It has been a while since a Sony executive was talking about the next generation PlayStation, but according to an interview with Develop, Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida wants to build technology that developers can get the most out of. The article stated he wanted developers in meetings at the very beginning of concepting the new PlayStation hardware. With the Sony Move coming out soon, the PS3 slim out, it would seem there may not be anymore major changes coming in regards to the PS3 and it seems the ball is at least rolling if not already in motion on the next generation PlayStation, but does look like it is going to be a while before we see anything on the PS4.

Madden NFL 11 is the 22nd version of EA Sports’ video game football. On the cover is Drew Brees, Super Bowl XLIV MVP quarterback for the New Orleans Saints, Madden NFL 11 incorporates a blend of simpler, quicker and deeper new features with time tested classic features expected from a game in the Madden franchise. Features included in the PlayStation 3 version include Franchise mode, All-new Game Flow play call system, dual stick control, extensive online functionality…READ MORE

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PS3 Consoles – Well Cool!

After purchasing a 40″ Sony Bravia we were looking to buy a BlueRay Player – the price difference between a nice BD Player and the PS3 Consoles Slim was not hugely different so I opted for the PS3 Consoles. My only other foray in to games consoles was an X-Box many years ago (which I have mainly used for playing back DVDs! The PS3 Consoles has surprised me in so many ways…

1)It’s set up was very straight forward via HDMIDI cable.

2)It automatically picked up our WIFI (I thought this would have to be an extra purchase). So I can now surf the net ‘big screen style!)

3)No extras are required to watch DVDs (I purchased a DVD remote for £14 as my parents found it easier to use than the controller)

4)BBC Iplayer (and Five on Demand) finally comes into its own – the streaming quality and resolution on full screen are quite incredible. (From those that I have tried, the only one I can’t play is the ITV one)

5)The resolution on PS3 Consoles Games is pin sharp, the Dual Shock controller takes a bit of getting use to until you realise it moves with you! – I would recommend the Wireless mics if you want to use Sing Star

I have barley touched the surface of this product yet but, if you are looking for a multimedia player that covers BlueRay, WIFI and gaming I would really recommend this to you!

PS3 Consoles – Impressed

I decided I wanted a second PS3 Consoles to go in my office, so I can play my games whenever I feel like, rather than sitting there sulking when I’ve been kicked off the big LCD TV in the lounge so that she-who-must-be-obeyed can watch the latest installment of some stick insect parading down a catwalk wearing bin liners!

I’ve still got the original launch model (60GB with the extra features) and still liked the glossy black finish, the well built feel and the quiet and hushed tones of the fan, even when it’s on full. It’s a solid and impressive bit of kit.

So, I was somewhat worried that the new machine was going to be some flimsy plastic affair, a bit like my XBox 360. Thankfully, this is not the case at all. It’s as solid as the original machine, and the matt-black affect is much better in the flesh, than in the photos you see. It’s not rough at all, and it feels well built. It sits well with other black home cinema gear and is definitely smaller than the original – flatter, less height (if both lying down) but just as deep.

Addressing one issue that I noticed in a lot of these reviews, regarding fan noise. Mine simply does not make any annoying sounds. It’s quieter than the original PS3 Consoles. It is not silent like some have said – no fan in a confined space would be, but it doesn’t make as much noise – I’d say by at least a half, over the original unit. The fan comes on a little earlier when the machine is idling, compared to the original, but again, this is to be expected as there is less space in the machine now. It most certainly cannot be heard over any games. If your machine is doing this, it is faulty, and should be returned.

Overall, it’s the typical high quality Sony kit, that looks very smart and is more accepted in the lounge, than the outgoing model due to the smaller size.

PS3 Consoles – Does It All and Does It Brilliantly!

I decided that I needed to overhaul my audio-visual set up so recently treated myself to a stunning new telly (Samsung 7020, 40″) which is absolutely awesome! Having had such an upgrade it seemed only right to get a bluray player. I had a look at prices, spec, reviews – and one of THE best players (getting 5* in all the audiophile mags) is the PS3 Consoles. Better investigate, I thought…

Now, I’m no gamer these days, I grew up on 80s consoles and do have a Wii, so I wondered if I’d really use the console. Still, I went for the PS3 Consoles, mainly for it’s bluray and forward compatibility (as it can easily download updates from the wifi connection it is considerably more future-proof than many players.) And what can I say?? Stunning!!

Not only is it a fantastic bluray player BUT it is a total media centre! The TV on demand is easy (and has high quality option and PS3 Consoles specific settings – at least on the BBC iPlayer) Media streaming (which I wasn’t sure of the point of) works beautifully. My telly has DLNA but won’t work with my mac – gaaaaah! The PS3 Consoles however made networking ridiculously simple (mac users need to download medialink for mac – then off it goes!) It won’t play protected content from the apple store but then I think that is apple being toxic about their licenses rather then Sony’s fault.

And games…? I got uncharted 2 as part of the deal and can’t put it down – it is like a brilliant epic action film starring you!! My 73-year old mum came to visit and was hooked watching me play it! I’ve downloaded a few other game demos (playable) from the playstation store as well as a couple of films. The store works ok, and you can rent the latest movies on HD on there (or stream them I think, if you want to watch them now). One criticism of the store would be that a lot of the films are only in 2 channel audio – when the bluray of the same film is in 5.1/7.1)

I was a little concerned when I purchased this that it might just be an expensive bluray player that would sit gathering dust but I shouldn’t have worried – in actual fact I barely turn it off and use it for everything!!

If you want an award-winning future-proof bluray player, an awesome gaming console, and a do-it-all high quality media box then buy this!! Stunning all round!

PS3 Consoles – A Great Upgrade From the Old PS3’s

Awhile ago my old 60GB PS3 Consoles died from the Yellow Light off death and was told it would cost 120 pounds to get a refurbished one, but it only came with a 3 month warranty, so I decided it would be a better investment for the new Slim PS3 Consoles, and I haven’t looked back!

First impressions were great; it’s slim, sleek and after a few hours I noticed it wasn’t a dust magnet like the old PS3 Consoles.

The HDD capacity is great, but it’s also even easier than before to upgrade your HDD if you want a bigger one.

The slim also runs literally silent, it’s well self ventilated so you don’t need to buy a fan for it and it wont over heat easily; infact it hasn’t over heated at all since I’ve had it.

Obviously there are some fall backs, you cannot play PS2 games at all, however you can play PSX games, but this has been like that for awhile since the 80GB PS3 Consoles, there are no card reader slots which is a downer, and the main issue which gets me is the 2 USB slots, so if you are wanting to play Band Hero, or Rock band with more than 2 players then I suggest you invent in a USB slot expander.

However, brushing the negatives aside the Slim does deserve praise for being a better system in general. I have noticed that games runs a lot smoother than the old PS3 Consoles and load up faster, not only that the power consumption has also been reduced by 38%, so it’s more eco friendly.

PS3 Consoles – Small Package Big Heart

Decided to upgrade from our beloved 40gb PS3 Consoles to this gorgeous thing. We’ve used our 40gb machine every day for either playing games or watching a blu-ray since it came out and I think what swayed us most were two things the great saving on electrical consumption and the massive hard drive.

The machine itself is a lot smaller than the original especially in height IE the old machine is nearly 4″ high and this is nearly half that. Depth is about the same but on the width approximately a couple of inch has been removed and the surface texture is much improved. Although we loved the glossy finish of our old machine this matt (slightly rough) surface is much more finger-friendly. The power-on switch is now at the front with the eject button – a great improvement from having to rummage around the back of the machine, and they are both actual round buttons that click not the touch-sensitive panel, again for us an improvement, also the power cable is slightly less bulky (two pin instead of three). Other than that everything else seems the same for setting up. I checked the the latest software upgrade and ours is up-to-date.

For us a big improvement on a system that we loved anyway – very happy to recommend.

PS3 Consoles – Very Good, Get One

A big improvement over my original 80Gb PS3 Consoles, due to it being nice and quiet, plus smaller so it now fits nicely in my AV cabinet.

Be aware that there is no multi-card reader on this unit unlike the original PS3 Consoles, but the fan vent is on the back and much, much, much less like a jet taking off.

You can upgrade the HDD yourself and I have put a 500Gb in my original PS3 Consoles and intend to put a 1Tb model in my new slim once they become available.

PS3 Consoles – The PS3 Does It All

This is the new PS3 Consoles slim which I invested in shortly after they came out, the workings of console itself is the same as the original PS3 Consoles but the shell is considerably smaller and the scale on which is made and works is smaller to save power and money. This means it easier to move about because its smaller and lighter, its also uses about a third less energy now also.

As a games console the PS3 Consoles is excellent, it may not have as good a library of games as the xbox and it may not have as good an online service, but its online is free which is great and the games it has are now starting to show the difference graphically between the xbox and PS3 Consoles e.g. uncharted 2 against any xbox game will show the PS3 Consoles to be considerably more powerful. In saying this I don’t mean the PS3 Consoles has bad games it still has some great exclusives e.g. metal gear, uncharted, killzone and little big planet to name but a few. So don’t be too much put off by the 360’s catalogue.

Another advantage is that you don’t need to pay for the additional bits and bobs that you do with xbox e.g. if you want to go wireless its built into the PS3 Consoles but with the xbox its around £60 for the adapter, the batteries are built in rechargeable with the playstation the xbox requires a play and charge kit at around £15.

The PS3 Consoles is also a media playback machine, it can play just about any common file type thrown at it except. mkv, it plays music, videos , dvds, pictures but another big advantage is it a blu-ray player built in, and not a awful quality blu-ray player , a very high quality one doe to the magnitide of processing power supporting the PS3 Consoles. This is the 250GB model also, this gives you a huge amount of room to save any media you may be wanting, so you can wirelessly transfer videos over from your pc and watch them on a tv rather than a monitor. Or if you want install a full operating system on it, the hard drive has the room for it.

The only minor concern with it is it can heat up a lot when playing this is because its been smaller and therefore the heat will have more of an effect against the casing, but I just hope that it isn’t too detrimental on the workings of the PS3 Consoles.

PS3 Consoles – Very Pleased

I’ve been a gamer since the Sega Mega Drive days, and Sony consoles are normally the home of some of my favourite games. But I wasn’t in any hurry to buy a PS3 Consoles due to the price and the games I was interested in not coming out till later in its lifeline. I’ve had it now for over a week and have been very happy with it so far!

I first set it up on my standard TV in the front room (so scart set up), the picture was very clear with crisp details. It took no more than a few minutes to set it all up, I was happy with the menu layout (if you have a PSP you’ll know your way around). I wasn’t used to the waiting duration of downloading a game onto my hard drive but I’m sure I’ll get used to this as I go along. When I moved the console to the HD TV using the HDMI cable it only asked if I wanted to change the resolution, and it did everything else itself! The games look gorgeous on my huge TV and our first bluray DVD experience (Up by Pixar) was brilliant too (despite having some initial problems with what buttons on the control paused and play the film).

The controller itself is very easy to hold, as it’s always been as it’s the same design as previous Playstation remotes. However after 1 week of playing for 1 – 3 hours per day it had to be recharged…which surprised me as my Wii remotes usually last longer than that…The USB cable used to recharge it is a little short too so I had to sit close to the TV if I want to recharge my remote whilst playing.

The PS3 Consoles had no trouble picking up my BT broadband connection and I set up an account with no problems at all. I wasn’t particularly impressed with the games to download selection (the PS1 section is small compared to its monster library and no arcade games interested me) but the movies pretty much wowed me! You can rent titles as well as buy and there’s a lovely variety of genres, with both classics and recent blockbusters available.

The console itself is much bigger than most consoles I own, but at the same time it fells solid (although I wouldn’t want my 6 year old brother going anywhere near it!)

Overall, I’m very happy with my purchase. It was easy to set up, enjoy, play and find what I wanted from the console. Still slightly sad that I can’t play my PS2 library on it (so I can clear space under my TV) but I won’t hold it against it. Recommended.

PS3 Consoles – More Than a Games Station

Having had Playstation (1?) a few years ago that only played games and which I didn’t use much as I was a PC gamer, I was reluctant to buy another PS because I thought I wouldn’t use it. But I was fed up of buying PC games, having to register them online etc. then not being able to do anything with them after playing them, e.g. sell them or trade them, due to the fact that they were registered to me, and having them pile up alongside the computer.

So I looked at the PS3 Consoles slim and thought if I get one of those, I can at least sell/trade the games after I’ve finished with them, so I bought one.

I was happy to say that it was a very wise purchase. Not only can I play then trade/sell the games, but I can surf the internet, shop online, join the playstation community, play DVD and Blu-ray films and Wi-Fi connect via my LAN network and play music and videos that are on my other PCs. It also has Bluetooth connectivity that I have yet to try out. The PS3 Consoles gets more use than my PC now.

PS3 Consoles Does Everything!

I originally wrote a review on the original 60 gb PS3 Consoles right after it launched in November, 2006. Like the original 60 gb the new PS3 Consoles slim 250 gb is almost as good once you get past its few flaws. The new PS3 Consoles has the same specifications as the previous models, but it’s 32% smaller, 36% lighter and 33% more energy-efficient than the regular PS3 Consoles. It sports a slightly different look and the touch buttons are now replaced with real buttons. I have to say the SONY PS3 Consoles is one amazing system. With a 250 gb hard drive you will have plenty of memory to download a ton of stuff.

One of the most welcome features is the PS3 Consoles Slims ability to bit stream both Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. As for the games we are finally starting to see the true potential of this amazing system. You get an amazing blu-ray player that is future proof thanks to the system being able to receive firmware updates via the web. If you have a 1080p HDTV you will be amazed at the picture quality which is up to six times more detailed than DVD. You also get theater quality sound and picture that DVD, cable, satellite HD, and even apple TV just can’t touch because of their bandwidth limitations. If you have standard DVDs the PS3 Consoles upscales them to 1080p which brings all your DVDs to life.

Don’t expect blu-ray quality from watching DVDs, but do expect them to look much better and sharper because they are being upscaled to look better on your HDTV. I like the fact that the system has online connectivity and that it also has a built in browser should you just want to surf the internet. Most of all I like the fact that you get built in wi-fi. if you all ready have internet access you just have to set this up with your wi-fi router, or if your lucky enough you might be able to pick up free wi-fi if you don’t have internet access. You can download your favorite music/videos to the PS3 Consoles hard drive and if available online it will display the artist names and songs. You can even connect a USB keyboard (along with almost any type of USB device) to make surfing the internet faster and more enjoyable. With the recently launched Playstation Store you can play demos, download classic PS1 and PS2 (and some new PS3 Consoles games) games, get wallpapers, and watch blu-ray and new movie trailers. With the new virtual world Home you can create a virtual character and explore the virtual world. If your friends have a PS3 Consoles you can meet them in home and Play virtual Pool, bowling, or invite them in to a PS3 Consoles game to play with you.

You can rent movies (some in HD) from an always growing catalog and purchase many of them. The things that this new PS3 Consoles lacks from the original 60 gb model is SACD support, it only has 2 USB vs. the 4 on the original. The top left part of this PS3 Consoles doesn’t open up like the old one because this one lacks the memory card slots. The good thing is that this PS3 Consoles is so much quieter and takes up less space than my original 60 gb because it uses a smaller chip which now makes it use less electricity. That was my biggest annoyance with the original PS3 Consoles was that it got a bit loud sometimes when watching movies or playing games which I felt a bit distracting. This new model is as quit as a mouse. The PS3 Consoles does everything.

It plays CDs, DVDs, and, blu-ray discs. You get video chat, an internet browser, digital photo viewing, Playstation store movie rental (and video game) and purchases, and now Netflix streaming. The PS3 Consoles will likely be your home entertainment centerpiece. I have to say I am very happy with giving the PS3 Consoles a chance and I highly recommend it for anyone who appreciates a great game system with some awesome entertainment features. With the new PS3 Consoles slim and a long overdue price cut SONY is back in the game, and with new games like Uncharted 2 and may other exclusives this is going to be the start of the new Playstation revolution. This system may be lacking some of the original PS3 Consoles 60 gb features, but it is still one awesome entertainment powerhouse that I highly recommend!

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