Sony reveals 40GB PS3 in FCC filing?

RUMOR CONTROL: Source: A Federal Communications Commission filing reported on by a daisy chain of gaming sites across the Web.

What we heard: Earlier this month, rumors sprung up that Sony was planning to introduce a 40GB PlayStation 3 bundle with an attractive $399 price tag and a copy of Spider-Man 3 sometime this holiday season. So when an FCC filing for new PlayStation 3 hardware started making the rounds this week, sites were quick to connect the dots and speculate that this new hardware was in fact the rumored 40GB PS3.

Despite a merry-go-round of cross-linking reports surfacing around the 'Net this week, the FCC filing was spotted at least two weeks ago by a user on The simExchange. The filing itself was even made on September 4, before the first 40GB rumor made the rounds.

The actual filing is a request by Sony for a Class II Permissive Change to the PS3. The available parts of the application make no mention of what changes under the hood of the system have necessitated the change. Sony requested that photos of the new hardware revision be kept confidential for 45 days, and an operational description and block diagram will be permanently confidential.

The last time Sony made a Class II Permissive Change for the PS3 was back in March, when it added a new model listing (CECHE01) in which the only substantial differences from the standard model (CECHA01) were the inclusion of an 80GB hard drive instead of 60GB, as well as reworked Bluetooth components. The FCC ID label on the new hardware contains the model number CECHG01.

There were no temporary confidentiality requests made with the 80GB application, and it wound up being spotted and reported on before Sony publicly announced its North American release at the E3 Media and Business Summit in July.

The official story: "It's our policy not to comment on rumors or speculation."--An SCEA representative.

Bogus or not bogus?: Bogus that the FCC filing is proof of a 40GB PS3. It shows only that Sony is preparing a different version of the PS3 hardware. Even though the application fits nicely with the rumors of a 40GB hard drive on the way, there is still nothing more than speculation tying the two together right now. It's a distinct possibility that Sony will release a 40GB version of the system this year, but this filing isn't exactly a clincher that it's going to happen.