PS3 SKUs compared, no PS2 backwards compatibility found

It's been at least an hour since Sony has released a new PlayStation 3 SKU, so our friends at Joystiq took the time to take a breath. In that moment, they came up with a handy -- and somewhat startling -- chart that explains which PS3 model has what, including Cell chip size (the more efficient and quieter 65nm vs the older 90nm), USB port count, pack-in freebies, and which ones have PS2 backwards compatibility. It's charts like that that remind us that no currently-shipping PS3 comes with HD video cables or PS2 backward compatibility, for better or worse. Hit the read link for the breakdown, and start your fanboy engines.

[Via: Engadget ]

Sony's PlayTV DVR for PlayStation 3 gets unboxed

Time flies when you're having fun, but not when you're waiting anxiously for a new piece of kit -- particularly one that has been delayed numerous times. For Europeans waiting on pins and needles for the release of the PlayTV DVR for PlayStation 3, your time has arrived. Before rushing out to get one, however, might we interest you a short unboxing and a brief overview? No pressure whatsoever, though.

[Via: Engadget ]

Sony reveals Uncharted: Drake's Fortune 160GB PlayStation 3, starts shipping new 80GB model

Well, color us surprised! Here we have yet another "limited edition" PlayStation 3 bundle, this time with Uncharted: Drake's Fortune packed in alongside a PlayStation Network voucher for PAIN, a DualShock 3 wireless controller and... a 160GB PS3 console? Yep, Sony's formally introducing us to the new king, which will start shipping to North America this November in the aforementioned kit for $499.99. Curiously, there's no word as to whether it'll be released separate from the bundle (we're guessing yes), and there's no mention of PS2 backwards compatibility (so don't count on it). In related news, the "new" $399.99 80GB version is finally shipping to retailers, so you should be able to snap one up in the very, very near future.

[Via: Engadget ]

Sony gets official with PSP-3000

It's not like Sony could really keep this thing under wraps for much longer, but the company finally did the deed by announcing the PSP-3000 at the Leipzig Games Convention. The unit itself will look exactly like the PSP-2000, though it will feature an "improved screen that's better outside with no glare and a built-in mic." The juicy tidbits have yet to surface, but we are told to expect the new handheld in Europe for €199 ($291) on October 15th.
[Via: Engadget ]

Nintendo's Wiimote tapped for patent infringement by Hillcrest Labs

Nintendo just can't seem to keep its nose out of patent troubles, with its highly successful Wii now the target of a new patent lawsuit from Hillcrest Labs, which claims that its patents for "a handheld three-dimensional pointing device" and the gloriously vague "navigation interface display system that graphically organizes content for display on a television" which apparently predate Nintendo's own. At least we're not dealing with a complete patent troll here: Hillcrest Labs does have a product based on its technology, called The Loop remote (pictured left), based on what it calls "Freespace" motion control technology. It's fairly clear Freespace is a much different beast than the Wiimote, and we'd like to believe something so vague as a handheld 3D pointing device (a very un-new concept) isn't enough to best Nintendo in a court of law, but naturally Hillcrest is requesting Nintendo stop shipping Wiis to the States (that shouldn't be hard, huh Nintendo? Yuk, yuk.) and reward Hillcrest with unspecified monetary damages.

[Via: Engadget ]

HYDRA System Lets "Vastly Different" Video Cards Work, Play Together [Pc Gaming]

Lucid's HYDRA GPU pairing technology could soon allow PC builders to incorporate multiple video cards that - hear this, ATI and Nvidia - don't have to be identical. What this potentially means, among other things, is that gamers could leverage old hardware instead of just sadly setting it aside, though paired cards must be of the same brand. HYDRA differs functionally from Nvidia's SLI and ATI's Crossfire solutions, which split rendering by sectioning off the screen and alternating frames between cards, respectively, by intelligently distributing highly specific rendering tasks between the GPUs. Instead of divvying up all the tasks equally, HYDRA will only send as many polygons or shader calls as each constituent card can handle (see right of the above pic for an example of what one of two cards might be rendering). The most irritating aspects of current twin-card configurations (well, aside from the fact that you had to buy two cards in the first place) are the high cost and disappointingly low performance gains. HYDRA, which Lucid claims could scale to up to handle four unique GPUs, could remedy both of these issues if it ever comes to market. The company says it'll be soon, but that's as specific as they're getting for now. Visual learners can check out a detailed diagram of the system below. [PcPer via Slashdot]

[Via: Gizmodo, The Gadget Blog ]

Retro Space arcade cabinet dispenses with (most of) the throwback formalities

Yeah, we get it, those arcade glory years were indeed glorious, but we're a bit past the point of needing a retro cabinet at home large enough to house an entire army of quarter gremlins just to rock a bit of MAME standing up. Retro Space chucks the cabinet chubbiness, keeps all those mashy buttons, robust joysticks and spinny white ball things we know and love, and adds in a full-powered PC and a 24-inch 1920 x 1200 LCD. It's a tad bit boxy, but we'll probably manage to overlook that for another decade or two. No word on price, but expect something in the two or three thousand dollar range.

[Via: Boing Boing Gadgets ]

Xbox 360 leaps past PS3 in weekly Japanese console sales

It looks like the week ending August 10th brought a bit of a surprise to the sometimes predictable Japanese hardware sales charts, as the just released numbers have now revealed that the Xbox 360 has shot past the PlayStation 3, and by a wide margin no less. All told, Microsoft moved some 24,962 units during the week, compared to just 9,673 PS3s sold -- a number that, by all accounts, is largely due to the release of the 360-exclusive Tales of Vesperia game, which itself sold over 100,000 copies. That still leaves the Xbox 360 well behind the Wii, however, with it moving an impressive 38,506 units during the same time period, although that was a dip of more than 6% from the previous week. In related news, the DS Lite regained its slight lead over the PSP, with it moving 60,434 units compared to the PSP's 58,501, and Joystiq took a not-to-be-missed dip into the Bizarro world for it's always insightful account of the week's events -- you can check it out at the link below.

[Via: Joystiq ]

Wii Sqweeze: yet another limited-use Wiimote peripheral

A Wii Wheel for racing? Fine. A club attachment for golfing. Eh, okay. InterAction Laboratories' Wii Sqweeze? Puh-lease. Recently "demonstrated" by CEO Greg Merril, this goofball peripheral possesses a pair of rubber handles which "allow for shoulder abduction and adduction." Reportedly, the unit was shown off playing some sort of bow hunting game on a PC, though the company promises native Wii compatibility before its 2009 launch. Can we get a show of hands from people who'd actually buy this thing for more than $4.99? Don't make us phone in the quick-lipped auctioneer.

[Via: Engadget ]

Sony's mylo 2 magically transforms from 'Personal Communicator' to 'Internet Device'

According to hot, hot reports from the interblogs, interwebs, and yes -- internets -- Sony has made some shocking changes to its mylo 2. Did we say shocking? We meant not shocking. At all. Apparently in an attempt to re-market (and thusly sell) the odd little handheld, the company has begun branding the gadget an "Internet Device" as opposed to its previous (circa 2006) title of "Personal Communicator." We're all for the new convention (we love the hell out of new names) but it remains to be seen what kind of effect, if any, it will have on the gadget's not-so-hot sales. The next step? Lose the Spider-Man font.
[Thanks, Penny]

[Via: Engadget ]

Supercomputer Huygens beats Go professional: no one is safe

You know how Go nerds are always going on about how magical they are since supercomputer AI hasn't yet cracked the ancient board game, and rarely beats even an average Go player? No? Maybe those are just our nerdy friends. Well, those folks can wipe the smug grins off their faces as they're faced with the sobering reality of defeat: Dutch supercomputer "Huygens" has defeated a human Go professional in an official match at the 24th Annual Congress of the game Go in Portland, Oregon. The newly-minted supercomputer was aided by the recently-developed Monte-Carlo Tree Search algorithm, a whopping 60 teraflops of processing power and a considerable 9 stone handicap. Poor Kim MyungWan -- who managed to beat the computer in three "blitz" games leading up to the actual match, and probably won't be hanging up his Go hat just yet -- didn't stand a chance.

[Via: Tech Digest ]

Rock Band 2 Xbox 360 bundle delayed until October 19, according to sources

Buh. So, this is getting confusing. According to sources over at ShackNews, the Rock Band 2 Special Edition bundle that was originally set to launch on September 14 exclusively on Xbox 360 will hit stores on October 19. For you fanboys keeping score, that's the same date that the game will hit for other consoles. It's still not clear if the game and instruments will still show up on retail shelves on September 14, but if you were looking to get your groove on in September, you may want to chill.

[Via: Crunchgear ]

PhysX and CUDA Apps for GeForce 8, 9 and 200 Series Graphics Cards Are Live [Nvidia]

Rumors of imminent high fail rates notwithstanding, today's a pretty good day to own any GeForce 8 series or higher desktop graphics card, since they all get PhysX support with a free download (three PhysX-juiced UT3 maps are free too). Also tapping the CUDA goodness is badaboom, an insanely fast video transcoder, Folding@Home and a couple of tech demos—Nvidia showed me the Fluids demo on a GTX 280, and it was pretty neat. I'm snagging this stuff right now, actually. [Nvidia]

[Via: Gizmodo, The Gadget Blog ]

Underlying MotionPlus tech isn't a Nintendo exclusive

How very interesting. InvenSense, which is licensing its motion-sensing MEMS technology to Nintendo for that new MotionPlus add-on, has now stated that its Nintendo partnership is "not an exclusive relationship." InvenSense won't let slip exactly who else is courting them for the tech, but we have to think the usual suspects (Microsoft, Sony) are at least giving the gyroscopic technology a passing glance. Of course, InvenSense might be looking to folks outside the gaming space as well, and there's no guarantee Microsoft and Sony would even try for a Wiimote killer this generation, but if the Big Three don't all have robust motion-sensing controls of some sort ready by the time the next generation rolls around, it certainly won't be InvenSense's fault.

[Via: GamesIndustry.biz ]

How to apply for the US and European PlayStation Home betas

Simple, really. In the US (and yes, Canada), download the PlayStation Home theme from the PlayStation Store and you're essentially submitting your application to be an early tester for PlayStation Home's closed beta set to kick off at the end of the month. In Europe, the PlayStation Home beta selects you. Er, we mean that there's nothing extra for you to do since you've done it already -- SCEE will be selecting (check your eMail) its most active users on the PlayStation Network and PlayStation Store. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

[Via: Engadget ]

DeepNote Guitar Hero bot reveals its secrets on video

Don't even try to deny it -- you've been holding one mean grudge against that ridiculously accurate DeepNote bot ever since you saw it dominate Guitar Hero in mid-July. Really though, all that pent up aggression is completely unnecessary, and if you've been fruitlessly aiming to concoct one of your own, we've found the perfect place to start. The video posted up after the jump gives a fantastic overview of how the device actually works, and while it's far (very far) from simple, it's nothing the seasoned DIYer couldn't handle on an extended weekend. Give it a look if you're head over heels for PCBs and flashing LEDs (oh, and shameless rock 'n roll).

[Via: Engadget ]

ASUS gets official with Eee Stick

ASUS has hardly been keeping this one a secret, but the company has only just now finally gotten completely official with its Eee Stick gaming controller, and it's taken the opportunity to drop a few new details about it. That includes word that the device will be "bundled exclusively" with "certain models" of the Eee PC and Eee Box (which doesn't exactly narrow things down), and that it'll come with a collection of games that have been designed specifically for it (we're not getting our hopes up there). Otherwise, ASUS has confirmed that the device operates on the 2.4GHz frequency, which could be interesting depending on what other wireless devices you have nearby, and that each stick will require a pair of AA batteries, which ASUS says will give you three days of continuous use, and no doubt a good deal longer if you want to avoid a trip to the hospital.

[Via: Shiny Shiny ]

Quake on iPhone Comes to Cydia Installer [Quake]

That Quake game for the iPhone we wrote about a few months back has made it onto Cydia, the jailbreak application repository. Just Another iPhone Blog says it's not too slow and it doesn't make use of the accelerometer (so it's probably not the version we wrote about before), but it does play fairly well. Seeing as it's not the one we wrote about before, we're not sure if it's even networked, but c'mon, Quake on iPhone! [Just Another iPhone Blog]

[Via: Gizmodo, The Gadget Blog ]

Intel discusses ATI and Nvidia killing Larrabee, launching as early as 2009

While Intel's Larrabee might not be a household name for consumers just yet, it's certainly at the table where Nvidia and AMD/ATI eat. The many-core (8 to 48, at least, according to that Intel graphic) x86 chip runs all your existing apps while tossing in support for OpenGL and DirectX thus eliminating the need for a discrete graphics chip. At least that's the plan. While the exact number of cores remains a secret as does the performance of each core compared to current GPUs, given the importance Intel places on Larrabee, it's reasonable to assume that an 8-core chip will launch in 2009 or 2010 with comparable performance to GPUs on the market at that time. Intel does say that Larrabee cores will scale "almost linearly" (read: within 10%) in games; that means that a 16-core chip will offer nearly twice the performance of an 8-core chip, 32-cores twice that of 16, and so on. Apparently this has already been proven in-house with Intel name-dropping Larrabee-coded titles such as Gears of War, FEAR, and Half-Life 2, Episode 2. It's no coincidence then to hear that Intel's first Larrabee product will target PC gamers. Click through if you're just dying to read about Larrabee's 1024 bits-wide bi-directional ring network and other bits of technical wonderment sure to create at least the hint of a silicon malaise.

[Via: CNET ]

Exclusive Lego Universe Video Offers Game's First Glimpse [Exclusive Peek Into Lego Universe]

Lego Universe developer NetDevil has given us an exclusive peek into Lego Universe, the massive multiplayer online game where you can use bricks to collaboratively "build in real time", having adventures through maps that span across all Lego themes: from Space to City to Pirates to Ninjas to Underwater, everything will be in there. After creating the game tools, the game is now in the world design stage, where advanced Lego users are helping NetDevil to create the actual worlds. This video was recorded in NetDevil's second Lego Universe Project event. According to Scott Brown, NetDevil's president, in the first LUP event they asked these Lego users to give them an idea of what the game should be like, which of course resulted in them building hundreds of actual Lego models of monsters, places, and all kinds of devices, machinery, and vehicles. After that session, NetDevil started to program the software tools and the models needed to design Lego Universe terrains and structures. Now, in the second LUP event, they have trained those Lego people on the tools themselves, which they are using to create the virtual worlds. Apparently, NetDevil is very impressed by how fast these people—who in their day jobs are mostly engineers—got into the tools after just a three-hour class. Hopefuly that means things are progressing fast and we will see this game—which seems to have great potential—sooner than later.

[Via: Gizmodo, The Gadget Blog ]

Life with PlayStation coming this month, not last

So, July ended without the launch of Life with PlayStation as promised during the E3 keynote. The delay is due to "a few procedural matters" causing the launch to push into "August." That means either today or more likely, nearer the 31st, PS3 users will get their hands on Sony's new globe interface for accessing real-time content such as news and weather from around the world. Hoozah?

[Via: Engadget ]

Hacker stuffs a wired 360 controller in a DualShock 3 shell

Console modders out there have been doing crazy things with controllers for a while now, and while this latest piece isn't as crazy as the one-handed Access Controller, it's still good for a double-take -- check out this wired 360 controller shoehorned into a DualShock3 shell, complete with green LEDs. THe modder, RDC, says it works great, rumble included, but that there's no headset connector and the L2 and R2 triggers aren't analog -- both things he's hoping to fix in the next version. We'd suggest keeping the DS3 buttons as well -- while the colorful 360 buttons look pretty hot against that black case, we'd rather break this thing out and blow minds stealth-style.

[Via: Engadget ]

60GB Xbox 360 now shipping from Amazon

A few 60GB Xbox 360s may have already slipped out to retailers (as evidenced above), but if you're not interested in running around trying to track one down, you can now snag one from Amazon and rest assured that it'll ship out post haste. If you've been following this SKU's every move, you'll notice that's a few days ahead of the August 4th date that Amazon once listed, and the August 6th date that Circuit City still does -- but hey, we're not complaining.
[Via: Engadget ]