Is the PS3 worth purchasing (also posted in gaming group).

[Evoman]

My gf and I discussed it briefly the other day. We thought we might want one in case we ever get an HDTV, and some of the games look fun, but it's pretty pricey.

I guess I'm looking for the opinion of people who have bought it...do you like it? How long do you think it will last? Any opinions are welcome.

[jobycom]

1. I like mine.

It's a game platform, a Blue-Ray disc player, and an Internet computer, though the browser is a pain. Still, you can watch Youtube videos, and other videos, on it. I tried to watch something on Hulu recently--it showed the advertisement before the show, but when the show started I could only get the sound with no picture. No idea if that was a fluke or a problem. The picture quality is great, obviously.

Anyway, that's my input.

[keroro gunsou]

2. in a word:

yes. granted, when they removed the backwards compatibility sony seriously cripped the number of games you can play on it, but the new generation of games sort of makes up for it. 360 may have more games out at the moment, but game companys that develop for sony have plenty in the pipe for this and next year.

recommended games:
little big planet
metal gear solid 4
grand theft auto 4
gran turismo 5 (whenever it gets released)
guitar hero/rock band

my only complaint is the ps3 lacks a truely epic rpg. the few that i've played were sort of blah to me. but i've got some pretty high standards.

[Evoman]

5. What was the point of getting rid of backwards compatability?

Big mistake...it's not like people who bought a ps3 are going to go buy a ps2. Hell, most of us have a ps2, so making the ps3 compatable makes it easier to play the games we have on one console.

Stupid sony.

[Liberal Veteran]

9. Backwards compatibility is always a double-edged sword.

One of the reason Windows has sucked really bad at times is clinging to backwards compatibility. Most of the time it turns out kludgy and buggy. It is convenient, but at the same time, it can drag down a system in unexpected ways. Sony realized this early on and their backwards compatibility with PS2 wasn't all that great and they made a decision to focus their PS3 resources on the future instead of having to put out constant fixes for PS2 games on the PS3.

Given that the architecture of the systems is so different, I can understand why they saw backwards compatibility as being more costly than it was worth.

Of course, I can understand some people being upset about that, but it wasn't as though you stick NES cartridge into a Gamecube or a Wii, so it isn't like some radical decision on their part to drop it.

[malta blue]

3. i am not a gamer at all, but my SO has the ps3 and loves it.

I have checked out some of the games myself, I like Flower and Noby Noby Boy.

[Evoman]

4. Thanks for your suggestions.

I'm going to look into getting one.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

6. my girlfriend owns every game system under the sun - except the PS3

if she doesn't want it - there must be something really wrong with it.

[Zech Marquis The 2nd]

7. well worth it

It has Wifi built in, plus the Blu Ray player is easily upgraded via firmware updates. You can also buy tv shows and movies on the playstation network!

[Liberal Veteran]

8. I love my PS3.

I also bought a cheap ($20 dollar) wireless keyboard and mouse and it makes surfing the web with it much better.

It's a fantastic home media device. I set up a media server on one my computers (TVersity or Windows Media Player) and stream movies and music through it to my tv.

The games are pretty good (GTA4 and Fallout 3 both are very nice).

Blu-Ray is great.

You can install Linux on it if you like (I did, Yellow Dog Linux has a pretty good build for PS3).

The upscaling of regular dvd is pretty decent.

You can easily install a bigger hard drive or use an external USB harddrive.

There is quite a lot that you can do with it. PS2 backward compatibility was removed, but since I have a slim model PS2 anyway, that wasn't a huge factor for me.

It is a very nice system when you take into account what it is capable of doing.

Yes, it is pricey, but if you bought a standalone blu-ray player and xbox 360, the price is pretty reasonable.

And it looks nice, fitting right in with the rest of A/V equipment in my entertainment system.