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The PlayStation Phone

engadget.com

41–50 of 68 posts

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#41
Oh god, the horror. Somehow they've managed to make something that looks worse and less intuitive than a PSP Go, a handheld console that managed to take everything right about the PSP and completely screw it up.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#42
post #26

Sony has trailed in digital music, online video, and casual/social gaming. I'm glad that Sony is trying something different to get ahead of the curve as portable gaming converges with smartphones. There are several reasons, however, why I think this device may struggle in the market. For instance, who is the target market? Kids and teen gamers who buy a PSP or DS (I assume parents often pay) or young adults that curr…

Perhaps there will be a WiFi-only version for the kids. Although I'm seeing younger and younger children get not just mobile phones but data plans as well. I think the phone's success depends greatly on how well Sony can leverage its game catalog. Unfortunately Sony has proven fairly incapable of exploiting it on the PS3. Nintendo is really missing the boat by not making a Nintendo DS Phone. A DS with even the most b…

WiFi only version already exists - it's called a PSP.

I doubt Nintendo would do that due to their business model - which is to make profit on every hardware unit sold. If they added all those features and had to do deals with carriers etc, I doubt they could make a profit on their hardware.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#44
post #27

I am puzzled as to why the choice of Android was made (assuming it's true). A company with Sony's background would seem to have the requisite OS experience, and one would they would have learned from the recent lessons of why control over your OS is a good thing.

1) Sony uses open source, they do like it. PS2 and PS3 could run Linux. 2) Sony-Ericsson already makes the Xperia line of Android phones. The Playstation phone is the same thing, with buttons. 3) Sony has another strategic partnership with Google Android in its new line of Google TV enabled televisions and Blu-ray players.

I don't agree with the first point. You can run Linux on almost anything. Sony recently dropped and deliberately blocked Linux support on PS3.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#45
post #27

I am puzzled as to why the choice of Android was made (assuming it's true). A company with Sony's background would seem to have the requisite OS experience, and one would they would have learned from the recent lessons of why control over your OS is a good thing.

1) Sony uses open source, they do like it. PS2 and PS3 could run Linux. 2) Sony-Ericsson already makes the Xperia line of Android phones. The Playstation phone is the same thing, with buttons. 3) Sony has another strategic partnership with Google Android in its new line of Google TV enabled televisions and Blu-ray players.

PS2 Linux support was a massive joke -- they forced linux development to be perfectly orthogonal to the rest of the system, and I don't think anything that separates the PS2 from the typical desktop made it into open source (i.e., GPU drivers, and so on).

PS3 Linux support was retroactively revoked via firmwear update mere months after launch.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#46
post #29
post #19

> For Sony buffs, you'll be interested to know that there's no Memory Stick slot here, but there is support for microSD cards. I... I think I'm going to cry... I never thought I'd live to see the day Sony gave up on their #*@^ing memory sticks...

It boggles the mind how much economic rent and inefficiency is gotten through pointlessly proprietary formats.

however, if they get traction they can win big time in profits and vendor lock-in.

i agree with you, however.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1) Sony uses open source, they do like it. PS2 and PS3 could run Linux. 2) Sony-Ericsson already makes the Xperia line of Android phones. The Playstation phone is the same thing, with buttons. 3) Sony has another strategic partnership with Google Android in its new line of Google TV enabled televisions and Blu-ray players.

PS2 Linux support was a massive joke -- they forced linux development to be perfectly orthogonal to the rest of the system, and I don't think anything that separates the PS2 from the typical desktop made it into open source (i.e., GPU drivers, and so on). PS3 Linux support was retroactively revoked via firmwear update mere months after launch.

"mere months"? I had my PS3 for over two years before Sony pulled the plug on OtherOS support, and I didn't even buy my PS3 at launch...

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#48
post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perhaps there will be a WiFi-only version for the kids. Although I'm seeing younger and younger children get not just mobile phones but data plans as well. I think the phone's success depends greatly on how well Sony can leverage its game catalog. Unfortunately Sony has proven fairly incapable of exploiting it on the PS3. Nintendo is really missing the boat by not making a Nintendo DS Phone. A DS with even the most b…

WiFi only version already exists - it's called a PSP. I doubt Nintendo would do that due to their business model - which is to make profit on every hardware unit sold. If they added all those features and had to do deals with carriers etc, I doubt they could make a profit on their hardware.

You make it sound like it would be prohibitively expensive to add a cellular antenna to something. A DSi today costs $150 on which they presumably make a profit.

Cell phones typically cost $200 and come with hundreds in carrier subsidies. If you bought one straight up it would cost $400 to $600. Considering Nintendo makes money on $150, they could increase the cost to $250 to add "all those features" and the DS phone would still be free up front after carrier subsidies.

I'm not sure what business you think cell phones makers are in. They only make money by selling hardware so of course each unit needs to be profitable.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#49
post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It boggles the mind how much economic rent and inefficiency is gotten through pointlessly proprietary formats.

however, if they get traction they can win big time in profits and vendor lock-in. i agree with you, however.

Vendor lock-in is a form of economic rent.

Re: The PlayStation Phone

#50
post #2

Android emulator development should pick up real fast after this is released...

Funny how we make all this progress and pack a ridiculous amount of processing power in a handheld device, only to then put in a bunch of extra effort just so we can play Super Mario World on yet another device.

Yes, though the new Super Mario Bros. Wii is surprisingly good, and not just a copy of Super Mario World.
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