Sony (NYSE: SNE) confirmed that the PS3 will not run 3-D content in full HD, or 1080p. 3-D games or movies will be restricted to 720p HD resolution to enable a frame rate of 60 fps, even if original content needs to be downscaled from 1080p.
Sony's biggest opportunity in today's game console market may very well be graphics that needs to look better on the PS3 than on the Wii and Microsoft's Xbox 360. It seems that 3-D is taking the PS3 to its limits, and Sony needs to create barriers to show the console's abilities in their best way. At the Develop Conference in Brighton, England, the company confirmed that 3-D will only run at 720p (1280×720 pixel resolution) on the PS3.
Scaling content down from 1080p to 720p requires processing horsepower, but, according to Sony, 720p is the limit to allow for a frame rate of 60 fps. 1up.com quoted a Sony engineer who said that, "more cinematic game might actually benefit from a lower frame-rate and higher resolution," but Sony's guidelines simply don't allow 1080p.
While it surely is impressive that the PS3 can render two 720p videos side-by-side, the whole discussion may soon go back to what the benefit of 1080p over 720p really is -- especially if you have an expensive 1080p capable 3-D TV in your family room. Why limit content to 720p, if your equipment can do 1080p?
Sony says that you hardly can differentiate between 720p and 1080p, which is partly true. It all comes down to your expectations. The general rule is that 1080p looks much better than 720p if your physical viewing distance to the screen is less than three times the screen size. If you own a 42" screen and you watch content within 10.5 feet, 1080p will make a visible difference.
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