Sony: PS4 still years away

Friday 18 February

Not going anywhere for a while

In the fast-moving world of consumer electronics, we’ve been spoiled into expecting new versions of our favourite kit every couple of years, offering all kinds of new and exciting features to get our gadget-loving hearts beating faster.

Yet the world of games consoles doesn’t move quite as fast as that. All three of the leading consoles – the PS3, the Xbox 360 and the Wii, have been around for a few years for now. And, if we listen to Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai, we shouldn’t be expecting anything to change – not as far as the PS3 is concerned anyway.

“Every year, we reveal and release new features,” Hirai told a Japanese gaming site recently. “That’s why, we’re not deliberating on a PS4 or next generation machine, whatever you call it.”

Sony has in fact just launched a next generation machine, but it’s a handheld – the Sony NGP – which will replace the PSP around the end of the year. But when it comes to its full-sized cousin, Sony is happy to play the long game.

“As regards home consoles, the PS3 was put into business in 2006, and it has a 10 year life cycle,” Hirai said. “I think the value of the PS3 will continue to rise. Because of this, a near-future PS4 or next-generation home console is not something that we are even debating now.”

To be fair to Sony, Hirai’s comments are simply a repeat of what Sony has said all along, with Sony boss Sir Howard Stringer having justified the PS3’s high launch price in 2006 by calling it a “future-proof, higher technology which will keep you going for many, many years?”