Yeah, it looked cool, but I don't see how it could be too playable without two control sticks.

So what's the deal with the new 80GB PS3 at $400? There's chatter that this replaces the 40GB version, but it's just the 40GB model with a bigger drive, meaning no backwards compatibility right and the only model out there.

From their press release.... So is that right?

I received a PSP for Father's Day.... the thing is amazing! I absolutely love the interoperability between the PS3 and PSP. I'm looking forward to the upcoming games and new capabilities.

I had no trouble playing Katamari on PSP. I'm sure the face buttons will be playable.

That's sure what it sounds like. I guess Sony has really soured on BC for some idiotic reason. I'm so glad some Game Crazy guy talked me into the 60 GB once the original 80 GB started rolling out. I love being able to play my PS2 games on the same machine. It's a damn shame they're eliminating BC.

I never did hear : was the BC on the MGS4 model the same as that on the previous 80 GB unit?

I believe they will offer 2 80GB models, one with BC and one without.

Did they mention putting out an upgrade that actually doesn't make my PS3 glitchy?

This was me during footage for Little Big Planet:

What month will this happen? I want a PS3, but also want BC, so i'd get it now rather then later if they drop BC.

are videos available on the store yet? I dont see any links, but it has been updated today, cause I can get The Who pack. and I got the service agreement change which mentions video...

The video store is now live.

September.

Yes...? I wasn't blowing Sony by listing the titles that they showed in their propaganda piece, was I? I was just relaying the information to anybody watching the forum for updates.

I'm pretty sure I knew, for example, that Eternal Sonata was already on the 360 since I've got 1000/1000 achievement points on it.

Ah - it was just the top of your thread ("2008 is the year of the PS3 games"), with no link or any other information, made me think different.

Nah, that was a direct quote from Jack Tretton. Then the video showing all of those games. Sorry it wasn't clear, it was frantic watching and typing. I know I missed at least one.

Nice that it is an option, but man is downloadable video destined to fail. Pricing is the same as iTunes and 360 and that is the problem. I can swing by RedBox on the way home and rent a DVD for $1 with no real extra fuel used. That is a $1 for a new release. I can also use Netflix and the rentals usually work out to $1-$2 per disc.

This just kills any incentive to pay $4 for a rental of, lets be honest, inferior video and sound. No way a 1.5 GB video file is going to look and sound as good as the 5-6 GB DVD version of the film. Also, it has no extras which for my Netflix money I can also watch if I want. $6 for an HD rental is just as equally out of the question. I usually pay $10-$15 for a movie on Blu-ray and will gladly be patient and wait for a sale or rent them at Netflix.

I like that I can copy it to my PSP if I buy it, but most of these movies cost between $10 and $15 to buy and I typically pay $15 for the DVD and UMD version on the occasion I pick up a UMD.

Also, $2 an episode for TV shows is insane. It typically works out to 2-3 times the cost of buying the season on DVD. I can easily rip my DVDs on to my PSP already so there is just no incentive to pay these prices for digital content. They have to price it competitively with the sales we see every week on DVDs at Best Buy and Amazon if they have any hope of this catching on. Not to mention how little value digital content has in today's world of torrent sites.

I disagree about the TV shows. I think $2 is very fair. When my DVR conked out and I missed the final couple episodes of 24, it was a lifesaver to be able to buy them. When John Stewart made a joke at my sister's expense on The Daily Show, it was sure nice to be able to purchase the episode to have on hand. When the third season finale of Lost blew me away, I was very glad that I could purchase it and keep that one episdoe for future viewing (I don't buy drama series of TV shows I watch on DVD -- I never watch the seasons again).

I think it depends on the series. For an hour long episode I have no problem with $2 an episode, but when a 12 minute episode of Robot Chicken is also $2 that is where things stop working for me.

iTunes has the best model. They discount complete seasons to compete with DVD and also for shows like the Daily Show with a ton of episodes they have discounted monthly passes. When you figure the Daily Show will never come to DVD this is a good way to get the entire series if you are a huge fan.

BTW, the one that really bewildered me was X'and their exclusive Anime show. TV shows are $1.99, but this 30 minute show can only be rented and at Movie rental prices. Insane.

Downloaded and played the Siren demo last night. I found it quite atmospheric and liked the overall design. True I haven't played any survival horror games in awhile so have nothing recent to stack it up to, but, for me now, unless the reviews say it is utter crap, it's at least a rental.

I need to try this. Only complaints I have read online are about the camera, but I haven't tried it yet to see.

Sony confirms shift to single PS3 model
Posting from Los Angeles: Sony's decision to double the storage capacity of its $399.99 PlayStation 3 is part of a plan to shift to a single model of the game machine, ending the console maker's two-tiered approach, an executive confirmed Wednesday.

The statement followed Sony's announcement Tuesday that it will introduce, in September, a new 80-gigabyte version of the PlayStation 3 with the same technical specifications and capabilities as the current 40-gigabyte model, at the same $399.99 price.

Announcing that news during its event at the E3 video-game convention, the company didn't immediately say what would happen to the current 40- and 80-gigabyte PlayStation 3 models. Peter Dille, a Sony Computer Entertainment America senior vice president, confirmed Wednesday that Sony is in the process of phasing out those models.

Offering a single PS3 model will simplify matters for consumers, Dille said in an interview at the convention. "I think it's a much cleaner message," he said, acknowledging past consumer confusion about the differences between the two PS3 models.

However, the decision means that someone buying a PlayStation 3 in the future will no longer have the option of playing PlayStation 2 games on the new console. That's because the existing $499.99, 80-gigabyte PlayStation 3 offers backward compatibility to the earlier PlayStation machine. That capability isn't offered by the current 40-gigabyte model, and it won't be offered in the new 80-gigabyte model.Dille downplayed the significance of that change.

"If you have a library of PS2 games, you have a PS2," he said. "So, to the extent that it's important that you want to play your PS2 games, we'd love you to do that, and we're going to continue to support the PlayStation 2 format. We're going to continue to make new PS2 machines and new PS2 games. We want to keep that market going."

Sony's decision to focus on the $399.99 model will put the primary PS3 within $50 of Microsoft's main Xbox 360 version. Microsoft last weekend dropped the price of its 20-gigaybte Xbox 360 to $299.99, but the pricing move was part of a plan to phase out that model and make room for a new one with 60 gigabytes of storage, at $349.99 -- the same price that Microsoft previously charged for the 20-gigabyte Xbox 360.

Microsoft and Sony are competing to build critical mass for their consoles. Nintendo's Wii console, priced at $249.99, is the leader in worldwide unit sales among the current generation of consoles, with nearly 25 million machines sold worldwide as of March, compared with 19 million Xbox 360s and about 13 million for PlayStation 3s.

Digital storage capacity is becoming a key consideration for some console owners because of the ability to download games and other media to the machines.

Microsoft got out to a head start in the current generation by launching the Xbox 360 in November 2005, a year before Sony and Nintendo released their latest consoles.

^^ Personally, I have a PS2 and a 40 GB PS3. I haven't turned on my PS2 in a very, very long time, but if my PS3 had backwards-compatibility, I would definitely be playing PS2 games still. Hell, I would have bought God of War II, also. But right now I simply can't make the room for both consoles to be hooked up.

And yes, I regret getting the 40 GB instead of the 80 w/ BC.

I hope they would eventually get some emulation going for backwards compatibility. While most people had a PS2, I was one of the oddballs who did not, so I've bought some games and am playing them on the PS3 (20GB model).

Playing them on the PS3 is much nicer anyway, because you don't have to fuss with memory cards, you get upscaling and smoothing options, and you can play with the wireless (Sony) controller. On my computer monitor with the PS3 connected, if I set the system to output 720p, I can properly display the games in a 4:3 section. If I was to connect the PS2, the monitor would stretch the game to fill the screen, which I can't stand. Heck, I'm not even sure if many games would even work, because I don't think the monitor would accept a non-progressive input.

I'm glad I got the MGS bundle:

$500 - MGS = $440

and $40 is easily worth the backwards compatibility to me, especially when considering upconverted video, saves on the hard-drive, wireless controller, etc...

Same here. I never owned a PS2 but have enjoyed the few games I've picked up since I got a PS3. I also have about a half dozen I've bought and haven't gotten to yet (Kingdom Hearts being the big one).

A shame they feel the need to drop support. It's probably pennies on the dollar for them to include it.