The Sony Google TV that was once “dragonpoint”/” target=”_self”>codenamed “Dragonpoint” is nearing its launch on October 12th where Sony and Google will be holding a press Event in New York. There, it’s expected that both companies will announce a new set of Sony Bravia TVs and Blu-ray players that will somehow incorporate Googles Android technology. So mark it in your calendar folks as the battle for your living room continues to heat up.
Sony Corp.
It’s sequel week here! First we talked about how Angelina Jolie might be coming back for a round 2 of Salt and now news of a 5th Resident Evil movie. Of course, with such a big opening which is rare for a 4th movie in a franchise to sustain, it’s not a surprise to see talks of another one. Plus, what’s wonderful about the Resident Evil franchise is that series director/producer Paul W.S. Anderson and wife and star Milla Jovovich took their own direction with the series. This meant that from the beginning, the series was not based around 1 movie or trilogy arc and the rest felt like a tacked on story.
Talking with Vulture, Milla Jovovich said “This new Resident Evil is the first one to ever open at number one worldwide. It’s the biggest movie in the franchise,” she went on “So we’re definitely going to make another one.” When the fifth movie does happen though, don’t expect it to be just from the stand point of Paul W.S. Anderson because as the series creator he wants to talk to fans on “Twitter and stuff” about what characters they want in the film”. Personally from a fan perspective who has enjoyed the series both as games and movies, I would love for them to go back a little to the more survival and mystery that the first film had.
[Via Vulture]
Via a software update, Bravia owners with internet capability can gain access to a new widget/app from the BBC, the iPlayer. The iPlayer will the be located in the XMB, along any other app you might have.
“The service will give users the option to watch their favourite television programmes from the last seven days, at a time that suits them from the comfort of their living room,” says Sony.
Sony went on to say:
“We are delighted to be able to offer BRAVIA customers this added entertainment functionality giving users the ability to watch and manage their favourite programmes at the click of a button,” says Christian Brown, senior category marketing manager. “We are really excited to be partnering with the BBC to bring it’s fantastic service to the 2010 BRAVIA television range.”
So there you have it folks, just check your software update section on your Bravias XMB and you will be promopted to download this. Best of all, prior to this, you needed to have a dedicated device plugged in like the PS3 or the Bravia Internet link but this update will be built right in.
This is one of those ads that of course Sony won’t cough up to but it’s part of their viral campaign to promote the Playstation Move. It’s kind of epic.
When Sony decided to invest $110 million on Angelina Jolie and make the movie Salt, like any movie released, they knew a certain risk would be involved. The movie business tends to be a hit or miss. Sometimes a fantastic movie comes out and, due to timing or competition, just gets missed and other times, production doesn’t go as planned and the final product is not what was intended. So far, with a $272.7 world wide gross, it seems that audiences tuned in for the Angelina Jolie action thriller and we have yet to talk about DVD and Blu-ray gross as the movie has yet to be released on those formats. What all of this comes down to is the fact that Salt was a hit for Sony and any time a movie is a success, sequel talks begin and Salt is no different.
When speaking with the LA Times, Salt writer Kurt Wimmer explained a brief idea in which “Evelyn Salt is a Russian plant in the highest echelons of the CIA who may or may not be working for her home country.” Also, both Director Phillip Noyce and Angelina Jolie, who is said to be “keen to work on a sequel,” seem to want this film to happen.
But of course, just wanting a sequel is not enough to get a movie going, no matter the profit from it. Angelina Jolie is currently involved with the Tim Burton film Maleficent and has been wanting to make a franchise based on the Kay Scarpetta novels. To add further complication, Phillip Noyce has been eyeing Wenceslas Square and Dirt Music for his followup film, although there is nothing solid there yet. By the time summer rolls out, Angelina Jolie will be done with Maleficent and Salt will have been released on DVD and Blu-ray. Expect more solid news then.
I’ve been thinking of replacing my girlfriend’s puppy for some time now since he doesn’t do much except sit around. I think I have the perfect weapon now. Thanks, KB.
Move Week continues here at SRN.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, holy shit that is a long name but we move on. My test was a simple one. I used the Cybershot HX5 (one of the best damn cameras I’ve ever used) and I wanted to see, if I used a higher speed Memory Stick, would it impact my pictures. There have been plenty of scenarios where I’ve been wanting to take a picture but my camera was still processing the past picture. This can cause you to just miss pictures during daylight and worse, when it’s a lower light situation, you think your camera is done taking the picture and you move your hand away and bam, blurry picture.
On Amazon.com, Sony’s Playstation move bundle and controller ranked in the top three in sales this week. The Move ranked in at #2 in Amazon’s video games division on Friday. The Playstation move had an increase of 225 percent to push the product up to #3 in sales on the site on Friday as well.
This is very exciting news and we hope many will enjoy this new, exciting gaming experience that only The Move can give you. We will keep you posted for more Playstation Move sale numbers. Have you bought yours yet?
We tried and tried and tried again to get you guys some kind of Playstation Move giveaway and get a unit to review as well but Sony didn’t play ball with us so we are doing the next best thing that we can. For the next week, you’re going to see plenty of Playstation Move content on the website. From reviews done by other websites, to current games, up coming games and any video content that has to do with the Playstation Move.
What is the Playstation Move:
The Playstation Move is an addition to the Playstation 3 that is designed to cater to both the casual and the hardcore user. Giving users the capability to play motion gaming, the Move offers users a 1:1 gaming accuracy that is capable of tracking you both up and down, but in and out, aka into 3D space or the Z axis. Speaking of 3D, the Move can also do 3D games.
So lets break it down. The Playstation Move is a 3 part setup, but can be configured in many different ways. First, to make any of the magic happen, you need the Playstation Eye. That’s the device that is actually tracking all of your movements. From there, you have the Playstation Move Controller and the Playstation Move Navigator. All games will require atleast 2 sets. So you can either have 2 Move Controllers or a Controller/Navigator combo. From there, the correct combo just depends on how much you want out of the experience. For example, a game like Socom 4 works with the Move Controller to do your aiming and looking around while in the other hand, the Navigator acts as your controller to control your movement.
But a game like like Gladiator in the Sport Champions pack, although works well enough with the Controller/Navigator combo, really begins to shine when you have to Controllers instead. This way, one hand can act as a shield and the other as a sword. But the key thing to remember is that for any game, you will only need a Controller/Navigator combo. Anything additional you buy is up to your budget and not required. Also, there is no Navigator/Navigator combo as far as we can tell. For all the shooter fans out there as well, there is another piece you can choose to buy; the Move Shooting which basically opens up and allows you to insert the Move Controller inside of it for a better shooting game experience.
Technical Details and Competition Differences:
As we touched up on before, what’s different about the Playstation Move versus the Nintendo Wii and the up coming Xbox Kinect is accuracy and that can mean all the thing when you are playing a hardcore game, more on that in a bit. The Playstation Move has the capability to track you in real time with pin point accuracy and track in a 3D space. That means that the Playstation Eye is not just tracking your movements on a X,Y axis (up, down, left, right) but in the Z axis as well. This means it can tell if you get closer to the system, or step back, or duck and bob and weave. This accuracy allows you to not only be directly in the game environment, but for you to also have access to a wide variety of movement and actions no possible on the Nintendo Wii, not to mention the HD graphics and surround sound capabilities of the Playstation 3.
When compared to the Xbox Kinect that will be coming out near Xmas, the technology there simply does not work. Here is what I mean. The Kinect works on the technology that a camera tracks your movements, thus no controller is needed. That’s fantastic when you first think about it until you actually run into the limitations of the system. First, the system has juice to only track two people at a time versus the Moves 4 player configuration, but more importantly, it’s how it tracks you. If you are playing a gaming, because the Kinect tracks people, if your friend or parents walk by, the camera can begun to track them instead and there goes your game. Furthermore, there is no sitting down as well. You have to be standing the entire time. Because the Playstaiton Move is being tracked by the Playstation Eye, it actually does no matter if you are sitting down and or how many people are in the room with you.
In order for the Kinect to not mess up during press previews, MS has to bring its bubble with them.
Speaking of technology, the Playstation Move has two other note worthy techs. The cutting edge technology is 3D. I’m not just talking about your movements being tracked in 3D, but the fact that the Playstation Move works with 3D games. Games like LittleBigPlanet 2 and Killzone 3 which are being made in 3D are also 100% Move compatible. That gives you the capability to be tracked in real time 3D, while actually playing a 3D game. Short of jacking in yourself a la Matrix, you cannot get more in depth. The other not so high tech yet equally important is button. I mean think about it, you don’t want to always wave your hand across to scroll through the XMB or to select options. Even more to the point, when playing a game like Socom 4 or MAG, you want to have button to access to your squad chat, grenade toggle and weapon options. Games would get extremely tiring if you had to wave your hand for all of these actions and if you do them wrong, you just might have cost yourself a win. In a game like MAG (100% move compatible), you cannot afford to accidentally not call the Airstrike or not plant the bomb. To iterate the power of the Playstation Network, Playstation 3 and Playstation Move, keep in mind that MAG is a 256 player game, with no online fees and can be fully played with the Playstation Move.
Games:
There are plenty of sites that are currently covering current release of games for the Playstation Move, but those are frankly the launch titles and some of the more casual games. What I want to focus on is the more hardcore games the Move will support. I have to first digress for a minute in order for you to see the bigger picture. Up until the Move game out, I havent been a fan of motion gaming at all. Family games are cute and fun but thats not why I bought my PS3, 60″ Sony and my Denon receive and surround sound. I want to play impressive and immersive games. I have a feeling and know plenty of gamers who share my experience. This isnt to poo poo family games or the Nintendo Wii crowd. I’m happy to see the gaming community grow and pull in new users but those family games are not for me. The Playstation Move changed all of this. The following are some up coming Move titles and these are not partial support, but 100% compatible titles that can be played by the DualShock 3 or a Move combo.
- Killzone 3
- Socom 4
- MAG
- LittleBigPlanet 2
- Resident Evil 5
- Heavy Rain
MAG Move Gameplay:
Socom 4 Move Gameplay:
With games like that, the accuracy of the Move and the power of the PS3, I don’t have to sacrifice the types of games I like or give up on quality of visuals or accuracy of gameplay. Instead I can play the types of games I enjoy, yet try a completely new experience.
Reviews:
As I noted earlier, unfortunately Sony would not give us a demo unit in order for me to give you a much more indepth review of the setup and games but the following are some reviews to go by.
Techradar:
The biggest takeaway from our time with Move is its incredible accuracy. Augmented reality instruments move perfectly with the controller, Frisbees fly with the gentle curve you give them and you can select things with superb precision.
Telegraph:
The technical brilliance of the Move controllers themselves is the standout feature of this gaming system. The wand-style remotes are very easy to use, and offer a level of accuracy and precision that you won’t find on the Wii, or on Microsoft’s rival system, Kinect.
IGN:
At the end of the day, the PlayStation Move has the potential to be the best motion control system on the current crop of consoles.
Engadget:
It’s shaping up to be one of the most interesting eras in the history o console gaming, and make no mistake, Sony’s got all the right ingredients here.
Where to buy:
The Playstation Move should be available today at Best Buy and Gamestop stores, as well as other retailers like Walmart. If you prefer to buy online and not worry about paying tax on it, Amazon is another destination as well. Plus, if you guys purchase them from our links, it helps out the site!
Move Controller:
PlayStation Move Controller
Move Navigation:
PlayStation Move Navigation
Move Shooter:
PlayStation Move Shooting Attachment
Move Bundle:
Playstation Move Starter Bundle
PS3 Move Bundle:
PlayStation 3
Move Charger:
PlayStation Move Charging Station
In a crazy turn of events, the recently announced and later to be released AppleTV is actually much like the current Sony Network Media Player (SMP-N100) that you can actually go out and buy right now. Priced at $129 and similarly sized, this streaming device is meant to hook up to your television or receive and stream content via the web or from your computer. Powered by services like Netflix, Amazon Video on Demand, YouTube, Pandora and Slackers, Sony has taken a more open approach than Apple by allowing multiple providers to offer you content. With the AppleTV, you are limited to iTunes and Netflix.
But Sony isn’t limiting you to just services; with its incorporated DLNA, you can also stream content from other DLNA devices as well. This includes video, photos and music. Furthermore, you can connect USB devices like your camera, MP3 player, or external hard drive with media and play the content off of them as well. All of this is in full 1080p while the AppleTV will limit you to 720p. For those who torrent, it also plays Divx and MKV files. Also, besides the in-the-box remote, you can also download an Android/iPhone app to control this device.
For those of you who are spec-hungry, hit the jump for a breakdown of specs, support formats list and a rear shot.
Being the current owner of two Sony digital frames, I’m extremely excited for this new set of digital frames from Sony. Dubbed the S-Frames, Sony is bringing out 3 new models for the holiday season. The DPF-XR100 and DPF-VR100 models are the new 10.2-inch LED frames that can not only display your photos, but also play back full AVCHD video. This is a fantastic new feature as many people tend to take videos with their camera to only have them put on the computer and never be seen again. Now with the DPF-XR100 and DPF-VR100, not only will your photos transition through, but your videos will as well. For those like me who also have a Sony camera that can do panorama shots, both S-Frames are capable of Panorama playback as well. Both units will launch in November, with the DPF-XR100 priced at $250 while the DPF-VR100 carries a $200 price. The difference?
Sony’s exclusive TruBlack™ technology improves how your content looks on the S-Frame XR100 by reducing reflection and enhancing contrast to ensure more natural tones.
Now, the 3rd of these new S-Frames is the DPF-D830, a 8-inch unit with a $150 price tag. Although it does not do the HD video like the above units, the frame comes with a built-in rechargeable battery that is capable of displaying pictures for 100 minutes. The idea goes that if friends and family come over, you can easily unplug the frame and pass it around while they view the photos on the frame. Pretty freaking awesome. Expect this unit to launch in November as well. All three units will also come with 2GB of internal memory and of course expandable via Memory Stick.
There are two things you can bet on. One, that I will be getting the DPF-XR100 this November to display some of my upcoming Hawaii videos and two, if you hit the ‘More’ button, you will get a full press release from Sony in regards of these new frames.
On September 21st (my birthday), Sony will be releasing Playstation 3 firmware 3.5, finally giving Playstation owners the capability to play 3D movies. So far, via a firmware update, the Playstation 3 has been capable of playing 3D games and now via this update, as long as you have a 3D TV or projector, you can now play 3D blu-ray movies as well. Look for a few more features to arrive then as well but Sony is being tight-lipped about the specifics.
Besides having some celebrity power behind it and getting the grit and hopefully attention of the male audience, Playstations trailer of The Fight: Lights Out shows another thing, the diversity of the Move. You can see those who are playing the game can take lots of different moves and use them in the game. Not just waving their arms around like the Nintendo Wii. You actually have full X,Y and Z axes, aka depth and those will make a big difference to what your character does, but more importantly how immersed you are in the experience. This will also showcase the different level of players out there and how much of the controller and moves they have mastered. Think of it like a Tekken game. There are those who just button smash and on the Nintendo Wii, everybody just button smashes because the hardware cannot tell the difference and track all the different movements. On the Playstation Move, because of the accuracy, there might be those who only learn uppercuts and jabs, while others who really learn the game in and out and can execute different combos. Now apply this same thought process to other Move games and you can see what sets the Playstation Move apart from the Nintendo Wii.
What do you guys think of the PlayStation Move men? I’d hit it… I mean party with them if they dropped by.
Designed for home use, Sony will be launching a new projector, the VPL-VW90ES this November. Based on their SXRD platform, the VPL-VW90ES gives you the latest for your living room or home theater room, packing in features like:
- 1080p
- 3D Ready (no 3D transmitter bar required)
- 240hz
- 150,000:1 contrast ratio
- 22db0 fan noise (insanely low)
Hit the jump for full press release and look for this this November, although no price point has been released yet.
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