Introducing the Playstation 3 Console

The Playstation 3 Console has some pretty brilliant technology inside. At it's core, the Playstation 3 Console is a powerful micro processor, the Cell Broadband Engine. Sounds impressive, but what does it mean? Bigger worlds for one thing. By using parallel worlds the Cell Processor Broadband Engine does more of everything at the same time. To create worlds that are massive and frighteningly real. The Cell Broadband Engine can render 60 frames per second high definition graphics with lightening effects and detail like you have never seen before.

But gorgeous graphics are only part of making a game life like - you also need an understanding of physics. The way things behave are just as important and the Playstation 3 console is smart enough to make things behave in an amazingly realistic ways.

The Playstation 3 Console can also make your enemies smarter. Parallel processing means foes with better artificial intelligence and a tougher challenge for you. There's another amazing technology inside the Playstation 3 Console - Blu-Ray.

Blu-Ray is a huge leap for Next Generation format. It allows the highest High Definition picture quality and 7.1 channel surround sound. But more importantly Blu-Ray give game developers a greater canvass so they can create games which are bigger, fresher and more fun. A built in hard drive means that your PS3 has plenty of storage for games, downloads and a lot more.

Play Station 3 features at a glance

Premium pack contains hard drive (removable/upgradeable)

Next generation Cell processor

HDMI output

Includes: MemoryStick / SD / Compact Flash slots

Wireless 802.11 b/g

Ethernet connection

Motion sensing wireless Bluetooth controller

Next generation Blu-ray drive

Supports USB keyboards and mice

Stream audio and video to your PS3

4x USB2.0 ports

Backwards compatible with over 1000, but not all, PSone and PlayStation 2 games

Virtual memory card capabilities save your old PS1/PS2 games

Dimensions: 325mm (w) x 98mm (h) x 274mm (d)

Weight: 5kg

Playstation 3 Console

Playstation 3 console - Network

Free to access for all PLAYSTATION 3 owners, PlayStation®Network brings a wealth of connected entertainment to your living room.

When you sign up for free access to PlayStation®Network (broadband required), you gain access to a wealth of services that really add to your PS3 experience. Feeling sociable? Try playing your favourite game online - at no additional cost - or chat with your friends via text or voice.

If you're after something new, browse PlayStation®Store - your gateway to full games, demos of forthcoming blockbusters, and all kinds of HD trailers and game add-ons. Or sit back and surf the Internet from your sofa via the built-in browser.

However you enjoy your entertainment, connect to PlayStation®Network and enjoy new experiences delivered straight to your home.

Playstation 3 Console - Playmate

You can connect your Playstation 3 Console and PSP using Remote Play and Play TV to expand the entertainment options.

The Remote Play option allows you access and control content on the Playstation 3 Console with your PSP. This can be done either wirelessly through the internet or via a local, private network in your home between your PSP and Playstation 3 Console.

The remote Play feature means that you can switch on your Playstation 3 Console from anywhere in the world and access music, photos, MP4 files and videos which are stored on the Hard Disk drive.

If you enjoy television the Remote Play allows you to watch, pause and record live TV from a large range of free channels using your Playstation 3 Console. You can use your PSP to remotely record and watch live TV programmes.

Looking at all these features you may think that it is difficult to set up your Playstation 3 Console and PSP to enable these features - it's not. Within a couple of minutes you will be using your PSP to access content on your Playstation 3 Console as if you were and old pro!

Playstation 3 Console - Features

High Definition

You can connect your Playstation 3 Console to a HD television and enjoy your films, photos and games in incredible detail.

The PS3 connected to an HDTV is an amazing combination. Scenes are rendered in amazing detail, all the way up to the best resolution that today's technology can offer - 1080p.

The high definition capability of the Playstation 3 Console played through your HDTV giving you the detail which brings to life a scene in a game or a movie. The High Definition also means that you can view your digital photos on a large flat screen TV, bringing wonderful memories back into your living room with crystal clear definition.

At the heart of the Playstation 3 Console is the state of the Art Cell Broadband Engine which process massive amount of data needed for HD viewing.

Playstation 3 Console - Playstation Eye

The Playstation Eye was released in November 2007. This next generation camera connects to your Playstation 3 Console via a USB connector for interactive game play, motion sensitive and web chat.

The Playstation Eye offers in addition to multi-directional microphone for superb voice control location tracking, background noise reduction for smoother speech recognition, faster frame rate for improved video quality and an adjustable zoom lens for extra versatility. PLAYSTATION Eye comes bundled with a copy of EyeCreate, an advanced multimedia editing suite that lets you record sound clips, edit your own footage and add special effects on to your Playstation3.

PLAYSTATION Eye is available as a stand alone product, with EyeCreate included on Blu-ray Disc, or as part of THE EYE OF JUDGMENT, the innovative game title for PLAYSTATION 3 that utilises a Battle Mat and Summoning Cards with unique Cybercode technology to bring epic battles to life before your very eyes. People who purchase the game can download a free copy of EyeCreate from PLAYSTATION Store.

Available from PLAYSTATION Network, games that can be played using PLAYSTATION Eye include: Operation Creature Feature, in which you have to guide hapless creatures called Blurbs around a series of tricky mazes; The Trials of Topoq, a fun and innovative series of interactive puzzles; and Aqua Vita, a soothing interactive art experience that turns your TV into a virtual aquarium.

Other titles include Tori Emaki, a relaxing interactive ambient experience set in the old Orient, Mesmerize, a series of interactive art experiences, and much more.

Playstation 3 Console - Wireless controller

The new wireless contoller, SIXAXIS, has been designed for the Playstation 3 console and is just as unique.

The iconic PlayStation 3 controller has a revolutionary form for the PLAYSTATION 3 Console and it is called the SIXAXIS Wireless Controller. Adding fantastic new features, it brings game handling firmly into the next generation.

Bluetooth technology allows up to seven controllers to connect to the system wirelessly, freeing the controller from the system and avoiding tangled wires - and making multiplayer sessions easier to set up.

This added freedom is doubly useful, as the controller is also motion-sensitive, detecting movement through six axes. Imagine a flying game where you simply tilt your controller left to turn left, or a puzzle game where you can control the tilt and angle of a maze in perfect synchronicity with your controller. This is now a reality thanks to the innovative SIXAXIS Wireless Controller - a controller that's engineered to allow unique new experiences, while still providing a benchmark that's familiar to millions.

In 2008, the DUALSHOCK®3 Wireless Controller will be released, a new controller for PLAYSTATION 3 incorporating a vibration function.

Keeping the classic design and functionality of the SIXAXIS Wireless Controller, the new DUALSHOCK 3 takes the current highly realistic motion-sensitive system, and adds a vibration function that creates an extra level of immersion as part of your playing experience.