PS3 Fanboy

There's been a lot of talk about PlayTV, but until now that's all been words. ThreeSpeech have released the above video to show you, with actual pictures and everything, how exactly PlayTV will work. It's all very simple and straight forward.

PlayTV's release date is still shrouded in mystery, though Play.com did leak a possible date and price (March 28th for £99) this has now disappeared. No doubt there will be a significant marketing push when the system is nearing its release. We're just hoping to get our hands on it as soon as possible.

UK retailer Play.com has placed a listing for the upcoming PlayTV peripheral on its website. This Europe-exclusive add-on for the PS3 will allow PS3 owners to do a number of cool things, such as:

• Record and view your favourite programmes at the same time - Play TV enables you to record both Standard Definition as well as High Definition
• Personal Video Recorder functionality - watch live TV, pause, fast forward and rewind
• Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) to show what's on, now and next - up to 7 days in advance in certain countries
• Mobile TV functionality - export content easily from PS3 HDD to PSP - watch TV on the go! Thanks to live streaming, you can watch your favourite show whilst abroad
• Channel surf with either your BD remote or your Sixaxis

The site has a March 28th release date and a £99.99 price point.

[Via PSPGadgetZ]

Brier Dudley from The Seattle Times is loving the PS3. Not as a games machine, but as an affordable media center. At $399, the upcoming 40GB PS3 will be one of the most affordable and most advanced Blu-ray players around. With its ability to play music, showcase photos, display movies, and more, the PS3 has a great chance of targeting the media savvy with its newer, cheaper model.

Sony will continue to expand upon the media functions of the PS3. According to the report, "within a month, a software upgrade will improve the PS3's interface for music stored and played through the system." However, we don't have any further specifics. Patrick Seybold from SCEA emphasizes that "we haven't made any specific announcements on upcoming firmware." Could enhanced music be a part of the now-mystical 2.0 firmware update?

It will be interesting to see what Sony plans to offer the media hungry in America. While Europe gets PVR capabilities, America has been left out. But, it appears that something will be in the works soon. "Some of that same functionality are things that we're working on here," Peter Dille, senior vice president of marketing at Sony Computer Entertainment America, told the newspaper.

[Via Joystiq]

In Leipzig today, SCEE announced PlayTV, a TV tuner and personal video recorder (PVR) for the PS3. PlayTV will be available in UK, France, Italy, Germany and Spain early in 2008, with other PAL territories to follow in the future. [Update: Kotaku has confirmed that the service is unlikely to come to America. "The problem with the DVR is that the U.S. doesn't have terrestrial digital television yet, so while some cities like San Diego have it not nearly support in the U.S. to make it worth the effort for Sony. When that changes, and it will, Sony will be on the ball, Harrison said."]

PlayTV will allow users to watch, pause and record live TV. PlayTV can also record individual shows, or entire series to the PS3 hard drive. The videos can then be watched from the PS3, or can be transferred to the PSP to watch on the go. PlayTV will provide a 7-day Electronic Programme Guide (EPG2) utilizing the "widely available" DVB-T format.

The peripheral will feature two TV tuners that are 1080p compatible, allowing users to view, record and play full HD television signals. Through the PlayStation Network, the program will be constantly updated, to improve the service and offer new functionality.

See the full press release after the break.

According to the BBC, a new peripheral will be announced at Leipzig "that will allow the recording and playback of digital TV" on the PS3. This isn't news for those that remember previous statements that said they're going "to release a digital tuner for the PS3, turning it into a programmable TV recorder."

The Sony keynote is just moments away -- stay tuned for what will undoubtedly be some interesting fireworks we'll be able to share with you.

[Via Joystiq]

Ever since we got wind of the digital TV tuner rumor populated by New Zealand's PS3 head marketer, we've been thinking that it was quite possible to turn our PS3's into DVRs. Possible, but according to Sony's own Dave Karraker, not likely. Sony and TiVo signed an agreement way back in 2001, to end in October 2008, that would allow Sony products to sport TiVo software. The agreement hasn't been used all that much, except for the failed PSX.

Karraker responded to the recent rumors and suppositions that the new digital TV tuner may in fact use TiVO software, saying that "We [SCEA] have no announcement regarding DVR capabilities for the PS3 in North America at this time." TiVo also replied with a "no comment." So will we see DVR capabilities at all? Probably. Will they use TiVo software? Maybe. We'll keep our eyes open and our ears tuned for any further developments.