My PS3 review

[Isocene]

haha. I love message boards.

I have until the 8th to return it which is after E3. So I'll wait to see if another model is announced then. If it is, I'm definitely returning. I mean, I deserve to have the newest best model no matter when I bought it. Right?

And I'm not "renting" it! If anything, I'd be just borrowing it since I won't have to pay anything when it's all said and done. It's like amazon is my neighbor!

 

[Crow550]

Hrm. Yeah. Since there is no PS3 Slim coming out and you had the idea of buying a PS3 to play games on it in the first place....

Yeah ya did pay $400 for the idea of getting a Blu-Ray Player and game system in one.

Plus doesn't online retailers always charge a re-stocking fee?

I'd say if you got it for those purposes. Then keep it. Even if a slim PS3 was accounced at E3. Would it really be any different than the fatty PS3? So you might as well hold on to it till E3 is over, then if you don't want it. Sell it used on Craigslist or at a place like PawnX first.

I do have a friend who use to do that crap, spend a bunch of dough of stuff then turn around and return it. Heck one time he put a bunch of crap on layaway. I mean a bunch of dvds and such on layaway then he cancels it and the people have to re-stock all that crap. Then shortly after layaway at Wal-Mart went away..... Anyways that would get annoying. I was like dude didn't you buy this and he would be like no I returned it. It was a constant thing.

So yeah.....I have to agree..... If you wanted a game system that plays Blu-Rays ya got one. If you don't like it, sell it. But don't ruin it for the rest dude.

 

[Matt2]

I also own both and am going to put my $0.02 in without reading any of the replies since they're all bias anyways.

Both have strengths and weaknesses, but it mostly comes down to usage.

For strictly gaming: Xbox 360 without a doubt.

Both systems have about equal performance in games and image quality. Very few games that appear on both platforms look noticeably better on either system. Now that you can install games to the 360 HD, the 360 is superior in this sense since you can install any game to the HD while some pS3 games don't install anything to the HD at all.

The 360 controller has the superior design and button layout. I can play for ten hours straight on the 360 and not know it. The PS3 controller reminds me every hour or so I need to take a break because my hands hurt.

The biggest advantage for 360: Xbox live

If you play games online religiously, the 360 and xbl is the only choice. Xbox live is so far and above he PSN that $4/month is a fuckin steal. I would pay Sony $10/month just to pretend to care about online gaming. The fact that PSN is free is nothing but a cop-out, a poor excuse for either being unable or unwilling to deliver a satisfying online experience. PS3 users just don't understand what it's like to have party system and most importantly *gasp* the ability to send voice messages in and outside of gameplay. I know, it sounds like witchcraft or some other heretic practice, but damn it's nice. XBL also has way more actual players and *gasp* most of them have mics! If I get into another ps3 game online and I am the only dousche bag with a mic, I am going flip out. A lot of it has to do with there being a lot more little kids that play on the PSN than xbox live. Mom and dad buy little johnny a ps3 because he wanted xbox, but this way they can watch bluray movies and don't have to pay for xbl. Well hell no they're not going to go out of their way to spend another $40 on a Bluetooth mic. The result? Me yelling profanity and insulting remarks to eveyone unchallenged.

For other than gaming usage: PS3 duh

If you like to pretend that your gaming console is this all in one l33t media center, don't waste your time with the xbox.

I'm glad the OP mentioned HDDVD because I still hold firm that both formats looked exactly the same. But since BD won, this is a huge advantage to PS3.

The other media center functions of the ps3 are there but extremely unremarkable.

I HATE that I can transfer files from PCs to the PS3 but not vice-versa. What a crock.

In the end, your PC is light years ahead of the PS3 as far as media center capabilities. So just get an xbox if all you do is game. Get the PS3 if you want the other stuff, but be prepared to sacrifice some enjoyment on the gaming side for it.

 

[MagicConch]

I have both and I agree both have strengths and weaknesses. I like the way the 360 renders graphics much moreso than the ps3 most of the time, w/ the exception of games like Uncharted which are phenomonal. Soundwise, ps3 easily beats 360 no contest with support for 7.1 uncompressed lpcm in-game (makes a huge difference in a home theater with a good sound system with a full range of speakers) Controllers is a toss-up for me, I wish they both offered different size controllers for different hands instead of one-size-fits-all thing.

imo the big problem with the 360 is xbox live. I don't care how great it is, I don't want to pay for something like multiplayer. i play maybe once a week max multiplayer and i'm sure i'd be sitting there thinking "i literally paid over a dollar just for the opportunity to play a shooter with this dude for 5 minutes" in my case it actually costs them sales b/c some games i would have definitely bought for the 360 (like borderlands and gta4) but I don't purely b/c i can't do any multiplayer on it so i have to order the ps3 version instead

 

[Matt2]

Originally posted by: MagicConch
I have both and I agree both have strengths and weaknesses. I like the way the 360 renders graphics much moreso than the ps3 most of the time, w/ the exception of games like Uncharted which are phenomonal. Soundwise, ps3 easily beats 360 no contest with support for 7.1 uncompressed lpcm in-game (makes a huge difference in a home theater with a good sound system with a full range of speakers) Controllers is a toss-up for me, I wish they both offered different size controllers for different hands instead of one-size-fits-all thing.

imo the big problem with the 360 is xbox live. I don't care how great it is, I don't want to pay for something like multiplayer. i play maybe once a week max multiplayer and i'm sure i'd be sitting there thinking "i literally paid over a dollar just for the opportunity to play a shooter with this dude for 5 minutes" in my case it actually costs them sales b/c some games i would have definitely bought for the 360 (like borderlands and gta4) but I don't purely b/c i can't do any multiplayer on it so i have to order the ps3 version instead

You can still play multiplayer, just have to have someone sitting next to you.

If the way PSN is now ok with you, then yes, free is always better. But if you demand more, why is free ok when you know you'll never get better.

Think about AMD AVIVO and Nvidia PureVideo. If AMD AVIVO had 1/4 the performance of PureVideo, do you think anyone would bitch about having to pay to use PureVideo?Besides, I keep in contact with a lot people I play with. Granted, that's a lot easier if you can just pop them a voice message instead of the hoops you have to jump through on the PS3.

Seriously, how many of you PS3 owners have been in the middle of a game, some buddies pop on, send you an invite. What choices are there. Finish the game then join and they probably wont wait for you, pull up the XMB and type a response with controller and still risk they wont wait plus you're not even getting anymore play time. XBL you just send a 5 second voice message or join their party and chat with them while you're still playing. Those little luxuries and the fact that I'm not forced to play Killzone 2 on servers located in Virginia from San Diego, is why PS3 will never get anything other than a singleplayer run through from me.

 

[erwos]

One of my biggest problems with PSN is that _no one_ seems to have a mic. I hate the 360's wired mic, but it sure as hell beats a wireless microphone that no one has.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: MagicConch
Soundwise, ps3 easily beats 360 no contest with support for 7.1 uncompressed lpcm in-game (makes a huge difference in a home theater with a good sound system with a full range of speakers)

So true.

 

[Schfifty Five]

I didn't know you could install games onto your PS3 HDD.

When did they start doing this?

 

[hans030390]

Originally posted by: erwos
One of my biggest problems with PSN is that _no one_ seems to have a mic. I hate the 360's wired mic, but it sure as hell beats a wireless microphone that no one has.

I have a mic!!! Go me!

I don't use it though, because no one else does. I'll use it to talk to friends when they play...but that's it.

 

[Raduque]

Going off the topic of the PS3 for a moment (Because I don't have one....)

Originally posted by: zerogear
Like the iPod Touch, I believe it requires some sort of pseudo-host support for it to work properly..

Here's a question for you, how different from the iPod Touch is the iPhone? I charge my iPhone in my truck all the time using a "12v Lighter socket USB port" charger. It has pretty much zero hardware in it except what's needed to change the 12v into the 5v a USB port puts out.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: Schfifty Five
I didn't know you could install games onto your PS3 HDD.

When did they start doing this?

Since day one. But it's not like the 360 install, which is basically copying the disc to your drive. It's more like a PC install.

Originally posted by: hans030390
I have a mic!!! Go me!

I don't use it though, because no one else does. I'll use it to talk to friends when they play...but that's it.

Exactly. I grab my mic every time I play Warhawk, but it's completely futile... no one else is rocking one. Too bad, because the PS3 headset is so damn awesome hardware-wise.

 

[Schfifty Five]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: Schfifty Five
I didn't know you could install games onto your PS3 HDD.

When did they start doing this?

Since day one. But it's not like the 360 install, which is basically copying the disc to your drive. It's more like a PC install.

Can you explain more? I put in CoD:WaW and there's no option to install.

Is this install only for some games? If so, do those specific games have an option on the XMB or is it done through the game menu or something?

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: Schfifty Five
Can you explain more? I put in CoD:WaW and there's no option to install.

Is this install only for some games? If so, do those specific games have an option on the XMB or is it done through the game menu or something?

It's only for specific games. I've seen an option to install on the dashboard for at least one of them (SOCOM, I think?), and others have it in-game (Valkyria Chronicles).

 

[zerocool84]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: MagicConch
Soundwise, ps3 easily beats 360 no contest with support for 7.1 uncompressed lpcm in-game (makes a huge difference in a home theater with a good sound system with a full range of speakers)

So true.

Which probably very few percentage of people even have the equipment to take advantage of it and never will.

 

[kapoww]

Originally posted by: Matt2
I also own both and am going to put my $0.02 in without reading any of the replies since they're all bias anyways.

For strictly gaming: Xbox 360 without a doubt.

Now that you can install games to the 360 HD, the 360 is superior in this sense since you can install any game to the HD while some pS3 games don't install anything to the HD at all.

The 360 controller has the superior design and button layout.

If you play games online religiously, the 360 and xbl is the only choice.

A lot of it has to do with there being a lot more little kids that play on the PSN than xbox live.

Haha. Bias you say? XBL is notorious for immature prepubescent children. Don't know what you're smoking. And I really doubt the majority of parents are gonna fork over 400 bucks compared to the cheap Arcade or a Wii. Blu-ray barely looks better than an upconverted DVD and is destined for failure remember?

Anyways, I could understand the OP's decision. I just bought a PS3 2 months ago and I would be pretty pissed if they released a slim next month. It sucks that I'll be out the probably-gonna-happen $100 price cut but what can you do, it's been a fun 2 months. I'd do the same thing if I were in your shoes.

 

[shingletingle]

Originally posted by: Isocene
haha. I love message boards.

I have until the 8th to return it which is after E3. So I'll wait to see if another model is announced then. If it is, I'm definitely returning. I mean, I deserve to have the newest best model no matter when I bought it. Right?

And I'm not "renting" it! If anything, I'd be just borrowing it since I won't have to pay anything when it's all said and done. It's like amazon is my neighbor!

Why do you deserve to have the "newest best model no matter when" you bought it? Should the car dealership take my 2001 car back and give me the latest model since I deserve it?

And yes, you are renting it. If you weren't, you wouldn't be using it to finish playing through a game. You either want it or you don't.

You've got to be a troll. Nobody can be this dense.

 

[ViRaLRuSh]

Originally posted by: kapoww

Anyways, I could understand the OP's decision. I just bought a PS3 2 months ago and I would be pretty pissed if they released a slim next month. It sucks that I'll be out the probably-gonna-happen $100 price cut but what can you do, it's been a fun 2 months. I'd do the same thing if I were in your shoes.

I dunno, I just got my ps3 2 weeks ago and I'm happy with it regardless. If a slim came out, I'd be more worried of it having heat issues. This current style has had a pretty stable track record as far as I know. I like how quiet it is and have not had any cooling issues like I saw with the xbox 360.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Originally posted by: erwos
One of my biggest problems with PSN is that _no one_ seems to have a mic. I hate the 360's wired mic, but it sure as hell beats a wireless microphone that no one has.

if you have a bt headset, you have a (wireless) mic.
people can afford $400 consoles but not $30 bt headsets?

and OP, stop abusing store return policies.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: BlahBlahYouToo

Originally posted by: erwos
One of my biggest problems with PSN is that _no one_ seems to have a mic. I hate the 360's wired mic, but it sure as hell beats a wireless microphone that no one has.

if you have a bt headset, you have a (wireless) mic.

You're missing my point, I think, which is that I prefer a cheap wired headset that people use over a high-quality wireless headset that no one uses. Very few PSN users have any sort of headset.

people can afford $400 consoles but not $30 bt headsets?

From my anecdotal experience on PSN, this is very much the case - or at least that they don't see the point of spending the money.

 

[TheStu]

I just wish that the PS3 had something like SystemLink. My friends and I would like to play some multiplayer over a LAN instead of dealing with the fact that 2 out of the 4 of us have pretty slow net connections. But there is no way to do that on the PS3 and it drives me nuts.