* Posts by Andy Ivey

7 publicly visible posts • joined 13 Nov 2007

SETI@home needs You!

Andy Ivey

SETI vs. Green Computing

I enjoyed reading a well written article about keeping otherwise idle computers busy consuming electricity by aiding the search for aliens. It contrasted nicely with the Green Computing Debate ads displayed alongside.

US HD hardware sales 3:1 in Blu-ray's favour by year end

Andy Ivey

Watch All, Own None

Since some of us are recycling old posts, I'll reinforce the earlier idea that more than one of us has a mail order move rental queue full of BD movies. Why pay $5 for a DVD when BlockBuster will let me borrow any BD I want for a flat monthly rate?

Blu-ray widens US disc sales lead

Andy Ivey

Rent vs. Own

I love the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray coverage on this site. However, I am waiting to see fresh figures released showing rentals of both formats. I own a PS3 and do not own a single movie. However, my mail order rental membership is on pace to cycle through every available title. Perhaps the US figures are slightly skewed by other Netflix and Blockbuster Online members that stopped buying DVDs a long time ago.

Sony posts PS3 update - two weeks after the last one

Andy Ivey

RE: why?

I guess the first thing to answer is why you would need your PS3 turned on when you are not sitting in front of it. The latest firmware enabled “the remote playback of media files on that system fed to the PSP. This particular feature has been anticipated and discussed for some time, and is a cornerstone to Sony's vision of the PSN evolving into a multi-platform network.”

I‘m not an environmentalist, but the ability to remotely power on a device (ex: wake-on-LAN) is generally considered a great way to conserve a device’s total energy consumption. The alternative to WOL is to leave the system powered on around the clock. I assume that would use a bit more power than a network device waiting for a packet telling it to turn on. If standby power consumption is a concern, the PS3 can be easily disconnected from the wall.

PS3 firmware update filters web content

Andy Ivey

From PC to Console

I cannot think of a better partner for this than Trend Micro. They have regularly been a top three security (antivirus) company and make a great product. It makes sense to consider parental controls and security in a product (PS3) that is so much more than a gaming console. Perhaps they have a ways to go before they compete with digital entertainment centers (http://www.shopping.hp.com/product/dec/dec//4/storefronts/RE501AA%2523ABA) or a fully embraced tuner/DVR replacement (http://www.engadgethd.com/2007/08/01/ps3-to-receive-tuner-dvr-capabilities-before-march-2008/). To speak directly to the new web filter, consumers expect this feature in other products that deliver web content.

Xbox 360 outsells PS3 in Japan

Andy Ivey

Re: Sony's dead?

Steve-

Great post and I do agree with the broad strokes of what you wrote. I read that Sony is in the process of releasing a massive amount of games for the PS3. I do not know if these will be unique to the console, but just getting more options for consumers should help the console.

Sony’s treatment of European customers is unfortunate. The company still has a great image in the US. We are used to them pushing proprietary technology and sometimes it fails. Beta is an overused example of this. It is not always a winning philosophy to drive new technology and even if it is successful (ex: MemoryStick licensed to SanDisk and Lexar), it can still be limited by the fact that the core technology is controlled by one company.

Andy Ivey
Boffin

Sony's Dead?

Did Sony release the PS3 in hopes of placing a console in every household?

or

Did Sony release the PS3 to provide gamers with the highest quality gaming experience and forward the adoption of Blu-Ray?

Believing the former would explain the posts applauding Sony’s “collapse.” Accepting this notion that Sony’s products are wholesale crap only displays what I assume is a blind bias against this resurging market leader. That is unfortunate since that bias is based on what must be a short-term view of the consumer electronics industry. More on this later…

If you accept the later (PS3 exists to push Blu-Ray and HD gaming), then the product is a great success. Households that buy the Wii do not decide HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray. Households that buy the PS3 do. That is what is most important to Sony. Taking a short-term loss on a bunch of consoles is overshadowed by what is at stake in the battle for the future of the DVD.

As for XBOX, it has a more attractive price point that the PS3. It also provides for a somewhat comparable gaming experience. Call it a toss up if you wish, but Sony and Microsoft have taken losses on console sales. The only difference is Sony does it to ensure the success of Blu-Ray and Microsoft does it just to get a foothold in the market. Which strategy comes with the biggest long-term reward?

...back to Sony as a whole. Sony stumbled when it turned away from electronics and focused on content (ex: Sony Pictures). A change of leadership has seen the company turn away from this error and return to their roots. A great example of the turn was the XBR line of televisions followed by their SXRD product that competes with TI’s DLP. There is still a lot of work to do, but let us not forget that Nintendo was pronounced dead multiple times over the past decade. The difference is that Sony’s console business is a drop in the bucket while Nintendo’s consoles are always an “eggs in one basket” gamble.

On a final note, credit the posters here for not forgetting about the effect Halo 3 had on console sales.