SAN FRANCISCO – After September 22 but before December 21, that’s when you’ll see the PlayStation 3′s spiffy new motion controller on store shelves, says Sony. In a press release issued late last night, the company revealed its wand-based motion control peripheral for the PS3 would ship this fall in Japan, North America, and Europe with ready-to-play software. (Note to Sony: It’s just ‘software’, ‘software titles’ is technically double-dipping.)

“We have decided to release the Motion Controller in fall 2010 when we will be able to offer an exciting and varied line-up of software titles that will deliver the new entertainment experience to PS3 users, ” said Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kazuo Hirai in the press statement.

“We will continue to work to have a comprehensive portfolio of attractive and innovative games for the Motion Controller, not only from SCE Worldwide Studios but also from the third party developers and publishers, whom we have been working closely with. We look forward to soon unveiling the exciting software line-up that further expands and defines the PS3 platform as the ultimate entertainment system for the home.”

Microsoft’s ‘no controller’ motion sensing alternative, dubbed Project Natal, is due to ship by the end of the year, probably in November, placing it head-to-head with Sony’s product.
As expected, you’ll need the PlayStation Eye camera to use the double-wand system. The Eye’s been available for years, of course, and retails for $40 today. It’s also arguably the most underutilized, prematurely released official Sony peripheral in existence, so unless you’re hip to play Eye of Judgment (a totally decent card game, by the way) I’d wait to pick one up until they’re discounting it later this year, or, you know, bundling it with the PlayStation Arc.
Hold up, the PlayStation Arc? What the heck’s that?

If you buy VG247′s claim, raised ‘on good authority’, a Sony insider says that’s what the motion controller’s actually named. You know, Arc. Like the plasma bolts spit from a Tesla Coil.
Interestingly, Sony says–my emphasis–that it will “vigorously promote the Motion Controller as the de facto controller of the PS3 platform along with the DUALSHOCK series controller.”

Translation: The Arc–I mean Tentatively Labeled Motion Controller Wand Duo PlayStation Accessory Thingy–gets to ride up front with the big boys. No lounging in the backseat or huddling in the trunk with neglected peripherals like the Eye, or the forlorn SIXAXIS accelerometer.

SAN FRANCISCO – On January 27, Apple is holding an event to unveil its “latest creation,” which is expected to be a 10-inch touchscreen tablet. Apple’s rumored device has been generating a lot of buzz and excitement, but it’s not clear yet whether tablet excitement — assuming that Apple really is unveiling a tablet, of course — will turn into tablet dollars at the cash register.

One factor not working in Apple’s favor is that tablet devices have never proven to be successful with paying customers. Ken Delaney, an analyst at Gartner, recently told Bloomberg that tablet computers only account for one percent of the PC market despite being around since the 1990s. Granted, Apple’s device may look more like a large iPod Touch than the traditional tablet laptop with a swivel screen, but even so Apple will need more than just flashy hardware to make its tablet product successful.

Perhaps more than any other product the company has produced, the rumored tablet will need an ecosystem of compelling content to convince people they want to buy this device. But what would that look like?

iTunes LP and iTunes Extra

The most obvious use for a tablet would be for playing back music and video sold through the iTunes store. Just like your laptop, iPod, or iPhone, an Apple tablet would offer a way to watch movies and television shows and listen to music. The device may also convince people to buy albums with the iTunes LP feature, and movies with iTunes Extras, the DVD-like special features included with movies downloaded from Apple.
Applications

It’s not clear yet what kind of an operating system Apple’s latest creation will have. If it runs a standard version of OS X then the rumored tablet will run the same computer programs your Mac does, but if the device is running the iPhone OS that opens up Apple’s wide catalog of third-party iPhone applications available through the iTunes Store.

Games

Most iPod Touch and iPhone video games are controlled by the use of an accelerometer where you tip the device to one side or the other to manipulate on-screen movements. That may be a relatively easy thing to do on a handheld device with the flick of the wrist, but a 10-inch tablet would require you to grip the device with both hands much like you would with a steering wheel, which may not be as compelling for gaming. But there are some games, such as Madden NFL 10, that make use of on-screen controls that could be more interesting, and two-player games like Touch Hockey: FS5 would be far easier to play on a bigger screen. Of course, putting iPhone games on the tablet assumes the device would be running the iPhone OS and not Mac OS X.

Books

The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday morning that Apple is in talks with Harper Collins and other publishers to bring e-books to the rumored tablet device. But unlike books on the Kindle, Sony Reader, Nook, or any of the numerous e-readers announced at CES, books on Apple’s tablet may have interactive features including video, interviews and social networking. That may be a compelling format for a children’s book–imagine Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are with embedded clips from the movie–or business-oriented books that could benefit from interactive illustrations or news video, but do you really need interactivity when reading fiction? By my estimation you’d lose more than you’d gain reading works by John Steinbeck, Philip Roth, or Jonathan Safran Foer with interactive features.

Mags and Rags

There’s been a lot of buzz ever since Sports Illustrated unveiled its electronic magazine concept, and now there’s more news that The New York Times’ long-awaited second attempt at a paywall may be timed with Apple’s product announcement next week. Many other companies are also considering or working on new digital formats including Time Inc., News Corp., and Hearst. But there’s a big question mark hanging over the issue of whether people would be willing to pay for online content again.

About those paint splotches…

A rumor out yesterday, and first reported by Fox News, says that Apple may also be introducing new versions of iLife and a preview of iPhone OS 4.0. Is it possible that Apple’s new device will have some kind of artistic bent to it, as the company’s event invitation suggests? Could Apple’s new device be ideal for using iMovie, iPhoto or iWeb in new and interesting ways? Only a few days until we know for sure.

SAN FRANCISCO – Dear Nintendo, while I respect your president Reggie Fils-Aime’s decision to shrug off the Wii’s inability to do high-definition video as “no loss” in an interview with CNBC, I’m not sure you’re taking the long view.

And if recent HD usage survey results are accurate, you probably should be.

According to a November 2009 Knowledge Networks survey, 43 percent of people “watch HD programs every day,” up from just 26 percent in 2007. That’s a 65 percent increase in two years, significant enough to lead Knowledge Networks’ president to note “This sends a message to advertisers that HD is becoming the new norm for those with HD access across all program types.”

People apparently–and increasingly–want high-definition content. And you know what? Yes, only part of Netflix’s total catalog may be HD-ready today, but what…you think Netflix plans to wait for the Wii to catch up with an HD part? Care to wager how much Netflix’s HD library is going to grow in 2010 alone?

Think about your competition. Microsoft and Sony offer HD streaming content today. Both have deals with Netflix (Microsoft’s is integrated, but even Sony’s disc-based program includes the HD option). Yes, you need a fast connection to qualify for a high-def feed, and no, it still doesn’t look as immaculate as full-on Blu-ray (or for those of you who haven’t switched, HD-DVD–requiescat in pace). But it’s clearly a superior option, and for people slowly (or does that survey now imply ‘quickly’?) awakening to the perquisites of HD video, possibly even a deal-breaker.

Which means:

If you already have a 360 or a PS3, Netflix on the Wii isn’t a reason to buy one. If you have a 360 or a PS3 as well as a Wii, it’s not a reason to use the Wii (unless you want to service another room somewhere). And if you have none of the above but want to buy a Netflix compatible, HD-ready console that complements your existing high-def TV setup, your options are Microsoft or Sony, not Nintendo.

Reggie Fils-Aime’s response in that CNBC interview:

The vast majority of content that’s available for streaming on Netflix is not HD content, so there really is no loss for the Wii consumer, the fact that they can’t get any HD content through our system.

Accurate but shortsighted. As noted, Netflix’s HD development plans are hardly in stasis. But what’s worse, Fil-Aime has to go and conflate two spectacularly different forms of entertainment:

The consumer has voted, over 26 million consumers have bought a Wii. So the consumer is saying that the quality of the visual is not nearly as important as the overall entertainment, the overall value of that experience.

Earth to Nintendo: Movies aren’t games (last I checked, Netflix wasn’t streaming Mario or Donkey Kong). You don’t interact with a movie or TV show the way you do New Super Mario Bros or Wii Fit Plus. Video’s value is its visual content. And in that particular game, speaking as an unabashed videophile, HD matters–more each day.