I agree that Cell will be heavily utilized, it would be dumb for them not too. Devs are more comfortable with it, BC would be built in and cost would be low. I think price point will be $499. What they need to do is make sure the OS is clean and user friendly. Apps for all the majors, Netflix, Amazon etc. need to be in plain site and connectivity with multiple non Sony branded devices needs to be transparent. If they do this it will be a huge selling point for peoples living room. I really think they need to team up with Google. Having Chrome browser built in, utilizing their current BT keyboard that attaches to the controller or even another device all together will make it easy for people. It needs to differentiate itself from what the TV MFGs are doing while doing the basics better. Having it Android based would be huge especially if you could hook up to Android market and DL games etc from their. Almost like a Tablet for your TV. So full PSN support and games along with access to the Android market and all of those APPS. Just thinking out loud......

Yeah, it would be amazing if there was some kind of Google support, Chrome and Android market for PS4/Vita with cross compatibility of PS Mobile games on Android smartphones would be awesome.

I do hope they do something more with Home, it should be integrated more with the OS  and give us the ability to directly boot into Home without any loadtimes, shouldnt be that difficult with the amount of RAM PS4 will be getting.

Imo, graphics won't make the PS4 the "best" and as a gamer, I don't need it to be the best to make me happy.. Much like the PS2, I expect Sony not to be the best in raw power next gen, but second place after the next X-Box and ahead of the WiiU. Games, innovation, and proper marketing will help it succeed.

My picks will go by the AMD rumors.

Processor:

AMD APU Trinity A10-5700 derived CPU clocked at 3.4 GHz* (At best)

The Cell processor will stay on board for BC. (Maybe for the first 2 or 3 years)

Ram:

1GB DDR3 1600MHz for the CPU and integrated GPU

GPU

AMD Radeon HD7770 derived GPU
Integrated GPU in APU will be 7660D and to have some sort of hybrid crossfire with discrete GPU
2GB GDDR5 (for discrete GPU)


Bluray drive

BD drive will stay but will be the latest (speed). Installations will be optional.


Storage

Sony should go flash. (8Gb?) This would bring down costs and since installations would be optional, it would be completely up to the consumer if he/she wants to purchase an HDD. Also, HDDs should be proprietary. (solid state maybe)


PS4 manufacturing to cost maybe $350. PS4 to retail at $350; break even or small loss.
It will also need to launch with Killzone "4" and Uncharted "4" as it would be a perfect way to market the PS"4".
Gran Turismo 6 would also be needed.

Can anyone actually confirm stores make money off systems? I know I've been told otherwise.

Actually, people forget that Sony has a large cash reserve (around US$ 170 Billions). They were immensely profitable in 90's-early 2000's. They have a lot of money to burn and will do what they think that will lead to a return to profitability. If they believe that it will be a cheaper console, then it'll be this way. If thet think that it'll be a US$ 600 beast, then it'll be this way.

Anyway, I believe that they will prefer a higher mid-end aproach. Powerfull but not too expensive.

Yes, I'm 90% sure that it is either that, or Sony pays retailers to supply hardware for the consumers

I really doubt stores would sell consoles if they didn't make money off them.

For example, Best Buy is a business after all. Number 1 rule of businesses in Maximize Profit.

Also people forget that Sony makes plenty of other things as well, and a loss is a big deal because if the loss continues for years they will soon have no assets left.

Excluding Nintendo, When home consoles first launch, typically they don't make much if any money for retail stores.

They use THE RAZOR BLADE BUSINESS MODEL.

This has been the practice forover 15 years now.

Of course, that why they are trying to return to profit. My point is that they have enough money to burn to make this. They won't simply do the cheapest thing, they will do what they believe that will give them a good return (it ccould be the cheapest thing or a expensive machine).

I'm not exactly an expert but here's a wild guess as to what the PS4's hardware will look like anyway:

CPU - 4x @ 3.5 GHz
GPU - 2 GB GDDR5 RAM
RAM - 2 GB DDR3
SSD - 32 GB (for OS)
HDD - 1 TB SATA @ 6 Gb/s
ODD - 12x Blu-Ray

I'd guess that in late 2014 this would cost about $450 to manufacture and assemble allowing Sony to price it at $400.