PlayStation 4 Specs and Controller Leak

The same anonymous source who was leaking next generation Xbox information late last summer (and trying to sell it online) is now bringing us some pretty specific information about the PlayStation 4, or Orbis as Sony is currently calling it.

SuperDae has provided Kotaku with a set of 90 PDF files that outline specs related to the system’s developer hardware as well as the controllers and accounts. All rumors, of course, should be taken with as big a grain of salt you can find. The sheer complexity of the information in conjunction with its credibility based on other known rumors makes it probable–unlike a certain Xbox-related set of rumors floating around the Internet–that this information is at least somewhat accurate.

It’s important to note that the specifications below are for the development hardware, not the console consumers will buy at retail. Some or all of the specs may be different in the retail version, and likely will be. This does, however, give us a good idea of the possible maximum power of the system, as the retail console wouldn’t be beefier than the development hardware.

The Console

The following information is current, according to Kotaku, as of January 2013.

As Kotaku notes in its piece, the drive seems especially small, but the devkit won’t be used to store media. Drives will likely get bigger and bigger as Sony and Microsoft push for downloadable games to play a bigger role.

The Controller(s)

In addition to hard data on the console itself, the documents have some interesting tidbits about how you’ll control the games it plays. The system will support the SIXAXIS and DualShock 3 controllers, and appears to support the Move controller as well.

The big reveal here, though, is something known internally as the Orbis Development Tool. While it has much in common with the current PlayStation controller, the big key is that it will feature–rather than a touch screen as CVG had guessed–a capacitive touch pad that will support two-point multi-touch and click input. The shape of the controller, be it a boomerang or something more like the Vita, is unknown. It will also feature improved motion sensing, vibration, and an RGB LED. Despite rumors to the contrary, the documents don’t make any mention of biometric features.

The other surprise on the controller is a Share button, though nothing is known about what that could entail, whether it be for sharing a screenshot from the game you’re playing via social media, or something specific to interacting with the console.

The documentation goes into how accounts will work on the system as well. The most interesting aspect of the accounts is that, apparently, syncing your controller with the system will automatically bring up the option to login with your personal account (though accounts aren’t locked to controllers). This could bring new meaning to the age old “that’s my controller!” fight we’ve been having with our siblings for the last few decades. As Kotaku notes, it could also come in handy when assigning trophies to multiple users in cooperative scenarios.

Again, this all needs to be remembered as a rumor, but it is all very plausible. It’ll be interesting to see how this compares to whatever Sony ends up showing at E3, GamesCom, or wherever else.

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