I am looking at buying my first game system in many many years. I really have not followed them so know nothing about them. Wondering what you all would suggest, pros vs. cons of the two.
What do you want to do with the system? Play games? Watch movies? Listen to a music library? Do you have PS2 games that you may want to play in the future? Do you have a HiDef display that will support either console?
I have both each one does something the other doesn't. The 360 has a lot more games to choose from. The PS3 graphics are stunning not to mention the ability to play blu ray discs.
Only the PS3 has HDMI. It allows 1080p and Dolby Digital audio right out of the box. On a 360 you can obtain a 1080P signal with component cables. However, you will need a optical cable if you want Dolby Digital sound.
If you want to play games online, you'll have to get a "gold" account on xbox which is about $50/yr. I keep a gold account to allow streaming from netfix which isn't available on PS3. On the PS3 you don't have to pay to play online.
The Gold Membership can be had for $30/year if you know where to find the deals. AND, the online experience IMHO on 360 is MUCH better than PS3. But I haven't played online in several updates on my PS3 so it's been awhile.
Oh, and the PS3 is mostly backwards compatible with PS2 games, depending on the model. 60gb (hard to get or you pay premium on ebay for) had hardware (basically a PS2 inside the PS3) to play about 95% of PS2 games, the new models all use software emulation or some crap to run the games and not all are compatible.
I say just get them both, but that's just because I did, haha. The PS3 though is a much stronger machine processing wise...
I also own both systems. i like them both, but i think graphics are better on PS3. All my new games are bought for PS3. I only use XBOX for Halo and Netflix. Plus i know Xbox has fixed there RROD problem, but mine was in the shop for it 2 times because of it!
Since you said you want one for DVD's then i would go with PS3 because of Blu-ray!
BTW Wilson, i think the PS3 is just as good now as the Xbox in online play. I have played Call of Duty on both systems and have had ZERO lag out of PS3, and its free to play online! Matter of fact, i played Tiger Woods 10 online last night with no problems at all.
I just am partial to the 360's user interface is all. Seems more user friendly and geared for ease.
Anyways, like I said Ian...Haven't played online but twice with the PS3, I really bought it because it was cheaper than getting a Bluray player at the time ($199)...You know I know how to find deals..hehe
No brainer...PS3. I have the PS3 and love it. The graphics are far better in my opinion. I can't confirm this but have been told that XBOX users must pay for internet access to get online and pay on top of what they are paying for the local provider. PS3, if you have it in the house, you get online free with the PS3. Nothing more than a computer you can play kick ass games on with a built in BluRay DVD player.
Wow...LOTS of misinformation here. I suggest you listen to the opinion portion of what has been said here, and not the "facts". That said, having used both I choose the PS3. I choose this for a couple of reasons: types of games available fit my gaming style. video streaming works great (so does the XBOX, but it works well here too), Blu-Ray.
Yes it does not have a Blue Ray Player... but it has NETFLIX! And they stream directly to your console! We love it! XM/Sirius radio is coming very soon too.
If you enjoy multiplayer gaming, the XBOX is much better IMO. The file sharing, friends, voice chat, party features, fully customizable avatars...
On top of all this, in the near future *year or two* Project Natal will be released and you won't even need a controller. The upgrade only requires purchasing the Natal system itself, it snaps on top of your existing console *hard drive location* and you place the motion capture/scanner in an open area in your living room and go to town.
My wife works at Gamestop so I get tons of free games and a lot of late and great info on all the consoles and handhelds.
If I were to start over I'd go with the Xbox purely because they future will allow you to upgrade to Natal without the purchase of a new console. If you watched any of the E3 videos from this year, Sony's best shot at Natal was a motion sensing "stick" or wand" that you use very similar to Wii...
Granted, Natal has it's latency issues, which is why it is pushed back for now. They are trying to make the motion sensing processes better and more efficient.
Check these out...
PS3 Has the "Eye Toy"...It does track better than Natal...but they are using a specialized "controller" to achieve this. Xbox is raising the bar...much higher.
Whatever you decide to do. Best bet is to go into a good game store and actually play some of the consoles... then compare them back to back and look at the features that both offer.
Also, the current setup I have for display is 1080P through HDMI and Fiber Optic cable for the sound. All pumped into a surround sound system then out to a 52'' LCD TV.
Again, get what fits you the best for what you want to do with it. Hope this helps.
And pay close attention to the Arcade Version... You get a bunch of free arcade games and you can purchase a larger hard drive if ya want to down the road.
Those were some REALLY great links. Very objective reviews, which is a relief for me from having to wade into the fanboy wars. I WANT to want a PS3, but suspect I'll end up with 360 for cost reasons and because I already have a stand-alone Blu-Ray player. Plus, two of my roommates have 360 now too.
I wonder if by the time I move out of where I am currently living that PS3 will have completely closed the gap and then some? It's keeping my from buying games right now, specifically RockBand The Beatles. I don't mind so much about double-dipping for games, but don't relish the thought of having to buy new "instruments."
I agree with you on the articles, and I'm glad it helps. PLUS by reading both you can see the steps each has taken to improve.
I think Sony is working hard to catch up, but if you read that article he gets down into the nitty gritty of why there aren't as many games for it as of now, and how far multiplayer support has come from the Generation I system.
I think in two years Eye Toy and Natal will be battling. I think Eye Toy has it in the bag for technical accuracy for now. I do hope Natal is able to overcome the hiccups. If they can tweak it to be as good as Eye Toy's accuracy... they win. Pretty exciting time to be around for video games. I used to loathe consoles, I hate the controllers, and the fact that multiplayer functions were so limited. When on my PC I could use TeamSpeak and customize games with maps and weapons and all this cool stuff and I was using a much more accurate mouse to aim with. When I played Halo 3 on Xbox360 at my brothers house and saw he could modify his own maps, play over the internet, voice chat, email, text message, send pictures and video share files and playbacks of game play... I was sold.
Ive had an Xbox elite for awhile now and got a PS3 last year for a wedding present. I havnt touched the Xbox since. I dont have a blu ray player aside from the PS3.
Graphics are a tad better on the PS3 but the overall layout of the software is better IMO. As already stated the Xbox wins the most games race. So if you are a game nut you may choose the xbox over the PS3.
360 has Netflix, PS3 doesn't. That settled it for me. For $18/month ($9 for xbox live gold, $9 for netflix) you can replace movie channels and rentals.
If I do ever buy a PS3 it'll be purely for the Blue Ray.
I love my x-box! Need for speed Shift and dead space are awesome!!!
I love the fact that I can network my PC with the x-box and stream all my music from it. Again netflix rocks!
I would agree that the PS3 might have slightly better graphics but not near enough to tip my opinion towards getting one. I've used both, and choose the X-box as my favorite.
BTW, the 360 DOES have HDMI...I have the pro with the 60 gig hd
I have had the XBox platform for 7 years. The online play is fantastic. I believe it is the singular bright spot. Yes you have to pay for online access, but the cost is not that much for what you get.
You can do movie streaming and online game play obviously. You can also do video conferencing which is cool if you have family in other places.
I expect the next gen of XBox to have blue ray.
I am planning on adding a PS3 soon. I don't really care about the games, but want the blue ray. It isn't that much more than a base player, and I get the gaming capacity to boot.
I've never been a play station fan. I don't like the console play as much. The graphics look as good or better than the XBOX, but I don't like the game format experience. Can't really describe it.
I really only play multiplayer online games. Prefer FPS games.
Dang, my kid is going to have it MADE once he gets old enough to play. Gonna be some SWEET stuff out there by that time (he's currently 10 weeks old... I'm planning ahead!).
Before I had the PS3 and just had the 360 I bought the wifi adapter. I noticed slower download times for demos and stuff so I went back to the hard line.
With the PS3 its the same deal. Wireless is noticeably slower so I just ran the line. I cant say I noticed any problems with online gameplay though.
Modern Warfare 2 is going to rock on both systems. We all know that.