Description

Introduction

It is somewhat special to launch a PS2 product in late 2010. After all, the PS3 had been released in 2006 and, after a troubled start, had already gained a loyal following of fans. Nevertheless, Sony decided otherwise. The PlayStation 2 TV or more precisely the KDL-22PX300, consisted of a Sony Bravia 22-inch TV cunningly mounted on a base, containing PS2 hardware.

Background

The question was: why did Sony decide to market a television with an integrated PS2 more than four years after the release of its PS3?

To answer this question, we have to look further in the past. In that year, Sony released a refurbished PS2, the PS2 Slim, to boost sales again. Technically, the PS2 was sold until 2013. More than seven years after the introduction of the PS3. However, after the introduction of the PS3, the PS2 was particularly popular in emerging economies such as Brazil and other parts of Latin America. In Japan, the US and Europe, the interest of many gamers had already turned to the new PS3. The story goes that Sony had a surplus of PS2 hardware for the European PAL region. The company may have expected a more gradual transition from current to next-gen, and thereby overproduced PS2 hardware. It now sought a way to get rid of its redundant hardware without having to write it all off or dump it somewhere in the sea.

The product developers at Sony came up with an idea. Why not use that surplus hardware to make a TV-console hybrid. The knife would cut both ways because Sony’s television department would also benefit from this marriage. The result was the KDL-22PX300. The TV could appeal to many target groups. The TV was ideal as a bedroom TV due to the built-in DVD / CD player of the PS2. The gaming console also made it suitable for the game- or playrooms and due to its sleek design, it wouldn’t look improper in a trendy (but small) living room. The price was also low. You would only have to pay 200 pounds for this TV-console hybrid. When you consider that the game library for the PS2 was huge, the PS2 TV was a very attractive product.

The KDL-22PX300 was certainly not unique as a TV-console hybrid. Several TV-gaming console hybrids have been launched in the past with varying success. Well-known examples were the ‘Divers 2000’ with a built-in Dreamcast, the Sharp SF1 (SNES) and the lesser-known ‘B&O AV5’, ‘Videotronic POS360’ and the rare ‘Philips 21TCDI30’ with a built-in CD-i player. However, the idea of ​​the KDL-22PX300 can best be compared with this latest Philips CD-i hybrid. Both TVs and consoles were from one and the same producer, Sony and Philips respectively, so the TV and console hardware worked well together. In addition, both manufacturers used already available TVs that were also sold without a console and did not have to pay any royalties, thus keeping the costs of the production of the TV-console hybrid low.

Specifications

The PS2 TV is a pretty nice package. The TV and PS2 were directly connected, with the PS2 acting as a stand for the TV. Consequently, wall mounting options were not available. The TV had reasonable specifications for the time. It had a screen size of 22 inches, a resolution of 1366×768 pixels and an aspect ratio of 16: 9.

Striking were the many connection options. In addition to Ethernet (on the TV as well as the PS2), component, composite, VGA and SCART, it had no less than 4 HDMI ports! Even today, this is not the standard. All of these HDMI ports accepted 1080p signals, though the screen resolution was only 720p. So you didn’t have to sacrifice on connections. You could connect numerous peripherals, such as a PS3 or XBOX 360 and older, more ‘retro’ consoles. So, you potentially bought a very versatile Gaming TV for a reasonable price.

Availability

When it was announced, the PS2 TV could count on a lot of attention. At the end of 2010, various news sites enthusiastically previewed the new TV and fired up potential customers. There were rumors of European availability, and it was also mentioned that the TV would come to the US. Strangely enough, Sony itself paid little attention to the product launch. The TV had to do with a short press release on their website. The reason for this reluctance was practical. As mentioned earlier, the TV was primarily intended to reduce PS hardware stocks in Europe, so that only a limited number of units could be produced. Because of this, it was decided to only launch the TV in Europe in very limited numbers. The TV arrived only at selected sellers, and stock didn’t last long. Combined with a lot of enthusiasm by consumers for its release, this let to a lot of disappointment and consequently made the TV a future collector’s item.

The TV is uncommon. However, normally, a few are still available on eBay: PS2 TV Ebay