Technofile: The waiting is over. We now have a mid-November launch window for the much anticipated Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3) in Europe and Japan.
The base configuration of 20 gigabytes will come in at around €499, depending on exchange rates. There will also be a pricier 60GB drive for €599. The PS3 will also have hand controllers capable of "motion detection" and Bluetooth for wireless play, but no vibration functionality unlike the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii controllers.
The console uses Blu-ray - a high-definition (HD) replacement for DVD which also plays HD movies.
But as is increasingly the case with games console makers - and this also applies to archrival Microsoft's Xbox 360 - if you opt for the cheaper version, you can end up with a substantially weaker machine. Thus, the 20GB version will lack Wi-Fi, a memory card reader and, most significantly, HDMI output for output for high-definition TVs - which is at least half the reason for buying a PS3 in the first place.
Meanwhile, Nintendo demonstrated its new "Wii" games console at the E3 games fest in Los Angeles. The Wii - pronounced "Wee" to much hilarity in the press - will go on sale some time in the last three months of the year, but no prices have been released.
And could a handheld version of the Xbox 360 be in the offing? In a new book, Xbox 360 Uncloaked, gaming industry author Dean Takahashi claims a handheld launch will come halfway through the 360's production life cycle, making overall costs cheaper and maintaining the brand's profile.
A consumer version of Apple's MacBook Pro laptop, designed to replace the iBook, is rumoured to be on the launchpad. The "MacBook" laptop is expected to feature a 13-inch screen and possibly come in a range of colours, harking back to the days of the first iMac. Knowing Apple, it's likely that it will also have a built-in iSight camera and MagSafe power adapter.
3G mobile network 3 is planning to offer highlights of all World Cup games for free to its subscribers. Extended highlights of the games will be available five minutes after the final whistle. There will also be dedicated mobile television channels and a daily magazine-style show.
Google has launched a new health search engine (appropriately titled Google Health), which looks set to be a godsend to hypochondriacs. You'll be able to search under treatment, research papers, symptoms, news and alternative treatments. It's even targeting health professionals.
No doubt doctors will soon be cursing Google for sending them yet more neurotic patients.
Samsung has launched the SGH-P300 "card phone". Why? Well, it has the dimensions of a credit card great, if that's the sort of thing that turns you on, although I think I'll be sticking to something that doesn't slip out of my hand during a call.
The new Dell D520 notebook is aimed at buyers on a budget, but allows you to upgrade from a single to a dual-core Intel Core Duo processor, with a 14 or 15-inch screen. An Intel GMA950 graphics core is built in, and you can get 512MB of DDR 2 SDRAM clocked at 533MHz or 667MHz. See Dell's website for prices.
Qtek's new HTC STRTrk smartphone running Windows Mobile (also known as the Qtek 8500) is about to launch, also incorporating a music player in a slim 16mm case. The matted black exterior has dedicated play, fast forward and rewind buttons and a backlit 1.2-inch TFT LCD screen. A MicroSD memory slot is available for extra tracks and boosts the 64MB storage for ACC, WAV, WMA or MP3 formats. Weighing three ounces, it has a 1.3 megapixel camera.
