Ooo I just thought of a system that was as close to future proof as you get...

Neo Geo.

It had the best 2D graphics when it came out...it still to this day has the best 2D graphics...it lasted over 13 years.

Having users that don't care that much about graphics is vital to system longevity. Look at the games that are keeping the PS2 alive, it's mostly sports and casual games. The hardcore game audience does not have sufficient numbers to sustain a console because many will upgrade once something more powerful comes along. MS has split the sports audience and Nintendo has taken away the casual user completely.

The interesting thing about being ahead of your time is that you end up being the wrong product for your time, and when the world moves to accept a product like yours your bad reputation and obsolete technology make you the wrong product for that time. You could argue that the Dreamcast’s out of the box online gameplay, the XBox’s hard-drive, and the Gamecube/N64’s focus on social gaming made them all ahead of their time but that didn't help them increase the length of their life ...

Also FishyJoe is correct, most of the games that have been released over the past 2 years for the PS2 are worse quality versions of the types of games most "Hardcore" PS3 users tend to bash the Wii for having.

LOL no.



Where did I say that? The media capabilities and the effort that goes into the PS3 as a media machine from images to DivX support to CELL programming (which is a perfect media chip Toshiba even codeveloped it only for this purpose) will be useful in other Sony products. SONY could release some amazing products if they made this technology better accessible to non-gamers. They simply have to get their act together with some minor additions (DVB-C) it would be the best media center around (at least in the same price class)
But you have to explain to me why would PS3 owners have problems with a PS3 with added multimedia capabilities? Doesn't take away anything from them.

^
I think current generation console sales shows us that added functionality does not guarantee increasing sales. PS3 with a DVB-C might be a great idea and make it the best media center around. However, this is not the market Sony should target the device to.

For existing PS3 users, they certainly wouldn't have any problem with a PS3 with added multimedia capabilities. For consumers who don't have PS3, added multimedia capabilities wouldn't matter to them if it means price for PS3 can't be lowered.

Don't think so too. That will not help them as a game console. At least not in a really huge way. On the other hand if you are selling media players you do no need the huge numbers of consoles because you do not need game developers etc. and you can sell the machine at a profit. I am not talking about the console wars there. More about the cool technology I would like to buy. And it simply is an amazing media machine (worth the price on its own).
If it would use less power, had a DVB-C input and the recorder functionality of the PlayTV addon it would be perfect. I imagine them using some of the technology in their other products perhaps their high-end TVs. That would be amazing. Imagine a TV with this technology and a movie download store similar to the itunes store. Sony simply needs to get their act together and use the technology they have. They really should bang some heads together to make this work.

Sometimes I wonder why people who have been in this site for so long still don't know what makes a console future proof.

@Kyros: Yes it is. The most popular console will live the longest. No matter what the tech inside is.

Ok, you just meant that it would be a "co-product", not an upgrade.

Look at the multimedia PC:s, how well they are doing. They have all the functions mentioned and more. For some reason people still buy standalone DVD-players/RW players, digital tuners/recorders, standalone BD players, PS3:s, while you can have it all on multimedia PC and on top of that, BD recorder, all the computer basic functionality, HDD size of your choice, more powerful hardware, fully upgradeable etc. To me it looks like a bad idea.

http://www.vgchartz.com/forum/thread.php?id=57691&page=1

As a wrap up, Hirai commented on how the PlayStation 3 was deliberately designed to be difficult to program for in order to increase the overall lifecycle of the console.

That to me -- in some ways -- fits the technical definition of bleeding edge (for which I have been criticized for using).

I also used it in a more descriptive sense -- basically Sony gave people more than they generally wanted/needed, putting the PS3 into a position beyond what they considered cutting edge FOR GAME CONSOLES.

That and the high price -- also part of the bleeding edge paradigm -- has led to the PS3's difficulties in my opinion.

Mike from Morgantown

I took the 10 year plan as basically them trying to convince me to put down the $600 investment. In that "NEW" games would still be coming out in 10 years so the $600 isn't such a big price.

the life of a product is all relevant on consumers and nothing to do with teh companies plans. The 10 year plan was and is still just a marketing tactic to get people to think the systems price is worth it cause will last long.