Bear in mind that the consoles are generally released in cycles, and that different cycles have different internal components which go beyond the size of the hard drive alone. As I understand it the 160/320 gb models have been revised further in that their heat sinks are slightly more effective, whilst offering more efficient running times and potentially lower temperatures in addition. If you can afford it I'd avoid the temptation to go with last season's model and buy the most up to date version. As for the extent of space required this won't be an issue unless you're saving extensive media files to the PS3 generally. For the record, I have a CECH-2103 model and I've kept the original 250GB hard drive which is made by Hitachi, although they're not my preferred brand by a long shot ......
heavenly sword, dark sector, dante's inferno and silent hill V may be worth a look depending on how pessimistic you like your games (i've listed them deliberately from positive to negative so your call entirely) ...... on a separate note killzone 2 is a must as long as you reconfigure the controls properly
There should be four screws spread across the breadth of the PS3 which are located on the underside of the overhang, immediately above the usb ports and the hard drive bay. The screws are not covered and sit in a parallel line underneath the front rim. The hard drive screw is distinguished by a removable latch which you don't need to touch, nor do you need to go anywhere near the warranty sticker. Also, don't remove the screws as two or three rotations should be enough, although you'll need a special screwdriver (which will also tell you you're in the right place) ......
Sync regularly, save regularly, and if the console starts to fade migrate to something more reliable. Bear in mind that copy protected information can only be migrated and not saved, and that (slightly off topic) if you do buy a slim remember to loosen the screws under the front lip of the console, as expansion and contraction noises are one issue that many people can avoid but don't know how .....
I think the information is gone to be honest. Generally speaking, you can physically remove a hard drive from your console and put it straight back in without any prejudice, and this is something I do quite regularly when cleaning my PS3. The problem arises as soon as you introduce your console or hard drive to separate hardware, which essentially breaks the previous union and prompts you to reformat any further hard drive inserted. Whilst you can in principle back up most of the content, or migrate the entirety of it to a new console, the point that is repeatedly overlooked is that to access the information the console and the hard drive have to work together - they are both halves of the same key in that if you change one of them the key is gone forever and reformatting is the only option. The annoying thing is that the information is still on the hard drive, you simply can't bypass the encryption technology once the physical union has been superceded. The punchline is you need to back up the data before the foreign hardware is introduced, as once introduced you've locked yourself out without a key .....
If you sync your trophies regularly via the playstation network then you shouldn't be prejudiced by a console failure, at least on this point alone. The distinction to bear in mind is that whilst the network can be used to protect your trophies, it can't be used to protect your game save information. The irony here is that you could be forced to start Killzone 2, Demon Souls, or Uncharted 2 for example from the beginning, notwithstanding that your % trophy score for all three individually may be in excess of 90%. Put succinctly, the playstation network will act as a safety blanket for your trophy details, download history and personal account information - in its present form, however, it won't save your game data. If you're looking for a simplified term of reference you need to "save and sync", and bear in mind that some gave saves are copy protected precluding a back up of any sort. The only possible workaround here is a complete data transfer from one console to another, although as this then formats the original drive you're left with a replica as opposed to a duplicate in that the information migrates and then remains housed within the second drive alone. I'll need you to rephrase the forced to buy a new console point as I'm not sure how this fits in, but if you can refrain from relying upon a wireless connection then this should prolong the life of your console considerably, as the wifi chip is one of the most overlooked factors affecting the PS3's internal temperature ......
The term "yellow light of death" or "YLOD" is used as a general catch all for a number of different hardware failures associated with the PS3, as they are all defined by the same characteristic, at least in terms of how the console responds. Whilst a defective power supply or hard drive can be the cause, the most prevalent issue is solder degradation which is caused by the recurring heating and cooling of the PS3 generally, a factor which appears to be aggravated by the mandatory adoption of lead free solder. With reference to the questions you asked specifically hard drives are essentially married to their respective consoles, and if one side cheats the marriage is annulled and you have to start again afresh, i.e don't put your hard-drive needlessly into another console as it will be reformatted, and if you put an alternative hard drive into your own PS3 you won't then be able to recognise the information from your original drive. You can however back up most of the content at any time and the only way to do a complete save is via the data transfer facility where two PS3's are connected via an ethernet cable and the information is removed from one and placed onto the other. PSN information in contrast is akin to cloud storage and can be accessed on any console subject to the correct login details being used. As a final point, I'd be surprised if your guarantee is a full 7 years as opposed to 5, although in any event the PS3 manufacturing process is being continually revised, and whilst all models are vulnerable in principle to YLOD the launch models appear to be the most suspect here, as I found out personallly - if you can, have the interior professionally cleaned and change the thermal paste at the same time.
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