# Blu-ray players: PS3?



## Grimfang (Oct 17, 2008)

So the topic of getting a BR player has been up in the air recently here, and one thing I've been having difficulty finding a clear answer on is whether or not a PS3 is the best choice. Apparently it's a good price for a player, and you get your video games as well. But is it loud? Do you hear the cooling fan/s?

I've heard they make a decent BR player because of some sort of downloadable updates that come along from time to time. Is this true?

I figured this would be a good place to ask, since the technologically well-versed per capita is pretty decent here.

So what do you think? Buy a stand-alone player, or PS3? Any major pros and cons?


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## Ty Vulpine (Oct 17, 2008)

PROS of a PS3: you can play video games as well as watch Blu-Ray videos and also surf the net with it.

Cons: Price. 80GB PS3 is $400. You can buy a used 40GB for less, but you're taking a chance that it wasn't well taken care of.


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## Shadow Wolf (Oct 17, 2008)

Grimfang said:


> But is it loud? Do you hear the cooling fan/s?



They're actually pretty damn quiet. A Sony stand-alone would run you roughly half of what a high-end PS3 would run (unless you buy used). If you've got the cash I'd say PS3


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## Runefox (Oct 17, 2008)

Major pro for the PS3 is that its firmware is constantly updated by the horse's mouth, meaning it can support future blu-ray revisions, whereas current players will only support a specific subset of the blu-ray standard. Updating firmware on set-top boxes happens to be pretty hit-or-miss in my experience, and many of the first-generation blu-ray players won't last much longer anyway.

Most players currently on the market are compatible with blu-ray profile 1.0 or 1.1, with very few qualifying for profile 2.0 (the PS3 is one of those). Players released since November of last year are required to support profile 1.1 at minimum, and those players with profile 1.1 support generally cannot be upgraded to profile 2.0 (as they would need more storage capacity as well as other hardware modifications). Profile 2.0 is more commonly called BD-Live, while profile 1.1 is called Bonus View.

... So what's in a profile? Take a look. As I said, and as stated in the article, the Playstation 3 is capable of using blu-ray profile 2.0, and as Ty said, you can play games on it. The only downside is the price tag, but if you buy a profile 1.1 player today, you'll need to buy a profile 2.0 player tomorrow. Thanks a lot, Sony! But since the PS3 can receive firmware updates from Sony automatically and also happens to exceed the requirements for current and foreseeable changes to the blu-ray spec, you should be good with a PS3.

So in short, go with the PS3. Future-proof yourself and entertain yourself in the one go.


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## lilEmber (Oct 18, 2008)

Runefox said:


> Major pro for the PS3 is that its firmware is constantly updated by the horse's mouth, meaning it can support future blu-ray revisions, whereas current players will only support a specific subset of the blu-ray standard. Updating firmware on set-top boxes happens to be pretty hit-or-miss in my experience, and many of the first-generation blu-ray players won't last much longer anyway.
> 
> Most players currently on the market are compatible with blu-ray profile 1.0 or 1.1, with very few qualifying for profile 2.0 (the PS3 is one of those). Players released since November of last year are required to support profile 1.1 at minimum, and those players with profile 1.1 support generally cannot be upgraded to profile 2.0 (as they would need more storage capacity as well as other hardware modifications). Profile 2.0 is more commonly called BD-Live, while profile 1.1 is called Bonus View.
> 
> ...



All true, agreed.

One other thing, you asked if the PS3 is loud? No. It's the same or less than the 360 and will not interrupt anything, people make these things up because they are biased and *want* something to be wrong with a certain console.

There relaly are no cons to getting a Ps3 other than it costs slightly more, but you get so much more to boot, future support of Blue-ray as well gaming and online. plus when your not using it you can help mankind by swapping it to Fold@home mode. It looks really cool in that mode for a screensaver too, I would keep the TV on all day with that.

offtopic

See. It moves around the globe showing other active connections to Folding@Home with lights, also shows the equation they are solving, looks really neat as it swaps to different areas, shows the estimated time until the equation is completed and the next one begins,  and a model representing the molecules reaction.






/offtopic

Go for PS3! <3


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## Grimfang (Oct 18, 2008)

Hah. Wow. Decision made clear.

Thanks a bunch for the info, guys. Very helpful!


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## lilEmber (Oct 18, 2008)

It also has a web browser, is a great media player, and can do a bunch of other things as well! 

Good choice! ^..^


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## Year_of_the_Fox (Oct 18, 2008)

yeah, the PS3 is pretty cool. got one because the 40gb was the same price as a basic Blu Ray player. however, we ended up getting both. I've found that the PS3 is a lot better. sure, you have to buy the control like a remote control separate, but operations of a PS3 take a remarkably low time (the blu ray player I have takes upwards of a minute just to open and close the disc tray). as if that weren't enough, the PS3 can, of course, double as an upconverter for non-Blu Ray format discs (you can especially tell this with animated features, if you watch those). though the higher-end models are fully backwards compatable to the PS2 (or so I'm told), I dont think that's far too much of an inconvenience to have to put up with. just sacrifice an extra few hundred or so and keep a perfectly working system (an automatic switchbox for that kind of thing should run cheap, unless you use an HDMI cable instead of component)

the PS3's cooling system is remarkably quiet, even with the added cooling fans (had to get cooling fans when I replaced it, just in case. on the other hand, it was an older model PS3)

oh, and of course, ya' get the games


you're better off buying a PS3


it's really cool


and it has little big planet

and Gundam games


The End


... .. cha


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## Eevee (Oct 18, 2008)

man

the PS3 sucks as a media center, sucks at local multiplayer, has a sucky game collection, doesn't have great media controls, and $400 or whatever for a movie player is fucking ridiculous anyway

blu-ray is hardly worth the hardware cost or increased disc cost; just wait until enough people actually give enough of a damn about the marginal quality increase for there to be solid cheap players


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## Ty Vulpine (Oct 18, 2008)

Eevee said:


> and $400 or whatever for a movie player is fucking ridiculous anyway



That's how much DVD players used to cost (and more). Heck, even VCRs used to cost $1,000 when they first came out, yet people bought them anyway. My first DVD player cost $300+ back in 2002 I think(was an early Sony model, big brick player and could only fit 1 DVD at a time, couldn't even play burnt CDs).


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## Shark_the_raptor (Oct 18, 2008)

Eevee said:


> man
> 
> the PS3 sucks as a media center, sucks at local multiplayer, has a sucky game collection, doesn't have great media controls, *and $400 or whatever for a movie player is fucking ridiculous anyway*
> 
> blu-ray is hardly worth the hardware cost or increased disc cost; just wait until enough people actually give enough of a damn about the marginal quality increase for there to be solid cheap players



I bet you said the same thing about DVD players when they first came out.


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## Runefox (Oct 18, 2008)

Eevee said:


> man
> 
> the PS3 sucks as a media center, sucks at local multiplayer, has a sucky game collection, doesn't have great media controls, and $400 or whatever for a movie player is fucking ridiculous anyway
> 
> blu-ray is hardly worth the hardware cost or increased disc cost; just wait until enough people actually give enough of a damn about the marginal quality increase for there to be solid cheap players



The quality increase shouldn't be marginal (unless it's just an upscaled re-release of a DVD, in which case yeah), but all the same, the PS3 is actually as good as a blu-ray player is going to get. True that the games library isn't what it could be, but the PS3 isn't exactly a shitty platform, all the same. In this case, it's an amalgamation of two wants: High-quality playback and gaming. I think the PS3 consummates that pretty well, considering the X-Box 360 has no multimedia ability aside from DVD upscaling and Windows Media. Even moreso when you consider that a Profile 1.1 player costs at minimum $200 CAD while the PS3 costs $400 CAD. A Profile 2.0 player costs at least $300 CAD, so the extra $100-$200 for a game console is a pretty good deal when you look at it, much less ridiculous.


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## lilEmber (Oct 18, 2008)

You are basically -going- to get a blu-ray player anyway, so getting the PS3 is exactly like getting a great gaming console with future amazing titles and ones already out for just 100-200 dollars.


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## Wait Wait (Oct 18, 2008)

Shark_the_raptor said:


> I bet you said the same thing about DVD players when they first came out.





> DVD players when they first came out.





> *when they first came out.*




_hmmm_


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## Shark_the_raptor (Oct 18, 2008)

Wait Wait said:


> _hmmm_



What?  0.-.o


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## lilEmber (Oct 18, 2008)

Yea same thing I was thinking... wut?


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## Eevee (Oct 19, 2008)

TyVulpine said:


> That's how much DVD players used to cost (and more).





Shark_the_raptor said:


> I bet you said the same thing about DVD players when they first came out.


what?  did you stop reading at "$400" or what


Eevee said:


> just wait until enough people actually give enough of a damn about the marginal quality increase for there to be solid cheap players







Runefox said:


> The quality increase shouldn't be marginal


"marginal" in this case is intended to mean "not enough for me to care, or most other people either if sales of both are any indication"


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## net-cat (Oct 19, 2008)

DVD vs Blueray is kind of like XP vs Vista.

The newer one looks nice, has more features built in and the enthusiasts love it. But most people don't see enough of a difference to justify sinking a large chunk of cash into it.

Give it time. Like VHS and DVD before it, it'll get cheap and be superseded. (I think I might give this one a miss, depending on if I ever actually get myself to care and buy myself a proper HDTV...)


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## Neybulot (Oct 19, 2008)

For starters, the PS3 has a small library of really good exclusive games. It's going to stay this way for quite some time with development costs being high and it being cheaper to just put a game on 2 systems instead of 1.

Second, there are Blu-Ray players out there already that are cheaper than a PS3.


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## lilEmber (Oct 19, 2008)

Right...cheaper by $100. Also they don't get firmware upgrades to support newer Blu-ray disks like the ps3 gets, they also don't have a web browser, media player, network, Folding@Home (witch is just plain cool as a screensaver) and a actually large selection of games out, and coming out.

Exclusive titles are usually garbage anyway, judging your purchase on anything by exclusive titles is absolutely moronic. Very, very moronic actually. It's like the only reason a exclusive title is good for is one thing, "Nayn na na na na I got this game and youuuu donnn't"...seriously if Halo was on all platforms it would still be amazing on the PS3 and the xbox.


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## Ty Vulpine (Oct 19, 2008)

Eevee said:


> what?  did you stop reading at "$400" or what



And did you stop before I said that PEOPLE STILL BOUGHT IT? People still bought VCRs/DVDs enough for the cost to come down, even at $500+. Apparently, for some people, price didn't matter. 
So Eevee won't pay $400+ for a player. That's not going to cause the market to crash. The market will survive. The market doesn't revolve around Eevee.


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## lilEmber (Oct 19, 2008)

Are you sure about that?
Proof? =P


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## Ty Vulpine (Oct 19, 2008)

NewfDraggie said:


> Are you sure about that?
> Proof? =P



Yes, because if people didn't,  we wouldn't have VCRs/DVD players today, would we? The market would have died from lack of people buying, as it would not have been profitable to continue making the players, if people weren't buying them.

And look, I'm NOT going to go buy a new DVD player this week. The market will be just fine, DVD players will still be around next week, etc. The market is not dependant on one single person.


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## lilEmber (Oct 19, 2008)

Eevee is a collection of people though.


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## Ty Vulpine (Oct 19, 2008)

NewfDraggie said:


> Eevee is a collection of people though.



What? I thought Eevee was just the head programmer? Now there's more than one person using the account? Isn't that against FA rules?


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## Kimmerset (Oct 19, 2008)

TyVulpine said:


> What? I thought Eevee was just the head programmer? Now there's more than one person using the account? Isn't that against FA rules?



You're either not very good with sarcasm, or have no humour. Maybe both. 

The market is so dependent on Eevee, my local EB (GameStop) has a list on the games and systems Eevee will, and will not, touch.


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## lilEmber (Oct 19, 2008)

NINJA'D

You're not funny.

Yea Eevee is the head programmer of our hearts.


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## Xaerun (Oct 19, 2008)

Go for the PS3, mine is extremely quiet.


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## Grimfang (Oct 19, 2008)

Eevee said:


> man
> 
> the PS3 sucks as a media center, sucks at local multiplayer, has a sucky game collection, doesn't have great media controls, and $400 or whatever for a movie player is fucking ridiculous anyway
> 
> blu-ray is hardly worth the hardware cost or increased disc cost; just wait until enough people actually give enough of a damn about the marginal quality increase for there to be solid cheap players



Yes, I actually have no interest in a PS3 myself. I was actually asking for someone I know, and I figured some good advice would come from here.

Like I've said.. I just enjoy my $30 DVD player. It does wonders. Even though the HD 'format war' is over, I've still heard speculation on the death of disc-media and such. I'm a little scared of investing 100s in dying equipment.



Kimmerset said:


> The market is so dependent on Eevee, my local EB (GameStop) has a list on the games and systems Eevee will, and will not, touch.



Wow! I haven't been to my GameStop in some time. I should check and see if they have a little "Eevee's Corner" or whatever.


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## Ty Vulpine (Oct 19, 2008)

Grimfang said:


> Yes, I actually have no interest in a PS3 myself. I was actually asking for someone I know, and I figured some good advice would come from here.
> 
> Like I've said.. I just enjoy my $30 DVD player. It does wonders. Even though the HD 'format war' is over, I've still heard speculation on the death of disc-media and such. I'm a little scared of investing 100s in dying equipment.



I did buy a PS3 and tried the Blu-Ray DVD player part (even bought the component cables for my HDTV). Picture was pretty crisp.


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## Eevee (Oct 19, 2008)

Kimmerset said:


> The market is so dependent on Eevee, my local EB (GameStop) has a list on the games and systems Eevee will, and will not, touch.


the former list is rather short


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## Skittle (Oct 21, 2008)

Compared to the price of actual Bluray players the PS3 is a good price. My friend has one and I didn't even know the thing was running. They are quiet and if you have a good HD TV the picture is great! You just need to have the right TV for it but since you are looking at Bluray players I am assuming that you do.


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## Runefox (Oct 21, 2008)

Eevee said:


> the former list is rather short



Just like everything else you touch. =D


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## lilEmber (Oct 21, 2008)

Bahahahahaha! 
Foxy tells it like it is! x3


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## Grimfang (Oct 21, 2008)

skittle said:


> Compared to the price of actual Bluray players the PS3 is a good price. My friend has one and I didn't even know the thing was running. They are quiet and if you have a good HD TV the picture is great! You just need to have the right TV for it but since you are looking at Bluray players I am assuming that you do.



Well then.. sounds like a PS3 would be the best investment in this. And, yes, we've had an HDTV for a few months now. It's so beautiful.


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## Eevee (Oct 21, 2008)

Runefox said:


> Just like everything else you touch. =D


that's a real stretch for a burn but A for effort


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## lilEmber (Oct 21, 2008)

I enjoyed it. <3


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## Runefox (Oct 22, 2008)

Eevee said:


> that's a real stretch for a burn but A for effort



Not really, it fell into place pretty well, actually.


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## Reconwulf (Oct 30, 2008)

I have a 80GB PS3 and its pretty cool ive only used the blu-ray player for movies a few times and the quality is still good as a normal blu-ray player. But i mostly use it for games. The only thing I hate about it is the price.


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## Maio Maio Tigerman (Oct 30, 2008)

skittle said:


> My friend has one and I didn't even know the thing was running.


 
i have one and on a hot day an auxillery fan starts up and it becomes loud it is really anoying as you can hear it over the movie/game.


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## lilEmber (Oct 31, 2008)

Maio Maio Tigerman said:


> i have one and on a hot day an auxillery fan starts up and it becomes loud it is really anoying as you can hear it over the movie/game.



What?

That's bullshit, what volume you playing on?

My PC is the louder than a 360, and the 360 is louder than the ps3.

And I don't hear anything when using my PC, 360, or playing a ps3...

You might need too simply turn the volume past 2. Get a amp that goes to 11 rather then 10. (Who ever gets that, wins a cookie)


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## Maio Maio Tigerman (Nov 2, 2008)

its an auxillery fan it only runs on a hot day and its loud enough to be heard during the movie (i have a surround sound system usualy set to about 28-30 so it doesnt shake the house apart or get in trouble with the nabours). it probibly isnt a problem where you are from but it gets really hot here about this time of the year.


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## lilEmber (Nov 2, 2008)

wat.


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## Maio Maio Tigerman (Nov 2, 2008)

i dont know how else to explain it on a hot day while the ps3 is running a fan starts up inside it which you can hear even above the ssound of a game or a movie it is annoying, if i had airconditioning or i had all the windows open and the celing fan on full bore it sometimes stops.


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## lilEmber (Nov 2, 2008)

i haven't experienced this, anybody able to confirm this?
I've played with the console nearly enclosed on a hot day and it never spend up at all or made any difference in sound. Like the 360 it stayed at the same rate all day. Though unlike the 360, it wasn't as loud.


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## Tudd (Nov 10, 2008)

The PS3 does get louder if it heats up enough. 

Actually I killed my first PS3 by having it in a fairly sealed spot. (Bad idea, no comment) Within 10 minutes of gameplay the fan would spin up to full speed. But having an inch of wood plus 10 feet between me and the console plus surround sound drowned out any and all signs of fan noise.

The PS3 actually has three fan speeds. If you really want to see for yourself, try covering the vents with your hand(s) for a short while whilst leaving a game running. It won't take long to spin up. 

As for HD, if you have anything close to a decent pair of eyes, once you see HD, you can't go back to watching SD on any HDTV.


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