While no release date was provided (or accepted because of past long delays), the announcement by Kaz Hirai, president of Sony Computer Entertainment, suggests "Life with PlayStation" will provide news headlines and weather. How different will this service be from Nintendo's? Besides higher resolution, the PC World article does not provide details. However, movies and photo storage appear to be on the horizon.
Dave Parrack sums up a negative sentiment:
The virtual world for the Playstation 3 has been in development since 2005, and here we are, three years later, and there’s still no sign of it emerging from beta in to the cruel hard world of the Sony die-hards. The problem is that the lucky few who have been in and had a look around the closed beta are emerging completely unfazed and displeased with what they see.
A writer for Kotaku is amongst the latest to pay a visit and emerge to write a scathingly unexcited review of its contents. The reviewer basically summed up the experience by saying it’s nice in theory but crap in reality. And that is now, after over three years of development time, and just a few months away from the rumoured open beta release date of Fall 2008.
Hugo wonders: "It may not be long before, instead of going to Blockbusters (other film-rental chains are doubtless available) in real life, you can head over the PlayStation Home-based equivalent a rent out a virtual film downloaded to your PS3."
