In an interview with Japanese tech site AV Watch, Sony Computer Entertainment Japan and Asia Senior Vice president and Director of Business Unit 1 Masayasu Ito shared more info about some technical aspects of the PlayStation 4, including the console’s noise level, its power consumption, etc.
While being always online is not necessary, a network connection is important to fully enjoy the features of the PS4.
• The PS4 will initially act as a stand-alone web server for the PlayStation App. In the future there’s the possibility of this to be expanded through the cloud, with the PS4 and PlayStation App interacting through the cloud, allowing cooperative play between multiple players.
• The secondary chip for ultra-low power operation will mostly activate at night from 1 to 4 AM and download any required update automatically. It will also activate when software is purchased through external means like the PlayStation App.
• Power consumption will vary greatly depending on the performance of the game played.
• The noise level of the console during operation is generally much lower than it was on the PS3.
• The PS4′s cooling fan has a low noise level and stepless speed control (meaning that it will increase its speed to match heat smoothly and not in sudden steps like the one on the PS3).
• Since the Blu-Ray player is 6x instead of 2x (like the one on the PS3 was), the spinning noise is actually louder. Ito-san feels it’s not annoyingly louder and it will be countered by caching data on the hard disk drive. It’ll be mostly audible during the initial spin-up.
• The Audio/Video performance (for movies and music) of the PS4 will target PS3 levels at launch, but will be improved through updates, for instance with the addition of 4K, as Sony is also an Audio/Video company.
• The theme of the PS4 is “Personalization”, meaning that it will offer an experience tailored to each individual.
Official Source: http://www.dualshockers.com/2013/09/24/sonys-svp-gives-new-info-on-the-ps4s-noise-level-power-consumption-media-performance-and-more/
