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18 out of 21 people found this review helpful
4.0 stars
"blu-soon??"
Pros: established online, wireless media center extender, much more metro
Cons: 16x dvd drive would be nice. the fact that microsoft will never win any popularity contests is making it hard to ramp up public support for it's gaming division
Summary: One thing the PS3 camp has always held over the X360 is the brand new Blu-Ray drive. Since it seems new and cool, and most people just hate Microsoft by default, this has given rise to rhetoric like "the XBOX 1.5 (har har har)" and "uses the aging DVD format."
Even though the original XBOX DVD drives were 4x to 6x I was pretty disappointed when I found out that the X360 was going to have a 12x DVD-ROM drive instead of a 16x (can you even FIND a 12x drive for sale anymore?) until I found out how slow the PS3 Blu-Ray drive was going to be. In an interview with IGN a Sony spokesperson said that there was only an outside chance of the PS3 drive being 2x, and that Blu-Ray 1x = 4.5MB/s. Even at 2x (9MB/s,) it's still almost 7MB/s slower than X360's 12x DVD drive, and over 12MB/s slower than it could have been with a regular old 16x DVD drive.
Perhaps it's time to stop adding Blu-Ray to the list of PS3's credits, and time to start asking why you're being forced to swallow a new Sony-patented format with your PS3. Its hard to agree with the point of view that Microsoft is being irresponsible by rushing the X360 to market when Sony seems to be doing the exact same thing with their console& the fact that X360 is hitting the scene first seems incidental. One would hope that Sony would add a faster Blu-Ray as soon as it's available and/or economically feasible, but what of the early adopters? Microsoft even said they might put a Blu-Ray or HD-DVD drive (if Toshibas format takes off) in later versions of the X360. This is probably because they want it to be the ultimate media center and would want to include high-def video playback if the public began demanding it, but in the interest of maintaining compatibility with older X360s, its not likely that games would ever come on these next gen disc types.
I know how everyone likes to debate which system's hardware is better, but let's face it, both systems are about the same spec-wise. It's almost as if MS got wind of the CELL processor's specs and asked themselves, now how many G5 processors do we need to keep up with this? The CELL processor hype doesnt exactly reek of emotion engine, but even hardcore PS3 supporters must have learned to take any Sony announcements with a grain of salt. Im not sure anyone really believed that the PS3 was going to come with a 160GB laptop-style hard drive like the original spec said.
Microsoft seems to be sabotaging itself (inevitably, I suppose) by releasing these mediocre X360 launch-title game play videos while Sony is pumping out their brainwashing pre-rendered CG videos. It's a shame Microsoft felt that it had to be first-out-of-the-gates with this one, launching with what are (for the most part, anyway,) souped-up versions of games which could have been on the first XBOX. It's making it really easy for the casual consumer to conclude what they already want to believe... that PS3 will be better.
One thing the Sony camp is right about, it all comes down to exclusive titles. Personally I think there will be fewer exclusive titles in this generation because of the similarity of the hardware/performance and XBOX's continued growth in the market. Still recognizing the fact that there will be great exclusives on both sides, let's all try not bash the other guys too badly just because you love devil may cry or because you hate halo. Neither system should be voted a 1(or below 5, really)... such a baseless partisan bias should really be reserved for presidential elections.
Since I'm not especially attached to any of Sony's current exclusive franchises, I believe I'll be getting an XBOX 360. I like the fact that it comes from an American company (that's something I think people forget when they're having their little "M$" hate fests) and that it acts as a wireless windows media center extender. If Final Fantasy XIII looks really impressive, I might be forced to get a $ony P$3, too.Updated
I did just want to say a couple other things about the whole X360 vs PS3 thing. I'm really quite nervous about Microsoft's ability to ramp up support for exclusive titles in this generation. With the original XBOX Microsoft got developers to eye their console because it clearly had superior hardware, not so in the current generation. The main credit to attribute to the X360 is it's easier-to-develop-for-processor layout. Because PS3 was going to have such strong hardware, Microsoft decided that (since they couldn't possibly have a clear hardware edge and still be profitable in this generation) they would have to be the first next-gen system, in order to shore up developer and public support.
Not to say game developers can't adapt (especially if their jobs are at stake) but last week Tecmo president Junji Nakamura said (referring to the PS3) "Compared to the XBOX 360, it seems to be somewhat out of place with today's developers. I believe that it is having an influence on the skills and abilities of developers. You will have to change your way of thinking."
He also mentioned that X360 titles in development are costing about 20% more than previous generation titles his. I imagine the number will be similar for PS3 games. Looks like $59.99 games are on the way!
- 2 replies to this review
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I dont think that Microsoft will be playing blu-ray disc anytime soon...as you know Microsoft supported toshiba with the creation of HD DVDs which got shut down by Sony's Blu-Ray... Blu-Ray is not pantented by Sony and i dont think that Sony's gonna sell thier ideas to MS unless they pay it with a high price...get it now PS3 is always gonna be better than XBOX no matter what...Apple is smart for supporting Sony's Blu-Ray
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for someone that didn't even own one before their 'review'.
Microsoft Xbox 360 (20GB):
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