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The PS2 can read and play both compact discs and DVDs, making it backwards compatible with older PS1 games and allowing for playback of DVD Video and the more technically advanced PS2 games. The ability to play DVD movies allowed consumers to more easily justify the PS2's relatively high price tag (as of October 2000, the MSRP was $300) as it removed the necessity of purchasing an external DVD player.
When it was released, the PS2 had many advanced features that were not present in other contemporary video game consoles, including its DVD capabilities and USB and IEEE 1394 expansion ports. It was not until late 2001 that the MicrosoftMicrosoft Corporation , headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA, is the world's largest software company (with over 50,000 employees in various countries, as of May 2004). Microsoft develops, manufactures, licenses and supports a wide range of software XboxThe Xbox is Microsoft's game console, released on November 15 2001. It is Microsoft's first independent venture into the console arena, after having collaborated with Sega in porting Windows CE to the Sega Dreamcast console. The price is currently 149 USD became the second console with DVD support (this is assuming the NuonNuon is a technology that adds additional features to a DVD player. In addition to viewing DVDs, you can play 128-bit games, use enhanced DVD navigation tools, gain access to DVD-ROM features that would normally be only available via a personal computer, is not considered a console), although playing DVD-Video titles on Xbox requires the purchase of an additional module (containing decoder software and a remote control). The Xbox was also released with USB support, however its proprietary connectors required hardware hacking to allow standard consumer devices to connect to it.
Support for original PlayStation games was also an important selling point for the PS2, letting owners of an older system upgrade to the PlayStation 2 and keep their old software, and giving new users access to older games until software was developed for the new system. As an added bonus, the PS2 had the ability to enhance PlayStation games by speeding up disc read time and/or adding texture smoothing to improve graphics. Unfortunately, these enhancements were either ignored by most games, or introduced compatiblity problems.
Software for all PlayStation consoles contains one of three region codes, for Japan, the Americas, or Europe. Discs also deviate slightly from the CD-ROM and DVD-ROM standards in ways that make it difficult for consumers to duplicate discs or create his or her own software for the system. However, Sony released a version of the LinuxThe PlayStation 2 Expansion Bay is a 3. 5" drive bay designed for the network adaptor and internal hard disk drive (HDD). These peripherals enhance the capabilities of the PlayStation 2 to allow online play and other features and were shown at Eł 2001. operating system for the PS2 in a package that also includes a keyboard, mouse, ethernet adapter and hard disk drive. Currently, Sony's online store states that the Linux kit is no longer for sale in North America. However as of November 2004, the European version was still available. (The kit boots by installing a proprietary interface, the RTE (run time environment) which is on a region-coded DVD - so the European and USA kits are not compatible)
In Europe and Australasia, the PlayStation 2 also comes with a free YabasicYabasic (Yet Another BASIC is a BASIC programming language interpreter for the Win32 and Unix platforms, similar to the ROM-resident Commodore BASIC of the Commodore 64. It can handle monochrome line graphics, and has printing capability. It is also relat interpreter. This allows simple programs to be created for the PlayStation 2 by the end-user. This was done to circumvent a tax by defining the console as a "computer" if it contained certain software.
The PlayStation 2 has undergone many revisions, some only of internal construction and others with substantial external changes. These are coloquially known amongst PlayStation 2 hardware hackers as V0,V1,V2, etc up to V12 (as of 11/25/2004). V0-V2 are Japanese models and were never sold in Europe. These included a PCMCIA slot instead of the Expansion Bay (DEV9) port of newer models. V3 has a substantially different internal structure from the subsequent revisions, featuring several interconnected Printed circuit boardA printed circuit board or PCB interconnects electronic components without discrete wires. Alternative names are printed wiring board or PWB . The simplest PCB is a layer of copper foil glued to a sheet of plastic (referred to as the substrate), often ans. Beginning with V4 everything was unified into one board, except the power supply. V5 introduces minor internal changes and the only difference between V6 (sometimes called V5.1) and V5 is the orientation of the Power/Reset switch board connector, which was reversed to prevent the use of no-solder modchips. V7 and V8 are also similar, and V9 (model number SCPH-50000/SCPH-50001) added the InfraredInfrared IR radiation is electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength longer than visible light, but shorter than microwave radiation. The name means "below red" (from the Latin infra "below"), red being the color of visible light of longest wavelength. port for the optional DVD Remote ControlA remote control is a device used to operate something at a distance. Remote Control was a TV game show that ran on MTV for three seasons from 1987 until 1990. New episodes were made for first-run syndication in 1989. It was hosted by Ken Ober and feature, removed the widely unused IEEE 1394 port, added DVD-RW capability, and a quieter fan. V10 and V11 have minor changes.
In September 2004 Sony unveiled the third major hardware revision (V12, model number SCPH-70000). Available in November 2004, it is smaller and thinner than the old version and includes a built-in ethernet port. In some markets it also integrates a modem. Due to its thinner profile, it unfortunately does not support the internal HDD. This poses a problem for games such as Final Fantasy XI, which requires the use of this peripheral. Sony's plans regarding the internal HDD are now debateable, considering how they have now prevented new consoles from supporting this. The redesigned system's release is timed to coincide with the much anticipated , and to bring Sony out of its current PS2 sales slump.
Sony has also made a PVR/DVD burning consumer device that plays PlayStation 2 games called the PSX. The device has thus far experienced very poor sales in Japan, and its future is unclear.
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