Japan's Nikkan is reporting that Sony and Toshiba will begin mass production of the 45nm Cell processor in 2009 -- not this autumn as previously rumored. The smaller chip which cost less than the current 65nm Cell to manufacture also require 40% less power to run. This opens the door to possible price drops on existing PS3 consoles in 2009 as well as slimmer, cooler running rigs should Sony decide to refresh the industrial design.

We've already seen the PlayStation 3 put to use for some non-gaming tasks (other than playing Blu-ray movies), and it now looks like the U.S. Air Force is aiming to get in on the act as well, with it recently putting out a so-called Request for Proposal that is seeking 300 PS3s for a "technology assessment." Needless to say, their primary interest is in the console's powerful Cell processor, which they say is the "only brand on the market that utilizes the specific cell processor characteristics needed for this program at an acceptable cost." Exactly what that program entails is unsurprisingly being kept under wraps, with the RFP only going so far to state that the Air Force Research Laboratory is "conducting a technology assessment of certain cell processors." Whatever it is, the Air Force certainly seems to be trying to keep costs as low as possible, with them apparently only interested in the 40GB model.

[Via Switched]

So much for their earlier denial, eh? An anonymous Sony official has "confirmed" to Japan's Nikkei that they will sell their advanced computer chip operations to Toshiba in an effort to re-focus on core business. The official announcement is expected later today. The sale gives Toshiba the manufacturing responsibility for the much hyped Cell processor used in Sony's PS3. Sony, of course, will continue to invest in the Cell chip. Nikkei says the deal is worth some ¥100 billion (about $858 million) and should be completed by March.

Update: it's official.

[Thanks, Alex]

Oh boy, another patent lawsuit filed in that litigious folly called the Texas court system. This time, the suit pits Parallel Processing Corporation of Newport Beach, California against that legal whipping boy, Sony. PPC alleges that Sony's Cell processor -- the horsepower inside the PS3 -- violates a patent for "synchronized parallel processing with shared memory." Filed on July 26th, the five-page complaint by PPC states that Sony's actions are causing "irreparable harm and monetary damage" to the company and are therefore seeking the usual: compensation for damages (with interest) as well as the impounding and destruction of all Sony products infringing on the patent. Good times.

[Via gi]

Where is Sony landing those PS3s? Kitchens? The rivalry between Sony and Toshiba has been quite the visible one of late in the HD movies space, with Sony backing up Blu-ray and Toshiba firmly ensconced behind its HD DVD format, so it's easy to forget that the two companies recently partnered with IBM to build that much-ballyhooed Cell processor which Sony has powering its new PS3. Neither company has specified exact plans for the chip beyond Sony's obvious gaming push, but both are racing to squeeze Cell into home entertainment products, with the first likely to hit in 2008. When asked recently if Toshiba would have Cell-based consumer products to market first, Toshiba digital media CEO, Yoshihide Fujii, responded with an emphatic "yes," apparently forgetting the fact that Sony has been shipping just such a product for about a month now. According to Sony, "The first priority is the PlayStation and nothing beyond that has been decided yet," so it makes sense that Toshiba will get a jump on them in the non-gaming space, but either way we're excited to see what these two Tokyo-based tech giants will have in store for us in 2008 with that ultra-touted power under the hood.

Looks like all the bellyaching over the price of Sony's PlayStation 3 has done some good. Sony exec Ken Kutaragi just sent jaws to the floor over at Tokyo Game Show with an announced price cut of the 20GB PS3 base unit from ¥62,790 to ¥49,980 in Japan. Closer to home, we'd be looking at a move from about $538 to $428 (looking at current exchange rates) representing a drop of some 20% when the PS3 hits later this year, or uh, early next if the cut applies across the board. Not exactly cheap when looking at the Wii or Xbox 360, but that Cell processor, Blu-ray Disc player, and HDMI 1.3 output supporting Deep Color will certainly draw a premium. Yeah, you read that correctly, Ken announced HDMI support too, making the 20GB PS3 one fine Hi-Def movie machine on the cheap. Hoozah!

Update: Price reduction confirmed for Japan only. Waiting on rest-of-world price cuts, if any.

[Thanks, Kherlen and everyone who sent this in]

One reason there's so much fuss (and delay) over the upcoming PlayStation 3 platform is the fact that it sports those new Cell processors jointly developed with Sony and Toshiba. Now those Cell procs are about to find themselves pumping away at the heart of a new $35 million supercomputer for Los Alamos National Laboratory. But this won't be just supercomputer mind you, IBM is hoping to reclaim the title of the world's fastest once completed in 2007. Dubbed Roadrunner, ACME IBM plans to jump from 280-teraflops to a full petaflop performance by combining AMD Opteron blade servers and Cell-based accelerator systems. A performance threshold achieved earlier this year by NEC's MDGrape-3, the supercomputer behind new pharmaceutical drugs and the curious taste and powerful punch of Mad Dog's 20/20 Red Grape Malt beverage. Mmm, grape.