Hint of next PS3 spied on web
FCC website gives tantalising glimpse... sort of
Whether it's the rumoured 40GB cut-down model or not, there does appear to be a further Sony PlayStation 3 console in the works. The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) website currently lists a PS3 with the model number CECHG01 and its certification as a 'good neighbour' wireless device.
Sony's US 60GB and 80GB PS3s have the model numbers CECHA01 and CECHE01/CECHF01, respectively. The now defunct 20GB version had the model number CECHB01. The European 60GB PS3 is CECHC01, we understand, with CECHD01 the code for European 20BG model that, ultimately, was never released.
So CECHG01 is next in the sequence. Of course, it could be a planned European 80GB console, but if that's the case, why is the US FCC evaluating it?
Sony smartly requested that the FCC withhold pictures and other details of the tested device, so we're left with nothing to go on beyond the rumoured 40GB hard drive.
Over here, Sony claimed the rumours were nothing but rumours - neither a confirmation nor a denial, and the company's usual comment when details of a real product have leaked out.
There's no doubt a 40GB model would be a little cheaper than the current 60GB PS3, but knocking 20GB off the hard drive capacity wouldn't inherently allow Sony to get the console's price down to £300 and certainly not £200.
Some folk have speculated that Sony might be about to drop the Blu-ray Disc drive from the low-end product, which could have a big impact on pricing. But that seems unlikely given Sony's keenness to use the console to drive take-up of the next-gen video disc format.
COMMENTS
I really can't see
this helping sony one jot unless the price is significantly reduced. I currently want to buy a ps3 in its current incarnation, I don't want a reduced feature set, what I want is to not pay more for my machine than the americans or at least to have the price of the existing spec slashed. until this happens i won't buy a ps3.
About Time....
I used to have Xbox 360, but the red lights problem made me give it up. I want a PS3, but the pricing is a real issue. Sony have a excellent product, and if they could release a model for around 179 to max 259 , with a game. Would make me wanna buy it, Xbox 360 is still tempting me with Halo 3, but why by a console for one game. I will wait for Halo 3 to come out on the PC
You can't remove the Blu-Ray drive...
...that's what the games come on!
Has no one else realised that?
Next for PS3?
Highlander - I didn't meen to single out Sony as the reason that we don't have a standard hi def dvd format. Just making the point that we don't have one. Since I was not in on the meetings I don't know the real reasons for the fallout. I remember last year that Sony and Toshiba were discussing it and it sounded like we would get away without a format war but then it fell apart. There are many rumors as to why it happened but that isn't the focus of this article.
Sony may be removing the hardware chips that was the core of the initial backward compatibilty with little impact to anyone. They have already established a software emulation engine to perform backward compatability as well as removed the chip from the Euro versions so I don't see how that will effect anyone (slightly less compatible I know but not 0 either)
Die shrinks and re-engineering are two of the biggest reductions in cost that can be done. It is very possible that they will be shrinking the die as soon as they can in order to reduce the loss they are incurring from each PS3 sale. Even with a die shrink I think that the case will remain about the same. The smaller chips would reduce heat output which would reduce the space required but until they can passively cool both chips I suspect they will stay with the same case design. At the time when all the components can be passively cooled we may see a much smaller case.
I would also imagine that the hard drive will not be switched to a 3.5" drive simply for the cost savings. At the quantities that Sony purchases drives I don't think there is as large a difference and most 3.5" drives manufactured spin faster and consume more power then 2.5" drives.
I suppose that with a die shrink reducing the heat from the cpu/gpu you would have the thermal envelope to change to a more power hungry drive but then you lose some of the space savings. Remember that the 3.5" drives aren't just wider but they are thicker too.
My guess is that the new model number is nothing new at all. 80gig drive for Europe or maybe a 120/160gig drive for the US but nothing majorly new.
I am predicting we have a different board layout, more unified bridge chip and maybe a RSX die shrink... nothing to see... nothing to cry home about.
We've all said it now.
I know they don't want anyone to have a complete Tourettes moment in the comments section, but the moderation makes us all sound like a bunch of idiots. It looks like there are no comments on an article, so you chip in with your little "but the games won't work" line, only to find when you look back later that 15 people already said that, and it wasn't really worth you bothering... can't El Reg just report comments with swearing, or blatently offensive language for human moderation, instead of all of them?
