Larred
01-07-2005, 08:52 PM
http://www.chicagotribune.com/technology/chi-0501060288jan06,1,2123357.story?coll=chi-techtopheds-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true
Sony's highly anticipated hand-held gaming device will be released in the United States in March, company executives said Wednesday at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
While Sony declined to offer firm pricing and a target date, it did say the PlayStation Portable will cost about $199--approximately what the PSP sells for in Japan.
Sony was widely expected to provide exact details Wednesday because its main competitor in the category, Nintendo, sold more than 1.5 million units of its new hand-held device over the holiday season.
With the PSP, Sony wants to offer a compelling alternative to Nintendo and its monopoly on the hand-held gaming market. The rectangular, black-plastic PSP weighs about 10 ounces and has wireless functions for multiplayer games.
Nintendo currently controls about 98 percent of the hand-held video game market, thanks to its line of Game Boy portables, NPD Group analyst Richard Ow said.
But Nintendo is taking Sony's entry into the market seriously. The company launched its latest hand-held device--the Nintendo DS--in November. The dual-screen hand-held was one of the most popular items on holiday gift lists and sells for about $150.
During 2004, Nintendo also sold more than 8 million units of its venerable Game Boy Advance hand-held.
The PSP launched Dec. 12 in Japan and has been considered a hit, selling out the 500,000 units Sony produced.
By entering the hand-held market, Sony is trying to leverage its dominance in the console market, where its PlayStation 2 platform is the best-selling game device, selling more than 70 million units worldwide.
Comparisons between the PSP and the DS reveal different corporate philosophies regarding the gaming industry.
The Nintendo DS is strictly a game-playing device and innovates not necessarily by offering superior graphics, but through its dual-screen action, touch-screen control and voice inputs. It also has wireless connectivity.
Sony's PSP, on the other hand, is a media Trojan Horse. The slick device has a high-resolution widescreen display (about the size of an Apple iPod) that can play movies and music in addition to games. The hope is that consumers will use the device to play other offerings from Sony's vast entertainment holdings--from films like "Spider-Man 2" to music from Jessica Simpson.
According to market research firm DFC Intelligence, the two devices are expected to drive the global portable games market from $3.9 billion in 2003 to $11.1 billion in 2007. The overall global video-game industry saw sales of about $23 billion in 2003.
Motorola hits the slopes
Also at the CES show Wednesday, Motorola Inc. and Burton Snowboards unveiled an alliance to sell outdoor clothing equipped with cutting-edge wireless technology.
The venture between Schaumburg-based Motorola and Vermont-based Burton will include jackets, helmets and beanies that use Bluetooth, a wireless technology.
Bluetooth allows for a cordless link between a cell phone and headphones. The Bluetooth-enabled jacket will feature stereo speakers built into its hood and a microphone embedded near its collar.
Kodak, too, displayed a new wireless product--the first digital camera able to send high-resolution images without connecting to a computer.
The EasyShare-One camera, which allows users to share pictures through Web sites or by e-mail, will go on sale in June for $599.
"It's about immediacy, and one major reason consumers like digital photography is that ability to share pictures," said Michelle Slaughter, who follows digital photography for InfoTrends. "Kodak believes that increased sharing will drive printing and create a revenue stream."
The new camera has a 4 megapixel sensor and a 3x optical zoom lens--the most popular configuration among consumers, according to Kodak. It also has 256 megabytes of internal memory, compared with 16 to 32 megabytes in current EasyShare models.
Users will be able to transmit images wirelessly to a printer or directly onto a Web site.
New camera is pricey
The wireless technology does not come cheap. The EasyShare-One is priced higher than the $300 to $350 for competing models with similar image quality and a printer dock. Buyers must pay another $100 each for wireless cards to connect with the Internet and a printer, bringing the total to $799.
"It's a premium camera," Slaughter said. "It's not a mass-market product yet," she said.
Sony's highly anticipated hand-held gaming device will be released in the United States in March, company executives said Wednesday at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
While Sony declined to offer firm pricing and a target date, it did say the PlayStation Portable will cost about $199--approximately what the PSP sells for in Japan.
Sony was widely expected to provide exact details Wednesday because its main competitor in the category, Nintendo, sold more than 1.5 million units of its new hand-held device over the holiday season.
With the PSP, Sony wants to offer a compelling alternative to Nintendo and its monopoly on the hand-held gaming market. The rectangular, black-plastic PSP weighs about 10 ounces and has wireless functions for multiplayer games.
Nintendo currently controls about 98 percent of the hand-held video game market, thanks to its line of Game Boy portables, NPD Group analyst Richard Ow said.
But Nintendo is taking Sony's entry into the market seriously. The company launched its latest hand-held device--the Nintendo DS--in November. The dual-screen hand-held was one of the most popular items on holiday gift lists and sells for about $150.
During 2004, Nintendo also sold more than 8 million units of its venerable Game Boy Advance hand-held.
The PSP launched Dec. 12 in Japan and has been considered a hit, selling out the 500,000 units Sony produced.
By entering the hand-held market, Sony is trying to leverage its dominance in the console market, where its PlayStation 2 platform is the best-selling game device, selling more than 70 million units worldwide.
Comparisons between the PSP and the DS reveal different corporate philosophies regarding the gaming industry.
The Nintendo DS is strictly a game-playing device and innovates not necessarily by offering superior graphics, but through its dual-screen action, touch-screen control and voice inputs. It also has wireless connectivity.
Sony's PSP, on the other hand, is a media Trojan Horse. The slick device has a high-resolution widescreen display (about the size of an Apple iPod) that can play movies and music in addition to games. The hope is that consumers will use the device to play other offerings from Sony's vast entertainment holdings--from films like "Spider-Man 2" to music from Jessica Simpson.
According to market research firm DFC Intelligence, the two devices are expected to drive the global portable games market from $3.9 billion in 2003 to $11.1 billion in 2007. The overall global video-game industry saw sales of about $23 billion in 2003.
Motorola hits the slopes
Also at the CES show Wednesday, Motorola Inc. and Burton Snowboards unveiled an alliance to sell outdoor clothing equipped with cutting-edge wireless technology.
The venture between Schaumburg-based Motorola and Vermont-based Burton will include jackets, helmets and beanies that use Bluetooth, a wireless technology.
Bluetooth allows for a cordless link between a cell phone and headphones. The Bluetooth-enabled jacket will feature stereo speakers built into its hood and a microphone embedded near its collar.
Kodak, too, displayed a new wireless product--the first digital camera able to send high-resolution images without connecting to a computer.
The EasyShare-One camera, which allows users to share pictures through Web sites or by e-mail, will go on sale in June for $599.
"It's about immediacy, and one major reason consumers like digital photography is that ability to share pictures," said Michelle Slaughter, who follows digital photography for InfoTrends. "Kodak believes that increased sharing will drive printing and create a revenue stream."
The new camera has a 4 megapixel sensor and a 3x optical zoom lens--the most popular configuration among consumers, according to Kodak. It also has 256 megabytes of internal memory, compared with 16 to 32 megabytes in current EasyShare models.
Users will be able to transmit images wirelessly to a printer or directly onto a Web site.
New camera is pricey
The wireless technology does not come cheap. The EasyShare-One is priced higher than the $300 to $350 for competing models with similar image quality and a printer dock. Buyers must pay another $100 each for wireless cards to connect with the Internet and a printer, bringing the total to $799.
"It's a premium camera," Slaughter said. "It's not a mass-market product yet," she said.