406 of 435 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars The PlayStation3 -ECO- Edition, 4 Jan 2008 This review is from: Sony Playstation 3 Console (40GB Version) (Video Game) I will explain the title shortly.
First of all, I hope you know what this console is all about. "Next-Gen" gaming. This console can produce the utmost beautiful images on an HDTV, deliver Blu-Ray-Disc playback, connect wireless to your home network and interact with media sharing software, play on-line free of charge and the list continues.
However...a console is only as good as its games are. Fortunately, the PS3 has an acceptable games library by now - built of a few great, a few decent and a few bad titles out today. You will get to experience the much talked about multi platform titles such as Assassin's Creed, COD4 and The Orange Box as well as get a taste of what is to come by the best PS3 exclusives so far; Uncharted: Drake's Fortune plus Ratchet & Clank: Tools of Destruction.
There clearly are enough games from both 1st- & 3rd-Party available and brand-bias aside, nobody should be considered sane when claiming the PS3 "has no games" nowadays.
As I mentioned "a taste of what is to come", I might as well tell you that MGS4, Haze and a few other mid-to-late-2008 PS3 exclusives are easily the most anticipated games these days.
Regarding the title of this review, I wanted to let you know that the 40GB PS3 is without a doubt the most advanced version. No, not because it lacks PS2 backwards compatibility. But because the Cell (the CPU inside every PS3) is manufactured following the 65nm standard. This decreases the power consumption to roughly 130W from 200W, thus making the PS3 40GB the most stable, quiet and cool "Next-Gen"-system on the market. Yes, I am referring to the Xbox360 RROD disaster here. You should however know that I owned an Xbox360 previously which broke thanks to mentioned fault.
Yes, the 40GB lost 2 USB ports. Yes, it lost the multi card reader. Yes, it lost the PS2 backwards compatibility. But it gained cutting edge technology inside that can make your purchase well worth it. You save money over the other models, too.
Unless you desperately need to play PS2 games on the PS3, I can wholeheartedly recommend this model over the other ones. The Hard-Disk-Drive inside the PS3 is upgradeable with any notebook (2.5") HDD without voiding the warranty.
Therefore you could build a 300GB-65nm-Cell-monster and install a Linux distribution as 2nd Operating System on it, which will allow you to use the PS3 as full blown computer.
Résumé: Choose the 40GB for PS3 games and healthy 65nm-technology. Choose the 60/80GB for PS3 games and PS2 backwards compatibility.
I hope my view on this product helped you make a decision.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews Was this review helpful to you?21 of 22 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Great system, and great blu ray player, 16 July 2008 This review is from: Sony Playstation 3 Console (40GB Version) (Video Game) There is so much noise over the PS3 vs Xbox debate on the internet, in reality both are great systems but PS3 is better for my needs and if your needs are like mine then i would recommend it too.
Before i get to the gaming aspect i will state that the Blu ray player is excellent, i decided to save for an HDTV to complement a next-gen system as it made sense. As Blu ray seems to have won the format war i was chuffed to have a free blu ray player in the system, the quality is fantastic and the movies are getting cheaper all the time, especially on amazon.
If you have an HDTV and want to take the step up to high def movies then this free blu ray player (which is crazy when you see how much they are normally) is a great reason to get it.
As a gaming system this is also really picking up speed, it does not have as many games as the X Box 360 (for obvious reasons) but the claim that there are no good games out for it is a joke. You only need to look through this site to see how highly rated many of these games are. Plus i bought the ps2 on release and it took 2-3 years for the console defining games to develop and i am sure we will see the same here. I personally am willing to wait for these 'defining games' and there is easily more than enough great games out now/coming soon to see us through.
I needed wireless access due to the position of my room in the house and the ps3 has one inbuilt. My connection has been great with a 4mb connection at all times on all days.
There is so much else on the ps3 including photo's and video storage, etc. As everyone says it is a media system. I have not really used these functions yet but it is great they are there and if you could make use then all the better.
So in conclusion if you needs are like mine, You want a reliable (hasn't given me any hassle at all) console with an ever expanding library of great games, the ability to watch blu ray films and wireless internet ability then this is a fantastic machine to buy. If you can make use of other functions then even better.
I cannot recommend this console more, the x box 360 is also a great console (when it works) don't let anyone tell you differently but i feel this console is the better choice overall, plus i believe that once game development for the PS3 is finally fully unleashed at it's potential then it will have the better games too.
