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Sony Announces PS3 Slim, Price Cut, Improvements To Home

Posted by Soulskill on from the worst-kept-secret dept.

Sony's press conference today at the Gamescom convention was full of announcements. They officially revealed the PS3 Slim, which will be 36% lighter and 33% smaller than the normal PS3. It will come with a 120 GB hard drive and list for $299 when it hits retail stores in early September. Normal PS3s will drop to that price as well starting tomorrow. (Unfortunately for Sony, their unveiling was spoiled a bit by several retailers jumping the gun on new advertisements, not to mention the rumors that had been swirling for weeks ahead of time.) Sony also announced a PS3 firmware update as well as new features and customization options for Home. In addition to that, the PS3 and PSP will be getting a digital reader service. At launch it will bring access to Marvel comic books, and will expand from there. They didn't talk much about their upcoming motion control scheme, but promised more details next month at the Tokyo Game Show.

11 of 427 comments (clear)

  1. It would be really nice... by 8127972 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ..... If Sony restored backward compatibility with PS2 games. That and not the price nor the size of the console is why I haven't bought one yet.

    --
    This is my opinion. To make sure you don't steal it, it's covered by the DMCA.
    1. Re:It would be really nice... by space_jake · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Just seems like they are shooting themselves in the foot by not offering backwards compatibility with the PS2. The PS2 has a huge library and dominated the console market for its generation.

    2. Re:It would be really nice... by halcyon1234 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      We'll probably see it return around the time they EOL the PS2 platform completely

      I doubt it. I'd love to be able to play my PS2 games on the PS3, but I know it'll never happen. Not when they can "sell" the same games through the PS Store and get another $10-$20 out of people who have already bought the games.

      --
      UTF-8: There and Back Again
    3. Re:It would be really nice... by DigiShaman · · Score: 5, Insightful

      People still watch tube tvs?

      That was a dumb question. Of course they do!

      More often than not, very large tube sets are "good enough" for most people that have them. However, replacing them is such a huge PITA because of how large and heavy they are. So until it decides to die one day, there really isn't much of an incentive replace it with a flat panel.

      --
      Life is not for the lazy.
  2. Re:No Linux Support? by Microlith · · Score: 4, Insightful

    They'll make it stop working on your existing device by simply removing the option to install when the update comes down the pipe. I doubt there's any real technical reason for dropping it, other than some beancounter deciding that the loss of respect from technical users was less costly than the upkeep for the hypervisor (assuming they remove it.)

    Assuming they don't, you'll be able to keep what you have on there, but not reinstall or do a new install. Which is a huge amount of ass considering how much work was done by the open source community to port things to the PS3 including kernel patches and various GCC ports and additions for the SPUs. All of that is now wasted, even on older consoles unless you never, ever let them contact PSN.

  3. Re:No Linux Support? by Turken · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I would assume that the loss of Linux support is likely due to not bothering to accommodate for the large changes in hardware under the hood. If their research shows that not enough people are using a feature make it worth developing and supporting, why should they waste resources on that feature? Of course, by that logic, then Home should have dies a long time ago too...

    At any rate, it shouldn't take too long for unofficial workarounds to show up.

  4. Re:Sweet by GigaHurtsMyRobot · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Rather than a good deal, I'd say it's finally priced the way it should be. I will also be getting one at this price... I have been a 360 zealot for a long time, but will get one of these for exclusives and PSN titles if I want them.

  5. Re:An even better model by dc29A · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How about they release "PS3 Reliable edition"?

    Of the two PS3 owners that I know (a friend and myself), both have had the Blue-ray drive fail. And mine failed just after I sold the console on Craigslist, making me look like a fraud.

    The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'evidence'.

  6. Re:Whoa! by Enderandrew · · Score: 5, Insightful

    * 120 gig HDD.
    * Built in wifi-fi.
    * Streams all my media content from my computer.
    * Top-notch BluRay player.
    * Built in web browser
    * Oh, and plays games.

    I think it is a great value actually, But to each their own.

    --
    http://blindscribblings.com - Tasty pop-culture in conceptual fashion.
  7. Re:Are we still expected to pay $0.30 for Home sho by gEvil+(beta) · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Not to mention the charges on logo-ed shirts. I can't remember prices, but I think those were in the $0.50-$1 range. So I'm expected to pay money to be a walking virtual advertisement. Sure...

    Hell, people pay 20-30 bucks (and more) all the time to be walking real-life advertisements.

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    This guy's the limit!
  8. Re:No Linux Support? by GizmoToy · · Score: 3, Insightful

    That's a standard "figure 8" connector typically associated with AC transmission. You see them on everything, but the place a Slashdot reader is most likely to have seen them is on the cord that goes between the AC wall outlet and a laptop's power supply. Dell uses them a lot.

    I see nothing that would indicate an external power supply, and in fact the presence of that connector would imply the opposite.