US Air Force to purchase 300 Playstation 3s
by Scott Jon Siegel 
{ Mar 6th 2008 at 8:20AM }
According to the document, the PS3 features the only Cell processor on the market to meet the standards required by the testing, and does so at reasonable cost. The Air Force Research Laboratory will be using the machines to conduct the tests, in what appears to be a growing trend these days. Or, you know, it's all a big scam so that they can get their Metal Gear Solid 4 fix.
[Via PS3 Fanboy]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
merf1350 @ Mar 6th 2008 8:27AM
Now they just need to add a bunch of 360's into that mix and they can build a beginning for the eventual destruction of man called SkyNet.
Matt B @ Mar 6th 2008 9:40AM
We have Skynet here at work. It's an old Dell with like a 2GHZ Xeon.... I'm not too worried.
Korova @ Mar 6th 2008 8:30AM
You know they are getting the MSG bundles. Troop recreation is a military application too.
I guess 360 RRODs too quickly in heat of the Iraqi and Afgani desert.
capt_carl @ Mar 6th 2008 8:32AM
I was about to say why not purchase some of those new IBM computers with Cell processors in them, but then I realized the PS3s are cheaper, and probably more reliable.
Mills and Boom @ Mar 6th 2008 8:49AM
Well I suppose there are enough to go around!
Oooh they won't like that. Not one bit.
Dr0ooo @ Mar 6th 2008 8:50AM
Very Impressive sony.
DangerMouse @ Mar 6th 2008 12:03PM
Yep, and now the government can utilize all that duct tape they never used on the windows and connect all the ps3's together.
rc @ Mar 6th 2008 8:51AM
Glad they aren't depending on 360's. Would hate to have national security depending on the reliability of that garbage.
deaftly @ Mar 6th 2008 9:32AM
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WhoMe @ Mar 6th 2008 9:33AM
^ fail
merf1350 @ Mar 6th 2008 10:16AM
As Deaftly noted, I apply this to whome
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cc123 @ Mar 6th 2008 10:21AM
^
what?
Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Mar 6th 2008 11:57AM
"what?"
...Chicken Butt.
Booxatron @ Mar 6th 2008 12:52PM
Seriously...what?
cc123 @ Mar 6th 2008 1:00PM
"Chicken Butt."
Yeah, I don't see it. In IE it looks like complete gibberish and in Firefox it looks likes gibberish with a penis head on top.
ThornedVenom (Harley Quinn Defense Force) @ Mar 6th 2008 2:51PM
I see it perfectly under firefox.
It's ASCII art for a facepalm.
Mills and Boom @ Mar 6th 2008 8:52AM
On a serious note - does a PS3 sale make a profit for Sony now?
My other question would be if the 360 did too. I remember there being hoo-hah from both sides about which made each company more money but I honestly didn't care to listen.
capt_carl @ Mar 6th 2008 10:13AM
To add what someone else said:
IBM announced a while ago that Cells are now being made with a 45nm architecture. They began manufacturing them with 90nm architecture. So in the course of roughly two years IBM managed to reduce the size of the Cell by half. A bit outside the realms of Moore's Law, but still within a reasonable timeframe. But yea, they're cheaper to produce, and more reliable now that they use less power, and therefore generate less heat.
Brodie-san @ Mar 6th 2008 9:06AM
@ Mills and Boon
My understanding is that, though Sony have made advances in reducing cost via the cheaper laser and smaller chipset etc., these cost cutting measures have not yet been factored into the new PS3s currently being manufactured so no, they still don't sell them at a profit.
I could be wrong though. Won't be the first time you read something on the internet that's erroneous.
:)
Mills and Boom @ Mar 6th 2008 9:23AM
Ah right, thanks!
WhoMe @ Mar 6th 2008 9:33AM
Wasn't there the news a while ago that they were breakeven? I think going forward they might actually be turning a profit on these things, or at least close to. Impressive if you look at what's inside that box and how recently it launched. But then, Sony is a hardware company, and it shows. (MS being a software company, which also shows.)
Nate @ Mar 6th 2008 9:49AM
I believe there was a story that said Sony was breaking even on the PS3s now. Not bad for barely a year into a console's life, especially one with so much new hardware.
borland502 (SDF - Macross Ring) @ Mar 6th 2008 9:49AM
Yeah, it's break even time now for the PS3. But considering how much they were bleeding per unit at launch, that's a big win for them.
Matt B @ Mar 6th 2008 9:37AM
NPD +300
Poisoned Al @ Mar 6th 2008 9:39AM
I dunno why everyone is giving Sony the credit. IBM made the chips, and it'll be they who'll get the contract.
An American company getting money thrown at it by the US military. Who'd have thunk it huh?
Matt B @ Mar 6th 2008 9:42AM
Both consoles are still made in China even if MS is an American company.
Marry me Mario @ Mar 6th 2008 9:46AM
The CELL was a combined effort between IBM, Sony, and Toshiba. The work on the CELL began in 2001. So all three companies "own" the CELL chip.
Zeus.:God @ Mar 6th 2008 4:46PM
Sorry, Marry, but Toshiba and Sony more or less just invested in it. The actual chipmaker, IBM, is the company that designed the Cell.
MakAttack @ Mar 6th 2008 9:41AM
Helicopters, especially those in the OD Green scheme of the UH-1 you have in the image above are generally flown by the Army or Marines. I think Air Force and Navy rotary winged aircraft have different schemes: battleship grey or similar.
http://www.randolph.af.mil/shared/media/photodb/photos/051107-f-2907c-176.jpg
Oh, and wasn't there a period when the PS2 launched when the US Military was concerned about "rogue states" buying them up to use for guidance and navigation processing or simulations? It seems the USAF have learned a thing or two from Saddam.
AirIntake @ Mar 6th 2008 9:47AM
If they actually learned a thing or two from Saddam, they would know that using game consoles for the military purposes is stupid. Nothing will ever come of this, just as nothing came of Saddam's PS2 plan.
Marry me Mario @ Mar 6th 2008 9:49AM
Come correct son.
Marry me Mario @ Mar 6th 2008 9:50AM
Airintake,
This is hardly the 1st use of the PS3 outside the world of videogames...so your statement is Krap.
Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Mar 6th 2008 11:59AM
The only thing thats crap around here is your constant trolling. You're annoying factor has quadrupled in the last 2 weeks, easily.
Brian Sexton @ Mar 6th 2008 12:13PM
Thank you for the information, but everybody already knew the image was not accurate; there is no way a single helicopter of any configuration could possibly lift a PlayStation 3 by itself.
The Artist formally known as Jesus @ Mar 6th 2008 9:56AM
So I guess the military is going to implement some COD4 tactics in their strategy now. Awesome
Spiza @ Mar 6th 2008 10:06AM
The Cell is a great processor for military applications. They still use a lot of PPC cores. They want deterministic processing which they can't get from x86 designs.
Kye Grammar DF @ Mar 6th 2008 10:20AM
"the consoles will be used to test the robust Cell processor"
Yeah, because everyone knows that military technology is years behind what's available commercially.
Curmeo @ Mar 6th 2008 10:49AM
+300 MGS4 pre-orders confirmed!
religiousjedi @ Mar 6th 2008 12:30PM
That's where my tax dollars are being wasted! On a useless console!
^__^
(See how much trolling is stupid?)
In all seriousness...this is what my tax dollars are being spent on? *face palm*
kevinski @ Mar 6th 2008 10:51AM
While this helps the overall sales of the console, it really doesn't help the attachment rate. Sony's primary source of revenue as far as gaming goes is in accessories and games, and I doubt that any (or many) of those 300 PS3's have any accessories or games shipping with them.
a ham sandwich @ Mar 6th 2008 10:53AM
lol. i bet that picture is life size.
driven2sin @ Mar 6th 2008 11:05AM
what about the military applications of the Wii Zapper?
switch it to a Link's RPG trainer
Pawsie @ Mar 6th 2008 11:21AM
I'm concern... on if they're using this wisely. From what I learned through the years.. this country bount trailers that no one can live in, Laptops contractors just burnt to get new ones, and boats no one really wants.
dan stabbingworth @ Mar 6th 2008 1:14PM
I get the feeling you're making a good point, but can you say it in English?
Grant @ Mar 6th 2008 11:25AM
the PS3 cell processor is one hell of a chip.... too bad no ps3 software will fully utilize it for another year or 2.
Marry me Mario @ Mar 6th 2008 11:30AM
Grant,
It was the SAME way for the PS1 and the PS2. If you make system hardware that does not easily give away it's secrets then you will have software that will continue to improve throughout it's lifecycle. I am not saying Sony does it on purpose...but I seriously doubt that they are to concerned about the ease of development in the Playstations 1st year or 2. It has worked for them 2x's in a row and so far in 2008...it seems that it will work for them again.
Grant @ Mar 6th 2008 11:53AM
i would agree with you wholeheartedly, because traditionally this has been the case with every console. Full system utilization is never achieved until the last year before it's life cycle ends. Notice that i said "for another year or 2", which would work out to be at very least two years before a normal life cycle, or 7 if Sony's claim that PS3 has a 10 year life span is used.
The fact of the matter is that the 360 pretty much utilizes all of it's resources and i would bet the wii does too. Also, Sony has notoriously harder development software for whatever reason, which obviously slows down the process of full utilization.
Marry me Mario @ Mar 6th 2008 12:07PM
Yes Grant,
I can hardly wait for what we will see the PS3 produce in a year or 2.
jrhawk42 @ Mar 6th 2008 11:38AM
So instead of just buying 300 cell cpu's, they are going to buy ps3's?????? Pure Genius... Obviously who ever put in this order has the technical know how, and business sense of your average 8 year old.
Crono (NDF - Knight of the Old School) @ Mar 6th 2008 12:01PM
Well, it is the US government. No single entity can piddle away money like them.