PlayStation 4 Review: Sony’s Comeback Console | TIME.com

When I reviewed the Wii U last November, I wrote that Nintendo had “a lock on the future of big-idea gaming.” But sometimes big idea gaming isn’t what captures imaginations (or hearts, or wallets). Sometimes refinement’s enough — taking an imperfect idea and perfecting it (or further trying to). That’s what $400 for a PS4 buys you this time around: a system that feels like something that’s been around the block off the block, instead of a feature-incomplete, overpriced collage of half-baked apps and feature hypotheticals. You’re still buying a promise, but for once it feels like a promise made on solid, well-trodden ground.

Read more: PlayStation 4 Review: Sony’s Comeback Console | TIME.com http://techland.time.com/2013/11/13/...#ixzz2kXBfHiVv

Hardware Test: PlayStation 4 • Articles • Eurogamer.net

We usually conclude our hardware tests with a verdict, but until we've spent more time with the user interface, and tested more of the key features - like Vita Remote Play - we can only offer up some preliminary thoughts.

There's some stand-out technology here for sure. Sony has handed in a high quality, traditionally console-sized box that runs a cutting-edge processor with bags of graphics power and has done so in a well-designed enclosure, that may not be ultra-cool, but dissipates heat well and remains fairly quiet in warm ambient temperatures. However, the first order of business once we have the kit in our offices will be to ratchet up the heating to see if the unit remains as quiet during the summer months. The only doubt we have here comes when the system is pushed to the limit - the extra 20W consumed by the UI in combination with the game sees fan noise increase significantly.
Playstation 4 Review | Polygon

The PS4 hints at plenty of other possibilities. Local network play via the PS Vita has an enormous amount of potential. The PlayStation App and even the Playstation Camera may provide opportunities for developers to broaden the appeal of the PlayStation 4 beyond the hard core audience it currently seems so intent on courting. Unlike the PlayStation 3, Sony's latest effort was built to evolve.

But the PlayStation 4's focus on gaming — and only gaming — is undermined by a distinct lack of compelling software. That failing is sure to improve — better games and more of them will appear on the PlayStation 4 — but right now, this is a game console without a game to recommend it. Early adopters of the PS4 this fall are buying potential energy. We're just waiting for a place to spend it.
Review: PlayStation 4 | Joystiq

The PlayStation 4 appears to deliver on most of these commitments but, like the Wii U last year, the brunt of the console's most highly-lauded features are coming in hot. In fact, nearly every feature other than the ability to play retail games was enabled via a system update only a few hours before this writing.

That makes a detailed, timely review problematic, but we've done our best to delve into the PS4's big ticket features and answer as many questions as we can. Given the circumstances, we'll be updating this review as we dig further into Sony's slanted console.