PS3 & Xbox360: The finer details...

[symbolofmylife]

By now the console race is well on its way and to the majority of us, not really news. But something I have noticed is, despite each manufacturer’s shameless ad campaigns to get gamers to buy their consoles, a lot of people are in the dark regarding the finer details each console has to offer.

Being an avid xbox gamer the past 3 or so years, I’ve recently also had the opportunity acquire a PS3.
So, here I’ve attempted to cover the majority of smaller details setting the Xbox360 and PS3 apart. I will try to cover as much as possible for those that are interested, or trying to make up their minds which one to buy.

Ok, so the first thing probably on everybody’s mind nowadays when opting to spend some hard earned cash on a shiny new next gen HD capable “tv-game” machine, is graphics. So, what I did was to get some titles I have played on the xbox, and check them out on the PS3. And guess what: the difference is zero…nada….zip…or minute at most!!!...both machines display awesomely and I honestly cannot tell what the difference is, if any.

While the xbox uses the Xbox dashboard, the PS3 uses a menu layout similar to the PSP. While both have pro’s and cons, the real difference here comes to the layout and design. While both are fine I guess I did at times wonder why Microsoft opted to go with the childish avatar concept. It just looks silly (read again: childish) and the majority of the people I’ve met don’t really like it. The PS3 on the other hand allows you to select an avatar, but at least it is only a gamer-picture type avatar, and not some silly character.
Where you can however create an xbox-like avatar for the PS3 is in an area called PlayStation Home. Basically, imagine Sims, but instead of some software generated co-inhabitants of your world, in Playstation Home all the “people” there are real people. Social networking with a difference…well, kindof…at least there’s a use for the avatar now…

Getting your console set up with an internet connection is also an option many will pursue. The PS3 here has the easier interface to set up your connection. You only have to fill out the basics: username and password, and bob's your uncle. The xbox's setup is a bit more involved with a variety of settings that can be changed to just cause more frustration.

The PS3 makes use of “Trophies” whereas the xbox uses “Achievements”….if you are completely unfamiliar with these terms, basically these are digital rewards for completing certain tasks in games, or achieving something difficult, or blablabla…you catch my drift. Although both are relatively the same and features the same rewards for games on both platforms, the xbox utilises a score system which adds to your gamerscore continuously. On the PS3 trophies are unlocked, and each trophy type adds different amounts of points to your profile, all contributing to your overall "level". (Thanks dasco144 for this).

At present the xbox (if updated online) allows you to access your facebook account. Although limiting you can at least update your status, leave comments and check out pictures. The PS3 has facebook connectivity, but not as, uhm, “deep” (if you can call it that) as the xbox. The PS3 allows you to update your unlocked trophies to display on your facebook page, but otherwise, nothing much.

The xbox update also allows users to install games to the harddrive, minimising noise, disk-drive usage and loading times. On the PS3 some titles automatically install a portion of the game to the harddrive. A bit of a bummer but considering that the PS3 does run quieter than the xbox anyways, maybe not so bad.

Where the xbox has the Online Marketplace, the PS3 has the Playstation Store. Although the xbox marketplace is easier to navigate and does contain a wider variety of stuff to check out, buy and download, the PS-store, although a bit limited, displays all the content for sale in South African Rand value…I just found that a nifty touch. And yes, I do know that Microsoft does not support Xbox-Live here, but it’s still no excuse for Microsoft points…
As far as online gaming goes, Microsoft requires you to pay (roughly R50-70 per month depending on exchange rate) to use their online gaming network. Probably ok I guess….well it isn’t in my opinion if Sony offers the same service, for free….yes, that’s correct…free…at least for the time being.

A point worth mentioning relating to online play is that availability of joinable online games. On the Xbox a game like Modern Warfare 2 locates an online game relatively quickly. I've found on the PS3 the same aforementioned title takes relatively longer than the Xbox to locate an appropriate game for you to join. Why? I dont know...

As mentioned earlier, Microsoft doesnt officially support Xbox Live in South Africa. Meaning that if you wanted to open an Xbox Live account, you'll have to, in a sense, commit fraud and indicate your domicile as some other country, otherwise it's no dice. That is probably the silliest thing ever as they should have thought of that before they started selling their product here. Sony however fully supports South Africa.

Both consoles support text messaging to other users, as well as voice chat. With the xbox you get a headset included to enable you to chat away. With the PS3 you dont. However, the PS3 supports any bluetooth headset. Surely there's one lying around the house somewhere, right?

Both consoles also support the use of a USB keyboard to be added to the unit for use during text messaging or on the PS3, web browsing. Both manufacturers have also developed keypads that can be clipped onto the controllers to serve as keyboards.

As far as controller design goes, the xbox takes it here, to a point. The xbox controller just feels better, and a bit more sturdy and rugged. BUT the PS3 controllers do not need batteries. The controller charges straight off the console via USB. Saving money on batteries good! Or buy rechargables. Either way, the fact that the PS3 controller charges off the console is quite cool, but can be frustrating as the charger cable is about 30cm long and a dying controller amidst a serious gaming session sucks.
As far as battery life between the two manufacturer’s controllers go, they are quite similar although it feels that the PS3’s controller lasts a bit longer…Although I have noticed that games that feature a lot of vibration via the controller eat up battery life quicker on the xbox, than on the PS3.

With both the PS3 and Xbox you only receive one controller, unless you buy a special bundle. Now, this is where, if your budget is tight and you need to share your console with your little sister or someone, you have to be smart.
The average price of the xbox controller is R399, while the PS3 ones go for R799. Massive difference. But this brings me to my next point….

Bluray…yes as you’re probably all aware the PS3 supports bluray playback, which the xbox360 doesn’t and according to reports wont incorporate, even with the next Microsoft console…so be smart, and buy one of those Bluray remote/PS3 controller bundles for R899. Although a bit on the expensive side, you get two peripherals for the PS3 and save R250-R300 in the process. Yes, you can operate bluray disks with the controller, but the remote just looks cooler and a bit more mature when you bring that hot date home.

While the xbox (and PS3) supports the use of a FAT32 formatted harddrive to be connected to the system to watch movies or play music off, the PS3 allows you to copy media to and from the console itself. Where, on the xbox, if you want to rip music to the harddrive, you have to do it the old fashioned way by, uhm, ripping it to the console. The PS3 allows you to just copy pre-ripped music, movies or whatever straight to the console (and back to external HDD if you wanna). This can save a lot of time if you have a lot of music, like in my case. Unlike the Xbox the PS3 allows users to upgrade the harddrive to any 2.5” SATA drive of their choice.

Speaking of music, where the xbox allows you to play music off the harddrive and eliminate the game’s in-game music, the PS3 only allows this in certain games.

A huge bonus (well, for me at least) is that the PS3 also has an onboard, fully functional web browser that even supports video playback ala-youtube etc, which at present the xbox doesn’t. For quick “jump-in, jump-out” web browsing this is awesome! Playing a tricky game? Need some help or a FAQ? Another handy addition to the PS3 is that, once a game is inserted in the console, going to the launch game screen and pressing triangle will bring up a menu, where one of the items are “Internet Search”. Selecting this option (assuming you are connected to the internet) will search all relevant online resources relevant to the game in the console.

As far as power supply go, these differ dramatically between the two consoles. The Xbox has an external power brick. And yes, it is quite a bulky unit that cannot be hidden easily in threat of malfunctioning due to improper ventilation. The PS3 Slim only has a cable.

One last issue, is backwards compatibility. Where the xbox360 does support backwards compatibility on certain games with the aid of downloadable mods, the new slim ps3 only supports certain ps1 games with sony cutting the PS2 function completely. For the PS3 this creates a bit of an issue since the PS2, in South Africa, was all we had…hence vast amounts of PS2 game collections are rendered useless, unless you hold on to your PS2. Luckily God of War I & II got remastered for the PS3....hehehehe....

In the end it really comes down to the individual need of the user in terms of the correct console choice. I mean, I've met guys my age (pushing 30) that recently bought Wii's!! But between the xbox and PS3 there are quite a lot setting the two consoles apart, aside from the console-specific titles.