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[onQ123]

Sony Brings New 3D Viewing Technology to PS3

PlayView being updated for 4K resolutions, 3D support and in-game browsing.

Sony Computer Entertainment's PlayView image viewing technology brought PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable users interactive manuals and manga. Now sony is taking the technology to a new level.

At the Game Tools and Middleware Forum 2011 event in Tokyo today (via Famitsu.com), the company revealed that PlayView will soon support 4K resolutions. This means 4096 pixels width by 2160 pixels height, or four times current full HD resolution.

The technology will also support 3D stereoscopic image output. Even when viewing in 3D, users will be able to zoom in and out just like with standard PlayView content. Sony suggested 3D photo albums as one possible application of the new 3D support.

Sony will also be more closely incorporating PlayView into games. Developers will be able to include PlayView-based content directly in games by making use of a PlayStation 3 library that allows them to call up a PlayView utility from the game and set what page to output and how large to output the images.

One of the first applications of the improved PlayView technology will be the new "Plup Series" visual magaizne series from Lucent Pictures Entertainment. As detailed at Famitsu.com, a digital version of the magazines will be released on PlayStation 3 and will make use of PlayView for 4K resolution, with some pages even supporting 3D output.

Two Plup Series magazines will be released, iQueen and aButton. iQueen's first issue will hit on August 9, priced ¥2011 for its standard 96 page A4 size edition. The PS3 digital version will be priced ¥2,100, and will arrive some time in the summer. aButton will be released between August and September. Both the print and PS3 versions will cost between ¥2000 and ¥2500. The PS3 versions of these magazines will be released through PlayStation Store.

 

[Oppo]

4D, Ken lives!

 

[Supervlieg]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

That way we're still a few generations of 60 fps as a standard (for consoles at least)

 

[JBuccCP]

Why did we switch from using the vertical number to the horizontal? Is it just so they could use the bigger number? Every time I hear 4k I think somethingx4000.

 

[sixteen-bit]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

It's nice to want things.

 

[RavenFox]

Woah. Sweet tech

 

[Supervlieg]

Digital Cinema projectors use 2k or 4k, or the horizontal res. I guess that's the end goal for the home sets. So keep saving up for a new television after this one.

 

[TouchMyBox]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

lolololololoololol

We were promised 1080p this gen and were given 600p. Perhaps we'll be promised 4k next-gen and get 720p?

 

[Luigiv]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

That way we're still a few generations of 60 fps as a standard (for consoles at least)

To watch on which TVs?

I expect Next Gen will be 1080p standard with a few 4K games released close to the end of the generation.

60FPS will never be a standard.

 

[NekoFever]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

Where's the :lol icon?

Let's get 1080p first.

 

[PetriP-TNT]

4K on consoles? heh

 

[Smokey]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

That way we're still a few generations of 60 fps as a standard (for consoles at least)

Lol no
4k is no where near close to coming home.

 

[scitek]

To watch on which TVs?

I expect Next Gen will be 1080p standard with a few 4K games released close to the end of the generation.

60FPS will never be a standard.

Even that's far-fetched, I think.

 

[Leonsito]

Lol, be grateful if every game comes in 720p on consoles next gen.

 

[Koren]

It's nice to want things.

I don't think he want 4k. Anyone that know what an eye can see on a screen has no reason to want 4k (for a TV set, I mean, a display or a computer can use those high resolution because you look closer and not the whole image).

I think (and I agree) that 4k may be the new 'Full HD'/'3D', a marketing catchphrase... Except that Full HD was indeed useful. The kind of trick they look for to make people buy new sets.

And it has been a long time I don't believe we'll ever see 60Hz as a basis.

 

[painful fart]

Lol, be grateful if every game comes in 720p on consoles next gen.

Pretty much, considering the Wii U is next gen.

 

[Supervlieg]

Im just saying prepare to be sold new sets and resolutions all over again. After the market is saturated with 1080p/3d televisions, 4k is next. Sony testing the waters with 4k playview is a sign on the wall imo.

That the games will hardly run smoothly or below that resolution is a given, obviously. That's what this gen showed us.

 

[Kleegamefan]

Pretty much, considering the Wii U is next gen.

Next gen, as in ps360 rite?

 

[TouchMyBox]

Just to give you guys some perspective, if you took two of the best videocards today in what you guys refer to as a "$10,000 PC" it wouldn't have a fun time at 4k. Sure, I can render games right now in 4K resolution like TF2 and get a decent 50fps, but anything graphically demanding? No way.

Surely $500 videocards in a year and a half will be able to handle 4K resolutions better, but I don't see developers wanting to dedicate their entire ram budget to a resolution that 0.000001% of players would experience.

 

[Schlomo]

As detailed at Famitsu.com, a digital version of the magazines will be released on PlayStation 3 and will make use of PlayView for 4K resolution, with some pages even supporting 3D output.

What's this supposed to mean? Are 4k TVs already available in Japan? Even so, surely the PS3 can't output 4k!?

 

[Dabanton]

Haha at people thinking they want or will even get 4K.

Ludicrous.

 

[Luigiv]

Even that's far-fetched, I think.

Not really. Think of it like the step from the N64/PSX generation to the PS2/GCN/Xbox generation. The N64 and PSX struggled to achieve 480i with very few games running at that resolution, whilst on the next generation 480i was the de facto standard and we even saw a few 720p games too.

 

[Supervlieg]

Just to give you guys some perspective, if you took two of the best videocards today in what you guys refer to as a "$10,000 PC" it wouldn't have a fun time at 4k. Sure, I can render games right now in 4K resolution like TF2 and get a decent 50fps, but anything graphically demanding? No way.

Surely $500 videocards in a year and a half will be able to handle 4K resolutions better, but I don't see developers wanting to dedicate their entire ram budget to a resolution that 0.000001% of players would experience.

Not yet, but couldn't you say the exacte same about 2k (or 1920) a few years back?

 

[TouchMyBox]

Not really. Think of it like the step from the N64/PSX generation to the PS2/GCN/Xbox generation. The N64 and PSX struggled to achieve 480i with very few games running at that resolution, whilst on the next generation 480i was the de facto standard and we even saw a few 720p games too.

So what you're saying is that 720p will be standard, and we'll see a few 1080p games too.

I can definitely agree on that.

Not yet, but couldn't you say the exacte same about 2k (or 1920) a few years back?

When the PS3 was announced, and sony said it would do 1080p, the PC guys were going "wait a second, I have the same videocard that is in the PS3 and I can't do 1080p on anything new". Look at what a mid-tier computer can do during the announcement of the next consoles, and you might get something similar, if you're lucky.

 

[Jarmel]

Even that's far-fetched, I think.

Not really. 1080p is extremely easy and cheap to do now, two years from now will be dirt cheap.

 

[Ydahs]

What's this supposed to mean? Are 4k TVs already available in Japan? Even so, surely the PS3 can't output 4k!?

The later versions of HDMI support 4K, so it might be possible that the PS3 does too.

 

[Koren]

The later versions of HDMI support 4K, so it might be possible that the PS3 does too.

I think it can't. As far as I know, even the 3D support is a kind of trick*, and it can't support Full-HD 3D.


* Something like building both eye PoV in a single image splitted vertically, and send it like a 2D image, while adding the 3D headers in the video signal. No real difference between a real 3D signal, but they had to take into account the video chipset that handle HDMI, and they couldn't do anything else than that.

 

[painful fart]

Next gen, as in ps360 rite?

This is a sensitive subject let us just leave it. ;-P
Peace & love etc.

 

[Raistlin]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

I lol'd

Why did we switch from using the vertical number to the horizontal? Is it just so they could use the bigger number? Every time I hear 4k I think somethingx4000.

Yeah me too. It took me a while to force it into my head. I seriously had a mental block against it for a long time.

Lol no
4k is no where near close to coming home.

Actually the displays aren't far off, but obviously graphics at that res are wayyyyyyyy far away.

 

[RavenFox]

I don't think he was serious about the 4K comment guys.

 

[TouchMyBox]

I think it can't. As far as I know, even the 3D support is a kind of trick*, and it can't support Full-HD 3D.

It does officially support it. Though I doubt it can do so at anything higher than 24Hz.

 

[Chaplain]

4K on consoles? heh

lol

 

[onQ123]

looking at some of these comments I can safely say that Nintendo has really fucked some of you people up with the Wii U.

 

[Cornbread78]

Nice, keep pushing the tech, so When I'm ready to replace my current Samsung, I can over spend for the best new tech on the market... Very nice....

 

[onQ123]

It does officially support it. Though I doubt it can do so at anything higher than 24Hz.

looking at this & thinking about how good 1080P look now kinda blows my mind to think of how good a 60" 4K TV is going to look in our homes in a few years

this looks like it's going to be the biggest jump between resolutions that we have seen because I think we are going to skip over 2K because it's not that big of a difference from 1080P to get people to upgrade.

 

[Doctor_No]

A minor point, but it'll likely be 4K2K which is 3840 x 2160 resolution. All announced TVs, by all manufacturers including Sony, are all 4K2K resolutions, not 4096x2160 due to pragmatic reasons.

4K2K is Quad-1080p, (1920*2)*(1080*2), which makes scaling and manufacturing much more modular and easy.

 

[androvsky]

I think it can't. As far as I know, even the 3D support is a kind of trick*, and it can't support Full-HD 3D.


* Something like building both eye PoV in a single image splitted vertically, and send it like a 2D image, while adding the 3D headers in the video signal. No real difference between a real 3D signal, but they had to take into account the video chipset that handle HDMI, and they couldn't do anything else than that.

Uh, that's one of the normal 3D formats that HDMI 1.4 uses. Don't assume that because it's sending two images, they're necessarily half resolution. The PS3 launched with a 1.3 HDMI chipset that has the same video bandwidth as HDMI 1.4, there's plenty of overhead for 1080p in 3D, and there's enough for 4k (at 24 Hz, though).

 

[Krev]

To watch on which TVs?

I expect Next Gen will be 1080p standard with a few 4K games released close to the end of the generation.

That's really pushing it. The difference in hardware requirements to move fromrendering at 1080p to 4K are absolutely enormous.

4K TVs are not going to be in a number of homes worth supporting with a console for a very long time. 1080p will be the target for next generation. And hallelujah! Maybe we'll get some nice IQ for a change as a result!

IF Sony decide to futureproof PS4 and put in 4K support (which is a big if...the output standard for 4K displays hasn't even been decided yet) then the only games you'll see supporting it are purpose-made 2D games commissioned to check the '4K' box, like PixelJunk and 'full HD' on PS3.

looking at some of these comments I can safely say that Nintendo has really fucked some of you people up with the Wii U.

Tech blogs have really fucked you up when it comes to next-gen expectations.

looking at this & thinking about how good 1080P look now kinda blows my mind to think of how good a 60" 4K TV is going to look in our homes in a few years

Hahaha!

Maybe in the King of Saudi Arabia's home.

 

[Weenerz]

Congratulations to the 13 people that have the setup needed for 4k, you guys earned it.

 

[FinKL]

I'm surprised no one mentions PCs, I believe they have the graphical power to push 4k out? The problem is the TV's are a way out though. This Engadget article mentions that some company was pushing a 36" out in Japan for an equivalent of ~$36,000.

 

[FireCloud]

looking at this & thinking about how good 1080P look now kinda blows my mind to think of how good a 60" 4K TV is going to look in our homes in a few years

I may be wrong, but I doubt that we are going to see 4K displays in homes in the next couple of years. Maybe next decade. The broadcast infrastructure isn't capable of pushing the bandwidth required to drive a display of that resolution.

 

[Krev]

I may be wrong, but I doubt that we are going to see 4K displays in homes in the next couple of years. Maybe next decade. The broadcast infrastructure isn't capable of pushing the bandwidth required to drive a display of that resolution.

You are absolutely correct.
The existing infrastructure isn't even nearly capable of pushing the bandwidth required for 1080p on every channel.
It will take a widespread push for IPTV to become standard before anyone even thinks of 4K broadcasts.

4K monitors? Sure, they're not so far away, but the console manufacturers aren't going to create a console that supports resolutions TVs don't.

 

[Adamm]

Will 4k ever catch on?
HD is only started becoming mainstream in the past few years, its going to be a hard sell to convince people they need to H'er D!

 

[Supervlieg]

I dont need it, but boy do I want it!

 

[Krev]

Will 4k ever catch on?
HD is only started becoming mainstream in the past few years, its going to be a hard sell to convince people they need to H'er D!

We honestly might not see a big push to replace HD until 8K is ready. NHK have been investing a lot of money into developing an 8K standard.

 

[androvsky]

That's really pushing it. The difference in hardware requirements to move fromrendering at 1080p to 4K are absolutely enormous.

4K TVs are not going to be in a number of homes worth supporting with a console for a very long time. 1080p will be the target for next generation. And hallelujah! Maybe we'll get some nice IQ for a change as a result!

I agree it's not worth targeting with console games (let's get most games running at 1080p first), but I think it might be worth supporting for certain functions (movie scaling, photo viewing, PlayView, stuff like that). Not many people would be able to use it, but it wouldn't take much effort on Sony's part, and it makes for a nice bullet-point for those that do have a 4k display (disclaimer: I do consulting work for a small company that makes a 4k projector). Kinda like how the launch PS3 supported SACD playback.

IF Sony decide to futureproof PS4 and put in 4K support (which is a big if...the output standard for 4K displays hasn't even been decided yet) then the only games you'll see supporting it are purpose-made 2D games designed to check the '4K' box, like PixelJunk and 'full HD' on PS3.

Actually, 4k is one of the defined video modes with HDMI 1.4, and since the PS3's HDMI chip has the same video bandwidth, Sony could support it with a simple firmware update. It'd still be stuck at 24 Hz.

 

[onQ123]

Tech blogs have really fucked you up when it comes to next-gen expectations.

Hahaha!

Maybe in the King of Saudi Arabia's home.

I'm talking about the people saying that we will be lucky if we get 1080P as a standard

 

[Krev]

Actually, 4k is one of the defined video modes with HDMI 1.4, and since the PS3's HDMI chip has the same video bandwidth, Sony could support it with a simple firmware update. It'd still be stuck at 24 Hz.

Well, I stand corrected. It makes all the sense in the world for Sony to support the resolution next gen, and I agree that for very little effort it on Sony's part it could do a bunch of cool things for people that can take advantage of it.

But we're not going to see a 4K2K push for a long time, and anyone who believes we'll be playing 4K games on next-gen consoles are seriously deluded.

I'm talking about the people saying that we will be lucky if we get 1080P as a standard

Oh, okay. Fair enough.
I'm hesitant to make a call there. I expect 1080p standard, but I bet some games will go at 720p with a ridiculous amount of effects and flashiness on screen. It sort of makes sense, since a lot of people only own 720p HDTVs.

 

[T-0800]

lolololololoololol

We were promised 1080p this gen and were given 600p. Perhaps we'll be promised 4k next-gen and get 720p?

Just as well then that the best looking PS3 games aren't Sub HD.

I would love if you could link PS3s together for 1080p and 60fps gaming. I'd buy another just for that.

 

[EatChildren]

Expect to see 4k as the standard for next gen.

That way we're still a few generations of 60 fps as a standard (for consoles at least)

No, and not ever.