Any "gamers" out there? I'm utterly confused...

[klayfish]

OK, thought maybe I'd come here to see if any of you car guys are also into video games. Long and short of it...I'm video game stupid. Last system I owned was in the late 80's, so it tells you what I know.

Does anyone know the dumbed down version of what the difference between Xbox and PS3 is? Do they function differently? I'm looking for a system that I can play NASCAR '08 or other racing games on, and also that may have games appropriate for my 4 year old son. But I have no clue what the differences between the systems are. And if I'm right, there are several versions of the same system, such as Xbox 360 or Elite, etc...

I'm so confused...almost like the first time I looked at all the Cobra replicas out there. Anyone out there familiar with these things??

Steve

[Joe Wicked]

The PS3 is the 3rd playstation in the line. (3rd gen). It is a bluray player as well. All the games are in HD on Bluray discs. The graphics output is up to 1080p if you use an HDMI cable to the TV. The different versions include how big the hard drive is. The largest also supports the DVD games from the PS2.

XBox 360 is the latest version of the XBox. The games are all HD DVD based. I do not know the graphics output, but it is also HD.

I have the PS3 as I had a PS2 and have a lot of games for it. I play a lot of racing games as well and I love the Playstation line for them. I can't really comment on the XBox, as I have never had one and I have never really played one.

[4RE KLR]

Our children have a Game Cube. It is somewhat outdated and the games are getting harder and harder to find. They have a game called "Animal Crossing" and it is a lot of fun for the little ones. There are many good games but getting harder to find. Your son will love the "Animal Crossing" game.

When the Wii first came out I was skeptical as you are now of the unknowns. I did some research and talked to many of the kids selling these things at various stores. What sealed the purchase for us is it will play all of the Game Cube games as well as the Wii games. We bought it for them for Christmas.

They can still play every single game they had for the Game Cube and the Wii is the game player to have by most accounts today. If you want one go to a store like Toys R Us, and ask if they have one, they won't. (they are so popular right now) Ask them when they will be getting some in. They will tell you when the next release is made. be there an hour or so before the release or you will not get one! We got ours at Christmas when NO ONE was finding them. We did not know anyone at the store we just asked the right questions.

As for the games for the Wii, it has almost everything you could ever want and new ones are coming out every day. It will also not be outdated tomorrow when the kids grow older.

Heck, even my wife and I enjoy the Wii sometimes. The games are very interactive and you will not be sitting on the couch, you have to get up and move for it to work right. The boxing game will flat wear your arse smooth out.

[J. T. Toad]

The Wii is a game cube with a new interface, no updated graphics, but a kick to play. Beware of non-impact stress injuries. (graphics are the real drawback)

The XBOX and PS3 are OS based systems, both blue tooth compatible.

Playability is similar, although I think sony has better play/viewing, kids today will differ. I think Sony has just been in it systems longer.

it has become a VHS vs. Beta, Ford vs. Chevy, Mac vs. IBM, Blu-RAY vs. HD-DVD, Plasma vs. LCD type of war.

Both systems are designed, not solely for gameplay, but for speculation on media delivery.

They both will provide content on and from the internet. Right now Sony doesn't charge for somethings the Xbox does. But that could change now that Sony/Disney won the Blu-ray war.

The kicker for the PS3 is the absolute 1080P resolution with update able software and as a Blu-Ray player. Many older (not THAT old) Blu-ray players are already unable to process the latest Blu-ray versions. The PS3 just download and installs a new OS as available. The last update upscales normal DVD's to give an incredible picture.

oh yeah, you'll probably want a Plasma now...(LCD) no, plasma (LCD!!!!)
true 1080P is a must. You won't regret that regardless of system.

PlayStation 3 vs. Xbox 360: Tech Head-to-Head - GameSpot Tech - Computers, Video Cards, Monitors, Laptops, Cell Phones, Home Theater and more

In case you need a poll vote.... PS3.

[J. T. Toad]

for fun,

Youtube a search on PS3 vs. Xbox

read the comments on clips... it's a war out there.

[mrmustang]

Steve,

Feel free to call the house after 7pm tonight and I'll let you talk to Josh. he will be the one who can answer your questions. besides, it will give you an excuse to come see the new FPSB sitting in the garage .

Bill S.


Bill S.

[klayfish]

Thanks for the detailed response gang, I appreciate it. I got the impression that it is a Chevy vs. Ford type battle, but I don't know anything about either one, so I couldn't make an educated decision.

The TV system is already taken care of. We had been living with an old TV for a long time (it was 10 years old), so when we finally decided to upgrade we went big. We have a 65" 1080p HD from Mitsubishi.

So from what you're saying, the Xbox games could go the way of beta videos since the BluRay won out? I see there are different versions of PS3, some are 40gig, some 60. Would the 40 become obsolete quicker? Can it be upgraded?

I'm thinking that since I haven't had a video game system in years, and my only exposure to games has been the handful of times I've gone to Dave and Busters, that either one would blow my mind. But I want to get the one that will not be worthless or useless in 2 months, and/or has better usage for my family (i.e. more games for little kids, and play DVDs).

I'm really not a computer junkie, I only know how to do the things I need to, mostly MS Word, Excel, etc....




Bill,
I probably don't even want to know, do I?? You should bring it to the shop as a marketing tool.

Steve

[J. T. Toad]

Originally Posted by klayfish

So from what you're saying, the Xbox games could go the way of beta videos since the BluRay won out? I see there are different versions of PS3, some are 40gig, some 60. Would the 40 become obsolete quicker? Can it be upgraded?

I'm really not a computer junkie, I only know how to do the things I need to, mostly MS Word, Excel, etc....

Steve

Isn't Bigger always better?

no system is THAT complicated, especially if you can use the f(x) function in Excel.

[Joe Wicked]

The 40 vs 60 vs 80 GB is mainly just the Hard Drive size, but the smaller Hard drives do not come with the software to play DVDs. This means you cannot play PS2 games and watch DVD movies. You can still listen to CDs on it and play PS1 games. I got the 80 GB because it includes the DVD software. I have a lot of PS2 games. After I got the PS3, I got rid of the PS2.

[1ntCobra]

Originally Posted by mrmustang

Steve,

Feel free to call the house after 7pm tonight and I'll let you talk to Josh. he will be the one who can answer your questions. besides, it will give you an excuse to come see the new FPSB sitting in the garage .

Bill S.


Bill S.

What's an FPSB? I thought you just bought 2 miatas.

[1ntCobra]

Steve,

What kind of TV do you have? PS3 and XBox 360 work best on HD TVs. I don't know much about the XBox 360, but I have a PS3. With the PS3, the best TV for game playing and movie watching is a 1080p, the 2nd choice would be 720p. I have a 1080i TV which is fine for watching movies, but not so good for many games. If the game's maximum resolution is 1080p, it is fine, but many games have a maximum resolution of 720p which the PS3 downscales to 480p on 1080i sets.

For people who do NOT have HD TVs, the Wii is popular.

Something else to keep in mind with the PS3 is that it really is a computer with a blu-ray player, hard drive, usb ports, blue tooth accessories, wireless (or wired if you prefer) internet connectivity. As someone mentioned, you might find yourself upgrading the OS occasionally because some new game or movie you bought needs a newer version of the OS. Also it does not like it if your kids eject a game while it is playing. I've had to erase the saved game data from the hard drive to fix games when the kids do that. It is also possible to trash your system if you power it off during an OS upgrade. Apparently you can use an external hard drive to backup your system in case you mess it up too bad. I don't do that.

By the way, my 5 year old son loves the Lego Star Wars Game. He would play it for hours every day if we would let him. I've heard there is a new Lego Indiana Jones game that my son wants now too...

Unfortunately, it seems my kids did something to our PS3 earlier this week and can only play the games that were downloaded from the internet. They probably were messing with the setup menus and disabled the blu-ray player somehow. If you love messing with PCs, you'll probably love something like a PS3.

[1ntCobra]

I would not worry about the XBox 360 going away. The HD DVD drive was an optional accessory for playing movies. The games come on DVD on that system.