Sony’s $99 PlayStation TV will challenge Apple TV this fall

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Apple TV may have a new competitor in the form of Sony, which unveiled its PlayStation TV at Monday’s E3 event — showcasing a TV set-top box which features a strong emphasis on gaming.

Released as PS Vita TV in Japan, PlayStation TV will arrive in the U.S. and Canada this fall. It will allow users to stream games from their PS4 to other TVs in the house, thereby extending the gaming experience. It will also let you stream PS3 games and older classics via the forthcoming Playstation Now, which will presumably require no PS4. On top of this it will provide all the streaming services you’d expect from a set-top box, such as Netflix and Hulu.

Sony’s set-top box will most likely cost $99 for a standalone unit, or $139 for a bundle which includes a DualShock 3 controller, 8GB memory card, HDMI cable and voucher for a copy of The Lego Movie video game.

While Apple TV would certainly appear to have the edge over Sony, the announcement of PlayStation TV does further demonstrate just how crowded the market is becoming for set-top boxes which offer support for gaming. This is reportedly an area that Apple supposedly wants to focus on in a long-rumored Apple TV refresh.

Tim Cook revealed earlier this year that Apple TV enjoyed sales of more than $1 billion in 2013.

Source: PlayStation

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