It will cost £349 which is around £80 cheaper than Microsoft's Xbox One
- Gamers can trade and sell second-hand games without paying a fee
- New DualShock controller comes in Magma Red and Blue Wave for £54
- Controller has a touchpad and motion sensor to rival Microsoft's Kinect
Sony has announced that its PlayStation 4 console will be available in the UK from 29 November for £349
Sony has announced the launch date for its eagerly anticipated PlayStation 4 console.
Gamers in the UK will be able to get their hands on it from November 29 - two weeks after it goes on sale in the U.S.
The console will be available in 32 countries worldwide and will cost £349 in the UK - £80 cheaper than Microsoft's Xbox One - and $399 in the U.S.
Sony unveiled its next-generation console during the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles in June.
The black PS4 will come with 8GB of memory, additional hard drive space and a new DualShock 4 controller with a motion sensor bar and touchpad.
Gamers will also be able to buy extra controllers in new colours 'Magma Red' and 'Wave Blue' for £54.
During the announcement at Gamescom in Germany, Sony also announced it was cutting the price of of its handheld console, the PlayStation Vita.
The Wi-Fi version of the device would now drop by $50 to $199 (£127) excluding tax in the U.S.
When the PS4 console goes on sale, Sony's PS will be reduced to $199 in the U.S and €199 in Europe.
The UK price reductions for both the Vita and PS3 have not yet been officially announced.
The PS4 already has a million pre-orders, according to Sony, but gaming experts said the launch date could play into the hands of main rival Microsoft, which has yet to announce when its Xbox One will go on sale.
Althought the company has hinted it will be sometime in the same month as the PS4.
'From Microsoft's point of view it looks pretty good,' said Seth Barton of technology website Expert Reviews.
'I think Microsoft will probably want to get in first and launch a week or two before Sony just to claw back a bit of an edge.
The PS4 console will come with the DualShock 4 controller that has a motion sensor bar that links with a sensing device on the console, and a touchpad. Gamers will also be able to buy extra controllers in new colours 'Magma Red' and 'Wave Blue', pictured, for an extra £54
'If you've got a PS4 pre-order you will definitely get one for Christmas, but if you haven't then that boat has sailed and you haven't got a hope of getting one, and then you might end up getting a Microsoft instead.'
He added: 'It's quite possible both consoles will sell out before Christmas and you won't be able to get either of them.'
Last week it emerged that retailers were halting pre-orders of the PS4, prompting fears of a shortage at Christmas.
A high level of interest in the £349 console is leading to shops warning customers that new orders will not guarantee a machine at launch.
Microsoft has said the Xbox One will set gamers back £429 when it launches some time in November.
Sony first gave a sneak preview of the PS4 earlier in the year.
The info: CEO Andrew House announces the pricing for the new PlayStation 4 at the Sony E3 2013 press conference in Los Angeles
The Japanese firm said the 'gaming experience' is at the heart of its latest console, with the device including a feature which allows gamers to broadcast a live stream of their play.
PS4 provides access to social networks including Facebook and Twitter while Sony has also promised to develop cloud technology to enable users to play their old games via the internet.
Anticipation is high because it is seven years since the last PlayStation and eight years since the previous Xbox.
Virgin Media has been confirmed as the broadband partner for the PS4, but no further details were given.
When the console was announced in June, the loudest applause came when Jack Tretton, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America, announced that the company would not try to restrict used game sales.
Tretton was making reference to Microsoft's plans to restrict second-hand game sales on its Xbox One console.
During its own E3 event earlier the same day, Microsoft confirmed that every game bought for the Xbox One must be installed to the system and linked to the user's profile.
The games can then be played on other consoles, but the user will have to access it through a cloud server each time.
Other people's profiles can play games on a user's console at any time, and up to ten family members can log in and play shared games on other systems, but not at the same time.
Tretton also announced that the PS4 would not require a persistent online connection.
Enlightening: A gamer holds a controller for the new PlayStation 4
Sony's new DualShock controller for PS4 includes a 'share' button as well as a two-point touchpad and a six-axis motion sensing system hoping to compete with Microsoft's Kinect
Sony first gave a sneak preview of the PS4 earlier in the year.
It is the first major game machine the Japanese firm has built since the PlayStation 3 went on sale in 2006.
The PlayStation 4 will come with 8GB of DDR3 RAM powered by a custom 8-core AMD CPU plus 500 GB hard drive.
The console will have the Blu-ray drive seen in its previous model, the PS3.
Like Microsoft, Sony is betting big on social networking features.
The new version of its DualShock controller includes a 'share' button that allows you to post gameplay footage and screenshots online.
CONSOLE POWERPLAY: PLAYSTATION 4 VS. XBOX ONE
PLAYSTATION 4
Price: $399 (U.S) £349 (UK)
Power: 8-core x86-64 AMD 'Jaguar' CPU and 8GB of GDDR5 RAM plus hard drive space
Weight: 2.8 kg
Used-game fee: No
Motion control: DualShock 4, PlayStation 4 Eye, PlayStation Move
Voice commands: No
Internet: No requirement for device to be connected to the Internet in order to function
Blu-ray-capable
No fee in order to play used games
Bluetooth compatibility
XBOX ONE
Price: $499 (U.S) £429 (UK)
Power: 8GB of DDR3 RAM powered by a custom 8-core AMD CPU plus 500GB hard drive
Weight: 3.18 kg
Used-game fee: Yes
Motion control: Kinect 2
Voice commands: Yes
Internet: XBox One must connect to the internet at least once every 24 hours or once an hour when using another user's console
Blu-ray-capable
Fee for used games
Not Bluetooth compatible
A DualShock controller for the new PlayStation 4 on display at the Sony E3 event in Los Angeles. The controller will cost £54 when it launches in November
Friends can watch as you play a game, and you'll even be able to let a pal take control of your game from afar if you can't get past a tough battle.
The DualShock controller weighs around 210g.
It has a two-point touchpad and six-axis Move motion sensor that works with a 3D camera placed near the TV set.
Other features include a Light Bar, Vibration and a built-in mono speaker.
The controller will be available at launch for $59 in the U.S and £54 in the UK.
The 3D camera will cost $59 (U.S) and £44 (UK) at launch.
Both accessories will come in the same 'Jet Black' colour as the console.
Bookmakers Paddy Power slashed the odds on Playstation 4 outselling the Xbox One in 2013 following Sony's announcement that it will retail for £79 less than its rival.
It chopped the odds on the Playstation 4 being the top selling console in 2013 from 4/11 to 2/9 while the Xbox One’s odds drifted from 15/8 to 11/4.
A spokesperson for Paddy Power said 'There’s still a long way to go but the huge variation in price has certainly handed the advantage to Playstation and we reckon that there’ll be more girlfriends cursing Sony than Microsoft this Christmas.'
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