I have recently acquired an xbox 360 by an amazing find on craigslist. And I have owned a ps3 for a few months, so finally I have completely reviewed both systems and all of their features and also have looked into issues on both sides. I am really aiming to be completely fair and un-biased and hope you will see this as I share my opinion on the subject. I have played both new and original games on both systems and I'm fairly certain I can "enlighten" you with facts from both the launch and present conditions of both systems. I am posting this here and on the main boards to get the biggest number of readers possible and I hope I can do justice to both sides, I use only facts.
First of all lets go back a couple years to the launch of the current gen systems. Microsoft won the race for launch, hands down, however maybe they should have waited for more research. As most of you probably know very well, the first launched 360's began "melting down" with excessive gameplay due to a poor decision in heatsink and fan choices by Microsoft. The ps3 also did not have the best launch time either, a next gen system launched with games that could never do the system justice. There was also a huge price difference between the two systems and also between the prices today and then. All the extra things the ps3 had definitely made it more appealing, however it also made it rather expensive. A 20 gig system was priced at $499 and a 60 gig at $599. And the 360's price without a hard-drive was $299 and with a 20 gig hard-drivewas $399. So out of the gate microsoft took off, leaving sony in the dust, with a hurting rep. Sony's new system had looked great on paper, having its own blu ray player, four usb ports, internal power supply, and enough computing power to put alienware to shame. But, it was not appealing to the gamer that just wanted to play. I mean, thats what game systems are for right? So at first Microsoft had managed to crush Sony, but how do these systems look today?
The ps3 went under construction again to help cut the ridiculous costs. The new lineup of systems have only 2 usb ports, no backwards compatibility to play ps2 games, and for some reason, no chrome. (As if chrome plastic is expensive) Microsoft made the right choice and went forward with the 360, releasing the Elite version with a massive 120 GB hard-drive and turning the base model into the Arcade which now came with a memory card and two games. As of now the largest ps3 system, the 80 gig, goes for $499. But a new announcement from Sony has delivered a 120 gig slim ps3 for $299, coming september first. Which is supposed to have all the features of the 80 gig in a slimmer design and lower price, we'll see how that turns out.
Now lets get under the hood of both systems and compare their hardware and features side by side. First of all, both systems are about the same size, the ps3 being maybe and inch taller. And the ps3 sports an internal power supply while the 360 has a block of plastic that powers it and looks completely out of place in my room. Both systems have an hdmi output (as of the newer models for 360, luckily I have a model purchased in January of this year), they also both have 2 usb ports on the front to connect and charge devices. They both have their own ports for audio and video that are specific to the two companies. And they both have ethernet ports to connect online. Now for where they differ, the ps3 uses a standard cable to connect to power supply to power, available at any computer or sometimes electronics stores. The 360 uses the same type of cable but with a strange end to plug into the 360, making it harder to replace, and more expensive. The ps3 also has an optical port which is standard on all systems.
Now for the accessories (controllers included). Both systems have their own types of controllers, the both do the same basic functions, but have their own layout. The ps3 controller, the six-axis dualshock 3, which has motion control, dual rumbles, and a rechargeable battery. However it lacks one major thing on any FPS fans mind, triggers. Sony took a chunk out of the back of the controllers and set L2 and R2 to suppress like a trigger, but it's not the same. The 360 controller has real triggers, perfectly positioned on the back. But, the 360 controller also has a "D-Pad" that is actually another stick with one solid piece dropped on top, making it very inaccurate and fairly annoying. The controllers are available in a corded or cordless design, corded being so last gen and cordless requiring AA batteries standard. Or you can purchase a recharger pack for $20. The mics also differ greatly, the official sony mic, while a little bit uncomfortable at times is smaller than the corded 360 mic and cheaper than the cordless 360 mic, sony's mic is $40, microsoft's is $20 wired and $60 wireless. The ps3 mic also uses blu tooth, which is built into every ps3 removing the need for an open usb port.
Enough of the outside, what about what really matters, the hardware that runs the advanced machines behind the scenes. Probably the biggest difference between both systems is the drives used. Sony uses a Blu Ray player that receives larger amounts of information faster than standard DVD with its wider blue laser. The Blu Ray disc also holds up to 50 gigs of information. This allows Blu Ray players to play in full 1080p seamlessly. The 360 uses a DVD drive with an upscaler to play in HD (also up to 1080p). The ps3 also upscales all video that is played if the settings are set, and from what I've seen I have to say the ps3 has a way better video quality than the 360, every video I've downloaded for the xbox marketplace looks like crap. And don't even say it's my tv, I'm running a 23" Acer monitor with an hdmi input, it can get a way higher resolution than any hdtv, if either system supported it. A 1080p video on a ps3 with an hdtv is the best picture I've ever seen in my life, the only thing that could compare is a highly tuned PC with one nasty video card. Another major difference is how either system stores data. Yes they both use hard-drives, however the ps3 uses standard laptop hard-drives which are cheap and easy to find, the 360 uses a specific hard-drive only available from microsoft. The ps3 can be easily upgraded above the highest standard hard-drive space, mine is a 160 gig Western Digital Blue Caviar sata hard-drive, $80. Expensive for 160 gig, I know, but I supported my local PC shop.
The next topic is the battle of the networks. Ask anybody, its doesn't matter if they are a hardcore or casual gamer, Xbox live is absolutely far better than sony's psn. The PSN is absolute crap and I hate it, especially for COD 4. But you get what you pay for, xbox live is $50 a year for gold and never fails, the psn is free and you will spend more time trying to sign back in then actually playing. However the ps3 can connect to the internet using built-in wifi for wireless internet. To do this with a 360 would cost you $100 for an adapter. Both systems have excellent stores for downloading content like movies, shows, add ons and things like that.
The next thing on the list is the dashboard vs. the xmb (cross media bar) and all of the features included. Both systems allow more than one account to use the same systems with different info and saves, they both have audio, video, and network settings. They both use media servers when available (usually windows media player). Now the differences, the xmb has an internet browser like any pc (or mac) that allows you to surf the web and post things like this. The dashboard has a newly added avatar that is customizable to your liking. With downloadable clothing and accessories, I rock the Halo "Stuck" tee, purchased with some left over MS points. My biggest issue between the two systems is the ability to play my music in-game. The 360 does this quite simply, plug in an iPod and go to town, on any game. The ps3 has very few games that support this but we may see an update, hopefully soon, that will allow this on any game. The hardware is there, just not the software.
On a final note, I ran into an article the other day, don't know how, but it had the failure rates of the ps3 and 360 systems so far. As you all know, the 360's red ring of death lurks in the mind of every owner. The numbers are quite astonishing, the 360 has a 54% failure rate, while the ps3 has a 10% failure rate. We've all seen this issue, it's the truth, so don't complain about this little tid bit of info to me, take it up with bill gates.
So for my final conclusion, weighing all the facts, I have to go with the ps3, but this is just my opinion, everyone is different, the choice is yours not mine. I just think the ps3 is more reliable, has better video quality, and has better features than 360. They are both great systems, but the ps3, in my mind, is currently in the lead. I was completely fair, please don't buy one or the other because of me, find out for yourself. I'm not trying to sway anyone in either direction. I play both systems on a daily basis and love them. My psn is "B-SNiZ" and my gamertag is "Its B SNiZ" add me, I'm currently playing cod 4 and 5 on ps3 (also have battlefield 1943, burnout paradise, and killzone 2 for ps3). And I'm playing Halo 3, forza 2, fable 2, and soon cod 4 on 360. Thank you for your time. Good night.
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