Where I’ve Been

Hello everyone,

For the last several months you may have noticed a huge drop in posting activity here at Sony Insider. The reason: I accepted a position at CNET earlier this year and have been writing there ever since. As much as I enjoyed obsessively exploring some of the fascinating details of the Sony brand and its products, it became apparent to me after several years of doing so that I needed to shift to bigger and better things.

When I first started SI, Sony had a lackluster social media presence; a site like ours was critical as the brand transitioned its social media presence. For many months (and years), we were one of the biggest Sony blogs on the Internet, assisting with the launch of many products (and leaking them, too). Traffic exploded as the months rolled by, and Sony Electronics was a very gracious host by accommodating many of our needs. Sony Electronics also gave us access to incredible opportunities and events, which I will always be thankful for. However, it was around late last year when I realized Sony was investing an incredible amount of energy in its own blog and SGNL video series, making Sony Insider less necessary. I also felt a sense of competition between Sony and SI, whereas the original goal was to hopefully one day be an official part of Sony. That obviously never materialized, which was a severe disappointment.

I invite you all to check out my author profile on CNET to keep up with my postings, and also read the Crave blog that I routinely post to, as we have some really great people writing content there.

Sony Insider is not dead, but rather on a hiatus for now as I further my professional career and spread my wings. This isn’t over; we will return at some point and be better than ever. No one covers Sony like Sony Insider. Stay tuned.

More Battlefield 3 Gameplay Footage

Last week EA/DICE released more in-game footage from the highly anticipated Battlefield 3, which is shaping up to be the best version of the game ever released. Check out our previous musings on Battlefield 3, which will be for PC, PS3, and XBOX360. I still play Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer (on PC) quite a bit..

Sony Drops PSP Price To $129

Sony dropped the price of the PSP yesterday in the USA to a very competitive $129, matching the current retail price of the Nintendo DS Lite. The two companies are nearing the end of a generation for both of their portable consoles, and are on the verge of launching new systems within the year. The $129 figure is a far cry from the initial USA retail price of the PSP in 2005, which was a whopping $250. I guess after selling 67 million PSP’s the price comes down substantially. I feel the PSP was underrated in its life, and changed the portable gaming landscape forever with its high quality gaming experience.

There have also been several additions to the Greatest Hits ($19) and Favorites ($9) selection, which offer the PSP’s most popular games at a very reduced price.

New Greatest Hits include: Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines, DISSIDIA FINAL FANTASY, LittleBigPlanet , METAL GEAR SOLID: PEACE WALKER, Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters, Resistance: Retribution, and Toy Story 3: The Video Game.
New Favorites include: CRISIS CORE -FINAL FANTASY VII-, Daxter, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, Killzone: Liberation, SOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs: Fire Team Bravo, and Tomb Raider Anniversary.

Sony Europe Shows Off The Colorful VAIO C

Sony Europe has posted a colorful new video to YouTube showing off the new VAIO C series laptop. The design is truly high-tech, as it “scatters light along edges of the translucent PC lid and other key surfaces to create a dramatic glow effect.” It has many other cool features that you can read about at the VAIO C SonyStyle pre-order website. 

Sony Fire, The Protector Of Sony Pictures Studios

I came across these old pictures I snapped of the Sony Fire vehicle at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, California. The 45-acre lot has many studios and side streets, which makes a vehicle like this necessary as a first responder. It features an large surface for people to lay on, heavy duty fire extinguishers, medical supplies, lights, sirens, and so on. I wonder how many HP it has.

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Battlefield 3 Gameplay Footage

EA/DICE have revealed an explosive new trailer showing off Battlefield 3, a highly anticipated shooter coming to PC/PS3/XBOX360 in late 2011. It will reintroduce several elements absent from the Bad Company games, including fighter jets, the prone position and 64-player battles on PC, while the consoles will support 24 players. No word regarding PlayStation Move or 3D support at this time.

The next generation of Frostbite graphics engine will debut with Battlefield 3. It will take full advantage of the DirectX 11 API and 64-bit processors, with no support for DirectX 9 (nor, therefore, Windows XP). It will also feature enhanced in-game destruction with Destruction 3.0, creating more refined physics than its predecessor.

At SIGGRAPH 2010, DICE gave several presentations on advances in their rendering technology:

- “Tile-based deferred shading acceleration” via DirectCompute. This is being ported to the PlayStation 3′s SPUs.
- Morphological Anti-Aliasing (MLAA), again implemented with DirectCompute, for bandwidth conservation. MLAA is currently available only to a few PlayStation 3 games such as God of War III and LittleBigPlanet 2. DICE intends to bring this feature to DirectX 11 GPUs.
- Quasi-realtime radiosity.
- Improved environment destruction.

Pre-order Battlefield 3 to receive the digital expansion pack Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand at no extra charge. This multiplayer expansion pack includes four legendary maps from Battlefield 2, remastered with Frostbite 2 physics, destruction and visuals. Completing the package are classic Battlefield 2 weapons and vehicles, unique rewards, new achievements/trophies, and more.

Players anxious to fight can pre-order the Battlefield 3 Limited Edition now. Pre-order while supplies last.

Kevin Butler Loves Killzone 3

Kevin Butler is promoting the latest blockbuster FPS game for the PS3 – Killzone 3, which came out several days ago. And Kevin has a fish in barrel just for you.

Reviews basically state the obvious: incredible gameplay, groundbreaking 3D, exciting PlayStation Move support, and an 84 rating on Metacritic.

IGN gave the game an 8.5, praising the atmosphere, graphics and multiplayer. They also stated “the weak story never develops into anything great.” Destructoid gave the game a perfect 10/10, with reviewer Jim Sterling stating: “I don’t think the PlayStation 3 has ever had quite such a rounded, satisfactory package as this, with this level of polish, refinement and pure, simple, unpretentious action.”

Sony’s 2011 3D TV Glasses

Lets take a look at Sony’s new active shutter 3D glasses for their 2011 range of BRAVIA TV’s. There are two models: TDG-BR200 (large/adult) and the TDG-BR250 (small/child) differ only by size. Both series come in black and white.

With a new design, the glasses are more lightweight and have a less bulky appearance without sacrificing the ability to block out ambient room light. Despite the thinner look, these latest 3D active shutter glasses are durable, unless your chucking them around in an argument.

Definitely one of the best designs on the market.

The new shades have a standard micro USB port. The battery is rechargeable and boasts a very quick recharge time. 3 hours after just 3 minutes of charging. 30 hours use on a 45 minute full charge. Not too shabby!

Sony Utilizing Massive Amounts Of Green Power

Sony Corporation of America (SCA), Sony DADC, Sony Electronics, and Sony Pictures in the U.S. have come together to purchase more than 143 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually for 2011, which is enough green power to sustain most of energy demands of the company.

If you’re unfamiliar with the term kilowatt hours, using a 60 watt light bulb for one hour consumes 0.06 kilowatt hours of electricity. Using a 60 watt light bulb for one thousand hours consumes 60 kilowatt hours of electricity.

Sony’s on-site solar installations in the U.S. also produce more than 600,000 kWh/year. The company’s green power purchase and on-site solar generation are part of its ongoing commitment to reducing its environmental impact globally and supporting renewable energy.

I really think Sony can eventually operate without zero environmental impact within my lifetime. Personally, I think that we must evolve towards that direction, otherwise we face obsolescence.

Conversation With Sony Network Entertainment President Tim Schaaff

Late last month Sony Network Entertainment President Tim Schaaff discussed the changing content delivery landscape and the intersection of consumer electronics, music and video content, and network services at MidemNet 2011. He was interviewed by Ralph Simon.