Whenever my PlayStation 3's fan gets louder I fear my PS3 is about to break.

It isn't because my first PlayStation 3 broke hours after I purchased it. That doesn't help, but the system comes with a one-year warranty, so if it breaks within the next 359 days, at least I won't have to pay for repairs.

It isn't because the PlayStation 3 costs twice as much as a game console should. That doesn't help either. I don't like it when my things break, especially when they are expensive, but I already paid for my PS3, and surely an out-of-warranty repair costs a whole lot less than a new PlayStation 3.

My paranoia comes out of that Sony is likely to soon not include the Emotion Engine (PlayStation 2 processor) in the North American PlayStation 3, making future PS3's less backward-compatible with PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games than the current model.

If my PlayStation 3 breaks, and Sony decides it is beyond repair and gives me a new PlayStation 3, I say goodbye to a portion of my PlayStation and PS2 library. There is also the possibility that Sony could make changes to my PS3 when it is in its hands, which could also be the end of part of my legacy game library--I cannot confirm this, but I have read stories that Sony would remove the parallel port from original PlayStation models as part of the repair process because with unauthorized peripherals in one, a PlayStation could be used to run import and bootleg discs.

Often my paranoia makes me touch my PlayStation 3 when its fan starts making more noise. The console is warm, but not hot. Apparently in no danger of breaking, at least from overheating.

It seems my paranoia is just paranoia.

It doesn't make me any less nervous whenever the fan gets louder.