Who would think that with a sluggish economy, video game sales would still be rising? I guess they are somewhat cheaper than constant nights on the town?

Despite the economic down-turn, the gaming sector has come out with strong sales numbers in October, continuing its trend for the year. In fact, [...]]]>

Who would think that with a sluggish economy, video game sales would still be rising? I guess they are somewhat cheaper than constant nights on the town?

Despite the economic down-turn, the gaming sector has come out with strong sales numbers in October, continuing its trend for the year. In fact, with a monthly total of $1.31 billion, even during these tough times, the sector has seen an 18 percent increase from last year at this time.

And guess who’s in the lead? If you follow console trends closely (or at all) it should come as no surprise to you that the Nintendo Wii continues to lead the pack in sales. Nintendo Wii outsold both PS3s and Xbox 360s, even after a strong price cut on Xbox.

Personally, I’m not surprised. But then again, I just bought a Wii last month, and own neither of the others.

Sony has spent the last three years restructuring the company and today releases its big plans for growth. Apparently, the next big thing is electronics products that connect to each other and the Internet and stuff. You know, downloading movies onto a [...]]]>

Sony has spent the last three years restructuring the company and today releases its big plans for growth. Apparently, the next big thing is electronics products that connect to each other and the Internet and stuff. You know, downloading movies onto a game console or syncing your music with a music player. Wow, I can’t wait for all that kind of technology to come out.

We here at TechConsumer have been pretty harsh on Sony, but it feels like the company has been playing catch up for a long time. And even in areas where it was once the innovator, it now sucks. (Here’s a site that rates the best “CD Players / Recorders,” and Sony is at the bottom of the list.)

Now seems like as good a time as any to recap some of Sony’s blunders for just the past year (we wouldn’t want this post to get too long):

Sony Charges $50 Extra to Sell You Laptop with No Crapware

“But apparently Sony figured out that if 70% of its customers aren’t interested in two dozen icons of offers (really Sony, 3 to 4 is one thing, but over 20?), the company should offer a crapware-free version of its laptops. Sony, in all its branding glory, has decided to trademark the term “Fresh Start” but has made the huge mistake of charging $50 for it.”

Sony DVD Player + Sony Movies = Won’t Play

“Does Sony really think that it is acceptable to produce DVDs that don’t even play in your own company’s players, nevermind players by top manufacturers such as JVC, Mitsubishi, Pioneer, RCA, Samsung, or Toshiba?”

Sony Thinks Blu-ray Will Sell Like DVD by End of 2008

“While the vast majority of Blu-ray players out there are the ones built-in to the Playstation 3, Sony has plans for cheaper Blu-ray players including a new focus on “IT devices.” (Because we all would adopt Blu-ray if only our computers had it, apparently). Last but not least on the list of reasons, more Blu-ray movies will be offered by Hollywood studios to entice you into switching to the new format.”

The $100 PS3 Game: Gran Turismo 5

“When Sony announced that Gran Turismo 5 Prologue would be available for $40 in April, I couldn’t help but have a knee-jerk reaction. How could Sony get away with charging $40 for GT5 Reduced Lite Junior Prologue when the full version would sell for only $20 more? Here’s how, the word is out today that the full blown version of Gran Turismo won’t be out for another year! Is this a new business model for delayed games or just Sony trying to satiate the rabid Gran Turismo fans?”

Blu-ray in the News: High Prices & No Microsoft Love

“Since Blu-ray became the next generation movie disc format of choice, the consumer supposedly has been better off. But Tom’s Hardware claims that prices of Blu-ray players are higher than ever and that now, in fact, is the worst time to buy.”

Paul’s Soapbox: DRM, 3G, Playstation Home

“For those not familiar with Playstation Home (also referred to as just Home), it is Sony’s total copy interpretation of Second Life The Sims Online a virtual world. It was originally announced in March 2007 and scheduled to come out in open beta in August 2007 and public release in October 2007. Later they promised a ‘Spring 2008′ delivery, only to announce in Spring 2008 that it would be coming out in Fall 2008.”

Feel free to add to this list by leaving a comment below.

Note: This article is cross-posted at BobCaswell.com.

Sony LCD TVs Sony Plasma TVs

An Amazon promotion good through June 9 has over 100 Blu-ray movies in the $14 to $20 range (with many around $14-$15). I thought this would be a good time to revisit getting into Blu-ray. The last time I checked out Blu-ray [...]]]>

An Amazon promotion good through June 9 has over 100 Blu-ray movies in the $14 to $20 range (with many around $14-$15). I thought this would be a good time to revisit getting into Blu-ray. The last time I checked out Blu-ray pricing on Amazon (my quick and dirty benchmark), the Playstation 3 was still the best deal.

That’s now a little debatable, but not really. At the time, the $400 PS3 price tag was lower than other players that weren’t also a gaming system. Now, Amazon has several Blu-ray players under $400 with the least expensive floating around $339. Still not even close to good enough, though. I’d take the PS3 for $60 more.

But even then, I don’t necessarily want a PS3. And I’m now used to the next generation of DVD players being priced in the $100 to $200 range thanks to HD DVD. If Sony’s plan is really to increase Blu-ray market share to 50% by the end of the year (that is, for Blu-ray to sell as well as regular DVDs), the company at least needs to half the price of its current best deal.

I’m not sure which company looks worse at the moment. Is it Sony by asserting such an aggressive goal while doing nothing to achieve it? Or is it Blockbuster with its whopper of an idea for movie download kiosks in stores? You decide.

For those who already have a Blu-ray player, here are some picks for movies that are pretty good and a good deal:

• $14.95 – Big Fish [Blu-ray]
• $14.45 – The Last Samurai [Blu-ray]
• $15.95 – GoodFellas [Blu-ray]
• $15.95 – Memento [Blu-ray]
• $15.95 – A Knight’s Tale [Blu-ray]
• $16.95 – Syriana [Blu-ray]

Sony CEO Ryoji Chubachi knows something we don’t. At a press conference a few days ago, he pointed out Sony’s plan to increase Blu-ray market share to 50% by the end of the year. How is this possible you might ask? Well, apparently new Blu-ray devices to be offered by [...]]]>

Sony CEO Ryoji Chubachi knows something we don’t. At a press conference a few days ago, he pointed out Sony’s plan to increase Blu-ray market share to 50% by the end of the year. How is this possible you might ask? Well, apparently new Blu-ray devices to be offered by Sony will include a model integrated into an HD LCD TV with Blu-ray recording functionality.

But that’s not all. While the vast majority of Blu-ray players out there are the ones built-in to the Playstation 3, Sony has plans for cheaper Blu-ray players including a new focus on “IT devices.” (Because we all would adopt Blu-ray if only our computers had it, apparently). Last but not least on the list of reasons, more Blu-ray movies will be offered by Hollywood studios to entice you into switching to the new format.

All of this may very will be true, but none of it has happened yet. The Playstation 3 is still the best deal for anyone interested in Blu-ray. And that’s because you get a gaming system along with your Blu-ray player for the $400 you’ll be spending. Otherwise, your Blu-ray player options still seem to be well into the $400 price range.

And let’s not forget the cost of the movies themselves. HD DVD movies now are finally reasonably priced only after the format is pretty much dead. But Blu-ray? Does Sony really think that $27.95 is the new price for movies?

Plus, we’re seeing some serious momentum behind the move toward downloadable/streaming content. All things considered, though, I think the biggest challenge for Sony is that people seem just fine with good ol’ DVD. Sure, I could see this changing but only if the premium for Blu-ray (over regular DVD) was, say, 20-50%. I personally think 400%+ is a bit much.

*Update* Gizmodo has the news of a new Sony Blu-ray recorder release. I think the first comment is very telling:

“So now that Blu Ray won, we’re supposed to all run out and stock up on Sony products we never wanted in the first place? No thanks.”

Paul’s Soapbox is going to be a new regular feature of TechConsumer where I sound off on various tech topics/products that I’m interested in (or hate). This is just my $.02, so consider yourself warned. This week’s subjects? Two of my favorite companies to hate: Apple and Sony.

What the hell is up with [...]]]>

Paul’s Soapbox is going to be a new regular feature of TechConsumer where I sound off on various tech topics/products that I’m interested in (or hate). This is just my $.02, so consider yourself warned. This week’s subjects? Two of my favorite companies to hate: Apple and Sony.

What the hell is up with Apple and their fetish for making products that don’t have user-replaceable batteries? It was bad enough with the iPod, (even if it isn’t quite the only MP3 player in that category) but then they added the iPhone to the list, and now the MacBook Air (my vote for the worst product name since Microsoft Bob). I really can’t understand how it is acceptable to have to send in your cell phone or laptop every year or two (according to Apple) just to have a battery replaced. Did I mention that they’ll rent an iPhone to you while yours is in the shop?

How many iPods have been thrown away and replaced by new models because the battery died and it wasn’t worth the $66 investment in an old iPod. That’s great for the environment. And can someone tell me why it costs $20 more for an iPhone battery replacement than an iPod? It should be telling that Apple has FAQs just on battery replacement!

Next up on the chopping block? Sony. This whole Blu-ray and PS3 business just annoys me. It is like they can’t make up their mind on what their products are going to do before they launch them. The Blu-ray spec was so not-ready-for-primetime that the Playstation 3 has been the only safe-bet for a future-proof Blu-ray movie player. This helpful guide to what features each Blu-ray player does and doesn’t support should be proof enough that Blu-ray still isn’t really ready for the average movie buying consumer (let’s ignore the price that is 3x higher than HD-DVD too).

The Playstation 3 has been all over the product map as well. In the little more than a year that the PS3 has been out, they have had five different versions of the console and they are about to add a sixth, yet they have never sold more than two SKUs at a time. Let’s see, will this new one play PS2 games? If it does, will it be all games via hardware, or some games via software? Does it have WiFi? What about SACD support? Oh you haven’t heard of that? It is just another failed media format by Sony that some PS3s support.

And while Sony has made it obvious that they are using the PS3 as a Trojan horse for Blu-ray (or is it the other way around now?) could someone tell them that many people like to use universal remote controls when they watch a movie? Just try to explain to my wife why she can control everything in my living room with our Harmony remote (which we absolutely love), except for the PS3. Surely out of the five or six variants of the PS3 they could have made one that had a remote “eye” like the Xbox 360 does.

Speaking of the Xbox 360, even though they have three SKUs, all of the differences in features are accessories, so even a $280 Arcade model could be accessorized out to be like an Elite (minus the black paint job) if you wanted. The PS3 SKUs differences can’t be fixed/change after the fact.

Oh, and lastly, would it be too much for the PS3 to actually come with the HD cables (component or HDMI) to actually hook up their “true HD” game console to my HDTV (you know, like the Xbox 360 does)? I’m sure it makes sense to people that they are getting a free “Blu-ray HD” movie, but not the HD cables to watch it with. Actually wait, don’t do it Sony, I love to watch people at BestBuy get suckered talked into buying an $86 Monster HDMI cable (one of the few remaining joys of brick-and-mortal shopping). You know if they didn’t waste all that money on an HDMI cable they might have some money for an extra game or controller…but you wouldn’t want that sale, would you Sony?

Note: This article is cross-posted at PseudoSavant.

div>Recently there was some “big”, but expected, news that Nintendo’s Wii took the #1 seat in the “next-gen” console console race away from Microsoft’s Xbox 360. One thing that oddly no one mentioned was that the only country or region the Wii actually has the #1 spot in is Japan.

Fact 1: There are 50% more Xbox 360s than Wiis in North America

Fact 2: If you add the Playstation 3 and Wii install bases together you’d still be about 300,000 units short of the Xbox 360.

I know some people care about the Japanese gaming market, like oh, the Japanese, and there are some people (a seemingly vocal minority) who enjoy Japanese games, but really how much does that matter most consumers outside of Asia? Obviously Microsoft would like to gain some ground in Japan, but I don’t see any games in my collection that I would consider to be Japanese titles.

If video games are actually breaking out as the next major mainstream media format, why is it so important to get Japan? Have you ever heard of a movie getting canceled because the producers thought nobody would watch it in Japan? How about a book, or a CD? Me neither. I guess my point is, there is some room in our global economy for some regional preferences.

Note: This article is cross-posted at PseudoSavant.

If you’ve noticed the extra-frenzied chatter coming from the IT department lately, or the recent overactive salivary disorder affecting the geeky, it’s no coincidence. It’s a yearly symptom brought on by the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), and it means big news for the gaming world, as the big three in console games announce their [...]]]>

If you’ve noticed the extra-frenzied chatter coming from the IT department lately, or the recent overactive salivary disorder affecting the geeky, it’s no coincidence. It’s a yearly symptom brought on by the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), and it means big news for the gaming world, as the big three in console games announce their upcoming projects. Here’s a summary of the festivities:

Sony threw down the gauntlet of corporate warfare, lowering the price of the Playstation 3 by $100 and announcing a new 80gig model, as well as newer, sleeker, faster PSP that can connect to PC’s and home entertainment centers. They showed off many of their new toys, like, Playstation Home, their new 3d console community that allows for interconnectivity between PS3 and PSP and even cell phones, and allows for many multiplayer/online features, they also reminded fans of their superior graphics capabilities as they showed off their coming lineup of games.

Many expected Microsoft to mirror Sony’s announcements with their own price drop for the X-Box. They did not. Microsoft simply pointed out that with the “perfect storm” of games with exclusive X-Box content that will coming out later this year (i.e. Halo 3, Grand Theft Auto, and Madden 2008), along with many other great titles showcased, X-Box will be the console everyone will want to have. And they may be right. In addition to these titles aimed at the heart of gaming, they are also trying to expand the scope of the console by having more HD movies available for download onto the X-Box.

Nintendo’s big announcement at E3 was their newest toy, Wii Fit, a game designed to work with a weight sensing panel to help improve overall health. It will be interesting to see how this gets incorporated into Wii’s already singular game play. They also announced a Wii zapper, which will allow the Wii-Mote to be used like a gun, as well as a steering wheel and showed how they would work in their upcoming titles. They stressed breaking down the barriers that separated gamers from the rest of the world and will be incorporating more online play to accomplish this.

Gamers and non-gamers alike, prepare for madness as the gaming industry sets up for what appears to be its best year ever.