XBox or Playstation?

pottssteve

Hiya!

Some of you chaps appear to be experienced in computer games so I hope you may be able to offer some advice.

I'm thinking of getting a console but cannot decide which one. I know virtually nothing about computer games and I rarely play them; it's primarily for my 10 year old son.

Important features for me would be:

1. Ease of set-up and use.
2. Selection of games (especially flying and driving games/non-violent stuff).
3. Price (of consoles or bundles).

I was also considering a Wii - he has played these and enjoyed it, but I don't know whether this is more aimed at younger children so he may grow out of it? Also, are driving and pilot simulators available for Wii?

Finally, I'm assuming it's worth getting as much memory as possible - 250GB or so. Is this the case?

Many thanks in advance for your advice.

Steve

upperoilcan

Its a personal choice,i prefer the XBOX,Gameplay is supposed to be better although there isnt much in it.Get as much memory as poss,Might be worth trying to find out what his friends have so that they can all link up ????

If you do decide to get the XBOX then get the Kinect with it as it does all that the Wii can do but better !!!

golfergmc

I have both but mainly play ps3 as I grew up with playstations and prefer the controller. There is not much in it in terms of game play but I would say the xbox has the edge in terms of graphics. Ps3 is free for online play but xbox has a subscription per year. As for the memory go for at least 80gb and if your going to store music/videos/pictures etc get as much as you can.

Tom Butcher

Don't get him one - unless you want him to become addicted to it.

qwerty1982

One thing might want to consider.... Xbox is cheaper BUT you have to pay a yearly Subs for EACH user... Playstation you can have as many as you like and all FREE.
I've had both and prefer my playstation, its a blueray player as well!

stuartturbo

I prefer the Ps3 over the xbox find the graphic marginally better not much in it. the PS3 has much more potential but developers don't use its full spec 360 is at max'd out but easy as it uses PC lanuage. ( there is always the fan boy answer but many clips that compare PS3 vs PC vs 360)
The PS3 set up so quick i take mine out and little takes seconds to set up to the net.
plus for me is blue ray player and free inline gaming
prefer the controller on the PS3.
As said find out what mates have got

mask of sanity

TBH there is little in it seeing as there a very few exclusive titles so I would get him the one that most of his mates have.

Paying for xbox live isn't really a downside seeing as it works better and is yet to be hacked...

stuartturbo

mask of sanity wrote:

Paying for xbox live isn't really a downside seeing as it works better and is yet to be hacked...

Has been hacked but not taken down by it's owner and not to the scale.
PS3 was down to prove a point as it was said to be unhackable where as the Xbox is relative easy if you are that why inclined. just look for in game hack so much for the xbox

Scrumple

Easy one

PS3 - free online, Bluray, better internal gubbins -

I have just added a 500gb hard drive to mine and it took 10 mins.

StorckSpeed

PS3 uses lead free solder. If you leave the PS3 continually switched on or it sits in a hot room the, the internals can get very hot. Lead free solder melts at a much lower temperature than tin/lead solder and so you can end up with shorts on the motherboard.
Just had to fix my friends one, and this is exactly what had happened. Needed a new UART chip as the short circuit had blown it and a bit of re-soldering with old style tin/lead solder. So don't leave the PS3 switched on......

pottssteve

Hi Chaps,

Thanks for the replies so far, although there seems to be no "right" or "wrong" choice.

I'm a little confused about the comments about online access. Is this needed just to play multi-player games, or is it essential? For example, can games or updates be downloaded? Is this wireless?

I'm assuming with Blu-ray that just means it will play films on disc? Will it also play standard DVDs?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Steve

Scrumple

Blu ray will play dvd and blu ray discs... Great extra if you have a full HD set up and surround system like me, that really benefits from bluray. Saves buying one as an extra box

As for online: for example, If you have Call of Duty, where most of the game is online battles, PS3 lets you play for free.

And, yes, it is wifi or hard wired on both.

You can update and download games on either for free - just online gaming itself that is free on PS3

pottssteve

Thanks, Scrumple. That makes things a bit clearer for me. Good to hear that it plays DVD also. We do have an HD television - great for the cycling coverage.

As he's only 10 he won't be getting Call of Duty! I'm looking at driving and flight simulators particularly. Have you used a steering wheel for driving? If so, are they worth the extra money? Anything to go for or avoid? Excuse my ignorance, I think the last video game I played was pac man (when it first came out!).

Cheers,
Steve

sheffsimon

pottssteve wrote:

Thanks, Scrumple. That makes things a bit clearer for me. Good to hear that it plays DVD also. We do have an HD television - great for the cycling coverage.

As he's only 10 he won't be getting Call of Duty! I'm looking at driving and flight simulators particularly. Have you used a steering wheel for driving? If so, are they worth the extra money? Anything to go for or avoid? Excuse my ignorance, I think the last video game I played was pac man (when it first came out!).

Cheers,
Steve

We bought a steering wheel for ours, I think if the kids (10yr and 12 yr old) have used it 5 times that would pushing it.

king_jeffers

I would ask him which consoles his friends have... Its no fun playing on the Ps3 if all your friends are on Xbox (or vice versa). Let that be the decider, whichever one you pick he will love it.

Both consoles largely have the same games, exclusives tend to be aimed toward an older market. However the PS3 does have better build quality and the blu ray drive is still one of the best on the market. PlayStation has a slick, streamlined interface, Xbox has a more user friendly, social aspect + creating your avatar is fun.

I would forget the Wii, Nintendo are bringing a new one out next year... if they can get it to work

LeicesterLad

Didn't see what was wrong with the Sega Megadrive to be honest.

thegreatdivide

Scrumple wrote:

Blu ray will play dvd and blu ray discs... Great extra if you have a full HD set up and surround system like me, that really benefits from bluray. Saves buying one as an extra box

As for online: for example, If you have Call of Duty, where most of the game is online battles, PS3 lets you play for free.

And, yes, it is wifi or hard wired on both.

You can update and download games on either for free - just online gaming itself that is free on PS3

+1

The Blu ray player is excellent quality.

forward_loop

Every friend I have who has bought either console for their children -for various reasons wishes they hadn't really. Funnily enough thats not so much the case for those that have a wii for "the family".

other than that I cant help

pottssteve

Forward loop wrote:

Every friend I have who has bought either console for their children -for various reasons wishes they hadn't really. Funnily enough thats not so much the case for those that have a wii for "the family".

other than that I cant help

I have also been thinking about this. He currently has a PSP which he loves. We limit his usage to 2 hours over the weekend and an hour a day in holidays. It's also very handy for when we travel. It might be the case that having a console set up all the time might lead to more mithering. On the plus side though it could be a useful incentive for him to get his homework done (properly!) first, which would be a condition of it's use........

Still thinking......

napoleond

I have a PS3 and Wii in our house, the kids love the Wii, especially the mario games which aren't available on ps3 or Xbox.

I have an old 40gb ps3 but just fitted a 500gb drive which took 10 mins. Was amazed at how easy it was and Sony allow you to do it and not ruin the warranty (not that there's any left!)

The Blu ray player on the PS3 is excellent, better than my Panasonic one. It's also 3D which the kids love!

3D gaming is quite interesting, especially Call of Duty!

secretsam

Embarrassing to admit but in my house (and I'm 42) we have an X-Box 360, a Wii and a PS3.

The X-Box with Kinect is ace, Kinect is a work of genius and the games are fun and some provide quite good exercise. Wii can be good but having a controller is a bit limiting, kids (age 6) found the hand - eye coordination needed a little difficult. But they've got the gist of it now and like it.

PS3 - well, now, I had problems with mine (less than 2 years old) and got into a war of words with Sony - and lost - so went on t'internet for a fix and found a vid on YouTube which helped me sort it (had to take it to bits). Otherwise I'd say if you're getting one console, it does more than the X-Box - it has the 'net, 4OD/Iplayer, blu-ray etc - whereas the X-Box is mostly a games console - but most gamers seem to prefer the X-Box (not least 'cos it's cheaper).

Oh - and look at the type of games you're going to play, some are only avaialble on one type of console. I mostly play footy games which aren't a problem, but some can be.

MattC59

Basically, the people with X-boxs will tell you that's the one to get and the people with PS3s will tell you that's the one to get.

I've got a PS3, get that one

Anyway........ I've had an original PS3 60gb since not long after it was released at the end of 2006. As I kept it in an enclosed timber TV cabinet, I bought an additional cooling fan for it, but otherwise left it as it was. Due to the cabinet it was in, it could get pretty hot (read f*cking hot !!) but never skipped a beat. If finally died about 3 months ago as it stopped recognising PS3 disks. It still played dvds and blu-rays ok and would connect to i-player etc fine. I sold it on ebay for £60 and bought another one. I think that's a pretty good lifetime.

The blu-ray player is one of the best on the market as the blu-ray format was developed by Sony. It will upscale your dvds to give an HD quality.

The internet browser is ok, but I guess that's not why you buy one of these. Wireless connectivity is good, blue tooth connectivity is good. it's optimised for BBC i-player, 4-OD etc, so there's a button to click on the menu and you're straight in.

The controllers are intuitive, I've never got on with the X-box controllers, but maybe that's just me ?

Connection / use of the playstation network is free, where as you have to pay a subscription for the x-box network. Some say that as a result, the X-box network is better and doesn't have any connection issues. Personally, I've only ever had connection issues where it has been an issue with a specific game.

I've never needed anything more than the hard drive that the unit was supplied with. As mentioned, my old PS3 had a 60gb hard drive, my new one has a 160gb hard drive. Unless you're planning on downloading and keeping films on your PS3, it's unlikely that you'll need anything more than standard. But as NapD said, it's an easy upgrade.

Games wise, most games are available on both PS3 and X-box. There are some which aren't, like Gran Turismo (PS3) or Halo (X-box).

Personally, I'd find out what his mates have got and go with that. They're both games consoles and will both play games just as well, but he'll be a bit p*ssed if all of his mates have PS3s and you get him an X-box, or vice-versa.

Cheers.......... M

(PS3 is still better though )

pottssteve

Hi again,

Thanks for your considered replies (especially Matt's essay ). I know one of his friends has a Wii and another had an XBox (but they've left the country now). I will make gentle inquiries, though I'm still not sure whether to get one now or in a year or two. However, I didn't realise they were as complicated as they sound - internet access, playing Blu-ray etc. I just thought you shoved a disc in it an drove around Tokyo at night...

The Saga (geddit?) continues.....


Steve

MattC59

pottssteve wrote:

I didn't realise they were as complicated as they sound - internet access, playing Blu-ray etc. I just thought you shoved a disc in it an drove around Tokyo at night...

That's just the thing Steve, the PS3 isn't at all complicated. If you want to just shove a disk in and drive, you can. If you want to use it's other functionality, it's very intuitive.

albothegreat

It's an XBox all the way and for one reason only, the community. The XBox is mainly about online play with your mates. 2 chaps at work have just traded in their PS3's as there are not as many of their mates online as we are all on the XBox. Overall i'd say the PS3 is a better console overall but the XBox online community is way larger.

bompington

Have you thought about getting him a bike instead? ;-)

napoleond

I've recently set up my PS3 and a big telly in front of my turbo in the garage. A great way to do loads of base training

pottssteve

bompington wrote:

Have you thought about getting him a bike instead? ;-)

I bought him a racing bike earlier this year and he enjoys riding it. Unfortunately, he prefers swimming to cycling.

After some gentle searching about what his friends have, it turns out he doesn't want either! He'd prefer Father Christmas to bring him a Nintendo 3DS instead, so we're now looking at those..... :roll:


Many thanks for the replies though, and if anyone's got any advice on the 3DS I'd be happy to hear it.

Steve

kev77

We have a wii ( great for family entertainment ) and now also a PS3 graphics blow you away.

I only use the Blu ray player though for my transformer and star wars fascination!

Alex, where did you aquire the bigger hard drive?

ben16v

also the xbox is having a large update soon which will install iplayer and love film and allow the kinect to have voice control - i have both and have had a wii - personally for gaming the paid service on the xbox is better but the ps is not bad and there are very few exclusives on each format - for me the ps is a must have if you have a hd tv

citrus_

Playstation gets my vote for the Uncharted series alone. Just played through Uncharted 3 in the last few days, and can comfortably say it is the best game Ive ever played