14 DAY TRIAL // Sony has previously said that it plans to introduce 3D gaming capabilities to the PlayStation 3 but failed to produce clear details on the issue and many were expecting to hear more at the press conference the electronics giant held at the Consumer Electronics Show now taking place in Las Vegas.
When Sir Howard Stringer, who is the Chief Executive Officer of Sony, said that “Our goal is to become an undisputed global leader in 3D,” the PlayStation 3 was the device on which the talk should have focused.
But Sony representatives only mentioned that the 3D capabilities, both for playing videogames and for the playback of Blu-ray movies, would be delivered through a firmware patch set to arrive at some point in 2010, probably in the second half.
Other than that, Kaz Hirai, who is the go to man for big PlayStation announcements, only appeared to reveal that the PlayStation Network video store would be expanded in scope to take into account the capabilities of the new full HD Bravia line of television sets. Sony also announced that it planned to partner with IMAX and with the Discovery Channel to create a 3D-only TV network and with ESPN to develop a 3D sports channel. Both will probably be delivered to the PlayStation 3 at some point after the firmware update.
With both Sony and Microsoft offering motion tracking controllers during 2010, the allusions to the 3D capabilities of the PlayStation 3 might offer it a competitive advantage in terms of sales, as long as either videogames or multimedia content is delivered to the 3D capable console. Hopefully, the maker will offer more details about the firmware update that introduces 3D and the date when it is set to arrive.