Next-gen console won't be able to function as a router, at least until you can run Linux on it or something and find a way around the hardware limitationsWhile Sony Computer Entertainment president Ken Kutaragi has high hopes for his company's PlayStation 3 console to extend beyond "mere" gaming, the realities of staying competitive in markets including console gaming appear to be forcing his company to reconsider the options available for their next generation of gaming machines.
SCE originally hinted at the possibility of the PS3 being able to double as a network hub or server for a variety of digital devices at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), thanks to it's built-in bank of Gigabit Ethernet networking ports (maximum 1000Mb/sec of data transfer) at the back.?However, Kutaragi himself confirmed with Japanese news publication Nikkei Electronics that routher functionality had to be dropped from the PS3 because it would make the console too expensive for Sony to manufacture.
It's unknown at time of writing whether cost savings resulting from this dropped feature were already factored into recent figures floating around, suggesting the potential cost of manufacturing a PS3 console.?The console could end up being cheaper to make than previously suggested, but this could also mean that the number of networking ports will be reduced in the end.
What is clear is those PS3 Ethernet ports will have to be content with accepting data on a network managed by a separate router you provide, at least for now.
Article Link: GamesIndustry.biz
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