Does convergence have a place in gaming?

Console manufacturers have been pushing convergence since the 1970's. People forget this - including modern manufacturers, who have obviously failed to learn from history. But pretty much every major console from the Odyssey 2 on up has promised to be a multi-function device - in the old days, consoles were supposed to be PC's too, today the secondary function has shifted to media viewing.

Though it's not as if convergence consoles can't generally be successful. It's just that they're only ever successful doing one thing, so it's a complete waste of time and money to promote them for any other purpose. Convergence is nothing but a trap for manufacturers; all it can do is cause problems. And in the end, all anyone remembers about a game console is the games anyway.

It's not just game consoles, though - convergence itself is a meaningless buzzword. People may say they want it but their actions say otherwise. Over the years, the trend has been towards more and more devices with specialized functions - mp3 players, portable media centers, DVR's, Blackberry's, etc. - *not* fewer devices with more functions. People *like* having all these gadgets, whatever they say about how annoying it is having to keep track of them all. If anything, a new device will basically replace an old device (like mp3 players replacing CD players), or all-new functions will be created that allow for a new category of device (like with portable media centers). But it's at least rare - and in fact I can't even think of a case - that one device will take on the functions of another and supplant the original device in popularity.

Did the PS2 really put the DVD player industry out of business? Has the PSP shut down iPod production? Did the Coleco Adam take over the PC market? Will the Xbox halt sales of Media Center PC's?

No. It just never happens and it never will. Game console manufacturers need to learn this simple fact at some point.

I hate "convergence" in my consoles, but what about the PS2's DVD capability in Japan? That was a success.

I don't see convergence, as it is now, as a bad thing. If you are using DVDs as a storage medium, why not allow the console to play DVD movies? If games are using MP3s for music, why not allow people to use their own?

I am not really seeing much added functionality beyond what the consoles can already do; consoles are just opening up and designing a user interface to perform functions that they really already perform. If it helps make the system look more attractive, I do not see a problem with it. I don't think they are trying to take over any markets with it.

For some people, it is an added benefit. Someone might not buy a PS2 just to be a DVD player, but someone who only has a certain amount of money to spend and wants a console AND a DVD player might pick up the PS2. I know several people who have PS2's as their only DVD player.

In game machines convergence is a no no. Way before the PSP was released I wrote an article about a person listening to music on their PSP. Then they wanted to play a game only to have the battery run out. Whilst the guy with the iPod and the GBA/DS had 26 hours of battery life on his iPod (assuming it was the 2G iPod mini) and 8-14 hours of gameplay on the Nintendo handhelds.

When I think about convergence gaming I just think of the N-Gage and PSP. Both rancid machines. The Xbox 360 is trying this now and well, I would NOT replace my XBMC Xbox with a 360. No way would I downgrade.

While it is obvious it was a succes from a marketing POV, you can't possibly say that the PS2 is a GOOD dvd player.

To paraphrase that overused idiom: "It's the games, stupid." Really, when was the last time you used your PS2 or Xbox to watch a DVD or listen to a CD? Granted, the ability to create custom soundtracks on Xbox using your own music (when a game allows for it), or hook up your iPod to a 360 is a great thing, but that's about it. This reminds me of how Nintendo couldn't get any stores interested in the NES until they added ROB and the light gun ("look, it's MORE than a video game system!"), but those pretty much died once people got their hands on Super Mario Bros.

PS2 was only relavant as a DVD player because they were still crazy expensive back then; now you can get a cheap dvd player for like $20.

#6 is quite right, PS2's dvd player WAS relevant, but now matters pretty much not at all unless you really need to conserve space. PS3's blu-ray might prove to be the same. Relevant at the time, but quickly fading away as the price on blu-ray drives drops. Of course thats only if blu-ray actually matters. (Jury is still out.)

All other convergance = teh suck.

Most of the time, convergence is a gimmick. Even the PS2's ability to play PS1 games could be considered gimmicky, since after seeing PS2 games, nobody wanted to play their PS1 games any more.

On the PSP, the memory stick pro duo is what's killing the convergence features. Well, that and Sony's lack of ANY media software with the device. Why's iPod kicking the PSP's ass in the realm of video & music? Because Apple includes iTunes & Quicktime with every iPod, and they include the cable you need to connect to your computer, and they make it easy to manage your media on the iPod. Oh yeah, and you can output your videos to a TV with the iPod; A useful feature that Sony really should have included with their PSP.

But that Memory Stick Pro Duo... My goodness! $120 for 1GB of memory on the PSP means that your huge PSP is now capable of playing almost as much music as the $129 iPod shuffle, or comparable 1GB MP3 players that are even lower priced (but again, lack Apple's end-user ease of use). Want more space on your PSP? You need to add a third-party hard drive that costs as much as the PSP itself, and then you get 4GB of space! Why, for just over $500 you're rocking with as much memory as a $250 iPod nano!

Sure... The PSP plays games. Big whoop. So far, I don't see any killer aps for the PSP, unlike the DS and GBA. PS2 ports aren't going to cut it.

When I sell PSPs, it's usually to truck drivers who want it for watching movies, or to teenagers who want it for surfing porn.

The Xbox 360, on the other hand, does have some nice ideas. The MP3 player integration was a good idea. The DVD player is actually quite nice, and if you're on a HDTV, why not use the same hardware for both gaming and movie watching? ...Especially since they both demand the same connections on your TV and surround sound setup.

Now, if the 360 had included- oh, lets say a DVR feature- I would think that was silly. With a 20GB hard drive, a DVR would be stupid and useless. If they made the hard drive bigger to accomodate that feature, then I'd be paying more for the 360. Either way, it's bad for the gaming.

Back when I got the first CD gaming platform- the TurboGrafx-16 CD- I loved the convergence features it sported. CD-audio, CD+G, Karaoke discs (no mic, but still...), and of course it played really cool games (Y's on CD was great, as was JB Harold: Murder Club). It didn't try to do too much, but it supported the logical things. The bonus was that the TG16-CD was also a portable CD player. You could remove it from its dock and carry it with you. It required external power, but it was still portable in an age when such a thing as a CD Walkman was VERY expensive and extravagant. This was the dawn of CDs, after all.

Here's an idea that Sony missed out on: Make the PSOne (with LCD screen) double as a DVD player. I'm not talking about the original PlayStation, but the re-issued mini PSOne that came with the LCD screen that flipped open. I've seen that design cannibalized into a DVD player, as it's the perfect shape and size, but Sony didn't have the intelligence to see that the PSOne would have been an awesome seller as a portable DVD player/Game Console combo unit. It wouldn't have taken much to add that feature, either.

Of course, Sony didn't do this because Sony probably wanted to see DVDs fail so Blu-Ray can make a glorious entry into the market.

Convergence can be good, if it's logical and well-thought-out.

the 360 is not really a convergant device. It is a gaming machine with built in media center extender functianality. The convergant device is the media center itself. For example, Sony sells a media center machine that has a 200 disc cd/dvd changer and it looks like a stereo system. It is the convergant device that play s music, dvd, recorded programing, in the future that might be blu-ray. The 360 is just one of the devices that can network to it and receive the signal. the 360 is not just meant to be the source of the content just a way to bring it to other tvs

I hope my post doesn't get lost in the sea of OPINIONS that are trying to pass themselves on as being scientifically proven (at least thats how the writers are pitching them).

Anyway, convergence has been the elusive thing that I have (and apparently, will be) waiting on forever.

I want a device that performs dozens of functions extremely well.
Might be awhile because of all the companies that come up with a product that happens to do more than one thing and then push it out the door calling it convergence when its really just crap.

The ps3 is convergan. Initially games will not be on blu-ray disc because the extra cost are not warranted with no need for the space. Games will be on dvds. The blu-ray will be for movies. This is not bad in itself, but it adds most of the cost to the ps3. Initially there will be very few movies on blu-ray to watch. It in no way improves the games, but is the largest cost item in the machine. It has caused them to drop the hard drive, internal router, and som ram to save cost. From a business end, if blu-ray become the standard they can make more money than they ever would from a gaming console. Example is UMD. there are more movies than games, and we should soon see dedicated UMD player. This format is close to becoming a standard. If it does, it won't matter if the psp disappears. Good business even if it's not that good for games. This is not a hobby, it's a money making business.

Convergence is a buzzword, and a big one at that. It covers a lot of ground, yes convergence has been around in gaming consoles since their inception, and most have got it wrong, but many have gotten certain things right. As someone raised the PS2 really did usher in DVD technology into MANY peoples houses. It was my sole DVD player(outside my computers) for 2 years. Another one for me personally is the PSP photo viewer. I now am able to carry my pictures w/ me when visiting friends and family members. I think the biggest problem, and the reason convergence fails so often in consoles(and in technology markets in general) is the fact that manufactures try to force the users to use their technology, i.e. Sony's Memory stick, Window's Media Center Edition, etc. When based off a standard that everyone uses convergence becomes useful instead of a burden and useless, DVD, JPEG, etc.

i'm suprised all the 360 whiners didn't chime in to make this 300 posts long...eh...

convergence will be an interesting thing to watch play out, given that it has NOT taken root in the living room yet.

hardware companies still cannot see the benefit in consolidating product lines and functionality into something that grandma Ethel can use, but hopefully in the next decade they will.

#4

Don't you think it's a bit of a contradiction that you have an Xbox modded for media playback but disapprove of the Xbox 360?

Apparently convergence does appeal to you. It's just the specific feature set you're unhappy about.

#9

If you are going to argue price you should pay attention to where those prices have gone. 1GB Memory Stick Duos have been available for around $60 for quite a while now. 2GB Memory Stick Duos can be had for around $100.

The PSP's primary application is gaming. If its library fails to attract a wide audience that is a valid criticism but comparing its secondary function to the primary functions of the iPod is just inane. Sony has a different set of products in direct competition with iPod, albeit poorly.

If people didn't want convergence, there wouldn't have been an Xbox mod scene. Game consoles are computers, so why limit their capability to only games? My Xbox has basically been a media center pc (non-HD, of course) for years now, connected through my home network to my main system, and I can stream media to the living room TV. In fact, alot of the ideas for xbox360's media capabilities came from Xbox mods.

The popularity of the DS proves that, the only extra bonuses the DS has is an alarm clock and pictochat, which was just something as a little tech demo to show how the product worked.

I'd rather have my old cassette player and a nintendo DS than just a PSP, the technology is too far behind the concepts, the iPod does photos well, and it seems to be proving that it can handle video, podcasts and other shizzle.

The PSP is bottle necked, as a device it does technically work, but not as the iPod generation expects.

I don't think they are trying to take over any markets with it. #3 - Tomanta

Not "trying to take over any markets"? Are you sure about that?

Convergence is a great thing. When people say they don't like it, what they really mean is, they don't like bad design. Of course a poorly designed machine that claims to do 2 things is worse than two well designed devices. However, when a device can do two things well, why shouldn't it? I used to carry a cell phone and a Palm Pilot. Now I carry an MPX220. It performs both functions admirably and adds features I didn't have before, like a camera.

It's when devices claim to do a lot and fail, that we dislike them. When they succeed, we take it for granted: you'd never buy a laptop today that didn't have integrated WiFi, yet just a few years ago, that was a PC Card add-on. No one is screaming about the evils of convergence there...

"[Y]ou'd never buy a laptop today that didn't have integrated WiFi, yet just a few years ago, that was a PC Card add-on. No one is screaming about the evils of convergence there..."

That's a bad example. Wi-Fi has obvious applications to extend the capabilities of a laptop's core purpose. This isn't convergence, but extension.