Sony PlayStation 3 Slim Console (160 GB Model)

Bought this ps3 (160 gb) a week ago, I should have bought one sooner!! It took me a long time to choose between this and an xbox 360, I have no regrets! There is much more to a ps3 than just a brilliant games machine and blue ray player - you can watch films through love film , watch music vids 4 free, iplayer, 4od, itv od, surf the web and so much more!!
To summarise if you are umming and arrring just buy one!!

Having had a Bluray player that I wasn't entirely happy with and a PS2 that is almost an antique, I decided to resolve both issues in one go.

The PS3 is very easy to setup. Plug it in, switch on and you are taken through the initial setup. I had bought a separate charging dock and the bluray controller as well so I put the hand controller on charge the moment the console arrived. However the controller seemed to work after only a very short charge (1/2 hour) so there is really no need to use the short USB cable supplied.

So I was playing my first PS3 game very quickly. Call of Duty 4 - Modern Warfare as it happens. The graphics are another world from a PS2. I am waiting for Gran Turismo 5 to arrive now.

As far as its function as a bluray/DVD player - its seems equally excellent. One thing that users should be aware of is that the upscaling facility is issued switched off. So you need to go in and set this.

I have not yet been on-line with it, but I'm sure it'll perform well in that respect.

Update: 2nd Jan 2011
After getting a router I am now using the PS3 for internet access on my TV.
This is superb and the chances of me ever leaving the house are very remote!
Other features worthy of mention include access to BBCi player and of course some good free game demos on the Playstation network.

Overall 9/10 - time will give it 10/10!

I have waited over a year to write this review as i wanted to test out the new PS3 Slim and compare it to the new xbox 360 slim for anyone who is trying to choose which console to go with. At this point i will say i have the 120gb ps3 slim but as they don't sell it anymore i'm writing the review for this one, simply as the only thing that has changed is the hard drive capacity by an extra 40gb, I also own the new xbox 360 250gb slim. For anyone wondering at the outset 160gb will be more that enough storage for 95% of people but Sony have made the console so YOU can upgrade the hard drive in the future and it won't void warranty! I'll break the review down into sections and compare each console but i will try to concentrate on the PS3 slim.

Before i begin i will state that I'm not a XBOX or Play Station fan boy, i call it down the line and try to compare both consoles fairly.

Build Quality

The PS3 slim comes well packaged and once you unbox and unpack the console you instantly realize how well made it it, you also realize how much smaller it is to the original FAT PS3. It comes in matt black with a simple "PS3" engraved in the top. On the front of the console there is a Blu-ray slot loading drive, 2 USB ports, Power button and eject button (note that the touch sensitive buttons as found on the FAT PS3 have gone)...The Xbox 360 is just as well packaged, almost "Apple" like and equally when you remove it from its packaging you notice a step up in terms of quality and design compared with the old console, the new xbox 360 250GB slim is in high gloss black similar to the original PS3 (new 4GB XBOX version is Matt black), both new consoles look good although its clear a bigger effort has been placed regarding design in the Xbox and maybe slightly more effort in terms of quality in the PS3.

In the Box

With the PS3 you get a "black Bluetooth dual-shock 3 sixaxis controller", av cable, controller recharge cable, power cable and a load of warranty and instruction documents. You basically get the same with the Xbox except you get a black Xbox controller that uses wireless and requires 2AA batteries (supplied), basic one ear wired headset, and the external power brick (internal on the PS3 Note. I still don't know why either console does not include a HDMI cable.

Controllers

The PS3 controller feels and looks very much like the PS2 controller but with more tech like Bluetooth and dual-shock 3, Its well made but feels light, (too light) the built in battery lasts ages and can be recharged from your console but the console needs to be left on. The 360 controller has better weight and the position of the left thumb stick may or may not seem odd at first but for fps games it is located in a better position, virtually everyone who has both consoles will agree (i hope)!! The 360 controller as i stated earlier uses batteries (be warned the controller eats batteries for breakfast so have plenty on hand, unless you buy a rechargeable battery pack. Both controllers have vibration feedback and both react instantly when you press buttons although i don't like the L2 and R2 triggers on the PS3 controller simply as they're not proper triggers and you find your fingers sliding off the buttons too easily. I'm guessing first person shooter fans will prefer the Xbox controller

Games

Theres now a large array of different games available on the PS3 but because the PS3 didn't come out for a full year after the Xbox did, Microsoft managed to get all the big games to sign "Xbox only deals" for example gears of war is only on the Xbox. Although things are getting better on the PS3 with games like Killzone 3, games wise overall it STILL lacks killer games that are going to suck people in! 1 downer is the the PS3 slim is NOT backward compatible with old PS2 games although i suppose most people wont really care, for your information the Xbox 360 is backward compatible with MOST original Xbox games. IF YOU COMPARE BOTH GAMING LINE UPS THEY'RE 95% THE SAME....BUT......ITS THAT 5% THAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE, I'D HAVE TO EDGE THIS ONE TOWARDS THE XBOX AS IT DOES HAVE MORE KILLER GAMES ALTHOUGH THERE'S NOT AS MUCH IN IT AS YOU MAY THINK!!!

Online services

Online is free on the PS3 compared to RRP £39.99 a year for the Xbox (£35 pre-paid card from amazon at time of writing this). I like the idea that Online is free BUT you can understand why its free after playing it, its no where near as stable as the Xbox is online and is always being "downed" for maintenance which can take hours and in some cases days , the worst thing i've ever had to do on my xbox is download a system or game update when i sign into xbox live which takes a few minutes at the most, i can't remember the last time the Xbox server was "down" certainly not in the last two years!!

Probably the ONE MAJOR problem i see with the PS3 online over anything else is the lack of a CHAT system which it needs badly. What do you mean i hear you ask? well you can't chat to friends or non-friends that play different games, Only if your friends are in the same lobby in the same game...meaning that chatting to friends is very restrictive (on medal of honor for example you can't speak to your friends between each match, only while your shooting)!! The xbox system while is subscription based is far superior in EVERY WAY when it comes to communication and services available, you can speak to anyone on xbox live even if their not on your friends list, you can just send them an invite to private/ party chat....you can also talk to people that are playing different games!!! Which for anyone that knows will agree what a huge benefit Xbox live is for talking with people (in a nutshell Microsoft listened to gamers when designing xbox live....i hope Sony start to do the same)

Cheaters and hackers

Firstly i hate people who hack and cheat on games consoles, it spoils it for everyone else. Thats why i like the PS3 as games specifically made for the ps3 are hack proof, no on can use rapid pads or aim bots in game-play (this does not apply to games available on both consoles like MW2 in which i have seen people hack on the PS3) For those of you that don't know i'll explain. The Xbox has been plagued for years now and still continues to be by people who cheat on online games for example theres a gun in modern warfare 2 called the "FAL" which is a single round weapon (meaning it fires 1 bullet each time you pull the trigger, to fire again you need to re-press the trigger) on the 360 you frequently meet players that have hacked it so it rapid fires bullets like a mini gun! So on this one the PS3 is ahead BUT for those games like Medal of Honor and MW2 which are playable on both consoles be aware you will find cheaters!!

Although i was surprised when i learnt from a game tester that some countries like USA and Canada have time advantages over European players of about a second, meaning that it can sometimes look like a player was too fast at spotting you and shooting you (you naturally think they were hacking) when in actual fact they have a natural time advantage which is all to do with the server connections... I've spotted this on BOTH consoles and think the time has come for European only Servers??

Graphics and game play

Its widely accepted that the PS3 is more capable than the Xbox is BUT game developers have not been able to unlock its full potential up until now! Meaning slowly but surely we are starting to see games for the PS3 that do surpass the Xbox in terms of Graphics like "God of war" and "Killzone 3" for example. At the moment though on the whole there's virtually nothing in it and game-play wise they are both the same certainly from what i have seen, maybe the only difference is in the shade detail. e.g. a wall in the PS3 version of MW2 may appear darker than in the Xbox version

Media and Entertainment

Ok this is where the PS3 does show its colours, It has a blu-ray slot loading drive so you can watch blu-ray movies, also all games are on blu-ray discs meaning that PS3 specific games can be made larger with more graphical coding. The Xbox features a standard tray loading dvd drive. Unlike the Xbox the PS3 slim also has the ability to browse the internet!

Other things i want to raise

Each game on the Xbox 360 and PS3 have so many achievements, on the Xbox they normally add up to 1000g (GAMERPOINTS) and on the PS3 its trophies (bronze, silver, gold and platinum).
While both are running i would say the PS3 slim has the edge being slightly quieter that the Xbox 360 slim, although the new Xbox is significantly quieter than its predecessor, also note that the 360's external power brick now houses a fan which is audible so hide it in a well ventilated place that cant be seem, if you get my drift! They both have built in wireless 802.11n which is the latest although i would recommend you use a wired connection if you can.

Ok ive gone on for long enough so time for a quick round up

The PS3 is a tempting buy especially since they dropped the price to make it more affordable to the masses BUT i have to be honest compared to the Xbox is falls short on many fronts especially when it comes to online, which after all is what most people buy it for! Its well made and there's lots of good quality games for the whole family to play.

VERDICT:

If your after a entertainment console that does many things like Browse the Internet, play Blu-ray movies and also play games then get the PS3, Its well made and comes in either 160GB or 320GB versions (160GB would be enough for most people). Read more ›