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PS3
I'm asking that you *** please, please, please *** only put a " yes " or " no " in the subject line, nothing else, and post any comments in the message box.
Follow Ups:
...it has nothing to do with the fact that it's a gaming cube.
I have concerns about the audio (I also own an Arcam AVR300), and I'm most interested in a machine that's region free and will convert PAL> NTSC. I'm acquiring some R2 BDs and I don't want any more boxes than I have to have.
That said, if the PS3 had the features, quality and price point I was looking for I wouldn't hesitate. I don't game, but it wouldn't make any difference if the PS3 had everything else I was looking for. Who cares what it's called if it does the job?
I'm just not certain that it does the job I'm looking for.
I also don't care much what it looks like - who says black boxes are best?
We have the original Playstation that my wife brought into the marriage. No interest really. Her sister's family bought the Wii which is semi-interesting, but still not for my house. First time played for about 10 minutes before I got bored. No thanks.
Note; we have no kids.
I googled it, it's not horrible looking.
I thought the George Foreman grill IS black. I don't know anybody who owns one of those either.... Oy vey.
.
nt
Best Regards,
Chris redmond.
I might reconsider if they excised the game functions as part of the reconfiguration.
Kal
There's no 5.1 analogue outputs which I'd probably need for my Arcam AVR350 receiver to get highest resolution audio, although if I looked into it it 'may' be possible to get uncompressed PCM via the digital output.
That's a side issue though, as for me to buy ANY BluRay player it would have to outperform the upsampling Denon DVD5910CI I currently use, and for many months now I've been wondering exactly how a decent BluRay or HD-DVD player would compare to it on a 42" or 50" screen.
As luck would have it, in this month's 'Home Cinema Choice' magazine a reader's system article explains that this particular reader bought a PS3 and compared the BluRay of X-men to the DVD upsampled on the Denon and in his opinion the DVD was superior so the PS3 is now resigned to being a games console.
That being said, the PS3 appears to be excellent value for what it is and if I didn't have the Denon I might be tempted, but does it have a decent remote or do you have to use the joypad?
Best Regards,
Chris redmond.
I don't expect most of the moview I really want to own to be issued in any HD format in the near future. I also don't want to have a whole bunch of machines, each doing something different (I already have hooked up a VHS, Laserdisc, and DVD player). So, I am waiting for a machine that can do both BluRay and very good scaling/processing of DVDs (the latter being more important).
I have actually been told by a dealer to wait for the next top model by Denon. I am not going to jump now, even though it does appear that BluRay will be the winner.
"I have actually been told by a dealer to wait for the next top model by Denon. I am not going to jump now, even though it does appear that BluRay will be the winner."
Same here - Denon make the best upscaling DVD players so in theory they should be able make a BluRay player with DVD replay in the same ballpark as their dedicated DVD players, as no doubt they'll use the same Realta chips.
Will probably cost a packet though, but I doubt Denon will release a player which can't access the full BluRay spec in regard to audio and interactive content.
I think the Denon will be the first player worth consideration by serious video/audio enthusiasts.
Best Regards,
Chris redmond.
The dedicated remote for the PS3 is $25 from Best Buy or Circuit City. I saw it earlier today for $15 at one of the "gamer" internet sites while I was looking for a component cable for my brother's XBox. Don't know how that compares to your locale as you're in the UK, right?
As to the SD X-men on the Denon vs the HD X-men on the PS3, that's saying interpolated 1080 from 480 looks better than true 1080 resolution. If I had to guess (and not knowing what display was being used, I do), I'd say that the display being used just "bobs" 1080 and all that can be had is 540 resolution. The size of the display is a factor as well because you need at least a 50" display to start seeing the difference at normal seating distances.
"The size of the display is a factor as well because you need at least a 50" display to start seeing the difference at normal seating distances."
The display used was a full HD Samsung 50" screen, but resolution isn't the be all and end all of PQ, otherwise a £100 DVD player would have as good a picture as a £3,000 DVD player and all HD-DVD/BluRay players would have the same PQ.
Similarly, the 50" HD ready Panasonic Viera is prefered over it's FULL HD brethen for PQ by HC magazine, but I also take your point (which I suspected beforehand) that up to 50" screensize, the advantages of HD-DVD or BluRay may not be obvious, especially when compared to the very best DVD players with broadcast quality upscaling.
If I were to get a projector however it would probably be a different tale as the demos I've seen with High Definition on larger screens have been mouth watering.
Best Regards,
Chris redmond.
they'd have to solve the noise issue first, which is what scared me off of the PS3 in the first place. I know that some don't consider it a problem, but I've read enough complaints about it to give me pause. (And I'm VERY sensitive to stuff like that.) I do appreciate the PS3's fast loading times and easy updatability via the internet, though. I eventually settled on a Pioneer BD-95FD, which I'm really happy with.
Russell
As for the noise issue, it bothers some people and for others it's a non-issue (numerous variables: distance from unit, open shelf vs closed in, set up in another room/closet, insensitivity, the noise floor in the room, etc). There are also reports that the 40GB produces less noise than the 60GB or 80GB models. Still others say they have one PS3 that's louder than another PS3 (same GB).
I know what you mean by sensitivity to certain things (noises). In the "quiet room" that I used to have, I could hear my KPS-20t spinning a CD from over 15ft away between tracks and during very quiet passages in classical music. When I build my dedicated audio/video room, this will be addressed.
Our new standalone has better video and audio than the PS3.I've compared it to my sons friends PS3.As for gaming my sons X360 slays the PS3.Most that are looking for a BluRay could care less about gaming;so why pay the same or more for an inferior product.I doubt Sony is going to drop the PS3 price as quickly as the standalone prices drop.
That's rather interesting, because all of the professional reviews of the PS3 rate its Blu-ray audio and video quality equal to or better than other Blu-ray players on the market at this time. What player are you comparing the PS3's video quality to and via what type of connections? Were the players set up in the same fashion (HDMI vs HDMI, component vs component, etc)?
This really wasn't a "gamer's" poll, so gaming comments aren't relevant to the PS3's use as a Blu-ray player. That said, from what I've seen posted from gamers who actually own both systems, most of the ports (exclusives aren't comparable) are pretty much equal. In what performance areas does the 360 "slay" the PS3?
As to the PS3 being an inferior product (when used as a Blu-ray or DVD player), please explain how it's an inferior product.
But only because it doesn't support 5.1 analog outputs.
...in fact I'd prefer purchasing a dual format player (HD-DVD & Blu-ray) that would provide additional back-up for my existing HD-DVD investment, but I'm not ruling out a stand-alone Blu-ray player if 1) there are enough movies that I want in the Blu-ray format, 2) there are sufficient incentives to justify the higher price tag and 3) the player has a good reputation for dependability and manufacturer support (for firmware upgrades).
AuPh
Beginning June 2008, Blu-ray will have 70% exclusive studio support. Between now and then, that number may increase (though the remaining 30% is likely to be non-exclusive support -- at least for most, if not all, of the remainder of 2008). Surely there will be Blu-ray titles that interest you with that kind of exclusive support.
I'm guessing the answer is "shelf space", but what's wrong with your HD DVD player for your HD DVD movies and/or DVDs should you want to add a Blu-ray player? Unless the player isn't meeting your expectations, why replace it if it works? It's not like the movies won't play or the player won't work after a certain date.
Toshiba is the only "real" manufacturer of HD DVD players and thus success of HD DVD rests on their shoulders alone. For HD DVD to become "the" next optical disc format, Toshiba has to make it work and that implies "by all means necessary.". One of those means is price: their theory is that having the least expensive players is a very high format acceptance priority for consumers. That theory has been proven false, given a certain price-point, of course, and Toshiba's own pie-chart presentations have illustrated this point (quite a faux-pas by the marketing department: "Look guys, as you can clearly see by the numbers and pretty colors, they've gained and we've lost." -- and nobody seemed to catch that revelation).
With the backing of so many CE manufacturers and studio support, Blu-ray was never in that position: they didn't have to sell their players at a loss to keep the format going. That said, the price tag for Blu-ray players is coming down monthly (economies of scale, re-investment, etc) and in a few months there will be players at Wal-mart in the $250 range. I predict a PS3 40GB will be $299 by Black Friday 2008 (the $250 Wal-mart stand-alones will probably be $199 or less on Black Friday). That's not $99 or even $199 MSRP, but it's not selling at a loss for every player you sell either.
I can only comment on Sony's repair support for one product that they fixed (a portable DAT player/recorder and I still have it), so I'm sure that isn't going to qualify them as excellent support. However, the PS3 has more firmware/upgrade support than any CE product on the market. Comparing what it was capable of on Day 1 vs what it can do now, I don't think anyone can give SCEA a grade below an "A" re: firmware/upgrade support. And with SCEA's promise of more to come, the firmware/upgrade support is only going to make the PS3 better.
My advice to anyone who leans toward HD DVD and wants a "cost concious solution": get one of the inexpensive Blu-ray players that will be available from Wal-mart in a few months to play Blu-ray exclusive movies and discontinue purchasing HD DVD movies right now. When the three HD DVD exclusive studios begin releasing movies on BD, that will be the time to support those studios (via their Blu-ray products, of course). In this way, the consumer can directly send them the message to "get with the program" ASAP.
Any format switch to Blue would leave all of those who invested in the first season (and apparently sales were quite good considering the $200 msrp) hung out to dry.
Note: $200 is as much as some HD players cost! Food for thought.
I suspect they'll cut their losses and stop releasing on HD-DVD. You really think there will be enough demand for HD DVD for Paramount to release not just season 2 but all the Star Trek TOS seasons ? THe only way I see this happening is if there is dramatic turn in HD DVD's fortune to more than offset the impact of the Warner decision.
Paramount does NOT want to lose potential customers for the second and third seasons of the Original series by switching format horses in mid stream. That would not only screw over those who purchased the first season at a premium price with the promise of future seasons in HD, but it would probably limit the interest in Blu-ray only versions even if they reissued the first season in Blu-ray.Keep in mind that the 1st season of the original series sold quite well on HD. Food for thought.
AuPh
Yes, if:
- it recognised the disc inserted as a BD/standard DVD and automatically started up as a player. I seem to remember comments that the earliest PS3s did not do that; and
- it responded to a normal IR remote so that I could use my Harmony 880 with it. I'm not interested in something that uses BlueTooth for the remote.
I'd also prefer it to have a tray mechanism rather than a slot.
Come to think of it, I'd even buy the current one if it met those 3 requirements and could pass both Dolby and DTS hi-def formats in PCM.
I'm not overly impressed by the shape but it's not the shape that's holding me back.
David Aiken
#1 I have a 60GB version (SCEA began the PS3 series with the 60 and the 20 models) and the PS3 starts up as a player if a BD or a DVD is inserted. Mine was firmware 1.0 when I bought it, but I don't recall if it did this from the start. Perhaps one of the firmware updates allowed it to act as you prefer.
#2 Bluetooth is the future (I know you hate reading that) and I'm sure manufacturers will eventually release (hybrid) remotes to use with the PS3. I do understand your situation, as many have commented on no IR control for the PS3. There are work-arounds for this (the USB ports support past IR remotes via the PS2 add-on), but allowing IR use, even if just for Blu-ray and DVD playback, would have made many people happy.
#3 Tray vs slot? I'd prefer a top-loader, but the price-point would have really been missed if they did this. The tractor-drive slot works rather well, though.
#4 Right now the PS3 will decode Dolby TrueHD and pass it via HDMI as PCM. It will also decode and send it as 8 channels (if the disc was encoded with 8 channels of audio): there are some players that will only give you 6 channels. As for DTS, I believe SCEA will issue a firmware update after the PS3 is made Profile 2.0 compliant (profile support seems to be highest on their list of priorities) to give it the capability of decoding DTS-HD Master Audio and sending it as PCM via HDMI. The only way I see this as not happening is if there isn't enough processing power left over, which I don't believe will be the case.
#1: solves one of my problems.
#2: the future is always different to how things are now. Things change and BlueTooth may be part of it but during any change people will always have 'hybrid' systems, part old and part new. It would be nice if products introducing a new control technology also offered the old to simplify the change for those using universal remotes but that probably is too much to ask.
#3: what can I say? Slots are my least favourite loading mechanism. I'd say top loaders are not my favourite because the couple I've tried tend to have not that much extra well space around the disc and I've got fat fingers. Bigger wells would make that less of an issue for me. There's just an awful lot of room around a tray when it's in the open position and it's easy to keep a tray dust free.
#4:DTS decoding is important for me since I want a player to be able to handle all standard formats associated with the disc type. A software update to fix that one point might well tip me over the edge to a purchase since that's the big reason I've been fence sitting to now. I was very tempted to just buy a PS3 anyway a couple of times in the leadup to Christmas and that was the sticking point each time.
David Aiken
in favor of stand-alones are the announcements of players with more capability and processing power. I believe there were at least 4 or 5 players announced at CES that have DTS-HD Master Audio decoding and/or bitstreaming. The Panasonic BD50 looks to be a very competent player (provided they've addressed the LFE issues of the BD30) and should sell for around $399 - $449.
Regarding SCEA and DTS-HD Master Audio (decoding in the PS3), I just wish they'd make an official announcement so interested parties can make a decision. While the word from a Sony insider says it will come to the PS3, I'd like to see something official. I think some of the engineers and firmware coders at SCEA like the fact that they can release updates and still get that "Christmas morning" reaction from PS3 owners. I have to admit it's cool to download an update just about every other month and a piece of electronics you purchased over a year ago now has multiple newer/better/more advanced features added to it for free in a matter of minutes.
.
... only because it does not output Dolby Digital HD or DTS HD Master.
If what you are asking for is bitstreaming of Dolby TrueHD/DTS-HD Master Audio, the PS3 is not going to support transfer of the advanced audio codecs undecoded: the HDMI chip in the PS3, though v1.3, doesn't support this feature. However, right now the PS3 will decode Dolby TrueHD and send it via HDMI as PCM for up to 8 channels. Word from a Sony insider is that the PS3 will receive a firmware update to do the same for DTS-HD Master Audio, but I believe this will happen after the PS3 is made Profile 2.0 compliant.
I bought one the new 80g excellent Blu-ray video quality to boot.
If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing well
(Proverb)
n
The inference of your question is that some people don’t buy a PS3 because of its looks. If that is the case I find it strange.
I think it is a good machine.
Smile
Sox
Yes, some people do not care for the looks of the PS3. The way a component looks has never been a big deal to me (my CD transport is a Krell KPS-20t, not exactly "sexy" looking), as performance trumps looks any day in my book. I have a feeling that their component rack is out in the open and the PS3 would not "fit in" with the designs of the other components: I can understand that. Having something stick out is a two-way street, though. If it's junk, there's no way you would want it there. But if it's a stand-out/great piece of equipment, why not have it make a statement?
.
.
I am simply not interested in video games, and I already have a stand-alone Blu-ray player that does the job nicely.
Prehistoric 4-Channel Lizard
I don't think the PS3 has to be used as a game console. If you never put a game in it, I'm pretty sure it will not void the warranty.
:-)
That said, your concern speaks to another aspect of the PS3 that some people cannot come to terms with -- it has the ability to play games. I'm not a gamer by any means (I only purchased two PS3 games for my kids and I game for myself in the last year+), but when I just want to "play around", it is nice to pop in a title, shed some blood, kick some bad guys' ass or collect some rings.
It looks like a standalone player to me. Just because it doesn't appear to be a box like most other DVD players on the market doesn't make it unattractive.
But I'm more concerned about value than looks. I just bought an Integra DTC-9.8. It looks like mass-merchandized crap, but with all the features and connectivity I need, it's a tremendous value. And most importantly, it will handle the key formats that Blu-ray throws at it.
-------------"I have found that if you love life, life will love you back." -Arthur Rubinstein (1887-1982)
C'mon, Jazz, it doesn't look like any stand-alone DVD or Blu-ray player. But like you, I don't think it's unattractive either: actually, it's very sleek and stylish to me. Value is an important factor for most people, as most people don't have extra money to throw around on luxury items and, yes, entertainment is a luxury item. I just saw what SCEA was packing into that machine at the time and mated that to the ethernet port (easy upgrades) and gave it an unequivocal Beavis & Butthead "YYYES!!!".
Agreed, I just don't see what the appeal of a typical mass-marketed rectangle box is as opposed to a slightly smaller, curvier box with more processing power. Cosmetically, why is one considered more attractive than the other? People think if it's not a rectangle, it's not a Blu-ray player? That's stupid.
-------------"I have found that if you love life, life will love you back." -Arthur Rubinstein (1887-1982)
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