Sony Officially Announces PlayStation 4

No more rumors or speculations need as the wait for the PS4 announcement is over, now gamers will just have to wait for the PlayStation 4 to actually hit stores later this year.

Sony officially took the wraps off the PlayStation 4 last night in New York in front of a crowd of more than 2,000 developers, partners, and reporters. The two-hour event included details on the platform's hardware architecture, upgrades to the PlayStation network, and a sneak peek at upcoming games. During the unveiling Sony slipped in a few of the more important details while omitting some of the exactness.

Here is what we know:
The PS4 Will Be Available by Christmas, there was no word on the exact release date. No doubt Sony is trying to position itself against Microsoft and its upcoming Xbox launch. We shouldn't expect a firm launch date until E3, at the earliest.

The system will run an x86-64 AMD Jaguar CPU with eight cores. It will also come with a 1.84 teraflop Radeon graphics processor and 8GB of RAM. Despite the increased focus on downloadable content, the 6xCAV Blu-ray drive stays. The system will also come with USB 3.0, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, as well as the predictable HDMI, Analog AV out, and Digital Output.

The PlayStation 4 is receiving and updated DualShock 4 controller! Perhaps one of the most anticipated and highly speculated parts of the new console was the controller. Sony confirmed the PS4 will feature s new DualShock controller, with a touchpad, share button, and a headphone jack directly on the controller. A light bar on the back of the controller identifies players, and a 3D camera on the console will track the controllers connected to the console. One unique PlayStation 4 feature: a share button directly on the controller that lets you share gameplay with friends and even allows friends to help you get through tough spots in games.

With this new sharing feature you can ask a friend on the web to virtually take over your controller and get you through those sticking points. Friends can also watch you playing a game, virtually "over your shoulder," and comment on your screen — if you allow them — while you play using the share button and the console's "broadcast live" functionality.

We also know the PS4 is NOT BACKWARDS COMPATIBLE with the PS3, at least not yet. Sony says PlayStation 3 titles will not natively be supported, however, Sony says that it is exploring "advanced technologies" to bring backwards compatibility to the console in the future. All existing PlayStation titles will be playable via the PlayStation cloud service.

What we don't know:
Last night's event included lots of details, but it left many of the big questions unanswered. When exactly is the PS4 going to hit shelves? Sources suggest it should be out in time for the holidays, which makes sense. But we could also see it arriving late this summer and before back to school season. What is it going to cost? There have been reports that it will costs $400, but there will undoubtedly be multiple configurations and what those might be and what sort of pricing they have we don't know. And, what exactly will it look like? Sony only hinted at the devices features and specs. While Sony has release details and images of the DualShock 4 there were no official pictures of the console.

Source: Sony Computer Entertainment International (PDF) | PlayStation Blog.