In an interview with German magazine Der Spiegel, Phil Harrison clearly believes that the PS3 will take over the PC in households around the world.

"We believe that the PS3 will be the place where our users play games, watch films, browse the Web, and use other [PC] functions," said Harrison. "The PlayStation 3 is a computer. We do not need the PC."

That's a hell of a statement considering more than half of U.K households currently own a PC, we doubt they'll be packing their home computers into boxes just yet.

The PS3 will boast plenty of features, including backwards compatiblity, an online gaming service called 'The Playstation Network Platform' which will feature content download and micro payments, similar to Microsoft points. The ability to explore photos, play music and movie trailers from the hard drive, compatibility for a USB Keyboard and Mouse, a full Internet browser and a Friends menu.

It has also been confirmed that Linux will be pre-installed on the PS3 hard drive to encourage homebrew development.

With the launch of the PS3 only 5 months away, it's not long until we find out whether Sony's amazing claim is fact or fiction.

Full interview (in German) : Spiegel