Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Announces Hardware Specification of PLAYSTATION®3 for Europe (PS3)

The European PS3 will feature the Cell Broadband Engine?, 60 GB hard disc drive, Blu-ray Disc player, built-in Wi-Fi connectivity, SIXAXIS? wireless controller. It also embodies a new combination of hardware and software emulation which will enable PS3 to be compatible with a broad range of original PlayStation® (PS) titles and a limited range of PlayStation®2 (PS2) titles.

?PS3 is first and foremost a system that excels in playing games specifically designed to exploit the power and potential of the PS3 system,? said David Reeves, President of SCEE. ?Games designed for PS3 offer incredible graphics quality, stunning gameplay and massively improved audio and video fidelity that is simply not achievable with PS and PS2 games. Rather than concentrate on PS2 backwards compatibility, in the future, company resources will be increasingly focused on developing new games and entertainment features exclusively for PS3, truly taking advantage of this exciting technology.?

Some additional PS2 titles will become compatible on the PS3 system through regular downloadable firmware updates, which will be made available through the PLAYSTATION®Network, from www.playstation.com or via PS3 game discs, with the first update planned for the launch date of the 23rd March 2007.

Users will be able to check whether their titles are compatible with PS3 at faq.eu.playstation.com/bc. This site will be available on 23rd March to meet launch day.