Sony PS3 - It never deserved its launch criticism

[SexyWayne]

The only time those features are taken away is when you agree to Sony's T&Cs... you don't have to agree with them...

[AmigaJay]

The only time those features are taken away is when you agree to Sony's T&Cs... you don't have to agree with them...

Err yeah because if you don't you can't use the machine to its full which you paid good money like any other customer, so they basically force you to choose, stick with otheros and only play games upto that point, or update and lose otheros and play the latest games...which again is unlawful in that respect.
I don't know why people find it hard to see their underhand tactics...

[Rayne]

Aye, removing Linux support was horrid, all 6 people that bothered with it must have been devastated.

[The Laird]

The only time those features are taken away is when you agree to Sony's T&Cs... you don't have to agree with them...

Err yeah because if you don't you can't use the machine to its full which you paid good money like any other customer, so they basically force you to choose, stick with otheros and only play games upto that point, or update and lose otheros and play the latest games...which again is unlawful in that respect.
I don't know why people find it hard to see their underhand tactics...

Well for the record I agree 100% with everything you have said.

[SexyWayne]

Personally I bought a PS3 to play PS3 games.. not to run Linux, I can understand why a few people got upset like little girls over Other OS being removed, but I don't think its something that bothered the vast majority of PS3 users, saying that I bought a PS3 slim so I never got to use or see Other OS.. so I'm not gonna miss something I've never had..

But the thing that bothers me is that these hackers deemed it necessary to hack PSN and steal peoples personal data, they're hardly showing themselves in a good light are they?? they're just theiving scum pure and simple, and nobody in their right mind would agree with what they did..

"Sony pissed us off by removing a few features... right that's it I'm off to stamp my feet, throw my teddy, oh and steal innocent peoples personal data"... w@nkers the lot of em.. shutting down PSN to prove a point is one thing but stealing off innocents is another..

[Matt_B]

I think that putting the Other OS feature in there in the first place was probably more of a mistake than taking it out, to be honest. I'd suspect that at least 99% of PS3 owners never used it and at least 99% of those that did had a computer to hand that made a far better Linux box than the PS3. Rather, it just got thrown in there as an extra feature as if to say "Woo hoo! This isn't just a console, it's powerful enough to count as a real computer" without really thinking through the long term implications of supporting it.

[Megamixer]

But the thing that bothers me is that these hackers deemed it necessary to hack PSN and steal peoples personal data, they're hardly showing themselves in a good light are they?? they're just theiving scum pure and simple, and nobody in their right mind would agree with what they did..

Yeah, 'Power to the people' by stealing said people's data. All they were doing were showing off and acting big because they could hack somebody like Sony - these hackers don't give a flying f**k about the general public/gamers or else they wouldn't have done what they did with the data. If you don't agree with a company's actions then don't buy their products, simple. Microsoft or Nintendo will happily take your money instead.

[electrolite77]

Back when the PS3 was first showcased at E3 2006? It was criticised for being this hugely priced peice of hardware, especially when compared to the significantly cheaper 360.

EVERYONE complained about its price, which I will never understand. It was dearer for a reason. If you factor in everything it came with, the price was fairly justified. Lets have a brief look at the two systems specs at the time of their launch.

PS3

Bluray Player (standalones retailed for around £300-350 alone, at this point, so thats £300 of the price essentially in the drive alone. )

60gig HD (3x the size of the 360's)

Controller charge function via the USB ports

Built in wi-fi

HDMI output

Backwards Compatible Hardware/Software Emulation (Yes, the EU were slightly shafted here with software emulation instead of the NTSC hardware emulation, but still, every NTSC console owner could play EVERY ps1, and ps2 game. )

360

HD-DVD Drive/Player - Still retailing for £200+ but still cheaper than Blu Ray Players

20gig HD (3x smaller than the launch PS3 HD)

No wi-fi (Separate wi-fi component was sold at £39.99)

No charge function via usb (A Play n Charge kit was sold separately for £19.99)

No HDMI output - (Component provided an acceptable HD signal, but Sony was one step ahead with HDMI)

Backwards Compatible Software Emulation only - (Through irregular updates which no longer occur, original xbox games would be made available to play through the 360)

Thats all from the top of my head, but seriously, were people that blind to see what exactly the PS3 had inside the system, as oppose to the 360? In regards to the console, the ps3 definately offered more in terms of a complete system. The only thing I can say in defense of the 360 is that it had a stronger software lineup for launch, but this about hardware specs only.

What are you thoughts on this?

It was one of the worst launches in video games history. Multi-format games inferior to the cheaper competition, online setup inferior to the cheaper competition, the farce with BC, the farce with rumble being taken out of the controller, and the price was ridiculous.

There's no point listing what's in the box if that tech isn't relevant to people. Someone with a certain budget to spend on a next-gen games console isn't going to go massively over that budget because it includes, say, a Bluray player or something else that they don't particularly want. If I go into a shop with £30 to buy a kettle I'm not going to spend £50 because it also trims my eyebrows. It's irrelevant hardware because I don't want it to do that. Funnily enough I hear the same a lot with the Vita-"yeah but there's a lot of technology in it for the price", fine, except I don't want that technology and I can't afford the price.

Also, if you've two competitors in the market, it seems remarkably daft to launch at so high a price that consumers can buy *both* of your competitors consoles for the same price as your one.

[electrolite77]

90% of criticism was the price, for that it was rightfully slagged!!

A Bluray player and a console, when a standalone player cost over £500, and you think they were rightly slagged? Sorry, but logically that makes no sense, as they were essentially SAVING people money who were interested in both the PS3 and a Bluray player

The only criticism they really deserve is over this actual decision to incorporate a blu ray player, thus giving the consumer no choice in the matter but to spend that much on the console, even if they weren't interested in blu ray

But your comment, makes no sense, as it was logically justified, based on the hardware of the console.

And those 28 people were delighted. The other millions however, who didn't want a Bluray player....

[electrolite77]

I agree with the statement that the difference between Blu-Ray and DVD is slight while the jump from VHS to DVD was massive.

No comparing the 2 for me.

The main leap from VHS to DVD was in accessibility. The improved picture was nice and everything, but IMHO a lot of people bought into it because of the ability to skip to points on the disc and use things like Scene Menus. Bluray just has 'better picture'

[electrolite77]

I guess the real point is that regardless of what one or two individuals here think the majority of consumers worldwide seemingly considered PS3 to be overpriced for a games console at launch (especially so when considering what the competition were offering at the time) and stayed away in their droves.

In my opinion, Sony launching PSP Go for £250 (iirc), PS Vita Wifi model for £230, PS Vita Wifi+3G model for £280 was comically unrealistic pricing. It's common knowledge that PSP Go spectacularly bombed at retail and that PS Vita, even more so the Wifi+3G model, has sold abysmally so far. Consider the dramatic reversal in fortunes of 3DS following its price cut (plus a couple of Mario games) for what the majority of consumers consider a fair price point for a gaming device.

Yep, I commented in an earlier post on all the PS3s left gathering dust worldwide on store shelves at launch.

http://penny-arcade.com/comic/2007/02/12

[Rayne]

except I don't want that technology and I can't afford the price.

That line says it all really, don't moan if you can't afford it

[DreamcastRIP]

... Bluray just has 'better picture'

Nope. It has more than "just" that.

[samhain81]

:roll: Aye, removing Linux support was horrid, all 6 people that bothered with it must have been devastated.

I have never LOLed so much in my entire life

You are my hero Rayne

[Matt_B]

... Bluray just has 'better picture'

Nope. It has more than "just" that.

Yep, there's better audio too.

There are also things like being able to access the menu whilst the movie is in play and overlay video streams so you can have things like picture in picture commentaries. However, for the sort of people who just want to sit down and watch a film I'd think that it's mostly about the better sound and video.