Cell Processor Downgrade? PS3 Power External?

There are some ugly rumours clinging to the coattails of the PlayStation 3 over the weekend, with fellow games site Kotaku offering up what it claims to be a potentially damaging information leak from Sony.

According to an unnamed and very much unverified source (seemingly a loose-lipped developer, of which there's never a shortage) the Cell Processor deployed in final PlayStation 3 hardware will be downgraded. Sony had promised a 3.5GHz version of its flagship chip, however a 3.2 offering replaced this. The report suggests a 2.8GHz Cell will become the final brain of PlayStation 3.

The second technophobe worrying rumour sees the PlayStation 3 equipped with an external power supply, the worst thing imaginable for people who worry about such things. "The current designs despite having vents all over the place apparently still cant dissipate the heat to sufficient levels," claims the source of the report.

Of course, this all remains firmly under the big umbrella (dare we say parasol) of gossip for the time being. As we piece together a final picture of what Sony will release into retail, you'll have every jigsaw segment, starting with the corners and straight bits.