The Case for the PS4K reads a lot like the case that consoles are so desperate they're going to caniablize everything that distinguished them from PC.<p>Consoles once represented predictability, stability and ease of use. Do they have much left beyond the set top form factor, 10 ft UI and a bit more flexibility on how often you're required to be online?<p>I don't see this evolution of the console market as positive for consumers. But according to the article people will complain online about anything good or bad, so fuck them, right? Using your adult brain to ask if something is in the interest of consumers is not necessary when children online irk you.
Well, Sony have two things in the pipeline, VR and PS4K so I assume that they are linked. The PS4 never felt like it was powerful enough to drive VR in an interesting way. Sure it just about works, but can you build interesting games with just the power of PS4?
If I wanted an incrementally upgradable console with games as a service and backwards compatibility, I'd just plug a 360 controller into a computer running Steam. In fact, that's exactly what I do.
I disagree with his assessment of the console lifecycle.<p>I bought an XBox 360 and a PS 3 at dirt cheap prices around the time the 1 and the 4 came out and these are both great values, still going strong, etc. Today I am starting to want to play Yakuza 6 and the new Hyperdimension Neptunia game but I can save that for later.<p>The technological story is that (i) console APUs are in a state of technological improvement but that PCs are not (i.e. Intel is obsessed with making a notebook computer that can fit under the door at a hotel and not with improving any product attributes that matter) and (ii) no way Sony can Nintendo get ahead with a more powerful console.
Does the new PS4K play games in actual 4k (not upscaled bullshit)? No. It won't have titles designed to run on 4k screens. It won't be able to have games run at 4k. Sony has already told us this.<p>This is simply an update for people without a PS4 or for people whose original PS4 breaks (I assume it's just a matter of time based on my and others' PS3 experience). It's a ploy to get more money for essentially the same product. Yes, you'll be able to watch 4k Netflix on it, something you can do with a ~ $100 box nowadays, but other than that the name is a misnomer and the upgrade certainly unappreciated in the gaming community. As others have said, if we wanted upgrades every year or two, we'd stick to PC gaming thank you very much.
The thing that people need to realize about this 4K PS4, is that is just the up-converted output. There is NO WAY this new PS4 is rendering anything at a full 4K resolution. You need an extremely powerful desktop to handle such resolutions, even without post processing.<p>It's sad because Sony has made all the right moves this generation, completely crushing competitors, and now they attempt this incremental nonsense, which was the whole reason consoles were separate from PC's.