More than I asked for!

I originally bought the PS3 as a Blu-Ray player, as many people have done. Most reviews point out that the PS3 is the best player on the market, and it comes with a built in game system. I am a huge console person, as I already have a 360 and Wii. I have always been an N64/Xbox person, so this was the first playstation I have owned. I never really liked the design of the controller, since I have big hands, and wasn't a fan of the XOSquareTriangle, as weird as that seems. As far as Blu-Ray player goes, this thing is excellent. I have it hooked up to a Samsung 4665 LCD through HDMI, while optical goes to a yamaha receiver. Video is excellent, sound is excellent, the videos load quickly, and there is a lot of customization as far as A/V. The major flaw I have found, and the reason for (almost) four stars, is a lack of IR. How can this be a full fledged Blu-Ray player but no IR!! I use a harmony in every room of the house so this was unacceptable. I worked around it with the Bu-Wave fixed, though the lack of a power button is annoying on Sony's part. It seems a simple patch to make the USB port function off would be easy. This would also fix having to leave the console on the charge the controller. Since this thing is a serious game console, I decided to snag a game for it. MGS4 was the first one I got, and I was thoroughly impressed with graphics, gameplay and cinematics. Though loading between chapters was quite annoying. Not 30 seconds, but between 2 and 8 minutes. Rumble, which has come standard in every console since the N64, does not come with the PS3. It does now, and I own a DS3, but support for it is abysmal. No COD4, SCIV or LBP rumble support that I could find so far. Trophies need to be polished as well, as they should be available for pre-trophy games as well. When a game such as COD5 comes out for both consoles, I would rather buy it for the 360 because I can get the achievements. Enough with the negative, here are some more positives. Bluetooth is a great feature. I can use any bluetooth headset I want, a BT keyboard and mouse, very handy, Microsoft take note with your proprietary garbage. You can upgrade the hard drive with a non proprietary one. Very nice and keeps the price down. Looking at you, Microsoft. Though I have heard this thing sucks some power, it is whisper quiet. Okay, I am bashing the Xbox for the next few points. The brick is built in, which means I can leave a cheapo power cord and an HDMI plugged into my bedroom TV when the girlfriend kicks me out of the living room to play games. To move the xbox, I need to fish the brick out of the mess of wires, as well as set up a linksys wireless adapter, way too complicated. Overall, very impressed at this piece of machinery, Sony has impressed me very much. I will be buying the PS4, but it will have to compete with my Xbox 720 (1080?) even though we are seeing sub-$200 BR players, the PS3 is a must if you are even toying with playing games on this thing.

[Saturday, December 06, 2008]

Bought it for Blu-Ray, got my game on too...

I used to be a hardcore gamer back in the day starting with CelecoVision, NES, etc, etc. Played tons of games, and havent owned a game system in two years mainly to improve my life and do other things.

Bought this for BluRay only, and was blown away by the picture and sound! Connected this to a 40'-LCD with HDMI and to my stereo, subscribed to NetFlix and it is better than a theater (not just because my sofa isnt all sticky).

What makes THIS the BEST BluRay player is that they constantly update the firmware with improvements and will be compatible with future software needs. Some other BluRay players will also be updateable. I wont start to list all the devices I have that are updateable, but havent seen an update in two years. The PS3 actually has enough people using it that Sony patches it.

Also, some incredible games to play! I def recommend PixelJunk Monsters (PSN Store), Lego Star Wars: Complete, Devil May Cry 4, MetalGearsolid4 and Ratchet&Clank. There are others too, keep an eye on the forum for more.

[Tuesday, November 25, 2008]

Not just a gaming console!

I bought the PS3 as a Blu-ray player for my HDTV. $400 seemed to be the base price if you were getting a PS3 or virtually any other player out there. Picture quality is excellent, very easy to use. Combine with the Sony PlayStation 3 Blu-ray Disc Remote and you have a family friendly player.

Nice added features:

1. Jukebox - You can either stream music from your Windows XP/Vista machine as a media player, or transfer files to the local hard drive (I used a flash drive) and play them in a variety of ways. The PS3 even puts up 1 of 3 different screen savers while playing. In addition you can play MP4 (& now DIVX) video files and picture slideshows.

2. PS3 Store - Using my home wireless network, I am able to access the Sony Playstation Store. On the store, I can purchase and download games and game demos, AND recently purchase/download full length TV episodes and movies. Unlike my DVR with movie download functionality, I can start playing the video after only 1% is downloaded. Like that other DVR, the video is only good for 24hrs after I started watching it.

Negatives:
My biggest complaint is the games. This 40gb model does not play ANY of the PS2 games (like the now equally priced 80gb does). Of the games that are out there, only about 10 are kid oriented. My 6yo isn't really interested in playing sports games, and FPS are out of the question. Looks like a Wii is in our future.

Secondly, while I love the BlueTooth remote, it puts a crimp in using something like the Logitech Harmony remote.

[Thursday, November 06, 2008]

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