Sony: XBL HDTV "a disservice"

I liked this story the first time - When it was called Carpool, starring Tom Arnold

Why does sony get more Comments in the news then everybody else :?

sccUniverse, here's what I think is the deal. Sony took advantage of Nintendo's mistake of backing out of the deal on the PS1. They took advantage of Sega not having DVD in the Dreamcast for the PS2. This time around there are no mistakes. MS is going well in their plan and Nintendo's launch is almost perfect, and I think that makes Sony uncomfortable, in my opinion.

Now I do not need a HD media device for HD movies... well done MS... Sony is dead.

The quote below is from Sony Computer Entertainment America PR chief Dave Karraker: "I think they are doing a disservice to their consumer base because they are ignoring all those people who bought the Core system" Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Sony doing the same thing to all their customers, going from DVD to Blue Ray, look at the big disadvantages they are going to face. Yes the PS3 will play standard DVD's, but to get your moneys worth, you will have to switch to Blue-ray DVD. Yes its true that MS is now selling HD-DVD drives, but its not a must buy to get the most out of the 360, if it was they would of offered it from the get go.

Sony is in its own world. I can picture that company internally because I have worked at companies like Sony before. In the meetings the ideas sound great. The Excel spreadsheets show amazing potential & figures, all the products in development look revolutionary...heck, even the font used in the logo looks amazing and so far ahead ofthe competition, they don't even need to worry about them. Problem is, for anyone on the outside looking in, all that hot air and hullabaloo is not only disappointing - it's laughably awful. I've never seen a company mess up so much on one thing after another like Sony has w/ the PS3. From the cheesy Spiderman-esque logo to the Boomerang 3rd-party-ish controller to the Waffle Maker system design to the "This is Living" pansy European tagline & logo to the constant culprit Blu-Ray laser shortages to the long-winded. boring and creepy commercials (old lady pouring tea? WTF?) to the ridiculously small launch amounts (80k in Japan, 400k in US?) to the high price of games ($59-$69 stateside, close to $89-$88 in Europe) to the bullying of the best import game company available forcing it to close last month....and on top of that, with NOT ONE killer app on launch day or even close to it........my question is: Why do gamers even care about Sony anymore? Honestly, how much do you have to mess up before everyone realizes that this system and company sucks? It's a disaster of Sega Saturn proportions (meaning this may kill Sony's console chances forever within the next generation) and the only difference between Sony & Sega is that SEGA can ACTUALLY MAKE GAMES people want.

People want a system to fail...Why, what purpose would it serve if it did? People stick to your proper consoles and shaddap! Besides, Sony was planning this wayyyy before MS announced anything.

MartiniStubs THEhockeyGAMER is it just me or does everyone from sony think there like superior to every other company (even though there not) ? Funny, I thought that was M$. ========================================================= Controlling 93% (or thereabouts) of the PC OS market can do that to you. But yeah, there's some arrogance.

THEhockeyGAMER is it just me or does everyone from sony think there like superior to every other company (even though there not) ? ======================================================== Actually Sony has been a trailblazer in the electronics industry. Their history has seen some failures but many more successes. What hasn't been in their history is this level of arrogance that we see now. What's ironic is that if Nintendo hadn't been stupid 10 years ago and cut the deal to have Sony develop the PlayStation for Nintendo, Sony's game division wouldn't be where they are now.

"DiscGuru101 iebubu - Is right. Now we need USB HDD support on the 360" ================================================= MS won't allow that - the HDD is a great money maker (& will be if they EVER upgrade it ;) for them and they will have complete control over that accessory by NOT allowing USB connectivity like you're talking about. I think that's an okay business move. Just like I'm sure no competitor/non-MS external BluRay or HD-DVD drive will ever work w/ the 360 for the same reasons.

THEhockeyGAMER is it just me or does everyone from sony think there like superior to every other company (even though there not) ? Funny, I thought that was M$.

Alright how bout everyone just shuts up about this damn vendetta between 360 owners and soon to be paper weight owners(PS3 owners)......LOL. I think the reason why alot of peeps have an issue with Sony, I think some of you can agree on this, is their last system was a total nightmare. I had mine for less than 3 months before it burned out. Trying to get the issue fixed with CS was a nightmare. So thats when I lost fate in Sony. My Xbox is still going strong. And yes I know that 360 have been crashing and going down since there release. but at least Customer Service and Microsoft are handling it the right way. Microsoft just announced that if you bought your system before Jan of 06, and it crashes,even if its out of the 1yr warranty, they will take care of you for free, thats the company that I want to back up, lets see what Sony does. They are really good at taking others ideas(Wii remote,now with XBL TV/Movie download service, I hear they are doing it too, after MS broke the new first) If Sony does great, well that will not make me mad, its all good. Who knows, when I have the money I might buy one. But the Wii is on my radar, can't we all agree that the Wii will still the show. It might not be powerful, you got to be stupid to think playing COD 3, or Splinter Cell DA on the Wii will be the same as the 360 or PS3, to experience the Wii, you need to play games like Mario, Zelda, games like that....................and I have no clue why I'm still going on......................so bye all, let me hear what you Sony fan boys have to say....................

is it just me or does everyone from sony think there like superior to every other company (even though there not) ?

You know the biggest draw about Xbox360 over PS3 this holiday season? YOU'LL ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO GET XBOX 360!

"I don't think you have to be exclusively "pro Blu-ray" to see value in the PS3.... just pro-HD movies in general. Yes, the XB360 does have the HD-DVD player coming out...but if you add that price, the tally is identical to the PS3...and at the lower bracket of non-premium systems, the XB360 loses the hard drive at the $500 price. The PS3 does not." ======================================================= sigma8, those points are valid, but the thing is what if the buyer doesn't CARE about hd-dvd or bluray? Personally I don't use my game system for movie viewing, regardless of what execs say I am too afraid of wearing out the laser, it's happened before. Sony could have avoided all this by offering the less expesive version with regular DVD so it could be a little more affordable, don't you agree?

iebubu - Is right. Now we need USB HDD support on the 360

The company is stupid and has been on top in every division way too long. Lets go Nintendo, Microsoft, Panasonic, and whatever other companies compete with Sony. They just need to know when to shut the H*ll up. The reason they are mad is become its something else they can't steal for their services.

sccUniverse GC was $199 at launch. 25% of $199 is $50. $200+$50 = Wii Price PS2 was $299 at launch. 66% of $299 is $200. $300+$200 = 20GB PS3 XBOX was $299 at launch. 33% of $299 is $100. $300 + $100 = 360 Premium Duh. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pwnage.

Does Sony think people are stupid? If someone has a Core 360, they can just buy the HDD and use the service. The Core + an HDD is exactly the price they would have paid for a Premium 360. Can Sony ever make a press release without sounding moronic?

while sony is right (cost: hd-dvd drive + hd + xbox360> PS3 basic), it doesnt change the fact that im broke to buy either system right now (besides Wii) I eventually will, in the future... (PS3)

I am so upset at the stupid remarks by Sony executives that clearly demonstrate weakeness on the part of Sony. This HD content for LIVE users is awesome and OPTIONAL. Do you hear that? OPTIONAL, O-P-T-I-O-N-A-L. You can;t compete and so must take pot shots at Microsoft because the Xbox 360 just keeps getting better. Sonys free online service is going to suck and you do get what you pay for. You want free service, expect little to no support.

actualy franwex u make very very good points... the x box 360 needed to come with a hard drive both versions.when it comes down to it 360 can be just as expensive x box 360 299 or 399 pick on, but dont forget to get you a wifi, various memory card readers, a bigger hard drive, hd support, movie remote control,linux, and dmi cables...wait no hdmi support. ps3 500 or 600. so which system is really what when u think about it...its all expensive, so just go and get one, but know that when u have a ps3 thats all u need, nothing later on down the road to make it work better , or to make this or that, besides the hdmi... all im saying is that if sony would keep there foot out there mouth more often and let the ps3 speak for itself then we be alot better or and further down the road

sccUniverse... I don't think you have to be exclusively "pro Blu-ray" to see value in the PS3.... just pro-HD movies in general. Yes, the XB360 does have the HD-DVD player coming out...but if you add that price, the tally is identical to the PS3...and at the lower bracket of non-premium systems, the XB360 loses the hard drive at the $500 price. The PS3 does not. When I think XB360 vs. PS3...I don't think HD-DVD vs. Blu-ray, because the XB360 can't play HD-DVD movies out of the box without ponying at least half of the cost of the system again to add that ability. So to me, XB360 vs. PS3 is more like "Standard def movies" vs "Hi Def movies". So considered like that, PS3 has that advantage. If you beef up the XB360 with its peripheral, then there is more parity, but the price parity also becomes identical. That's what you are getting for $500+....hi def movies, either blu-ray OR hd-dvd... Sony might be losing more money on its blu-ray components, but from a console buyer's point of view, blu-ray costs the SAME as hd-dvd. If you don't give a crap about hi-def movies, then yea I can totally see why you'd bash the PS3's price.

GC was $199 at launch. 25% of $199 is $50. $200+$50 = Wii Price PS2 was $299 at launch. 66% of $299 is $200. $300+$200 = 20GB PS3 XBOX was $299 at launch. 33% of $299 is $100. $300 + $100 = 360 Premium Duh. (I didn't use the 60gb PS3 version because not everyone needs 60gb - many will be okay with 20gb but went w/ premium 360 because most will opt for 20gb hdd ins tead of Core+Memory Card).

no one can say what a system is offering for its consumers before its released. When the 360 first came out, microsoft had just as much content as what sony and nintendo both will have. Both companies promise more to come. mic. year start has put it in a great position to say, look what we have and they dont. no one should say which system is better until after next christmas. thats when the "console wars" really start. I still think everyone should get all of the 3 systems (not right away, when they can afford) and just be happy were living in a time were so much cool stuff is being released.

Zorak000- You are right. Microsoft is giving people a choice on what they want to do on their 360. Many of you say the core system needs a HDD- but you guys are hardcore gamers. Microsoft is extending the market beyond hardcore gamers to people who haven't played video games before. Those people can have a choice on what they want on their console. They are not forced to buy a product that is loaded with "things" they are not going to use like Sony Playstation 3. Like what Peter Moore said, "Xbox 360 will be FLEXIBLE."

I used to like Sony, a lot. When I imported my PSP way back when they first appeared in Japan I could not have been happier with the company. Now though they seem to have really lost the plot. They are releasing a machine onto the market, that undoubtebly will sell in the millions, but their short sighted, arogant nature and downright appalling decisions lately is slowly destroying the fan base of the company. From my own point of view, I will not now be buying a PS3 and make do with my 360 and soon to be acquired Wii. I will make sure that no more money from my accounts finds its way to Sony. This view that they have taken that we are all not clever enough to make our own decisions and that we will fall into line and do exactly what they say is wrong. Do they not understand that the more walls they put up, the harder that people will push to knock them down. If interactivety is at the heart of their gaming strategy, why is it not at the heart of their business practices? We will probably never know, they will go on and on as they are until the masses start to vote by not buying their goods and then, as Microsoft found out the hard way, people will drop them and their products like a hot brick. Why do you think M$ worked so hard to release in all three teritories at the same time? Why did they include the XNA suite to offer an alternative to hacking the machine? Why are they offering downloadable media and making the whole experience so easy to use and intuitive. I think they are doing it because they realise that their fan base is what keeps them going. They are the ones that continually buy the new games keeping the whole process rolling along. Not the casual gamers that buy the odd game at Christmas. Sony, pi$$ us all off at your peril!

[This message was deleted at the request of the original poster]

kyosukeugc, not for nothing dude, for someone railing against people taking sides and bickering this... "SONY STATED EFFING FACTS! FACTS FACTS FACTS... GET OVER IT..... 360 is a good system, but I agree that both systems should have an Hard drive... it's the up and now. Excuse Sony for putting the Blue-Ray in there and offering the cheapest one on the market." ..sounds alot like taking a side. Not dissing, just noticing.

I guess the only reason people hate sony is because of the price of the console. But if one thinks about it. A 360 with an HD and an HD-DVD drive comes to $600-but the PS3 comes with a 60 gig HD rather than a 20 gig. Come on kids. I know we aren't all rich, but stop acting so cheap. I know it's frustrating not to have something you desire, but there's no reason to get anal about it. I have a 360, and sorta like it....find myself playing the gamecube more though...

No one complained as much about the last generation of systems' cost because: You could get a Gamecube for $199 You could get a PS2 for $299 You could get a XBox for $299 All three systems dropped in price within 6-12 months of launch. For some reason, this generation all 3 companies expect gamers to pay AT LEAST $50 more for the new system (Yes, 360 core is $299...but an added memory card to save is at least $30 on eBay..most people will opt for Premium or HDD add-on which is at least $50, even on eBay). $50 doesn't like much but look at it this way: Wii costs $25% more than GC at launch. 360 Premium costs $33% more than XB at launch. PS3 costs 66% more than PS2 at launch. Companies are promising the added costs are to bring more value to the systems and honestly, of all three systems available...only the 360 is really bringing out great stuff for consumers in regards to money already invested. You can add on a HD-DVD drive... You can play tons and tons of games online, some through Silver like FFXI & PSU or through Gold membership - you choose. You can buy and download HDTV-quality movies & shows to your system's HDD, even if you don't own the $199 HD-DVD player You can go barebones and buy a $30 memory card for saves or you can spend $100 more and get backwards compatibility/full online support/etc. You can choose between wired or wireless controllers to save $. You can play DVD movies right out of the box, no add ons needed even though a certain competitor says it wasn't worth including (Wii). Thanks to HDD, system can actually be updated to provide better quality video (upgrade to 1080p). I'm not PS3 bashing but honestly, unless you are diehard about Bluray capability, why is the PS3 any better of a deal than the Xbox 360? I think Sony's marketing people know they just lost a year for nuthin' and know they're trying to justify themselves. Sony is proof that brands can die fast - just look at Walkman. In 5 years it went from "Walkmans are the best to iPods are the best" They got cocky. WAAAYYYY too cocky & stupid (HDTV will be big 5 years from now, NOT in 2006). And I boycotted the PS2 after it and its fanboys killed my beloved Dreamcast which was almost as powerful - came out in 1998 and only lacked a DVD drive. That's it. I may purchase a PS3 someday but I have never owned a PS2 accessory, game or system EVER. Folks...

all three systems are going to be good in their own ways. people need to seriousely stop looking at the price and saying its over priced though. If anything, the wii is overpriced. with mic. and sony, you pay less than what it costs to make the system. with the wii, you pay more. the gamecube launched at $200. it was in the middle power wise between the p2 and the xbox. the wii is way underpowered compared to the p3 and 360 (not that the power matters, their gonna make some really fun games) but from a consumer point. your paying more for less. the p3's price evens out and even excels compared to the 360(when you take in consideration of the not so much needed blue ray drive *theyre expesive by themselves*). You get a bigger harddrive and more powerfull system (going by specs alone). now the 360 has the sweet spot for price this console war, its at the just right point, but taking a look at the specifics in this console war, the prices for the most part are about even (for the 360 and p3 at least) when paying for what you get. that doesnt even take into consideration of personal value between each system. for everyone one system will be worth more because of the games it has.

Wow, all you peole need to grow a brain i swear... Get over yourselves. You'd think we were the Democrats and Reublicans FFS... those guys are morons too.... stop bickering over stupid **** it's all not worthit. and SONY STATED EFFING FACTS! FACTS FACTS FACTS... GET OVER IT..... 360 is a good system, but I agree that both systems should have an Hard drive... it's the up and now. Excuse Sony for putting the Blue-Ray in there and offering the cheapest one on the market. meh, you all seriously need to do actual research and look at what you're going to be buying and stop going based off "upset about price" people's opinions.....

Sony really should not be talking about this being a "disservice" this is a great concept and I am really looking forward to it. If Sony were to do this I also would be looking forward to it. The real disservice is forcing people to pay 500-600 bucks for game system just because of bluray and these "future proofing" features . The disservice is Sony focusing on features like bluray,hdmi,1080p,connectivity to this or that, and not focusing on GAMES like they did with the PS2. I am a fan of Sony and their products PS1,PS2, TV, Audio componets et cetera but Sony should not be talking about "disservices"

There's actually nothing wrong with the core system... as it exists. I would argue that BECAUSE it exists, the majority of games do not exploit the hard drive to any great degree. Since that is the case, picking up a core system gives you the 360 for $100 cheaper, with very few disadvantages. I mean, how many games can you NOT play? Final Fantasy Online? Woooooo. ono..

I really love this PR stuff.

Zorak000 - I couldnt agree with you more. Xbox is offering many choices this time, Sony is making mandatory crap available on their system. If i dont want a next get movie player, I dont have to buy it to play games. If I dont want to download movies and TV shows, I dont have to. If I dont want xbox live, or a hdd, i dont have to have it. Sony fails this time.

and again about the bigger hdd. If microsoft threw in the same size hdd as sonys low end model, the price differense wouldnt be as big if any.

Just wondering how many out there actually own an xbox 360 and dont have the hard drive, And lets please stop the smear campaign now, i had enough during this election.

Stupid. Sony is such a joke. If you want to hurt MS offer a system that does MORE than theirs. Dont come out trying to make "Core" owners think they got screwed, so in turn they should buy their crap PS3. I'm so annoyed with them, if they'd stop defaming other companies for a day or two and look at the PS3 and realize: 1. its over priced 2. Bluray IS NOT NEEDED, its only their because Sony helped make it and its already failing as a movie format. 3. They have a really bad line up (not just launch) with very few exclusives that are actually great 4. a really lame online service. Until they fix their own troubles, I dont think they have ANY room to talk about MS, or nintendo for that matter. I will not buy another Sony product if I can avoid it.

but their low end model is comparible in every way to microsofts high end model. microsofts low end model as of right now is kinda a joke.

Of course, Sony conveniently ignores that their low-end model happens to be even more expensive than the high-end 360.

why does everyone always talk about the 600 dolor model. Im getting the 500 dolor model which is much more comparable with a 360 premium (which i also have). If microsoft had a bigger hdd in the premium they would prob. be aout the same price. When sony announced that the 500 dolor model would have hdmi out, they put to rest any reason for most people to get the 600 version.

meh kinda a pointless argument..how bout xbox stops with this BS download crap and gives us actually some good games besides just gears of war

I'm trying not to be a fanboy but: Micro$oft is giving people a choice: buy just what you need to play your average 360 game, or go all out for the full experience and you can spend what you want. $ony wants to set the hardware bar high at the expense of the consumer so the consumer has a better (or similar) experience

GAMECAMILLER Buying the core system is kind a mistake - concidering all the reasons to own the full version of the 360. Most people at my store want the full model - always. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Actually the core system may be MORE valuable soon than ever. Say MS comes out with a 100G HD, as I'm sure they will, buying a core and that HD would be cheaper than buying a premium and upgrading to that HD.

What a stupid comment. "Ignoring people with the core system?" MS could have easily charged everyone $600+ and force them to buy a HDD and a built in HDDVD player as sony has done (but with blu-ray). Chances are, if you can't afford the premium 360, you don't have a HDTV anyway. Sony shouldn't have even commented, they just make themselves look like idiots every time they open their mouths.

Yeah, they are right about it. I mean, honestly the Core package is a joke. This whole thing shouldn't have been made without HDD. I mean the original Xbox had it standard, and you eliminate the use of HDD for all games, or even stuff like this, when you don't make it standard. I'm sure many of you have the HDD, but there's a minority out there, and those minority must be in thought when developing games to use HDD or anything special that's an add-on only.

Corporate spin doesn't equal news.

Buying the core system is kind a mistake - concidering all the reasons to own the full version of the 360. Most people at my store want the full model - always. Maybe Microsoft should just cancel the core system? I'd like to know the stats on how many actually own a core system 360. Just out of curiosity.