Sony launches VidZone TV on PS3

By Robert Purchese Published 23 April, 2010

Over 100 channels of sorted music.

Sony has unleashed VidZone TV on PlayStation 3.

This offers over 100 pre-programmed, telly-style music channels to watch for free.

Apparently the idea is to do away with the need to spend time building playlists. You simply pick a themed-channel - seventies, eighties, hip-hop, dance, etc. - and let it play.

Previously VidZone required you search and compile your own on-demand playlists and put in a bit of effort. You can still do that, but that would be like actually walking around a supermarket instead of ordering online! Idiot!

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (34) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • X201 #1 2 years ago

    The user interface still needs a total reworking. Its a nightmare to navigate and torture to get the thing to stop playing a particular track.

    Edit: Just want to add that I think the service is great. Its just that damned menu system that drives me away.

    Edited by 1 at 23/04/10 @ 09:35

  • M_of_the_sys #2 2 years ago

    This is great! I can never be arsed to create my own playlist.

  • onyxbox #3 2 years ago

    Vidzone is great but I agree with X201 here, I find it confusing to anything other than 'Play Now'.

  • Beano #4 2 years ago

    Vidzone is great and I like the new TV-style concept, but the UI is a mess - even more now. Needs cleaning up and simplification.

  • Zebula77 #5 2 years ago

    Yup, the interface is pretty crap. This sounds like a great idea. I liked the default playlists, but there certainly weren't enough of them.

  • gandhimaster #6 2 years ago

    The constant and tedious updates have kept me away from it sadly. But thats a PS3 issue not specifically VidZone.

  • chubster2010 #7 2 years ago

    Vidzone is great...but I've had problems with it for a while now - it often only plays one video before getting stuck on buffering. Annoying.

  • Fab4 #8 2 years ago

    I wonder if they'll have a prog rock/metal channel :)

  • ignatiusjreilly #9 2 years ago

    How is a picking a genre any kind of replacement for creating a playlist?

  • Bigglesworth #10 2 years ago

    @Fab4
    You're in luck, there's "Metal Mania".

    Full list here.

  • Beano #11 2 years ago

    "How is a picking a genre any kind of replacement for creating a playlist?"

    It not a replacement - it's an extra option.

  • mingster #12 2 years ago

    I like vidzone..
    But i agree itas an art making it play the songs you want.

  • Fab4 #13 2 years ago

    "You're in luck, there's "Metal Mania". "

    Yeah, but there's a difference between bands like Megadeth and Metallica (and all the other usual crap you get on 'metal' stations) and the stuff I'd be interested in. I doubt I'm going to be hearing bands like Time's Forgotten or Mindflow or even Psychotic Waltz. Probably even Dream Theater would be pushing it.

  • M_of_the_sys #14 2 years ago

    @ignatiusjreilly

    I don't think it's supposed to be a replacement. I think you choose a genre and it plays all the songs it has from that genre.

  • BOBBYLUPO #15 2 years ago

    VidZone's great (crappy UI notwithstanding) but I'd gladly trade it for Spotify.

  • mkreku #16 2 years ago

    Why trade? Vidzone and Spotify should be able to coexist on the same console, seeing as one is for (lots of) music only and the other is for (slightly less) music and music videos.

  • buggrit #17 2 years ago

    Trustkill Records channel? Warp Records channel?

    /blows dust off of PS3

  • Bigglesworth #18 2 years ago

    I'd like Vidzone more if it didn't swallow up gigabytes of HDD space for its database. Upgrade time for me, I guess!

  • barkertron #19 2 years ago

    I came on here to rant about the shitty interface, but it seems that I am not alone nor the first to register my hatred of Vidzone's awful navigation.

    Seriously Sony, what the hell's going on? A company of your size and experience should be able to put something together that's at least barely usable. I uninstalled Vidzone in disgust about 10 minutes after battling with it - this was a few months ago and I'm not exactly tempted to go back.

    I suppose Sony doesn't exactly have good form in this area... anyone remember the Sonicstage software it bundled with its Net MDs? Using it to manage your tunes was like trying to herd plankton.

  • Retro_ #20 2 years ago

    The User interfacee is a bit of a mess, I'm always having to 're learn' the controls even after being away from VidZone for only a short period. The service itself is really excellent though and it's free :-) Any updates are happily received though, Nice !

  • Beano #21 2 years ago

    "I'd like Vidzone more if it didn't swallow up gigabytes of HDD space for its database. "

    Gigabytes???

  • BOBBYLUPO #22 2 years ago

    @mkreku Not sure about most people but I mainly use VidZone as a jukebox; I can't sit there watching more than a few videos at a time.

    Spotify would be better for this use as it has tons more music but I would have thought Sony wouldn't be too keen on bringing it over as they (presumably) wouldn't get as much of the ad revenue.

  • Bigglesworth #23 2 years ago

    @Beano
    I'm sure when I once looked at the Vidzone entry in the Game Data folder it was riding at about 1.9GB, though judging from the negs my previous comment received perhaps my recollection is faulty (either that or there are some touchy Vidzone fans lurking).

    Check your own entries in Game Data, people, you may be surprised.

  • Beano #24 2 years ago

    Gigabytes just sounded like waaay to much - but I can check myself tonight :)

  • chessboxer #25 2 years ago

    Does Spotify play music videos or is it just music streaming?

  • devilmyarse #26 2 years ago

    Agree with X201, the service is great but that menu system. Wow, they need to let loose some interface experts on that thing. It's a travesty.

    Would be nice if it worked in a similar way to Last.fm on 360. You just select an artist and it builds a playlist based on that information. Or better still. Select a group of artists, say Bjork, BT and Royksopp it will know that you want to listen to some ambient/electronica, or In Flames, Soilwork and Scar Symmetry it would know you want to listen to some melodic death metal. Shame last.fm doesn't do videos :(

  • Beano #27 2 years ago

    @Bigglesworth, you are right!

    I just checked it and my VidZone DB file is 5GB (5004 MB) ... that's crazy!

  • fongy #28 2 years ago

    Might finally start to use it - is took AGES to build playlists! Worth the effort though (despite crappy adverts) that's the price for it being free though!! :)

  • Beano #29 2 years ago

    Once you get it going and finished downloading playlist updates, it's pretty good. Just like Home - except the "pretty good" part :)

  • SEVQA #30 2 years ago

    VidZone is not perfect, but free - Any change is welcomed, though those repeated adverts are starting to piss me off!

  • red_shift #31 2 years ago

    Sounds good. I wish I could use it, but I got the dreaded YLOD earlier. :(

    I can't really afford to replace it right now either.

  • Ducklord #32 2 years ago

    I completely forgot about VidZone! Dammit I think it's going to need some love soon...

  • priesty_lfc #33 2 years ago

    like trying to herd plankton' best quote ever!

    VZ is pretty good esp as its free but like most others trying to create a playlist is complete pain!

  • alcides #34 2 years ago

    It's pure shit. Talking about the UI here.

    Try it! I don't know where the music is, but it's damn well hidden in this neverending menu with options that lead you nowhere.

    I couldn't get music to play. On a music service. After half an hour of downloading, upgrading, getting stuck in the menus.. I just let go.

    Someone's bound to have USED the damn thing! Haven't they noticed how bad it is? Like, red text over red background... FOR CRYING BRAINSPLODE!!!

    It's worse than last december, certainly when I managed to get the christmas playlist to play.

    I don't know why they added yet another layer of stupid menus on top of the rest...

    There are only so many circles of hell, you thought? Try and navigate the new Vidzone.

    I don't care that if you spend a few half hour more on it you may figure it, if it's not up to what's elsewhere (in this day and age!!) it deserves to die off! Good on them people use it so much, I know I won't be BOTHERED.