment will first release eight BD titles, with
another eight following shortly June 13. Benjamin S. Feingold, president,
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, made the announcement.
The first Blu-ray Disc titles from SPHE and MGM Home Entertainment will
include: 50 First Dates, The Fifth Element, Hitch, House of Flying Daggers, A
Knight's Tale, The Last Waltz (MGM), Resident Evil Apocalypse and XXX.
BD titles streeting June 13 include: Kung Fu Hustle, Legends of the Fall,
Robocop (MGM), Stealth, Species (MGM), SWAT and Terminator (MGM). Underworld
Evolution will debut in early Summer day and date with the DVD.
"We are primed to ensure that a variety of Blu-ray Disc content is
available at retail to support the introduction of the first BD players from
Samsung Electronics and Pioneer, as well as the first BD player and compatible
VAIO computer from Sony," said Mr. Feingold. "Sony Pictures further intends
to provide additional titles to coincide with the launch of BD products from
other manufacturers. We're thrilled that the Blu-ray Disc era is about to
begin."

Outstanding CE products:
"As a charter member of the Blu-Ray Disc Association (BDA), Samsung
Electronics is proud to introduce the first commercially available Blu-ray
Disc player, BD-P1000, to Best Buy, Circuit City and electronic specialty
store consumers on May 23," said Jim Sanduski, senior vice president of
marketing for Samsung Electronics America. "We're extremely pleased to join
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment in providing an outstanding high definition
experience that features the next generation optical disc format."
"Pioneer is thrilled to offer the BDP-HD1, our first Blu-ray Disc player,
which will allow consumers to purchase high definition content to watch in the
comfort of their own homes," said Sam Ohdate, president of home entertainment
for Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc. "With exciting new titles like these being
released by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and other studios, we're
confident Blu-ray disc will become the next generation in home entertainment."
"Our BD enabled VAIO PCs incorporate the very best and latest technology
to help consumers unleash their creativity and experience entertainment in
new, exciting ways," said Mike Abary, vice president of VAIO product marketing
in the U.S. "We're eagerly looking forward to having engaging Blu-ray content
available that really takes advantage of the performance these PCs can
achieve."
"The first Blu-ray Disc titles from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment mark
a significant milestone in the BD revolution of home entertainment" said
Philip Abram, vice president of marketing for Sony Electronics' Home Products
Division. "We are excited about the upcoming launch of the BDP-S1 Blu-ray Disc
player and with engaging content from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment,
consumers are in for a spectacular high-definition experience."

 

[KENJIusa]

Very nice, thanks Solid.

 

[Maven]

Hmmm... so with the first BD players coming out on May 23rd, can we expect the PS3 to be available (at least in Japan) around that time?

 

[tha_con]

Yes, it will cause a delay. Sony will want to put the HD-DVD capable Blu-ray drives in the PS3, for certain. That could cause a delay, and what's possibly causing the delay rumors.

It doesn't make sense if Sony spends over a billion dollars on HD-DVD laser a driver production, and then chooses not to support it with the PS3.

*sigh*

No, they won't. If anything I see Sony possibly giving their BD-ROM drive writeable ROM so they can update firmware in the future and possibly add HD-DVD capability, but out of the box Sony is going to have BD-ROM only, because that is how they are pushing their real cash cow. If they did add HD-DVD from the start it would be a crippling hit to Blu-Ray.

And again, Sony is not creating a "joint laser" as you are all misunderstanding. This is Sony's way of creeping in the shadows of HD-DVD. This way, since NEC can produce HD-DVD drives and not lose face, Sony can take advantage of that through this joint venture and still make some profit (since they own 55% of the company).

So, again, this has nothing to do with PS3 at all, or the delay, or the support of HD-DVD for that matter, it is MERELY a saftey net, nothing more nothing less.

 

[Solid Lifters]

*sigh*

No, they won't. If anything I see Sony possibly giving their BD-ROM drive writeable ROM so they can update firmware in the future and possibly add HD-DVD capability, but out of the box Sony is going to have BD-ROM only, because that is how they are pushing their real cash cow. If they did add HD-DVD from the start it would be a crippling hit to Blu-Ray.

And again, Sony is not creating a "joint laser" as you are all misunderstanding. This is Sony's way of creeping in the shadows of HD-DVD. This way, since NEC can produce HD-DVD drives and not lose face, Sony can take advantage of that through this joint venture and still make some profit (since they own 55% of the company).

So, again, this has nothing to do with PS3 at all, or the delay, or the support of HD-DVD for that matter, it is MERELY a saftey net, nothing more nothing less.

Nearly a billion and a half dollars on just a safety net?

Bull****.

Sony have been taking considerable steps getting to the obvious destination of a HD-DVD/Blu-ray player. This is next big step to that destination, which is a solution to their next generation disc player dilemma. Sony is now fully committed to both HD-DVD and Blu-ray compatible machines. They're just waiting to see which format the public prefers.

Second, Sony wont put a BDR in the PS3. They'll lose money on their memory card sales. With a BDR, we could save game data straight to disc. Though, I would love to have one in there.

 

[a6m5]

I can't imagine the DVD movie market being big enough for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD. Even if Sony show little bit of support for HD-DVD, I don't think it will take long, before the Blu-ray format take off.

Sony Announce First Movie Titles For Blu-ray


CULVER CITY, Calif., Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Sony Pictures Home
Entertainment (SPHE) is targeting May 23 to deliver the first wave of Blu-ray
Disc (BD) titles at retail, it was announced today. Delivery will coincide
with the launch that day of the first commercially available BD player from
Samsung Electronics, which will be followed shortly by BD players from Pioneer
and Sony along with a BD compatible VAIO PC from Sony.
SPHE and MGM Home Entertainment will first release eight BD titles, with
another eight following shortly June 13. Benjamin S. Feingold, president,
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, made the announcement.
The first Blu-ray Disc titles from SPHE and MGM Home Entertainment will
include: 50 First Dates, The Fifth Element, Hitch, House of Flying Daggers, A
Knight's Tale, The Last Waltz (MGM), Resident Evil Apocalypse and XXX.
BD titles streeting June 13 include: Kung Fu Hustle, Legends of the Fall,
Robocop (MGM), Stealth, Species (MGM), SWAT and Terminator (MGM). Underworld
Evolution will debut in early Summer day and date with the DVD.
"We are primed to ensure that a variety of Blu-ray Disc content is
available at retail to support the introduction of the first BD players from
Samsung Electronics and Pioneer, as well as the first BD player and compatible
VAIO computer from Sony," said Mr. Feingold. "Sony Pictures further intends
to provide additional titles to coincide with the launch of BD products from
other manufacturers. We're thrilled that the Blu-ray Disc era is about to
begin."

Great news. But it kind of sucks that I have to buy a fourth version of "The Fifth Element" DVD. Standard version DVD > Super Bit version DVD > Super Bit version DVD w/extra features > Blu-ray version coming soon....

 

[Solid Lifters]

I can't imagine the DVD movie market being big enough for both Blu-ray and HD-DVD. Even if Sony show little bit of support for HD-DVD, I don't think it will take long, before the Blu-ray format take off.

Great news. But it kind of sucks that I have to buy a fourth version of "The Fifth Element" DVD. Standard version DVD > Super Bit version DVD > Super Bit version DVD w/extra features > Blu-ray version coming soon....

I'd wait buying the Blu-ray version of The Fifth Element. As soon as it comes out, they'll come out with a "Limited Edition" version. That's one thing I learned when I first got mt PS2 at the launch. As soon as I bought my favorite DVDs, a year later, they came out with better versions. Wait a year to buy your Blu-ray movies. I plan to, unless they come with a decent amount of features I want.

 

[a6m5]

I'd wait buying the Blu-ray version of The Fifth Element. As soon as it comes out, they'll come out with a "Limited Edition" version. That's one thing I learned when I first got mt PS2 at the launch. As soon as I bought my favorite DVDs, a year later, they came out with better versions. Wait a year to buy your Blu-ray movies. I plan to, unless they come with a decent amount of features I want.

Good call, Solid. 👍 You'd think someone would've learned that by his third copy of "Fifth Element". Movie like that should be amazing on Blu-ray/Hi-Def though. Also, I've heard that in the Star Wars Episode I on Blu-ray Disc, George Lucas has decided to replace the CG Yoda with Danny Devito in green makeup.

 

[Driftster]

A bunch of GREAT movies there....

What a solid lineup..oh well..
T2 is always good.

 

[RedWolfRacer]

Wouldn't it be ironic for both formats to remain afloat? I could see it happening, especially with a joint-drive like Sony's (sorta) planned HD-DVD/BD drive. I could see people having only one drive and going to the store to buy the proper version. They both seem to be on even footing insofar as playing a movie goes--we can get movies to play just fine now which is really all the matters for most people aside from a few extra features which fit on a standard DVD anyway. The real battle is video games and if the consoles have a combined drive, what does it matter? It wouldn't be much different than the CDs and DVDs on the PS2. ...Let's ignore that the blue-backed CDs were difficult for some PS2s to read, though.

 

[tha_con]

Nearly a billion and a half dollars on just a safety net?

Bull****.

Sony have been taking considerable steps getting to the obvious destination of a HD-DVD/Blu-ray player. This is next big step to that destination, which is a solution to their next generation disc player dilemma. Sony is now fully committed to both HD-DVD and Blu-ray compatible machines. They're just waiting to see which format the public prefers.

Second, Sony wont put a BDR in the PS3. They'll lose money on their memory card sales. With a BDR, we could save game data straight to disc. Though, I would love to have one in there.

Okay, again, this news is NOT about a "joint" optical disc or drive. THere is NOTHING about a "unified" standard here. Anywhere.

What this IS about, is Sony working with NEC to produce HD-DVD drives.

Just like Toshiba teamed up with Samsung to being developing Blu-Ray Recorders for the PC that will release soon in Jpaan.

Also, a BD-ROM is not a BDR. BD-ROM. ROM. Read Only Memory.

 

[RedWolfRacer]

Oh, no. Summon the mods. He missed an "O" and an "M" and I guess the hyphen, too. You get so upset over the stupidest things, man. Just relax. Besides, if you must argue, you said "writeable ROM" which is an oxymoron as it is Read Only Memory which can be written over and therefore is not "writeable". I could be missing something, but I think you're attitude's a bit off base.

And I think Sony's joint venture is a bit of a safety net. In fact, I think it's a wise move on their part. Without something to fall back on if the BD-ROM fails, they'll lose a lot of money, especially if it means retrofitting PS3s (which is unlikely since they could still just put out BD-ROMs for games anyway).

What really bugs me, though, is that the PS3 isn't even out and people are trying to take a torch and some pliers to the thing in an effort to make somebody or something look better than the PS3.