Sony takes on Apple TV with game-playing PS Vita TV
Sony on Monday announced a new addition to its PlayStation Vita ecosystem in a surprising new form factor: a game-playing set-top box for televisions that will take on Apple's own Apple TV device.
The new PS Vita TV is a diminutive device â measuring just 6-by-10 cm â that packs in the hardware from Sony's PS Vita portable console. That hardware will allow the console to play video game selections from the both the original PlayStation and the PlayStation Portable, as well as select titles from the PlayStation Vita.
In all, more than 100 PS Vita games, over 600 PSP games, and more than 600 PlayStation games can be played on Sony's new device. It will also be able to stream content from the forthcoming PlayStation 4 console if the television the console is regularly attached to is in use.
In a move that will bring Sony into competition with Apple in the set-top segment, the PS Vita TV will also have access to a range of video services. Many of those will be Japan-specific, including DMM.com, Tsutaya TV, and NicoNico Douga, but it will also connect to Hulu and Sony's PlayStation Store, which itself has a wide range of video offerings available.
Sony will also compete with the Apple TV on price. The PS Vita TV will retail for roughly $95 for a base version, with another bundle retailing for about $143 with a DualShock 3 controller and 8GB memory card included.
The new device could mark the first significant competition Apple has faced in the media streaming devices market. Apple TV grabbed 56 percent of that market in 2012, and other devices from Samsung and assorted competitors have failed to gain traction the way Apple's set-top box has.
Now, though, an established tech giant is stepping into the segment with a product with wide name recognition and a deep library of game and media titles to distribute. Sony's set-top offering will launch on November 14 in Japan, but the company has not yet revealed any plans for wider release.
67 Comments
I don't even consider Sony products anymore...
If Apple opens up the next Apple TV to third party Apps it'll be game over fir this or any other set top box.
I don't even consider Sony products anymore...
Like I keep telling the android fanbois - *YOU* are not the target market.
It will all depend on how much the content is. The problem with Sony's PS Vita, Nintendo's DS, etc. is that the titles are so much more expensive than iOS titles, and really aren't much better if at all.
Sony has some great content and previous games. If they release some of their old titles and newer PS Vita titles for between $0.99 - $4.99, then I can see this working, but if they continue to try and milk their titles for $9.99 to $29.99 for a game, then good luck, as soon as Apple TV is open to apps, then why would I bother (as long as Apple TV apps stay in the same price range as their other iOS device counterparts).
Nice try, Sony. I don't recall my last purchase of Sony devices in my house. It's probably 15 years ago.
Apple has not done much to their Apple TV, but if they refresh it this time to have full iOS installed and more storage space like 16GB or 32GB, the competition is really much over. I absolutely love to play iOS games on TV instead of airplay it. I bet many do too. Apple can do a lot with Apple TV since it's no longer a "hobby" product, but a true "should have" one in iOS ecosystem. I don't know why they just ignore it. Get full iOS 7 in Apple TV and let consumers go wild with it, Apple.