Rumor: PS3 to Get Google Chrome Web Browser Soon?

[PS3 News]

Update: http://vgn365.com/2011/05/09/google-chrome-not-coming-to-the-ps3/ has now clarified that the ChromeClientPOSIX discovery was referring to the browser chrome not 'Google Chrome' the Web browser, and concludes that Google Chrome is not likely coming to the PS3 entertainment system after all.

According to Dutch site PS3Life.nl (linked above), Sony's PS3 entertainment system may soon be getting the popular Google Chrome Web browser despite Google http://www.ps3center.net/news/5108/official-response-from-google-regarding-ps3-chrome/ that they have nothing to announce at this time.

Additionally, a http://jobview.monster.com/senior-software-engineer-job-san-jose-ca-us-99004911.aspx implies that Sony is indeed hiring a developer to work with Google Chrome's Engine.

To quote, roughly translated: Sony has a Webkit source for their PS3 Web browser and can be found http://downloads.snei-opensource.com/pub/webkit/ (with a test page now added http://downloads.snei-opensource.com/pub/webkit-tests/).

Here you can see several things that Sony has updated on March 31 for pilot testing. A forum user NeoGaf the forum was, incidentally, to the bored and a look in the ps3-webkit-support.diff file.

I'm going through ps3-webkit-support.diff because I'm bored. Looks like we're getting Chrome Actually, since Geoff's added a couple of files for ChromeClientPOSIX.

Naturally the full source of his changes are in that diff file also. From what I can tell, the only posix platform refers to the PS3 in Webkit, It does not show up at all in the mainline source code (Unix versions are under Their Typically widget library like Qt or gtk).

There's a lot of functions that are not implemented, but they're mainly ones that involvement windowing that you would not expect to be supported on the PS3.

Might this not mean much since I do not see the cool stuff from Chrome sources, like bookmark syncing, but it's a freaking huge project, and only covers what the diff needed to be changed so it works on the PS3.

Might it not just get Chrome branding visible to the user, but I think if he's calling it chrome client, we can expect good things for the future.


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[Neo Cyrus]

Once my computer was down (PSU blew up) and I was forced to use the PS3 browser, man was I kidding myself when I thought it would actually work. It couldn't load anything properly if at all. Any new browser on that thing would be a welcomed change.

[GrandpaHomer]

Yeah - the "browser" on PS3 (and I use this word VERY loosely) is a JOKE - it can't even display correctly majority of SONY or Playstation related / own / ran websites like Playstation Forums etc.

[dabear]

Google chrome's name comes from the visible area in a web browser containing the web site it self. Chrome is a generic term, also used to identify this area of the web browser in Firefox. Not sure we will get google chrome here, but a major web browser update (based on webkit) might be still be imminent

[oVERSoLDiER]

I'm waiting for an good PS3 browser for 4+ years now. Hope to get Chrome or Opera soon. Or maybe an homebrew browser to show Sony how it's going.

[Frago]

i have read that is another web browser.. the webkit, what is this?

[51N15T3R]

I remember hearing in the past the PS3 was supposed to get a form of FireFox. Any upgrade from it's current form is great news. It's kind of sad that given how powerful the PS3 is, an iPod Touch has a better browser and it doesn't even support adobe flash.

[Frago]

you know something, the people of sony are very clever, they fix any problem from update to update for us to secure the ps3 from the piracy and during that they throw to us a update to the browser they seduce us with those updates to update the firmware. they throw a card when they find the dark with us but we are stronger!

[ArsenalMark]

This is what I like to see Sony - a settlement in the Hotz case, and finally some new features (hopefully).

This is what they have to do to get users to update - not drop constant updates to firmware which does very little, but drop big updates to Fw which can tempt those using CFW to update to get the features.

Hopefully today marks a long-needed turnaround in Sony's apporach.

[tilla]

About bloody time, Netfront has always been a joke and can't even pass 50 percent on a web standards test.

For those wondering, Chrome is a generic term for user interface on a browser. However, it is using Webkit, which is the engine that powers both Google's browser Chrome and Apple's Safari