Which next-gen console to choose and why PS3, not XBox 360?
By ptasiek83 2 Comments
This question kept me awake for some time, many asked themselves the same question, some of them went with X360 and some with PS3. Both choices are equally good for those who made their picks. But this blog post isn't about others, it is about my subjective opinion, so lets get on with it.
First thing to do was to searched through the internet and see what people had to say. There were many comparisons, but very few were reliable, there was even one that gave points for the looks of consoles and the way they were marketed
.
Lets start with major flaws:
PS3:
1. The price - bothersome if you only intend to play simple and not demanding games. If you look what PS3 offers (BD especially) the price is pretty decent and manageable.
2. Few games, really, not much has changed since the release.
3. Lack of full coverage of what PS3 has to offer and It has been two years since the premiere or something like this.
X360:
1. Red Ring of Deat/Doom - overheating problem that many X360 had after release. The towel trick worked for few and caused irreversable damage to the console and loosing warranty.
2. Lack of HDMI support in versions besides Elite (correct me if I'm wrong), lack of HD in the cheapest version, HD-DVD and wireless bought separetely.
3. You have to pay to play through the internet. No idea whether internet access is free or you have to pay for it. It is only 5$ but it is the principle that matters.
Now the strong sides of both consoles:
PS3:
1. BlueRay Disc - won the media war defeating HD-DVD supported my MS. Great for watching films in HD, very durable, in other words - future and successor of DVD.
2. The functionality - you know what you've payed for. Great and easy menu, support for some DivX formats, great internet browser (checking, sending mails, posting on forums etc.), support for many 3rd party media not produced by Sony like keyboards, mice, wireless head sets, internet cameras and hard drives! Yes, as far as I know you can buy and install any 2,5 inch SATA hard disk from varius manufacturers and since they are pretty cheap it is a good idea if you don't want to overpay for PS3 with bigger HDD. BTW you don't loose the warranty when you switch HDD.
3. Reliability - while Xbox 360 was facing major problems with overheating, the malfunction rate of older Xboxes exceeded 30% while the newest one have 10% according to Wikipedia. PS3 on the other hand has the average malfunction rate in the industry - one digit percent figure.
4. Linux - yes, there is Yellow Dog Linx and it works. It works in 1080p, runs all the formats unsupported by the PS3 gaming system, lets you use PS3 as a work station. You hook up mouse and a keyboard and here you go. Some will say: Why the hell would you want to use that on your console! And I say, you don't have to. This is an option, if someone wishes to install Linux it's ok with Sony and it's ok with me. World is all about progress and development. I know I will buy myself new hard drive and install YDL soon.
X360:
1. Price - you get nice next-gen console depending on how deep is your wallet. Pricing policy here is more in depth here. If you just want to play simple games that don't need to be installed on HDD you can find Arcade or Core versions appealing.
2. Internet community - with PS3 Home still in development and maybe never released for 5$ a month Xbox Live offers much richer internet community.
3. Peripherials - the more expensive versions offer cables HDMI and headset (nothing that would make someone choose this console since headset and HDMI cable are not pricy, but MS thought about X360 users, being thoughtful is a good thing).
4. Games - there way more games on X360.
Conclusion:If 100$ or whatever the currency in your country is doesn't make much of a difference to you, then PS3 is an obvious choice. You get a great console that with time will have more games on it and since there are no interesting exclusives (unless you are Halo 3 fan) plus a BD player and powerful workstation with your console for only 100$. Great deal? Yeah. You can connect many peripherials, browse internet actively for free, install linux or just have plain fun with games. You will find something you like. And if you save enough money you can buy movies on BD to watch them in HD (you pay extra fir HD-DVD add-on for X360 and HD-DVD is dead) or buy yourself 160 GB 7200 SATA hard drive and download them from the internet.From the gamer point of view the only good exclusives on X360 IMHO are Forza and Halo 3 and since they are way better shooters on PC and driving games, well... no point in getting X360. I am not a Halo 3 fan I acknowledge it being way better than Resistance. Still GT 5 Prologue beats Forza and PGR series right to the ground. And as a hardcore gamer I recommend CoD 4for PC and GTR2/GTL/rFactor/LFS2 also for PC to all FPS and simulator fans. Good night, good fight.
First thing to do was to searched through the internet and see what people had to say. There were many comparisons, but very few were reliable, there was even one that gave points for the looks of consoles and the way they were marketed
.Lets start with major flaws:
PS3:
1. The price - bothersome if you only intend to play simple and not demanding games. If you look what PS3 offers (BD especially) the price is pretty decent and manageable.
2. Few games, really, not much has changed since the release.
3. Lack of full coverage of what PS3 has to offer and It has been two years since the premiere or something like this.
X360:
1. Red Ring of Deat/Doom - overheating problem that many X360 had after release. The towel trick worked for few and caused irreversable damage to the console and loosing warranty.
2. Lack of HDMI support in versions besides Elite (correct me if I'm wrong), lack of HD in the cheapest version, HD-DVD and wireless bought separetely.
3. You have to pay to play through the internet. No idea whether internet access is free or you have to pay for it. It is only 5$ but it is the principle that matters.
Now the strong sides of both consoles:
PS3:
1. BlueRay Disc - won the media war defeating HD-DVD supported my MS. Great for watching films in HD, very durable, in other words - future and successor of DVD.
2. The functionality - you know what you've payed for. Great and easy menu, support for some DivX formats, great internet browser (checking, sending mails, posting on forums etc.), support for many 3rd party media not produced by Sony like keyboards, mice, wireless head sets, internet cameras and hard drives! Yes, as far as I know you can buy and install any 2,5 inch SATA hard disk from varius manufacturers and since they are pretty cheap it is a good idea if you don't want to overpay for PS3 with bigger HDD. BTW you don't loose the warranty when you switch HDD.
3. Reliability - while Xbox 360 was facing major problems with overheating, the malfunction rate of older Xboxes exceeded 30% while the newest one have 10% according to Wikipedia. PS3 on the other hand has the average malfunction rate in the industry - one digit percent figure.
4. Linux - yes, there is Yellow Dog Linx and it works. It works in 1080p, runs all the formats unsupported by the PS3 gaming system, lets you use PS3 as a work station. You hook up mouse and a keyboard and here you go. Some will say: Why the hell would you want to use that on your console! And I say, you don't have to. This is an option, if someone wishes to install Linux it's ok with Sony and it's ok with me. World is all about progress and development. I know I will buy myself new hard drive and install YDL soon.
X360:
1. Price - you get nice next-gen console depending on how deep is your wallet. Pricing policy here is more in depth here. If you just want to play simple games that don't need to be installed on HDD you can find Arcade or Core versions appealing.
2. Internet community - with PS3 Home still in development and maybe never released for 5$ a month Xbox Live offers much richer internet community.
3. Peripherials - the more expensive versions offer cables HDMI and headset (nothing that would make someone choose this console since headset and HDMI cable are not pricy, but MS thought about X360 users, being thoughtful is a good thing).
4. Games - there way more games on X360.
Conclusion:If 100$ or whatever the currency in your country is doesn't make much of a difference to you, then PS3 is an obvious choice. You get a great console that with time will have more games on it and since there are no interesting exclusives (unless you are Halo 3 fan) plus a BD player and powerful workstation with your console for only 100$. Great deal? Yeah. You can connect many peripherials, browse internet actively for free, install linux or just have plain fun with games. You will find something you like. And if you save enough money you can buy movies on BD to watch them in HD (you pay extra fir HD-DVD add-on for X360 and HD-DVD is dead) or buy yourself 160 GB 7200 SATA hard drive and download them from the internet.From the gamer point of view the only good exclusives on X360 IMHO are Forza and Halo 3 and since they are way better shooters on PC and driving games, well... no point in getting X360. I am not a Halo 3 fan I acknowledge it being way better than Resistance. Still GT 5 Prologue beats Forza and PGR series right to the ground. And as a hardcore gamer I recommend CoD 4for PC and GTR2/GTL/rFactor/LFS2 also for PC to all FPS and simulator fans. Good night, good fight.
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