This schedule is remarkably similar to the one being followed by the PlayStation Portable - and while the graph did not give any notion of a release date for the system, if it follows the PSP model then PlayStation 3 could be in the hands of Japanese consumers in time for Christmas 2005, with a launch in the USA and Europe in early 2006.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?section_name=dev&aid=3777
As we reported yesterday, it is possible that PlayStation 3 might actually go on sale in Japan in time for Christmas 2005, judging by timescale-related nattering from SCEI boss Ken Kutaragi. Should that prove to be the case, the software line-up would be pretty modest, as developers would have had less than a year with the full kits - although that problem didn't exactly stop PS2 shipping early and instantly flying off Japanese shelves.
http://games.kikizo.com/news/200407/017.asp