Sony's PlayStation 3 will require a hard disk drive, the consumer electronics giant revealed today. It indicated the console would ship with a 60GB 2.5in drive and that it would be upgradeable, suggesting the unit is removable - much like the Xbox 360's HDD.

That said, it isn't clear whether the PS3 will ship with an HDD. While Sony trotted out a list of reasons why the next-generation console needs such a storage device - it will "enhance game play", provide the basis for a "powerful network platform", enable "full internet access", allow the console to operate as a "home server" and, interestingly, let it run Linux - it doesn't appear to have said it will include one in the box.

More likely, it will do what Microsoft did and offer the HDD as an add-on, and bundle it in a 'premium' package. Consumers after a PS3 simply to run some games will be able to pick up a cheaper, HDD-less version, and that should help Sony increase take-up of the machine. ®