Question:
Dear Big Picture Big Sound,
I've been hearing for months about how the PS3 (Sony PlayStation 3) is going to work with the new 3D. How is that going to work if my PS3 was made before all the 3D technology was figured out? Will PS3 support 3D TV? 3-D Gaming? And Blu-ray 3D?
Thanks,
- Feeling Flat in Fair Lawn
Answer:
Dear FF in FL:
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is releasing their first round of 3D Blu-ray movies. Sony Electronics is selling their first 3D-ready TVs and Blu-ray players. And with the firmware upgrade for the PlayStation 3 now enabling the playback of 3D games on the still-wildly-popular console, now is the time for hard facts. Now that our reader mentions it, we'd love to find out the nitty gritty details for ourselves, so we reached out to the folks at Sony Computer Entertainment of America, Inc. the U.S. gaming hardware/software tentacle of the multinational conglomerate, who were kind enough to share all the information that they could at this stage of the rapidly advancing 3D TV game.
Big Picture Big Sound: So there is going to be a firmware upgrade that will enable games to be played in 3D on the PS3, correct?
Sony Computer Entertainment America: Yes, system software update version 3.30 prepped the PS3 system for stereoscopic 3D gaming, and was made available in April.
BPBS: This will work with existing games or new, 3D games?
SCEA: Further details with regard to the stereoscopic 3D games including title names, release date, price and distribution channels will be announced when ready. We are currently developing stereoscopic 3D games to come in conjunction with the launch of Sony's 3D-compatible BRAVIA LCD TVs.
SCEA: Yes, all PS3 units that exist in homes and markets will be able to play stereoscopic 3D games as well as 3D BD movies [aka Blu-ray 3D - ed.].
BPBS: We've heard that, as an end-run around the HDMI 1.4 requirement of the 3D Blu-ray standard, some new hardware such as a dongle may be required. True?
SCEA: No.
BPBS: Can you comment at all on the roadmap for Blu-ray 3D support, specifically? This will also be a firmware-only issue, no rumored dongle...?
SCEA: As we mentioned previously, all PS3 units that exist in homes and markets will be able to play 3D stereoscopic games as well as 3D BD movies. The PS3 system will support 3D Blu-ray movies via a firmware update. An upgrade for 3D BD movies will be conducted sometime after the games update. We are planning to release the system software update for 3D BD movies within this calendar year.
And there you have it. This comes as good news to longtime PlayStation 3 enthusiasts--including the Big Picture Big Sound crew--although we are as yet unable to test any of these claims, due to a lack of 3D games, and not aided by the limited availability of first-generation 3D TVs.
Update (7/12/10): According to a Sony executive in Europe (as reported by Computer and Video Games), the PS3 will get its Blu-ray 3D firmware upgrade in September of this year.
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