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Rumor: Sony to Port Firefox to the PS3

Ryan Whitwam — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:33:48 -0600

Firefox is a force to be reckoned with in the desktop browser space. But could the Mozilla foundation be looking to port it to the PS3? Playstation Insider claims that Sony and Mozilla are in talks to do just that. "We recently received a tip from a source very close to Sony who says that they have been in talks with Mozilla lately about possibly porting Firefox over to the PS3," said Playstation Insider’s Dustin Rudzinski.

It’s no secret that the Playstation’s current browser is nothing to write home about. So access to a “real” browser would be a real treat for PS3 owners. The tipster didn’t know if any deal had actually been struck, but what a pleasant firmware update that would be. So PS3 owners, if you had Firefox on the console, would you actually use it to browse?

Netflix to Expand its Reach to the PS3

Pulkit Chandna — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 09:14:46 -0500

Netflix announced today that it will be bringing its streaming service to the PS3. Netflix's streaming service will be available to around 9 million PS3 users residing in the US beginning next month. PS3 users will need a Netflix account and an absolutely free BD-Live disc - Blu-ray disc with internet functionality - to access Netflix's extensive content catalog.

PS3 users will have to insert the disc into their console each time they wish to enjoy streaming content from Netflix's library. But this disc-popping ritual should only last until the two companies enable direct access to the service. "As a leading game console and Blu-ray disc player, bringing Netflix to the PS3 system is a real win for both Netflix members and PS3 system owners,"said Netflix CEO and co-founder Reed Hastings.

Blu-Ray Movies to Come Bundled with PSP Version

Pulkit Chandna — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:18:54 -0500

Sony will now bundle PSP-compatible Digital Copy movie files with select Blu-ray titles. Both the high definition version and the Digital Copy for the PSP will coexist on a single Blu-ray disc. Sony was shipping Digital Copy files on a separate DVD-ROM disk till now. This announcement may not transport everybody into a state of ecstasy because not everyone possesses the desiderata for making this news worthwhile.

To transfer the Digital Copy file from the Blu-ray disc to a PSP, it is necessary that you also own a PS3. Godzilla and The Ugly Truth have been announced as the first Blu-ray titles to have this feature. In related news, the PSP GO is just hours from its tepidly-to-much-awaited launch.

Image Credit: Joystiq

Toshiba's SpursEngine will Beautify Streaming Video

Pulkit Chandna — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 19:41:16 -0500

Toshiba had last year chosen its Qosmio range of notebooks to lift the curtain on its SpursEngine chip, which is a co-processor based on the Cell Broadband Engine found in the PS3. SpursEngine-powered Qosmios are capable of some impressive graphical feats like real-time graphics processing and video upscaling (SD to HD).

Toshiba’s new Qosmio laptops, which bear the might of its quad-core SpursEngine chip, will arrive in Japanese stores on Friday with the promise of enhancing internet video. Two previous iterations of the Qosmio used the immense power of the SpursEngine at their disposal to upscale DVD video, but left streaming video untouched.

The SpursEngine co-processor will now be used to beautify video from websites like Youtube, though its corrective effect will only become evident in full screen mode. There is another strange caveat: this feature will only work with Internet Explorer. The new Qosmios include the 18.4-inch G50 ($3,421) and the 15.4-inch FX ($2,119). A U.S release is certainly on the cards but no one has the slightest whiff of exactly when it will occur.

Image Credit: TechGadget

Nvidia PhysX Makes Its Way to the PS3, Wii

Paul Lilly — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 15:00:00 -0500

Nvidia has been quite the busy body in the console market as of late. Earlier this week the graphics chip maker announced it had signed a tools and middleware license agreement with Sony to offer its PhysX technology software development kit (SDK) for use on the PlayStation 3 console, and then two days later, made a similar announcement regarding Nintendo's Wii console.

"Nintendo has reshaped the home entertainment and video game market with the success of the Wii console. Adding a PhysX SDK for Wii is key to our cross-platform strategy and integral to the business model for our licensed game developers and publishers,” said Tony Tamasi, senior vice president of content and technology at NVIDIA. “With NVIDIA PhysX technology, developers can easily author more realistic game environments for the evolving demands of a broad class of Wii gamers."

Three months ago, AMD had painted a gloom-and-doom future for Nvidia's PhysX technology, saying "There is no plan for closed and proprietary standards like PhysX. As we have emphasized, with our support for OpenCL and DX11, close and proprietary standards will die."

AMD wasn't just being a wet blanket, as they weren't the only ones to question to closed standards when it comes to in-game physics. This makes Nvidia's latest partnership with two major console makers a particularly interesting one, which could very well end up seeing more widespread PhysX support trickling over to the PC as a result.

The Top Transcoding Apps for Watching Content on Consoles

David Murphy — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:00:00 -0600

We're not going to make any comments about your multi-platform setup at home, because it's okay to accept that your PC can live alongside your Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, or Wii without major squabbling between the systems. But what do you do when your devices want to interact with each other? How do you get all of those movies, music albums, and Internet feeds on your PC to show up on your console and television set?

There are a bunch of solutions on the Internet today for streaming media from your PC to your console of choice. But that doesn't mean all of them are good. In fact, you'll never know whether a given tool works for you unless you spend the requisite half-hour installing it, configuring it for streaming, firing up your console, trying to connect to your PC, et cetera. It's a process. But at least allow us to do our part in reducing your streaming nightmare. We've rounded up a batch of our favorite freeware applications for streaming media from a PC to a console, as well as a handy encoding tool in case you still can't get your huge movies to work just right.

Combined Community Codec Pack

What it does: To watch most movies on your PC, you need the appropriate codec. These are the programs that allow you to encode and decode videos--without the right codec for your video, you'll be staring at a black screen on both your TV and your PC. Further complicating the matter is the fact that thousands of codecs exist in all kinds of versions and modifications for all types of video and audio. While it's actually recommended that you piecemeal the appropriate codecs together as to not overly clutter your system, we'd rather error on the side of caution. The Combined Community Codec Pack is a one-shot install that doesn't overburden you with features, options, or installation packages. It's easy to uninstall if you need to, and contains the default codecs that should allow you to watch a large majority of possible encodes.

Download it here!

The PS3 Solution: ps3mediaserver

What it does: This no-fuss transcoding application is geared for the PlayStation 3. It allows you to stream movies of all kinds, including support for AVI, MP4, TS, and MKV files. You also get lossless 5.1 transcoding for your DTS-based movies, a must-have for audiophiles and their beefy home entertainment systems. The program comes with barebones support for pulling in Internet feeds as well, giving you the ability to pull up your favorite Flickr images, Internet TV feeds, and Web radio.

Download it here!

The Wii Solution: Orb

What it does: While Orb also functions well with the PS3 and Xbox 360, it's ideal for use on the Wii. The program simply offers more features and a slicker interface than the comparable Tversity. Video quality on the Wii will be less than that of the PS3 or Xbox 360, as Orb converts your computer's media into a Flash-based format for play through the Wii's Internet Channel. But it's the best you're going to get on this console. Orb streams your music and your videos, even letting you view the picture of a webcam attached to your PC. The application also supports Internet video and audio feeds, as well as syndicated content like podcasts and RSS feeds. You can even play Flash games!

Download it here!

The Xbox 360 Solution: TVersity

What it does: We've covered this one before, but this is one application that has survived the test of time. Set up TVersity on your PC, and you'll be able to connect to your computer just like you normally would via the Xbox 360's interface. The key difference, however, is that you'll now be able to stream a wider variety of movies and formats than what is normally allowed by Xbox 360's strict, native support. Tversity also supports no-frills Internet audio, video, and photo feeds. However, unlike a solution like Orb, Tversity doesn't require you to sign up for an external service. And we flat-out enjoy the power user functionality of this powerful transcoding application.

Download it here!

Throwing in the Towel: GOTsent

What it does: Some of the trickiest files to play on your consoles are those encoded in the MKV format. The Matroska Multimedia Container usually combines an H.264-encoded video file with AC3/AAC/DTS audio tracks, and this package is quite incompatible with both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 systems. Since these files can reach the extremes of HD quality, transcoding them becomes a nightmare of an issue as a result of the processing power of the host computer and the available network bandwidth. GOTsent helps you convert MKV files into other supported formats. It takes some finagling, but it'll have you up-and-running when the Matroska format would otherwise leave your TV in the dark.

Download it here!

Researchers Successfully Spoof SSL Digital Certificates With a Fleet of PS3s

Andy Salisbury — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 18:11:11 -0600

It looks like MITM attacks aren’t the only things ripping off SSL certificates these days, it looks like Sony’s PS3 is capable of the act as well!

In a recent study conducted with more than 200 PlayStation 3 consoles, researchers were able to create a secure sockets layer certificate for absolutely any web page. The forged certificates were made through a proof-of-concept attack. This particular attack runs by generating millions of possible certificates, and once a pair that contains a special collision in the MD5 hash is found, a legitimate website certificate is requested from one of the authorities that relies on only MD5 to generate signatures. These certificates have been accepted by every major browser.

“This break is major,” stated Karsten Nohl, cryptography expert and researcher at the University of Virginia. “It definitely is the most wide-scale attack, because anything short of patching all browsers in the world to not accept the certificates, there's nothing you can do to prevent it.”

Still, there’s no stated fix for the issue today. Let’s just hope that since the researchers possess the information on how the attack is conducted, they’ll be able to make one soon.

Image Credit: Sony, Ray-Ban Sunglasses (again)

Is Blu-ray Doomed?

Pulkit Chandna — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 16:43:23 -0600

Doubts have been cast on the success of the Blu-ray format ever since it debuted. Initially, the format appeared to be doomed due to a poor adoption rate, thanks mainly to a host of factors, including the PS3’s initial tribulations, popularity of the DVD format, and the steady rise in the popularity of digital downloads.

However, it soon appeared that the tide had turned as PS3’s sales picked up and the rival HD DVD format ran out of steam and met its sorry fate. The latest good news has come in the form of sales data released by research firm Futuresource, which indicates that Blu-ray sales during the ongoing holiday season have been promising.

Futuresource expects 2.5 million Blu-ray players will be sold next year in Europe. But all this good news might just mark the end of the format’s halcyon days. Has the Blu-ray flattered to deceive?

According to Cnet’s Don Reisinger, the Blu-ray will never scale the heights of popularity that the DVD has managed. Like numerous other pundits – bona fide and self-proclaimed – before him, Reisinger is convinced that digital downloads will eventually deliver the Blu-ray to its grave.

Another sinister portent for the Blu-ray format happens to be the grim sales picture of the PS3; strong sales of the console surely could have gone a long way in popularizing the format. I expect Blu-ray to share the same mediocre fortunes as the PS3 during the remainder of its lifetime.

Image Credit: CinemaRetro