PlayStation Vita Gets A Japan Release Date

The Tokyo Game Show has kicked off today already and Sony has already started going at it. Sony first started their press conference with a release date for their new upcoming handheld portable devide - The PlayStation Vita.

The impressive PS Vita will be coming out in Japan on December 17th, it's not sure when it will be released in North America and Europe though.

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Sony Starting PS4 Production In 2011

DigiTimes is reporting that Sony and their Taiwan-based partners will start the production of the PS4 at the end of 2011 and will include Kinect like features.

"Sony will have Taiwan-based partners begin production of PlayStation 4 (PS4) featuring body movement-based control like Kinect at the end of 2011 for launch in 2012, according to Taiwan-based component makers.

Foxconn and Pegatron Technology, assemblers of PS3, will undertake assembly of PS4 as well, the sources pointed out. The planned shipment volume of PS4 in 2012 is at least 20 million units, the sources indicated."

 Nintendo and Sony are stepping forward with their new consoles, leaving Microsoft behind, unless Microsoft has a secret project they are working on. But it is nice that Sony is aiming more at motion sensor than they did with the PS3. Let's just hope that they will add backwards capability and keep it for all their models.

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Hackers May Have Your Info From PSN

Lots of people know that PSN is down because of major hackers. What people don't know is that those hackers might have your credit card info. The Sony PlayStation Blog states:

"Valued PlayStation Network/Qriocity Customer:
We have discovered that between April 17 and April 19, 2011, certain PlayStation Network and Qriocity service user account information was compromised in connection with an illegal and unauthorized intrusion into our network. In response to this intrusion, we have:
1. Temporarily turned off PlayStation Network and Qriocity services;2. Engaged an outside, recognized security firm to conduct a full and complete investigation into what happened; and
3. Quickly taken steps to enhance security and strengthen our network infrastructure by re-building our system to provide you with greater protection of your personal information."

Followed by:

"Although we are still investigating the details of this incident, we believe that an unauthorized person has obtained the following information that you provided: name, address (city, state, zip), country, email address, birth date, PlayStation Network/Qriocity password and login, and handle/PSN online ID. It is also possible that your profile data, including purchase history and billing address (city, state, zip), and your PlayStation Network/Qriocity password security answers may have been obtained. If you have authorized a sub-account for your dependent, the same data with respect to your dependent may have been obtained. While there is no evidence at this time that credit card data was taken, we cannot rule out the possibility. If you have provided your credit card data through PlayStation Network or Qriocity, out of an abundance of caution we are advising you that your credit card number (excluding security code) and expiration date may have been obtained."

It is not a for sure thing that your credit card info was obtained, but keep an eye on your card just in case. I'm not sure if I have my card on info, so I'll be keeping an eye on it. I mainly use the PSN cards for my purchases.

In good news though, the PSN should be back by next week.

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Sony Goes Tablet

Today, Sony has announced their two planned Android 3.0 tablets codenamed S1 and S2.They both include wi-fi and 3/4G connectivity. Their release are set to be this fall, but there is no word of a price tag as of yet.

The S1 tablet will be powered by a Tegra video card making it able to play Playstaion 1 games and their mobile based games with a 9 inch screen.

S1

The S2 is a design that looks so familiar, it folds in half like a Nintendo DS and acts like one; the top screen is for play while the bottom screen is for control with both screens measuring at 5.5 inches.

S1 (left) and S2 (right)

I'm quit excited for this, as much as the Gamestop rumored tablet. I just bought myself a Viewsonic G Tablet, and depending on the price (which I'm guessing will be maybe around $500) then I might get one or the other. The S2 looks interesting design wise, but looks like it can be easy to break if one accidentally slams the tablet closed. So I'm leaning more towards the S1 with its PS1 capability.

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