So,
With the press release of the Xbox One in the news recently and stories of a PS4 to be released by Christmas, I thought it was about time I shared my perspective on the consoles.
Sony vs. Microsoft would seem to many people a ridiculous mismatch, after all Sony are at heart a hardware company with generally weak software shipped with each product, whilst Microsoft are ultimately a software company, providing a huge percentage of the standard PC software to hardware companies from Lenovo to Samsung...
The modern console market - PS2 and Xbox original era - has a very small range of choice. You are essentially choosing between Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo. However the later is doing something original in the Wii and the WiiU - even though I dislike it intensely - is innovation for sure.
But from here, where does the market go? All three devices are moving more and more towards being the ultimate home entertainment system, including BlueRay players, music libraries and Terabytes of memory.
Honestly, there is one logical move that will split the market as it stands.
Complete integration.
Imagine a Sony Bravia TV with the latest console built right in to the hardware. You now have a TV that can store films, connect to the internet, stream films, download music, play games. What you have done is remove the need for the most extortionate part of any satellite or cable TV deal - the box.
Great for Sony. Again, hardware company.
Not so great for Microsoft, again, software company.
However, in a market move such as this it is not inconceivable to see a partnership between Microsoft and any large technology company. The best bet would likely be Samsung at the moment but who knows for the future. Ultimately Microsoft would be doing what they always have specialised in, providing a software platform and letting a hardware company provide the rest.
Samsung and Microsoft would be wise to make such a move, with the possibility of Samsung getting access to an exclusive Windows Phone contract and the idea of call of duty coming to a mobile handset would be too much for all the COD addicts out there to resist.
I hope such a thing never exists, but if it does, it will make money, which is why I fear that it shall...