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Sony tried including PlayStation 4 Eye camera at $399, may include in future bundles
The $100 difference between the Xbox One's $500 launch price and the PlayStation 4's $400 launch price comes down to Sony's PlayStation 4 Eye: the motion and voice-sensing peripheral that acts very much like Microsoft's Kinect. Apparently Sony intended on including the Eye with its PS4 at launch this November, but word came from on high at Sony Computer Entertainment that the console needed to keep its $400 asking price and not lose "too much" in the process (the console, at $400, is being sold at a loss). SCE president and group CEO Andrew House doesn't see the Eye's exclusion as an issue for PlayStation, though, as he told Business Spectator, "the vast majority of the audience that we speak to tells us that their primary wish is for the full controller interface and there's not necessarily a huge emphasis being placed on camera interaction." House said he could see SCE "adjust messaging" on the Eye in due time, but it remains to be seen how much users demand the Eye as part of the PS4 hardware bundle. Somewhat bizarrely, the console comes with a copy of PS4 tech demo The Playroom, much of which employes the Eye (see a lengthy walkthrough in video form below). Regardless, the difference in strategy here is one major distinction between two game consoles that are, in many ways, extremely similar. Microsoft's taken an "all-in" approach with its new version of Kinect, risking a higher initial price for the ubiquity that including Kinect brings. Considering the company sold over 24 million of its standalone motion-sensing camera on Xbox 360, we're anxious to see what including Kinect in the box will mean for Xbox One sales.
Sony's PlayStation 4 Eye is a $59 add-on, PS4 packs an upgradable 500GB HDD inside (updated)
While the US press release for the PlayStation 4 mentioned details about games, used games and pricing, it did not confirm all of the specs for the console. In Japan however, a more detailed press release clears up a few things. Sony's console is packing a 500GB hard drive (same as the Xbox One), and it will not include the camera module, which is a $59 (£44 and €49) add-on for the $399 box. By comparison, the Xbox One includes -- and requires for its use -- the Kinect 2.0 camera. (Update: Sony's confirmed that the PS4's hard drive is upgradable.) A Best Buy listing confirms the PlayStation 4 Eye's add-on status and pricing, and that an extra DualShock 4 controller will also go for $59. We've double checked with Sony and confirmed that the system comes with a controller and mono earpiece plus HDMI, USB and power cords -- but no camera. The spec sheet also confirms the system's dimensions at 275 x 53 x 305mm (excluding the largest projection), its ports (HDMI and optical out, 2 USB 3.0 in and 1 AUX in for use with the camera) and that a single ear mono headset is packed in with the system. That controller weighs in at 210g, includes a 1000mAh battery and one other detail some may have missed -- a built-in mono speaker. There are details specs for the camera too, which is capable of a maximum 1280 x 800 (x2) pixel capture at 60fps, 640 x 400 at 120fps, or 320 x 192 at 240fps. It has an 85 degree FOV and a 2 meter cable to connect to the system. Want to do more digging into the specs and learn about the design of the PS4? Check out the PDF linked below. [Thanks, Matthew] Follow all of our E3 2013 coverage at our event hub.
Sony's PlayStation 4 DualShock 4 controller and Eye found at GDC 2013, we go eyes-on
Sony's next-gen console, the PlayStation 4, is getting an updated DualShock controller when it arrives at retail this holiday. It's also getting an updated PlayStation Eye camera, which brings the camera much more in line with Microsoft's Kinect than any previous versions. We found the PS4 peripherals trapped under a glass box on the Game Developers Conference show floor, and Sony sadly wouldn't let us free them. We of course snapped a mess of pictures regardless, which you can see just below in the gallery. We anticipate the first hands-on opportunity with the DualShock 4 and PS4 Eye at E3 2013 in June, so hang tight for a few months!
PS4 Eye promises to unlock your PlayStation at a glance, tips hat to Kinect
Just finished watching Sony's "see the future" of PlayStation event? We hope you didn't blink, you might have missed a quick reveal of the next PlayStation Eye The optical sensor was overshadowed by the reveal of the DualShock 4, but it's nothing to scoff at -- the second generation Eye features two 1280 x 800 cameras, four microphones and an 85-degree field of view. Put together, the setup promises facial recognition, player positioning and depth sensing and enhanced PlayStation Move support. The Kinect-like camera is designed to work with Sony's new controller standard too, recognizing each player by the color of the DualShock 4's LED light bar. Sony says the Eye will allow the PS4 to use face login, and the collection of microphones might make voice control possible as well. No word yet if the new camera device will be a PS4 pack in or sold separately, but if you're interested in mining press releases for details, you'll find one after the break.%Gallery-179414%
KinectNUI enables Minority Report style interaction in Windows sans gloves (video)
When Microsoft released its Kinect SDK we marveled at the impact it could have on desktop interaction; sure enough, Kevin Connolly's Kinect Natural User Interface has made our geeky pipe-dreams a reality. His inspiration for project? Not surprisingly, the Minority Report UI (aka g-speak). Similar projects like MIT's hack do exist, but it's brilliant knowing that another emulation has been made rather quickly with Redmond's tools. In a brief video using the Kinect on Windows 7, he demos various ways of manipulating on-screen content with hand gestures and body tracking -- neglecting his mouse in the process. It's still a work in progress, but the results are already quite striking, so take that ancient input device and click past the break for the full demo.
TriMount turns your Wii, Kinect, and PlayStation sensors into a video game Eye of Sauron
All right, we get it. You love motion gaming. You fell so hard for your Wii that you had to run out and buy the Kinect and PlayStation Move the minute they hit stores. And now you've got a lot of sensors, but not much in the way of space atop your flatscreen. DreamGear understands your decidedly first world pain, and is offering up the TriMount, a shrine to gesture-based gaming that has slots for your Wii sensor bar, Kinect sensor, PlayStation Eye, and a clamp for attaching it to your set. The $30 setup ships August 15th, and is available now for pre-order. Until then, you're going to have to manage the old fashioned way: making a younger sibling hold up the sensor while you play Dance Central.
Kinect enabled head-tracking previewed in Forza 4 spotlight video, turns heads (video)
Ever since Johnny Chung Lee was snatched up by Microsoft's Project Natal team to work on Kinect, we've been curious to see how his Wii head-tracking skills would come to fruition on the device. This week, an Inside Xbox episode shows us how it will work with Forza 4, and the Kinect enabled head-tracking appears to run fairly smoothly compared to others we've seen (just try getting similar results on Gran Turismo 5 with a PlayStation Eye). There's no word about other titles planning to make use of this new feature, but we'll surely find out more while we're at E3 next week, and possibly get some hands heads-on time while we're at it.
Sony giving away PlayStation Move for block parties, along with completely wild freebies
Looking for a free PlayStation Move setup and a bunch of useless schwag? Too bad you didn't sign up for Sony's Ultimate Block Party. In the vein of the hilarious Windows 7 and TiVo promo giveaways of yesteryear, PlayStation's thrown a virtual bash that actually requires a modicum of interaction to properly enjoy this time. As this isn't a retail Move package, there's no traditional unboxing to be had, but soon-to-be-host Phil does show off a demo disk (with eight titles and uproarious setup guide) that we pray will be included in the final kit. Other than that, the promo box includes your standard array of party supplies -- PlayStation Move cocktail napkins, Sports Champions mini-frisbees, plastic soda can handles, and the gift that keeps on giving: a bag of Kevin Butler button badges. Because real boxers don't do Tupperware. Spot all the goodies at our source link.
Students accelerate cubicle arms race with PlayStation Eye-tracked, iPhone-guided coilgun (video)
DIY weaponry gets more lethal with each passing year; where once we were content with a simple foam missile launcher, technology has progressed such that our automated turrets now spew screwdriver bits, airsoft and paintballs. As progress forges ahead, two engineering students at the University of Arkansas have added injury to insult with this four-stage DIY coilgun. Using an Arduino microcontroller to actuate the firing mechanism and steer the monstrous wooden frame, they nimbly control the badass kit with an iDevice over WiFi, and line up targets using a repurposed PlayStation Eye webcam. While we'd of course prefer to have our phone SSH into the gun over 3G, we're not going to argue with success. We'd like to keep our lungs un-perforated, thank you very much. See it in action after the break.
Joystiq and Sony VP Scott Rohde talk PlayStation Move
So, we brought you along for the big reveal and some playtesting, and even presented you with this handy guide just in case you had any more questions. You still haven't got enough of Sony's new motion controller? You're going to want to hop on over to Joystiq for an enjoyable interview with Sony Worldwide Studios VP Scott Rohde where he gets down to brass tacks and answers questions involving the ins and outs of Move game distro, whether the preponderance of "shovelware" mini-game collections will help or hurt the platform, and the fate of the DualShock controller. It's a wild ride, indeed. So why are you still here?
PlayStation Move: everything you ever wanted to know
Sony dropped a lot of knowledge on us yesterday, at long last replacing rampant speculation with some cold hard facts -- and even a name! -- for its new PlayStation motion controller. The PlayStation Move is being described as a "platform" and a "virtual console launch" by folks at Sony, and we think they mean it, so prepare for a motion-controlled ad war later this year, as Microsoft and Sony set themselves up for a real three-way fight with Nintendo for your physical living room activity of the gaming variety. While some of the high-level Wii-like functionalities might be obvious, follow us after the break as we walk through the nitty gritty of everything we know so far about Move. %Gallery-87956%
Creepy, laughter-tracking PS3 patent has us rethinking Sony's whole PlayStation Eye strategy
Don't they know people look at these things? A recently awarded PS3 patent includes this harrowing "FIG. 2," which portrays a fictional idiot laughing at some "Crazy Inventors" programming, while the PS3 tracks Mr. Laugh's every movement and sound through the PlayStation Eye. The brooding, spiteful console could theoretically pick up on different moods like sadness, excitement, joy and boredom -- before presumably changing up action onscreen to quell that pesky uprising of "emotion" in the subject. [Via Joystiq]
Sony's EyePet beta hands-on: it's probably the most adorable thing ever
We just got a brief glimpse at the new PlayStation Eye-based augmented reality EyePet game from Sony, which is on track for a holiday release on the PS3. It's no Project Natal, but what the game lacks in gesture-based interaction (though we were able to pet and play with the little guy pretty intuitively) it makes up for in extensive adorability. You can naturally play, feed, groom and customize your pet -- even teach the thing to draw shapes and bring them to life in a sense -- but it's surprisingly fun to just watch the little dude scamper around in seemingly real space. The title will be available both as a standalone game and as a bundle with the PlayStation Eye. Check out a video of the game in an early beta state after the break, and you can find Joystiq's E3 impressions of the game here.
Sony's PlayStation Eye to gain facial recognition capabilities
It was almost two weeks ago that we first heard about the patent for Sony's PlayStation Eye-powered object motion detection, and now the company's announcing facial recognition for the console. According to Gamasutra, Kish Hirani, SCEE's Head of Developer Services, said that the facial recognition software would "detect gender and even the age of the face, separate facial features such as the nose, eyes and ears, and even detect whether you're smiling or not." This new gear will also work with the Sony Motion Controller, with the camera tracking X, Y and Z motion by using the glowing ball. Speaking at the Develop Conference in Brighton, Hirani stressed that companies won't need to develop their own tech to work with the new controllers. "If you are working with the PlayStation Eye and think there is some new tech you're going to have to develop for the motion controllers, just get in touch with us. We have a wealth of libraries available, and the chances are you won't have to develop any technology yourself." You hear that, guys? get to work![Via SlashGear]
Sony nabs patent for everyday object motion detection: the fragile glass of your TV won't know what hit it
All we've got to say is that they'd better be selling seats to the first living room demonstration of this tech when somebody gets cute and grabs a real baseball bat for a demo. Sony has filed a patent for technology using the PlayStation Eye which can detect regular objects in 3D space and file them away in a database for later use in gameplay. Naturally, the camera already does object motion detection of a sort with the blocky embedded codes on Eye of Judgement cards, but this seems to be taking that tech to a new level, and would imply that you won't necessarily need to be waggling that goofy ball-on-a-stick controller that Sony demoed at E3 for all upcoming motion control titles for the PS3. But for some reason we're sure we should be scared of whatever combination it does turn out to be. [Via Joystiq]
PS3's motion controller: force feedback, up to four per console
Sony has taken a few of its developers aside and doled out a few new morsels of info about its upcoming PlayStation 3 motion controller. Leaving the Sixaxis as the black sheep of the family, the wand supports force feedback from the get-go, and up to four of the devices can be tracked at one time. The technology can work in conjunction with PlayStation Eye's face / head tracking and built-in mic, but naturally that's gonna tax the Cell processor more. The company's reportedly considering some joint use of the motion remote and standard controller, with the example given of holding the wand as sword and DualShock 3 as shield. We're not sure if that'll somehow count additionally toward the max wand limit -- probably not, at the expense of not using the more accurate color-changing ball tracker -- but it's definitely more cost efficient for the consumer than having to pick up another remote. Tentatively launch window is still Spring 2010, which as it turns out is infinitely more than what we know about Natal's release date at this point. [Via Joystiq]
PlayStation Eye gets utility boost, hacked to work as webcam
Remember that PlayStation Eye you purchased way back when? You know, that PS peripheral you used for all of 12 minutes before shelving indefinitely? It's time to break that bad boy back out, as a detailed hack from the NUI Group shows how to convert it into a working webcam within Windows. Make no mistake, this isn't the simplest hack in the whole wide world, but the long-winded instructions ought to guide you right through. What are you waiting for? Head on down and get to work![Via PS3 Fanboy]
Hacked PlayStation Eye does desktop VR
Yeah, we know an extremely similar program using a Wiimote was shown off a little over a month ago (OMG SoNy riped of Nitendo!!), but Wiis are still pretty hard to come by -- that's why we're sure many of you will appreciate the hard work of Thomas Miller, who has created an immersive desktop VR display using a PS3 dev kit, a PlayStation Eye, and a few homemade tools. Seriously, this guy is appears to be the MacGyver of peripheral modification, only without the debonair charm of Richard Dean Anderson.It appears Miller wouldn't mind sharing this cool bit of technology with interested developers, so again we ask: How 'bout it, Sony?
PlayStation Eye hacked for desktop VR use
The Wiimote may be spurring on the majority of desktop VR hackery these days, but at least one enterprising developer seems to be aiming to change that, and he's now showing that you can do more or less the same thing with a PlayStation Eye. As with the Wiimote, you need a pair of homemade IR-equipped glasses, but you'll also need to perform a couple of minor modifications to the PS Eye itself. That all-important detail consists simply of a homemade lens cap that houses some exposed and developed film, which lets the camera receive only the infrared signals from the glasses. Pair that with some custom-made software (now available for the taking), and you'll be giving unsuspecting visitors motion sickness in no time. Head on over after the break for a peek at the setup in action.
Intel predicts camera-powered, controller-free game system
While waggling your Wii remote around provides a decent approximation of natural motion, Intel predicts a future where cameras will provide highly accurate motion data to a game system. "We imagine some future generation of [Nintendo's] Wii won't have hand controllers," Intel Chief Technology Officer Justin Rattner, told Business Week. "You just set up the cameras around the room and wave your hand like you're playing tennis."It should be noted that there's nothing in the article to indicate that Rattner has any insider info on Nintendo's plans -- more than likely he was just theorizing about what he'd like to see in a future system. Still, the idea of a camera-based 3D motion-sensing setup has incredible potential for gaming. More than the simple video transposition of the Xbox Live Vision Camera or the PlayStation Eye, a multi-camera system could model your three-dimensional movements in real time, in effect placing a digital version of you in the game. The result could revolutionize the way we play games and even how they're made -- after all, why should developers use motion captured performances when the players can provide them for themselves?Such a theoretical system would take quite a bit of processing power, though, which might explain why Intel is talking it up -- after all, they already have a chip that can perform one trillion calculations a second. The future's so bright, we're using our Wii remotes as makeshift shades.