XBOX or PS3

[101A]

I need advice.

I have 3 children: Boys 14 & 8, and a Girl, 10.

Gonna get a gaming system as a community gift this X-Mas. Which one? Currently have a PS2 & a Wii.

Thanks in advance.

[IronMexican]

I have both and I like my 360 a lot more. You can watch porn with your ps3 though.

[phyzik]

Xbox360 > Ps3

[Thunder Dan]

PS3 has a blu ray- which is why I bought it

[balli]

If you want a probably soon to be discontinued, $400 blu-ray player get a ps3, if you want a video game console get a 360.

Sony's PS3 A Sinking Ship: Sales Plummet
Sony's (SNE) PS3 is dying on the shelves.

Alone among the three major videogame consoles, sales of the PS3 are down about 19% from November 2007, according to the latest stats from the NPD Group. Sony was only able to sell 378,000 PS3s this November, compared to 466,000 last year.

And the problem for Sony isn't the recession, it's the PS3. Microsoft (MSFT) put up respectable numbers with its Xbox 360, selling 836,000 units vs 777,000 in November 2007. And Nintendo's (NTDOY) Wii continues to dominate the market, more than doubling sales from 981,000 to 2.04 million.

So why is the PS3 flopping so badly?

1. It's the most expensive console on the market, $150 - $200 more than its rivals. Even if you believe the video game industry is "recession-proof" (it isn't), a tanking economy makes consumers more price-conscious.
2. The PS3's big bonus is its ability to double as a Blu-Ray player. Too bad no one seems to care about hi-def DVDs. The differences between Blu-Ray and DVD are hard to see on a TV less than 50".
3. The PS3 just doesn't have any must-have titles exclusive to the console. "LittleBigPlanet" has generated decent buzz but isn't a game-changer, and neither is Sony's new virtual world "Home."

There's really only one option left for Sony to remain in the game: deep price cuts, and not just for people with good credit. Tell yourself the PS3 has superior graphics if it makes you feel better, but a $400 console with a mediocre game library simply cannot compete against an Xbox 360 priced at $200 in this economy.

[mexicanjunior]

I'm buying my son the 360 for X-Mas...pretty much because it is reasonably priced.

[CuckingFunt]

I still like the PS3 better because its exclusive titles are some of my favorite games -- the Resistance and Ratchet franchises, as well as Little Big Planet, are console sellers for me, regardless what the above article says. There's a rumored price drop scheduled for March, though, so I don't know that I'd advise dropping $400 on one in December.

[Fpoonsie]

The article claims that "no one seems to care about hi-def DVDs" -- which is complete crap. People cream their pants about Blu Ray DVDs and the pretentiousness (which I share) when it comes to REFUSING to watch many titles UNLESS they're hi-def is spreading.

[ATRAIN]

360 for the price and games are better. Live system is easier to use and better.

[balli]

IMHO, Fuck Blu-Ray... and I own a blu-ray player. $35 dollars for a fucking movie? Where are the supposed price drops that were coming once they won out over HD-DVD? I never watch blu-ray movies and it's (the player) one of the dumbest purchases I've ever made. For a less than a third of the price for a single blu-ray disc, I can get Netflix unlimited streaming for a month, in HD. Digital downloads and streaming are the future. And I guess it's a matter of personal choice, but blu-ray's been around for a while now and based on dvd/streaming/download sales vs. blu-ray sales, it seems like most people have already made their choice. That choice isn't blu-ray.

[ATRAIN]

IMHO, Fuck Blu-Ray... and I own a blu-ray player. $35 dollars for a fucking movie? Where are the supposed price drops that were coming once they won out over HD-DVD? I never watch blu-ray movies and it's (the player) one of the dumbest purchases I've ever made. For a less than a third of the price for a single blu-ray disc, I can get Netflix unlimited streaming for a month, in HD. Digital downloads and streaming are the future. And I guess it's a matter of personal choice, but blu-ray's been around for a while now and based on dvd/streaming/download sales vs. blu-ray sales, it seems like most people have already made their choice. That choice isn't blu-ray.

Prices are going down and the key is to wait till they go on sale which there are sales every week at best buy. I love my blu ray movies and im happy with my purchase. Players was free with my tv though so :P.

[BlackSwordsMan]

buy them a ps3. I'm tired of listening to kids talk on xbox

[Thunder Dan]

I'm buying my son the 360 for X-Mas...pretty much because it is reasonably priced.

until you add on things that you might want like a wireless network card ($100) and online play

[Thunder Dan]

If you want a probably soon to be discontinued, $400 blu-ray player get a ps3, if you want a video game console get a 360.

Cnet rated the PS3's Blue Ray player as one of the top Blu Ray players on the market excluding the fact that it was also a game console. They said the processor and sound quality trump most every entry level blue ray player. They also said that Sony loses $400 everytime they sell a PS3 becuase of the quality components they put into it- can the same be said about Microsoft? Check their history and you can find that out. XBox is psychological pricing, it's $199, but if you want to play online it's $299, and if you want the things to be able to play online it's basically the same price as a PS3. They get you thinking it's cheaper, but it's really not

[TwAnKiEs]

PS3 has a blu ray- which is why I bought it

Blu-ray players cost less than the console. I am guessing Browsing too?

M.O: Xbox360 over ps3

[Fpoonsie]

IMHO, Fuck Blu-Ray... and I own a blu-ray player. $35 dollars for a fucking movie? Where are the supposed price drops that were coming once they won out over HD-DVD? I never watch blu-ray movies and it's (the player) one of the dumbest purchases I've ever made. For a less than a third of the price for a single blu-ray disc, I can get Netflix unlimited streaming for a month, in HD. Digital downloads and streaming are the future. And I guess it's a matter of personal choice, but blu-ray's been around for a while now and based on dvd/streaming/download sales vs. blu-ray sales, it seems like most people have already made their choice. That choice isn't blu-ray.

That makes sense. Admittedly, I've never tried streaming in HD. However, I work at a Blockbuster (god-willing, ONLY until I graduate) here, a lil north of Dallas, and people go APE-shit for the blu ray movies. The prices CAN be steep, but they seem to be slooooooowly but steadily going down in price. The lowest I've seen have been about 15 dollars. Not the best titles, mind you, but still in GLORIOUS HD.

ps. Although, FWIW, I get all my blu ray rentals free and purchases reduced, so I can't legitimately argue AGAINST the high prices. :toast

[Thunder Dan]

Blu-ray players cost less than the console. I am guessing Browsing too?

M.O: Xbox360 over ps3

I went into the store to buy a $199 Xbox- when I got there the guy told me that the $199 version didn't have the memory to enable online play..so I picked out a $299 version, added a wireless card for $100, and a Xbox live subscription- I was within $40 of the PS3....and I asked myself, why would I not buy a ps3 when I get a blu ray with that one plus all the junk I was buying as add-ons for Xbox came standard with Ps3...

and that was my decision making model

[Fpoonsie]

I went into the store to buy a $199 Xbox- when I got there the guy told me that the $199 version didn't have the memory to enable online play..so I picked out a $299 version, added a wireless card for $100, and a Xbox live subscription- I was withing $40 of the PS3....and I asked myself, why would I not buy a ps3 when I get a blu ray with that one?

Nicely put.

And no one's mentioned the HEADACHE of the inevitable x360 ring of death.

I've talked to SEVERAL people complaining about their 360 crappin out on them not once, but MULTIPLE times.

[TwAnKiEs]

I went into the store to buy a $199 Xbox- when I got there the guy told me that the $199 version didn't have the memory to enable online play..so I picked out a $299 version, added a wireless card for $100, and a Xbox live subscription- I was withing $40 of the PS3....and I asked myself, why would I not buy a ps3 when I get a blu ray with that one plus all the junk I was buying as add-ons for Xbox came standard with Ps3...

and that was my decision making model

Awesome. I am sticking w\my 360. add-ons aside, alot of exclusives from PS are coming over to the xbox now and anything else is cross-platform. Also, to counter the Blu-ray thing (movies aside), most games are not in 1080I\P. A lot are only 720. Nice pick for your situation, congrats on the pruchase, I think you really cannot go wrong either way. :toast

I would get both BTW if I had enough $$$ lol

[The Franchise]

Go with the Xbox 360. Your kids don't give a damn about blu-ray and the game selection is much larger.

[mexicanjunior]

until you add on things that you might want like a wireless network card ($100) and online play

If it was for me, I would agree with you but...my son won't be doing any online gaming anytime soon considering his mother doesn't even have high speed internet. By the time he will probably even want that feature, he will be old enough to buy his own damn accessories. :lol

[balli]

Cnet rated the PS3's Blue Ray player as one of the top Blu Ray players on the market excluding the fact that it was also a game console. They said the processor and sound quality trump most every entry level blue ray player. They also said that Sony loses $400 everytime they sell a PS3 becuase of the quality components they put into it- can the same be said about Microsoft?
I agree totally that from a hardware perspective ps3 is the bees knees. It's 99.9% reliable, internal wireless, rechargeable controllers out of the box. If you're into blu-ray, it's all the better. Unfortunately, Sony really screwed the pooch in terms of third party developer support and really just, games, for their gaming console. All things being equal I wish Sony's hardware was Microsoft's. Sadly, Microsoft having inferior hardware doesn't even matter to me, because they are light years ahead of Sony in terms of content and utility.



Check their history and you can find that out. XBox is psychological pricing, it's $199, but if you want to play online it's $299, and if you want the things to be able to play online it's basically the same price as a PS3. They get you thinking it's cheaper, but it's really not
That's not exactly true. All you need to play online is a $199.00 arcade model and a $19.00 memory card so you can save your gamertag. You don't have to buy an official xbox wireless adapter to play online, you can just plug it in.

And if you want wireless you don;t have to drop $100.00, you can hook it up to almost any wireless to ethernet bridge that you can get for $30.00. It's nice that Sony includes a wireless adapter in the ps3, but you don't need to spend hundreds of extra dollars if you want to play Live on 360. $220.00 and a spare ethernet cable will get you online, an extra 20 bucks.

[florige]

Nicely put.

And no one's mentioned the HEADACHE of the inevitable x360 ring of death.

I've talked to SEVERAL people complaining about their 360 crappin out on them not once, but MULTIPLE times.



I think they were the older models only. Before I sold mine and bought a PS3, mine was fine even though I used to leave it on for days at a time.

[DisAsTerBot]

Go with the Xbox 360. Your kids don't give a damn about blu-ray and the game selection is much larger.

+1

[baseline bum]

I need advice.

I have 3 children: Boys 14 & 8, and a Girl, 10.

Gonna get a gaming system as a community gift this X-Mas. Which one? Currently have a PS2 & a Wii.

Thanks in advance.

What games do your kids like? If they like Final Fanstasy and Japanese games, then PS3 is the way to go. In every other case though, XBox360 is probably the better bet.... especially if they like shooters or sports games. If a game is available on both systems, it is almost always better on the XBox360.

[GINNNNNNNNNNNNOBILI]

Cool thing not alot of people know about the ps3, you can actually download movies on your computer put them on a USB flash drive and insert the flash drive into the PS3 and play them in pretty good quality on the PS3

[baseline bum]

I agree totally that from a hardware perspective ps3 is the bees knees. It's 99.9% reliable, internal wireless, rechargeable controllers out of the box. If you're into blu-ray, it's all the better. Unfortunately, Sony really screwed the pooch in terms of third party developer support and really just, games, for their gaming console. All things being equal I wish Sony's hardware was Microsoft's. Sadly, Microsoft having inferior hardware doesn't even matter to me, because they are light years ahead of Sony in terms of content and utility.


From a hardware perspective, the PS3 is lacking because it has two memory pools which are expensive to copy between, so they can't be effectively treated as a 512MB array like the 360's memory can be.



That's not exactly true. All you need to play online is a $199.00 arcade model and a $19.00 memory card so you can save your gamertag. You don't have to buy an official xbox wireless adapter to play online, you can just plug it in.


Actually, I'm pretty sure the arcade comes with a 256MB memory card, so it's ready for XBoxLive out of box. I think you also get a free month of XBL-gold even with the arcade.

[baseline bum]

Cool thing not alot of people know about the ps3, you can actually download movies on your computer put them on a USB flash drive and insert the flash drive into the PS3 and play them in pretty good quality on the PS3

360 does it too, and upscales.

[lefty]

PS3 by a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooong shot

[Heath Ledger]

PS3 by a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooooooooooong shot

You are smoking rocks, xbox 360 online play is much more enjoyable than pse.

[CuckingFunt]

At this point, the only thing that would make the 360 even remotely tempting to me is an unexpected Kratos appearance.

[PM5K]

To each his own, but I have both and if I had to choose one I'd easily choose the 360.

[101A]

Very enlightening; thanks to all

[MiamiHeat]

XBOX 360 was my choice for this generation. I might buy a PS3 in the future if there is a game I really want to play. Haven't seen any yet. Grand Theft Auto was on 360. Actually, the 360 has a few exclusives that I wanted to play.

XBOX LIVE is also the best online experience.

Blu-Ray is irrelevant to me. The corporate suits found a slightly-better-than-what-you-have technology and are trying to get us to buy new TV's, re-buy our movie collections, new Blu-Ray players to replace DVD players, etc so you can get a slightly-better-than-what-you-already-have experience.

No thanks.

[Barbarian]

I don't know if the original poster is even in the South Texas area but I did see an HEB ad that has the XBOX 360 (20gig version) at 199.00. Only this weekend though.

[PM5K]

Slightly better?

Six times the resolution and about five times the bit rate, you're crazy if you think it's "slightly better", and I haven't even mentioned the audio....

[Dr. Gonzo]

I like my PS3 but I think the XBOX 360 is a great system. I'm not a fanboy so I say go with whatever you feel is best.

[DarkReign]

I have both. One collects dust (literally), one doesnt.

360 has a helluva lot more games. Its not even close. On that fact alone, I would recommend a 360. Just be careful what games you buy for your kids. Unfortunately, if youre not a gamer, thats going to take some research.

I recommend this website www.gamespot.com

There is a search bar at the top. Just type the game in your kid wants to play and read about it. You'll know if its age appropriate or not.

Otherwise though, my 360 just took a shit. I bought it at launch and the disc tray is scratching up my game discs now. I am too lazy to send it in (especially when theyre going to charge me $100 for repairing it...fucking Microsoft).

[2centsworth]

I have both. One collects dust (literally), one doesnt.

360 has a helluva lot more games. Its not even close. On that fact alone, I would recommend a 360. Just be careful what games you buy for your kids. Unfortunately, if youre not a gamer, thats going to take some research.

I recommend this website www.gamespot.com (http://www.gamespot.com)

There is a search bar at the top. Just type the game in your kid wants to play and read about it. You'll know if its age appropriate or not.

Otherwise though, my 360 just took a shit. I bought it at launch and the disc tray is scratching up my game discs now. I am too lazy to send it in (especially when theyre going to charge me $100 for repairing it...fucking Microsoft).

apparently microsoft knew about the scratching discs problem.

http://videogames.yahoo.com/feature/microsoft-faces-new-xbox-360-reliability-accusations/1274293

[DarkReign]

apparently microsoft knew about the scratching discs problem.

http://videogames.yahoo.com/feature/microsoft-faces-new-xbox-360-reliability-accusations/1274293

*sigh*

I know, which pisses me off even more. But that particular admission only applies to "moving the 360 from one position to the other (horizontal to vertical) while the disc is spinning".

Mine just straight scratches it no matter what. 3 week repair time and $100. Im a little pissed.

[101A]

Update:

Ordered an X-Box 360 Pro Bundle, an HDMI cable, Two Extra Controllers and HALO III.

Thanks for everyone's input.

[TwAnKiEs]

congrats 101....


They \ you would have enjoyed either one :toast

[stretch]

buy them a tomagatchi and fuck off

[Duff McCartney]

Even some tech guys are calling Blu-Ray dead. I personally don't really see what the big deal is. A movie is a movie to me.

http://tech.yahoo.com/blog/null/108657

Next-gen optical format promises to revolutionize the industry with features unavailable to previous formats... but it runs afoul of corporate infighting, high prices, and consumers uninterested in changing formats. Eventually they decide, en masse, to stick with what they already know.

Sound familiar? That's what relegated Laserdisc to an oddball obscurity back in the 1980s, and it's an uncanny description of the current situation with Blu-ray today.

ZDNet's Robin Harris is now taking the bold step of calling Blu-ray "dead" and "in a death spiral," saying that in 12 months the format "will be a videophile niche, not a mass market product." While it may be early in the game to make such a prediction, Harris has some good points in his screed. Among them: That after its gruesome, 18-month battle with HD DVD, no one has the energy to care about high-def players any more. Probably a bigger issue: That upscaled DVD players, which can be had for $50 or $60, look almost as good as content played on a Blu-ray player. Consumers just don't see the value proposition in upgrading their hardware, particularly given that players are still over $200. What's a little better picture worth? With Blu-ray pegged at a four percent market share, most people seem to be saying not that much.

I've got my own problems with Blu-ray, having been giving it a fresh shot over the last few weeks. The player I have is a real pain vs. my cheapie DVD player. Startup time is ungodly, and I'll never understand why the player can't automatically figure out to play a Blu-ray disc if there's one in the device when it starts up. Instead it goes to an aggravating "home page" after a 30-second wait, and then it's another button press and another minute-long wait before I can get to the Blu-ray disc's home screen. Fast-forward and reverse is jerky and difficult to finely control, and that's a problem because I have to use them all the time due to the player's biggest annoyance: It doesn't remember where you were in a movie if you stop in the middle. If I quit at the 1 hour mark while watching a DVD on my bargain player, it picks right back up there the next time I turn it on. I understand that different model players will have different features, but this is standard on even the cheapest DVD gear. It's unfathomable that a $300 Blu-ray player can't get the job done.

Is Blu-ray dead? When people like me who have both units sitting side by side actively prefer using DVD instead of BD whenever they can, you've definitely got some trouble ahead.

----------------------------------

I still wouldn't buy a Blu-Ray player.

[leemajors]

XBOX 360 was my choice for this generation. I might buy a PS3 in the future if there is a game I really want to play. Haven't seen any yet. Grand Theft Auto was on 360. Actually, the 360 has a few exclusives that I wanted to play.

XBOX LIVE is also the best online experience.

Blu-Ray is irrelevant to me. The corporate suits found a slightly-better-than-what-you-have technology and are trying to get us to buy new TV's, re-buy our movie collections, new Blu-Ray players to replace DVD players, etc so you can get a slightly-better-than-what-you-already-have experience.

No thanks.

if you sat down and watched a blu-ray movie, you'd know it's way more than slightly better. that being said, you can buy a blu-ray player and a 360 for the price of a playstation 3. i just rent blu-rays via netflix, will probably never actually buy one :tu

[PM5K]

if you sat down and watched a blu-ray movie, you'd know it's way more than slightly better. that being said, you can buy a blu-ray player and a 360 for the price of a playstation 3. i just rent blu-rays via netflix, will probably never actually buy one :tu

Yeah my best guess is that the people that say that must have never seen a Blu-Ray.....

[MiamiHeat]

I have. It's not that big of a deal. Colors are a bit more vibrant, detail is a bit improved, but really who cares? Nothing to get excited about. It's the same movie and both DVD and Blu-Ray have great quality.

If you really want to enhance your movie experience, buy a home theater surround sound speaker system. I have a Bose system with 4 mini-speakers installed on the roof of every corner of the living room. The sound is absolutely amazing. Scary movies become scarier, action movies become more intense..... especially the movies that take advantage of surround sound because you can hear the audio coming from different directions....

I inaugurated my Bose system with ALIENS (that's part 2)...... in the quiet scenes with breathing and all that, the sound comes from behind you.

[TwAnKiEs]

if you sat down and watched a blu-ray movie, you'd know it's way more than slightly better. that being said, you can buy a blu-ray player and a 360 for the price of a playstation 3. i just rent blu-rays via netflix, will probably never actually buy one :tu

To add to that, having the right setup helps.....

I saw an HD setup w\ a tv (full 1080P) blu-ray w\HDMI + a surround sound, and they were playing King kong...... My goodness I almost came i swear.....

[leemajors]

To add to that, having the right setup helps.....

I saw an HD setup w\ a tv (full 1080P) blu-ray w\HDMI + a surround sound, and they were playing King kong...... My goodness I almost came i swear.....

mine only does 720p/1080i but it looks damn good. 2001 on blu-ray is the best looking movie i have ever seen, and it's not even close.

[Heath Ledger]

I own a ps3 and I have only bought 3 blu ray discs, I am legend, Tropic Thunder, and The Dark Knight.

There is a huge difference especially on my 110" screen(projector) but not so much that i feel like plunking $25-$30 per movie to have it on Blu Ray.

[dickface]

blu-ray sales for The Dark Knight suggest that if anything, blu-ray is about to become a whole lot more popular.

TDK is making blu-ray a must have, the same thing The Matrix did for DVD.

[PM5K]

blu-ray sales for The Dark Knight suggest that if anything, blu-ray is about to become a whole lot more popular.

TDK is making blu-ray a must have, the same thing The Matrix did for DVD.

You hit it right on the fucking money son.

Let me give you a pat on the fucking back.

Someone forgot to tell Batman that Blu-Ray is dead....

[JoeChalupa]

I broke down and got my girls a Wii for Christmas.

[mexicanjunior]

I broke down and got my girls a Wii for Christmas.

Wii is a fun system, I'm sure they will enjoy it...

[JoeChalupa]

Wii is a fun system, I'm sure they will enjoy it...

Cool. :tu