Sony demo shows Playstation 2 as
rival to DVD-Video players
By Yoshiko Hara
EE Times
(02/11/00, 12:16 p.m. EST)
TOKYO — "The picture quality of DVD-Video played by Playstation 2 is
high, well comparable to that of dedicated DVD players," claimed Sony
Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCE) at the demonstration Friday (Feb.
11) in Tokyo of DVD-Video using its Playstation2 gaming console,
which is scheduled to hit the Japanese market on March 4. The
feature could help make the new Playstation a rival to dedicated
DVD-Video players.
Manufacturers of audio/video systems were shocked last September
when SCE disclosed that Playstation 2 would have a DVD-Video player
function. A single console offering both game and DVD-Video functions
at a price of 39,800 yen (about $365) could make Playstation 2 a
strong competitor to dedicated DVD products. Sony hasn't yet
announced the U.S. market price of Playstation 2.
SCE is preparing to ship one-million Playstation 2 units in its first week
of availability.
When SCE announced its plans for DVD-Video at its introduction of
Playstation 2 last September, observers said the picture quality of
DVD on a Playstation 2 would not match that of dedicated DVD-Video
players, which employ a hardwired decoder chip, while Playstation 2
processes DVD-Video in software. But at its demonstration Friday,
SCE compared the DVD-Video playback function to high-end
DVD-Video players from Matsushita, Pioneer and Sony. Ken Kutaragi,
president of SCE, said the interlaced scanning reproduction of the
DVD-Video feature compared well with the quality of the high-end
players.
"Picture quality is better than DVD-Video players in the same price
range [as Playstation 2] and in some case competitive with high-end
ones, too," said Reiji Asakura, an audio/video critic and vice chairman
of the Society of Picture Quality Engineers.
SCE said software processing of DVD-Video is an advantage because
upgrades can be done via a software distribution. SCE said it intends
to add progressive scan (525p) output capability to Playstation 2's
DVD-Video function within half a year. That capability is available now
only on top-end DVD-Video players.
SCE said it has taken measures against cracking the copy protection
abilities of the DVD-Video decoder software, but declined to detail
that scheme.
The DVD-Video driver software will be provided in a memory card and
CD-ROM, which will be shipped with the game console, the company
said.
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