Sony motion-sensing PS3 controller set for E3 launch?

Hot on the heels of a screen-sliding PSP refresh, comes word that Sony are planning a Wiimote-style motion-sensing controller for the PS3.  Tipped for announcement at E3 next month, the controller is expected to use LEDs and a webcam to track movement, with reportedly greater accuracy than Nintendo's version.

While there's unsurprisingly no word from Sony themselves regarding the new controller, the rumor-mill maintains that the company is contacting "key third-party publishers" and pushing for support in their upcoming titles.  That would give the company the catalog of compatible games needed to properly launch the new peripheral. 

By using LEDs, the webcam can better track proximity to the screen (i.e. movement across the Z-axis) which the Wiimote has been criticized for its poor handling of.  Shape and angle can also be recognized, together with different colors, and those who have seen the prototype – which currently has a large bulb housing the LEDs at the end – say it is more precise than the Nintendo system.

[via Engadget]