stations

Console sales are set to make a rebound in the next couple of years, thanks to the next generation of hardware.

According to research firm IDC, worldwide console sales hit 34 million units last year, representing a 24.4 percent declined compared with 2011. However, IDC believes that the Wii U and the launch of a next-generation Xbox at the end of this year will push console sales up 10.1 percent to 37.4 million this year. In 2014, console sales could rise 19.1 percent to 44.6 million units.

"2011 and 2012 were tough for many … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Buffalo upgraded its cloud-based service for NAS servers today, introducing the new LinkStation 400 Series. This is the first NAS server to come equipped with the company's updated BuffaloLink cloud storage system.

In a nutshell, the cloud-based service is intended to offer users an easy and secure way to access their digital content remotely via the Internet. Prior to this Buffalo has been offering Pogoplug-style cloud-based features via its CloudStor line of NAS servers, but that hasn't been much of a success.

The company says BuffaloLink was redesigned from the ground up and is hosted on … Read more

Sony won't try to block used games on its PlayStation 4, despite a patent application indicating plans to the contrary, one analyst says.

Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter, who has followed the industry for years and conducts research on a wide range of game companies, said in a note to investors yesterday that any claim that Sony would try to block used games on its next console fails to realize that the company "benefits little from a unilateral decision to block games."

"Sony would be materially hurt if its console blocked used games and competitor consoles from … Read more

Sony has researched and filed a patent for new technology that could be implemented to block used games.

As spotted by a NeoGAF user, patent application No. 20130007892 for an "Electronic Content Processing System" and "Use Apparatus" would associate individual game discs with matched user accounts.

Games that are discovered to be tied to another user's account could potentially be rejected. The system works, according to the document, by attaching contactless RF "tags" to each game that can be be read without a network connection.… Read more

Epix, the joint venture between a host of prominent movie studios including MGM and Paramount, has announced plans to bring its service to Sony's PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita devices.

At some point during the first quarter, Epix will be available to PlayStation 3 users. The console will offer support for over 3,000 Epix titles, including newer releases, like "Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol" and older titles. Epix's library of comedy, music, and sports events will also be available.

The PlayStation Vita will also receive Epix films and events, but owners of that device will … Read more

Sony has discontinued the PlayStation 2 in Japan, says a report, nearly 13 years after the device's introduction.

Famitsu broke the news that Sony halted Japanese production of PlayStation 2 hardware in its home country, but the blog also noted that the company plans to continue developing and selling games for the video game console. We've reached out to Sony Computer Entertainment America for more information about future PS2 plans in the U.S. -- check back later for a response. … Read more

The technology lab behind a Kickstarter-funded project to build a portable device-charging station announced today that it will refund its crowdfunded $139,170 to donors after Apple refused to license rights to its Lightning connector.

POP, a minimalist portable power station, was billed as "the intersection of charging design" and was expected to feature four retractable cords for charging a variety of devices, including iOS and Android devices. The portable charging station featured a 26,000 mAh battery capable of charging 10 iPhones, according to Junior Edison, the company behind the effort.

In addition to its portable convenience, … Read more

This year was a big year for rumors -- remember the iPhone 5? -- but the rumor mill never stops churning.

As we put a lid on 2012, we look forward to the rumors that will still hound us next year. Which rumors do you think will finally be put to rest? Let us know in the comments.

Thanks for watching, and happy holidays! See you in a couple weeks.

Heard a tech rumor you think we should cover? Leave a comment below; ; send us a tweet (@EmilyDreyfuss, @karynelevy, and @CNETRumorShow); or call and leave us a voice mail at … Read more

Braving Arctic temperatures and a brutal wind chill, a Russian Soyuz spacecraft roared to life and streaked smoothly into orbit today, carrying a veteran three-man crew on a two-day flight to the International Space Station.

With commander Roman Romanenko at the controls, the Soyuz TMA-07M spacecraft climbed away from its launching stand at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 7:12 a.m. ET (6:12 p.m. local time), roughly the moment Earth's rotation carried the pad into the plane of the space station's orbit.

Trailing a fiery jet of brilliant orange exhaust, the workhorse rocket arced … Read more