leipzig

Sony's PS3 Wireless Keypad gets a price

Sony's Wireless Keypad for the PS3--which was announced at the Leipzig Games Convention--is now available for preorder on Amazon for $49.99. That seems to be the only change, though, as the release date is still slated for November 30.

OK, so the wait still exists and the fingers are tapping on the table in lieu of the keypad. The silver lining: knowing that you don't have to expose yourself to getting bum-rushed in line while shopping for this accessory in stores on the day it's released.

Coming this fall: The 160GB PS3

If news of an upgraded PSP wasn't enough for you, how about a new PS3 bundle? Sony has announced a 160GB PS3 that will hit stores in November for $500. The limited-edition system will also include the rumble-ized DualShock 3 controller and two games: Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and (via a voucher for the PlayStation Store) Pain. Sony was less specific on other details, but the presence of just two USB ports on the spec sheet would seem to indicate that this is basically a "Core" model with a bigger hard drive--which means no built-in flash card reader, and no backward compatibility with PS2 games.

The addition of the 160GB model comes as the 40GB Core PS3 is being replaced by an 80GB Core model--meaning anyone buying the entry-level PS3 will soon be getting twice the capacity for their $400.… Read more

PSP 3000: Another minor PSP upgrade

Additional coverage: Sony tries to dispel PSP 3000's battery issues

Sony officially unveiled the PSP 3000 Wednesday at the Leipzig Games Convention in Germany, confirming rumors that had popped up online in recent weeks. But before you get excited (or--if you just bought a PSP--exasperated), note that this appears to be an even more subtle upgrade than the slimmed-down PSP 2000 that debuted in September 2007. The main changes, according to Sony: … Read more

Button pushers: PS3 gets keypad

While Xbox 360 has had the option to type away on the Xbox 360 ChatPad, PS3 owners will soon have the same luxury with the announcement of the Wireless Keypad at the Leipzig Games Convention. The device can hook on to either a Sixaxis or DualShock 3 controller and allow gamers to send messages to friends over the PlayStation Network. This functionality will also come into play with the eminent release of PlayStation Home.

Most interesting is that the Wireless Keypad features a mode that converts the entire surface into a touch pad for use with something like navigating a … Read more

What are you staring at, Tychus Findlay?

Don't be scared. In the photo above, it's just workers putting up gargantuan ads ahead of Europe's largest computer games trade fair, the Games Convention. The annual GC will be held at the trade fair center in Leipzig, Germany, from Wednesday through Sunday.

The show is essentially the European version of E3 (before that giant game show scaled way down). Last year, some 500 exhibitors from 28 countries converged on Leipzig to show the public their games and game-related products. The event drew more than 180,000 visitors. CNET News' sister site GameSpot will be covering the … Read more