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Size Matters?

Author	Hugo Jobling
Published	22nd Aug 2009

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I hate the debates about which games console of the current generation is better. Part of that hate is because in this fight the only way to ‘win' is not to take part and part because 95 per cent (perhaps more) of those debating don't actually know what they're talking about.

As such, while it seems opportune to talk about the PlayStation 3 Slim in the wake of its launch, I'm going to try my best to keep the discussion unbiased in the hope you can all do the same.

Before I get onto the console itself, here's a little context. Sony is in a difficult position currently. You should all be aware by now how damaging the economic climate has proved for Sony - to the tune of billions - and continuing to haemorrhage money isn't a sound business plan. Lest we forget, Sony's losses due to the PS3 have been substantial.

As such, while the PlayStation 3 Slim is being presented as a new, cheaper option for consumers it's not hard to see that it has some advantages for Sony, too. For a start, being smaller makes it cheaper for Sony in a number of ways, not least of which are construction and shipping costs (smaller consoles mean more fit in each shipping container).

The downside of that is that the PS3 Slim looks cheaper. It may have had its detractors, but I thought the original PS3 looked pretty swish, and you can't deny it stands out, whereas this new model is decidedly plain. Other, simple differences that betray the cost-saving measures Sony has made; physical, rather than touch-sensitive power and eject buttons, charging extra for a vertical stand, even the small PlayStation logo above the drive bay no longer rotates to match whichever way the console is orientated.

However, I think Sony is acutely aware that the market it has to target doesn't care. If you haven't purchased a PlayStation 3 by now there's few reasons why you would consider doing so and the cost of buying one is the primary detractor.

The "but it's so much more than just a games console" argument has been eroded somewhat since the PS3's launch. The PS3 - and by extension the PS3 Slim - may still be a fantastic and relatively cheap Blu-ray player, but there are plenty of those around now anyway. Yes, it will connect to a PC or NAS box and stream your music and DivX video but so will a WD TV or Popcorn hour A110 - and those will play MKVs, too.

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Ripsnorter said on 25th August 2009

@drdark - thank you so much for that. A Wii it is! The design and colour satisfies my girlfriend. I'll get her Wii Sports to keep her happy and little will she suspect *MWAH-HAH-HA... more

drdark said on 25th August 2009

@Ripsnorter:
This is quite old... but serves as eye candy anyway ;)
http://www.gearfuse.com/white-ps3-going-for-1500-on-ebay/

P.S. Wii Sports comes wi... more

Max Power said on 26th August 2009

Just reading through the comments. Where's the Picard facepalm pic when you need it...

Can't believe I got called a fanboy though, it's a bit unfair. I was talking about ebay style offers for XBL Gold, 13 months for like £25-30 is what I pay, anyone who has the auto resubscribe on clearly wants to be mugged!

@drdark, of your listed Wii games it would be hard to recommend anything other than Madworld, No More Heroes and Resi 4. Of the upcoming games, I agree with most of that list, but I think Dead Space is on rails which takes a lot of the fun out of Dead Space (which is really good on PS3 and 360), FFCC shouldn't really be called FF, it's frankly an insult to the great name. Little King Story is good, and I would also recommend Super Mario Galaxy and Mario Kart Wii. Both are really fun titles, and MK has an awesome split screen mode, though online is completely busted...

As far as PS3 vs 360. At £249 (or as I mentioned earlier £225) it makes an extremely strong case. No one can deny it's media prowess and the game library is extensive, but the 360 has some good exclusives coming up which any gamer would be a fool to miss out on. Mass Effect 2, Alan Wake and Splinter Cell look really good, I fully expect ME2 and SC to come out on PS3 though as they are from third parties. In the same way the article mentions PS3 losing PS exclusive franchises, the Xbox has lost Bioshock, Ninja Gaiden and others I can't think of right now.

Both make a good case to be bought on the gaming front because, well, the PS3 has got GT5 and GoW3 due before March 2010, add in Uncharted 2 and Heavy Rain and you really do have a case for the PS3 having the strongest line up of games of all three consoles. Where the PS3 shines is with Blu-ray. It's a massive feather in the cap. For the PS3 to be similarly priced finally as the 360 and have a next gen format for movies and games (thought the actual benefits of the latter are questionable because of the low bandwidth). It's the movies that matter, Blu-rays are getting cheaper, and I expect a massive push by the studios to force some sort of acceptance in PAL, as it's going really well in the States and Japan already and they can't have the PAL market fall too far behind.

Finally, on the internet side of things, PSN remains free for it's core functions i.e. gaming. Universal cross game chat and invites should be out by the end of the year, it becomes a mandatory TRC in December and the universal text chat service laid the backbone for it. There are still extra touches on XBL that PSN needs to catch up with, but having an internet browser is nice, it's err, well functional would be a good description, but you can get YouTube, Flickr, Twitter, Facebook and Gmail/Hotmail/Yahoo on it. The option is there for those who want it and you aren't forced to use it. The best thing about PSN, IMO of course, other than it being free is full sized games and midi games like WarHawk, Burnout Paradise or SOCOM: Confrontation. No other console offers this type of service, XBLA offer small games, the biggest being Portal, and VC/WiiWare is pretty limited. I suppose Games on Demand is coming to XBL, but the pricing is very poor from what I have read, hopefully MS sort it out.

Anyway, I still resent being called a fanboy, I hope this post doesn't confirm that prognosis, I would like to think I am quite level headed...

Just reading through the comments. Where's the Picard facepalm pic when you need it...

Can't believe I got called a fanboy though, it's a bit unfair. I was talking a... more

ravmania said on 1st September 2009

Why do people keep going on about the 360 being more expensive once you spec it the same level as the PS3? I got my Pro for £180 with Fallout 3, Gears 2 and Pro Evo 08 when t... more

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