Posted by multippt
Sony UK has recently annouced that they will release firmware 2.10 today. The update is available here.
The update adds a few enhancements:
-Ability to choose “Type 3″ as an option under Bitmapping settings.
-DivX (which is the main feature of the update) and VC-1 support
-Some refinements to Blu-ray features
Posted by signup
U.S. sales of Sony’s PlayStation 3 more than doubled in the weeks following a price cut and the launch of a lower-priced version, the company said Friday. Sony said it sold about 75,000 PS3 consoles in the week of October 29 in the United States, and more than 100,000 in the following week, compared with weekly sales of 30,000 to 40,000 before.
Sony cut the U.S. price of its PS3 with an 80GB hard drive by 17 percent to $499 in mid-October. It started selling a new model with a 40GB hard drive on November 2 for $399 in an effort to ignite demand ahead of the crucial holiday-shopping season.
Sony, locked in battle with Microsoft and Nintendo in the global video game market, suffered a slow start for the PS3 after its launch a year ago because of high prices and a scarcity of strong game titles.
Nintendo sold 519,000 units of the Wii in the United States in October, while Microsoft sold 366,000 Xbox 360 consoles and Sony sold 121,000 of its PS3 machines, data from market researcher NPD released Thursday.
Posted by multippt
Looks like the PlayStation 3 decided to catch up with the PlayStation Portable (PSP) on firmware updates.
Similar to the PSP update from 2.00 to 2.01, there are no feature releases in this version, but mainly bug-fixes - relating to improving game-play (no more freezes).
You can get the update by using the “system update” feature in your PlayStation 3 if it is connected online. Alternatively, you can download it from the official PlayStation site.
Posted by signup
Sony isn’t planning to cut the price of its PlayStation 3 to pep up demand or counter surging sales of Nintendo rival Wii, Sony’s president said Friday.
Sony President Ryoji Chubachi also said in an interview that operating profit margin at its mainstay electronics unit, which makes hot-selling Bravia LCD televisions and Cyber-shot digital cameras, is likely to exceed its 4 percent target for the current fiscal year that ends in March 2008.
“At present, we have no plans,” Chubachi told Reuters when asked whether Sony had any plans to cut the PS3 price.
Sony has packed cutting-edge technology such as a Blu-ray high-definition optical disc player into the PS3, driving up production costs and making its retail price more than twice as expensive as the Wii.
The higher price tag and lack of attractive software titles have been cited as main reasons the PS3 has been trailing the Wii in sales, and analysts have been widely expecting Sony to soon slash the price to spur demand.
In a Reuters survey of four game analysts this week, three expect Sony to cut PS3 prices by $100 by the end of the year, while one analyst said a cut of $150 is more likely.
The PS3, with a 60GB hard drive, carries a price tag of $599 in the United States, while the Wii sells for about $250.
“If you take a look at how PlayStation and PlayStation 2 have taken off, this is not such an unusual start,” Chubachi said.
When the PS2 made its debut in 2000, Sony was initially criticized for lack of strong titles, and some software publishers said the machine was too complex to develop for.
Sony eventually overcame those difficulties and has sold more than 120 million PS2 units, making it the top-selling video game console ever.
In a sign of lack of confidence on the side of investors, however, Sony, which has sales eight times as big as Nintendo, was overtaken by the Kyoto-based company last week in market capitalization and bumped off the list of Japan’s 10 most valuable companies.
Posted by signup
Nintendo sold 270,974 units of the Wii in the four weeks ended June 24, compared with 41,628 units for the PS3 and 17,616 units for Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360, according to data from Enterbrain.
The Wii’s lead against the PS3 was 4 to 1 in April and 5 to 1 in May.
The Wii’s strong performance, coupled with continued brisk demand for Nintendo’s portable game gear, the DS, helped the Kyoto-based company shoot past Sony in market capitalization last week and become one of Japan’s 10 most valuable companies.
Shares in Nintendo were up 0.2 percent at 45,200 yen by late morning on Monday, while Sony, a company with sales eight times as big as Nintendo’s, fell 0.3 percent to 6,310 yen.
The Nikkei average was down 0.19 percent.
The Wii has won more customers than its two rivals since its Japanese launch late last year by offering innovative ways of playing console games.
The device features a motion-sensitive controller that allows users to direct on-screen play by swinging it like a baseball bat or wielding it like a sword, opening a new avenue of game playing.
Sony, which has dominated the $30 billion global game industry over the past decade with its PlayStation and PlayStation 2, saw a slow start for the PS3 due mainly to its high prices and lack of attractive software titles.
Posted by signup
Sony Computer Entertainment Australia head Michael Ephraim has analysed the latest sales figures for the PS3 locally and has declared the hefty black gaming console number one in the region.
Quoting figures from data trackers GfK in Australia, Ephraim tells us (via an interview with Gamespot AU ) that the 50,000 units moved since the PS3 launch March 23rd makes it number one next-gen gaming console.
Despite the Wii hitting 100,000 units sold since its own launch December 7th 2006, Ephraim basis his ‘number one’ call on a week by week basis; “Based on GfK since launch, PS3 has been the number one next-gen console, outselling Wii and Xbox 360 every week, except for last week,” Ephraim said.
“Since March 23, PS3 has been the number one-selling next-gen console in Australia, and this is GfK figures. We’ve now sold 50,000–and we’re very excited about the fact that it’s being sold in retailers that are gaming retailers as a gaming device and other things, but as you’ll notice it’s now being sold in Harvey Norman consumer electronic stores as a Blu-ray player.”
Not so much on iTWire, but on other forums, I copped a bit of a battering for my article on the PS3 focus. Perhaps the shift from a simple gaming vision to a more holistic entertainment hub spotlight is where Sony should be pouring their effort. (read article here ).
Judging by Ephraim’s final comment on PS3 sales above, it looks like this is Sony’s thinking also. More power to them, in marketing it is all about finding your niche and pounding away incessantly.
Posted by multippt
After hearing of suggestions from readers requesting for announcing firmware updates in advance, Sony (PlayStation network) have decided to fulfill their wishes by annoucing a possible small update to the PS3 firmware - 1.82 (although they did this for 1.81, but a day’s advanced).
Here are the proposed features:
-Update allowing for playback of AVC (H.264/MP4) files.
-More PS2 game compatibility
