Europe free of PS3 tyranny

Image: Public domain, just like my pants.

Thanks to the noble efforts of LG, the PS3′s march across Europe has been stymied. A copyright claim by LG arguing that Sony’s Blu-ray players violate their patents has resulted in PS3s entering Europe to be seized by customs.

Reports indicate stores have two or three weeks’ worth of supply in the pipeline before Europe is free of the four year tyrannical ordeal known as the PlayStation 3.

At present, the blockade is only set to last for ten days, but LG may be working to extend that count, or even aim to have the systems put out of their miseries permanently.

Somewhere, Geohot is laughing.

Source: MCV UK

Sony continues war against PS3 jailbreakers

Image: Ironically public domain.

It only does what Sony wants it to do. Or else.

Remember when hackers figured out the “public private keys” of the PS3, allowing them to run code on the system at will? Sony does, and they’re still trying to ensure no one is ever able to follow their instructions.

In addition to suing anyone distribution the code necessary to jailbreak the black monolith, the company is kindly requesting Google give up the IP addresses of people who watched a private informational video regarding the hack on YouTube posted by hack-spectacular George “Geohot” Hotz. They also want names to go with the Twitter accounts of fail0verflow members, also associated with the hack.

Oh yeah, Sony is also hoping to get ahold of Hotz’s computer, presumably so they can check it for evidence of pro-Linux, anti-corporate bias.

Source: Wired

Sony announces “NGP,” err, PSP2

Image: Sony.

Sony finally cleared away the months of rumours and speculation, officially announcing the PSP2, or as the company is currently calling it, the “Next Generation Portable.”

Much of what was expected came true: touch screen on the front, touch pad on the back, “PS3 quality” graphics, and dual analog. Perhaps more surprisingly, Sony has decided to ditch the UMD format and is switching to DS-style flash-based carts. Also included are 3G support, GPS, and an OLED screen.

Sony is promising a holiday 2011 release date for Japan, but no price has been announced. Random internet forum speculation indicates the thing will be pricey, in the area of $300-400.

Hyperbolic industry fellatio has already begun for the system, with one EEDAR analyst claiming:

After seeing the specs today, if the NGP can’t succeed, it is clear that the portable gaming landscape has forever changed. The future of portable entertainment is in the hands of Sony.

It’s like we’re right back in the PSP vs. DS days of 2004. Let’s see if Sony can really lift us out of the “gaming ghetto” this time.

Nerd rage vs. corporate rage, Sony not happy about PS3 hack

Image: Public domain, just like my pants.

I have a better grasp of liquid water than I do this subject, read at your peril.

In December of 2010, a team of hackers known as “fail0verflow” announced that they had figured out how to circumvent the entirety of Sony’s security on the PS3.

After George “Geohot” Hotz managed to discover a “memory line glitching exploit” they were able to jailbreak the system and even discover the “public private keys” for it, meaning they can now run code on the PS3 at will as though they were Sony themselves.

The group implied their actions were a result of Sony’s unjust removal of the “Other OS” feature of the PS3, which allowed owners to run Linux on their black monoliths.

Sony is displeased with this series of events, and is now taking slimy corporate action against the parties involved in the form of a rather unique lawsuit. In addition to monetary damages, the company wants the information necessary to hack PS3s ripped from the internet.

Sony looks a lot screwed on this one. Anti-establishment hackers and Lunix worshipers are probably none-too-interested in rolling over to corporate demands.

Source: NeoGAF

BREAKING: Kids want overpriced electronics for Christmas

It’s not just the children of the UK who would prefer overpriced hunks of plastic from Apple this holiday season.

Nielsen is reporting that among American youngsters aged 6-12, 31% want an iPad in the next six months. 29% want an iPod Touch (the same number want a computer), and only 25% want a DS. PS3 leads among home consoles, with 21% desiring the black behemoth, compared with 18% for Wii.

Consumers 13+ are most looking to buy a computer (20%). The first Apple product on the list is the iPad in fourth place, beating out any video game systems. Thankfully, the Wii comes out ahead of the PS3 and 360 in this category. The DS is behind pretty much everything, with only 8% interested in buying one in the next six months. That still manages to beat the as-yet-to-be-hyped-in-the-real-world 3DS at 6%, and the similarly non-hyped PSP at 5%.

Source: Nielsen
Image: Adapted from christmas morning by scottfeldstein under a CC-BY license.