160GB PS3 On The Way?

Sony's not saying

Posted by Staff
160GB PS3 On The Way?
It seems like at the moment every time someone at Sony lifts a cheek and farts a new PS3 model comes out. The latest rumour, however, that a 160GB PS3 is on the way, might be stretching it a bit.

As well as having a hard drive double the size of any currently available PS3 on the market in one of Sony's machines, the new PS3 stock keeping unit (SKU) will allegedly feature a 65nm production process (which would reduce heat output and production costs), two HDMI ports, three separate gigabit Ethernet ports, a Dualshock 3 controller and (the bit that made us spit coffee all over our monitors) six USB ports.

The rumour originates on the Neoseeker forum, with guest poster Unwashed Heathen claiming to have gotten the specs for the new SKU from Sony's Japanese offices. He claims that the SKU is only for release in Japan at the moment, vaguely stating that it will see release after November.

SPOnG spoke to Sony to see what's what and was met with an amused chuckle followed promptly by an entirely-expected, “No comment”.

The specs, with the extra HDMI port (to enable PVR-based recording and playback), multiple ethernet ports, and the oodles of storage space provided by a 160GB hard drive suggest that Sony would push this SKU as a high-end media hub.

The six USB ports, however, sound suspicious. With Sony having reduced the number of USB ports to two on the 40GB PS3 (with the announcement for Japan having only happened today), pointing out, “should some consumers require them are easily upgraded with... USB hubs”.

It could be that two of the USB ports would go around the back for static items such as the PlayStation Eye for the sake of neatness, while hot swap items could plug in round the front. Given that Sony seems to be moving in the opposite direction with its current strategy, however, it seems unlikely in the near future.

Meanwhile, one thing that Japanese consumers will be getting access to is a ceramic white model of the 40GB PS3.

Source: Neoseeker
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Comments

SuperSaiyan4 9 Oct 2007 15:12
1/15
Doesn't make anysense, or does it?

Sony losing tons of money so release a water downed PS3 40gb at a lower price...But seem that they will keep the full version in the USA and Japan?

Then are looking to bring out a beefier model?

Am going dizzy...They are going a step further than Microsoft by doing the one thing they said they didn't want to do 'We do not want to confuse the consumer with multiple sku's'

Add that to the rest of the quotes from Sony...
Joji 9 Oct 2007 15:50
2/15
If true it is mighty confusing. This would aimed at 360 Elite hardcore customers and probably have everything the 40gb one doesn't.

Good god, now I'm not sure if to wait or buy one now.
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deleted 9 Oct 2007 19:27
3/15
Maybe sony should lose the PS3 name on this monkey and call it some sort of media centre sony style machine, with PS3 compatablity, Kind of like the PSX, market it at movie and TV freaks poitning out its PVR and Bluray Features, and just mention in there that PS3 games work also, Get rid of the PS3 foreman design and make a more under TV freindly design, could be a good way to go if they can get all this packaged neatly in a under £450.00 Price tag it would be mighty tempting for those Visual Entertainment type guys with PS3 compatabiltiy to boot!?
Superdynamite 9 Oct 2007 19:34
4/15
I already own a 160GB PS3. I bought a 160GB drive from newegg.com.
It took me 5 minutes to swap out my 160GB drive for the 60GB drive. I downloaded a few full games, about 5 DEMOS and a few video previews. I have about 128GB remaining. I'm sure by next summer that number will be much smaller so I'm glad I went 160GB. If Sony offers a 160GB PS3, my suggestion is Buy It. You'll eventually need the space.
DoctorDee 10 Oct 2007 06:17
5/15
haritori wrote:
if they can get all this packaged neatly in a under £450.00 Price tag it would be mighty tempting for those Visual Entertainment type guys with PS3 compatabiltiy to boot!?

If they had PVR features and a BluRay recorder in there and sold it for £599 or less, I'd buy it.

But like any other manufacturer, they face the problem that in the UK at least, Sky has the market (for now at least. BT, Virgin, Tiscali and a host of IPTV providers are trying to fight back!) and doesn't make its encryption available to to CI cards. So no vendor can sell a PVR that works well with Sky (by offering easy programming and channel control).

I personally think the government should force Sky to make a CI compatible decoder available, so we could have choice of what hardware to use.

Mopion 10 Oct 2007 08:09
6/15
why would anyone need more than 1 ethernet connector?

is this PS3 being retargeted as some sort of new uber firewall?

i call bs.
bigd 10 Oct 2007 13:44
7/15
Seems like everytime someone farts these days it ends up as a story on spong.
way 11 Oct 2007 18:14
8/15
Delete
way 11 Oct 2007 18:15
9/15
Back on the Lamely slow site.

Figure it out, multimedia PS3 was talked about from back near the beginning, HDTV tuner shortly, sort of makes sens if an new PS3 come as well.

How much did they save by going to two USB, it could be counted in cents, dollars maybe. The reality, offer and cut throat version people could live with, and offer an better version that people would pay for.

But, the problem with the bottom end 160GB hard drive (do you think it is that spectacular) is that 500GB or 1 Terabyte is needed for hub multimedia/streaming TV/HDTV Linux system. I hope they expand the less spectacular graphics core to full Open GL 3.0 hardware (not holding my breath) to offer an truly superior alternative to 360. Better to sell an cheaper hard driveless version the user can put an big drive into. Half the size, or smaller, with HDTV tuners/recorder included (four channel).

I am so sick of the console mega priced console/game thing. I am considering campaigning for an Linux based PC system, that has the media/HDTV stuff included, instant on, UWB wireless controllers, and an single 16x PCI-E slot. An free encryption protection mechanism. If the game development community came together they can work out an specification, and compatibility software set (also providing additional compatibility mechanism on all PC platforms) an windows compatibility virtual machine, and drag everybody with them, hardware manufacturers, MS etc. We can virtually kiss most of the "console" manufacturers goodbye (you work it out, there superior software is only "superior" for an short time before the PC catches up).
Only ME!! 12 Oct 2007 01:04
10/15
Dude learn english... 'An' is used before 'A, E, I, O or U' frickin idiot...
Yep! 13 Oct 2007 23:17
11/15
Only ME!! wrote:
Dude learn english... 'An' is used before 'A, E, I, O or U' frickin idiot...


Ah, the living language, corrected by an idiot nit-picking monkey. Which nationality are you, Pakistani? Someone, who can't figure out English is spelt with an capital, that the more correct way of saying 'A, E, I, O or U' is: " 'A', 'E', 'I', 'O' or 'U' ". 'A, E, I, O or U' makes you sound like someone from the remote countryside of northern England, where they actually speak something more close to the original English language (not by much though). Nor does he know the correct term to use instead of 'frickin'. Another mindless 'Myth Busters' watcher, I would guess. Been up all night and his post still looks like 'dribble'. It's reasonable, and understandable, content you brainless twit, not an grammar contest.

Also, to tell the level of maturity, wisdom and sensibility, he does not respect more sensible opinion than his, or her, own (notice I didn't 'slang' you with 'dude' as I do not know if you are an 'dude' or 'dudess'. ;) ).

Wrong day to 'nit-pick' (figure that one out).
rawdog 14 Oct 2007 19:27
12/15
160 not big deal memory wise easy to acquire more gigs ,extra USB is kool though
vault 13 15 Oct 2007 05:37
13/15
DoctorDee wrote:
haritori wrote:
if they can get all this packaged neatly in a under £450.00 Price tag it would be mighty tempting for those Visual Entertainment type guys with PS3 compatabiltiy to boot!?

If they had PVR features and a BluRay recorder in there and sold it for £599 or less, I'd buy it.

But like any other manufacturer, they face the problem that in the UK at least, Sky has the market (for now at least. BT, Virgin, Tiscali and a host of IPTV providers are trying to fight back!) and doesn't make its encryption available to to CI cards. So no vendor can sell a PVR that works well with Sky (by offering easy programming and channel control).

I personally think the government should force Sky to make a CI compatible decoder available, so we could have choice of what hardware to use.



Oh you silly English folk. Over here in the states, we have things like Directv and CableCards and a band called Nickelback, which sucks by the way. I guess our Goliath (Directv) is your Sky TV. But local cable is still prevalent, and CableCards are somewhat available with limited features. Do you guys have TiVo over there? TiVo rules...
DoctorDee 15 Oct 2007 06:55
14/15
vault 13 wrote:
Oh you silly English folk. Over here in the states, we have things like Directv and CableCards and a band called Nickelback, which sucks by the way. I guess our Goliath (Directv) is your Sky TV. But local cable is still prevalent, and CableCards are somewhat available with limited features. Do you guys have TiVo over there? TiVo rules...

We have Cable - it's what I use. But Sky Satellite TV is prevalent. It had a competitor once, in ITV's On-digital Terrestrial Digital TV, but (allegedly) Sky paid someone to hack their encryption and release it onto the Internet, making them very popular for about three months before they went bust.

We HAD TiVo - but the distributor for it was Sky, and given that TiVo cannot work elegantly with Sky's system, Sky simply launched a (vastly inferior) competitor called Sky+. TiVo was then discontinued over here.

Sky is majority owned by Rupert Murdoch, he is an anti-competitive, neo conservative who does not pay taxes, and who gave up his Australian citizenship to become an American because of the laws over there preventing him owning swathes of the US media landscape if he was not American. Murdoch owns 38% of DirectTV. Though last year, he called it a "turd bird" because of Satellite's inability to offer Telephone/Broadband/TV packages. In England, he has been buying potential IPTV providers.

Thanks to MTV, despite Nickelback being YOUR problem, we have to tolerate them too. But Bush, Bush were ours. And U2 too. Sorry!
vault 13 16 Oct 2007 06:29
15/15
We forgive you for U2, but the fact remains now that Rupert Murdock is an even bigger prick than I evr imagined. At least Ted Turner isn't as big as one. Hell he's a saint comparitively.
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