Sony details PlayTV

London (England) - Sony has released more details on PlayTV, the service that allows users to turn their Playstation 3 into a digital video recorder and TV tuner.

There is a new trailer for PlayTV that details how to connect the service to the console. Users will need a special PlayTV set-top box, which receives the TV signal. The box connects to the PS3 via USB. It uses the PS3’s hard drive, so users can have dozens of gigabytes worth of recorded videos.

PlayTV incorporates a dual digital tuner to the PS3 to receive two cable or satellite feeds. It includes an on-screen program guide, high definition capability, and basic DVR controls like the ability to control live TV.

One of the more pivotal aspects of the new feature is its ability to connect with the PSP. With the console’s Remote Play functionality, users will be able to watch recorded programming from the PS3 on their PSP via an Internet connection.

The new service is initially only available in the UK, France, Italy, Germany and Spain. The technology is currently suited for consoles with PAL encoding, which means the NTSC-based United States, while widely assumed to be in the rollout schedule, has not officially been announced in the PlayTV lineup.

The new trailer is available on Sony’s semi-official Three Speech blog.