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Sony didn't unveil PS4 because the design isn't finalised

Sony has admitted it hasn't finished work on how the console will look, hence the no-show at the recent event.

Joe Svetlik Reporter
Joe has been writing about consumer tech for nearly seven years now, but his liking for all things shiny goes back to the Gameboy he received aged eight (and that he still plays on at family gatherings, much to the annoyance of his parents). His pride and joy is an Infocus projector, whose 80-inch picture elevates movie nights to a whole new level.
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Joe Svetlik
2 min read

Let's be honest, Wednesday's PS4 event was a bit of a let-down. I for one would've loved to see what the console looks like. But it turns out Sony itself hasn't decided yet, and wasn't going to be rushed to meet the deadline.

Shuhei Yoshida, Sony's head of worldwide studios, told the Guardian: "We have not finalised the hardware yet and decided not to try to get it finished in time." Which is fair enough, I suppose. Still annoying though.

Yoshida points out "it's a long time from February to launch" and Sony has to "design our communication in phases", ie trickle info down to us as and when. Pressed on how important the actual look of the console is, Yoshida said he was "much more into how the games work, and the controller is crucial for us developers... A box is a box to us!"

Sony isn't completely blasé about the look though. "I appreciate that it's symbolic, people want a games console to look good so they can be proud of owning it and of course our hardware design team are working hard on that," Yoshida said.

Sony is also looking into a subscription model, like Spotify for gaming, but not until more titles are available. "We can do subscription services when we have more content -- especially now we have the Gaikai technology available," Yoshida said. "With one subscription you have access to thousands of games -- that's our dream."

While acknowledging the threat from tablets and mobiles, Yoshida said they could be the future of PlayStation. "In a couple of years I'd like to be playing PS4 games on all my devices," he said, "with the main experience on the big screen, and smaller sections on mobile screens... It will all be connected."

The very same Yoshida revealed yesterday that the PS4 can handle 4K video, but won't use it for gaming, which is something of a letdown. Let's hope the touchpad on the controller can make up for it.

What do you think of the PS4 so far? Were you disappointed Sony didn't show off the console itself? Or is how it looks by the by? Let me know in the comments, or on our Facebook page.