Xbox 360 News and Tips

Should you ditch the Xbox for a PS3?

We are in the age of the next generation of consoles, and it's quite a battle between Microsoft's highly powerful Xbox360 and Sony's highly touted Playstation3. Which has a cleared path to victory? Which is a better investment for consumers? Which can provide the best gaming experience possible?

Let's face it, these gaming consoles don't come cheap. And in the face of a global recession, we will want the best value for our money. So, which console will be worth our hard earned cash? The Xbox360 or the PS3?

Alas, the answer to that question depends on 5 key points that every avid gamer is concerned about.

1. Which console has a deeper game library? Games define game machines, not the other way around. Quality, of course, is more important than quantity, but a console that has 100 games has better chances of getting more quality games than a console which has 50 games. When it comes to the depth of the game library, the Xbox360 is the runaway winner. Having been released a year before the PS3, the Xbox360 has managed to amass quite a number of exclusive titles. WINNER: Xbox360.

2. Which console offers a better online experience? Basically, this is a battle between Xbox Live and the Playstation Network. The difference between them is like night and day. Xbox Live provides a smooth, optimized multiplayer experience. The Playstation Network is laggy. Xbox Live hosts more demos and freebies than its counterpart. Though the Playstation Network has released a Second Life-like social networking, avatar-based game called Home, the Xbox Live has secured partnerships with a slew of digital distributors that will stream content for Xbox360 owners. WINNER: Xbox360.

3. Which console is more reliable? The PS3 is known as a very durable machine. There are even rumors that the Japanese engineers who test drove the PS3 had it play continuously inside a sauna bath... and the unit fared very, very well. The Xbox360 is plagues by numerous (way too numerous) reports of error codes involving 3 red lights - infamously known as 3RL - which indicate general hardware failure that will render the console unplayable. Though Microsoft has tried to remedy the situation by extending the Xbox 360's warranty to an unprecedented 3 years, the PS3 is the current console that provides interrupted gaming enjoyment. If you want to play with confidence about your console, go for the PS3. WINNER: Playstation 3.

4. Which console is more affordable? As of this writing, the Xbox360 Arcade package costs $199, and the basic package costs $299. The Playstation 3 80GB costs $399 and Sony refuses to implement a price drop, claiming that they already lose $307 for every unit sold since production of the PS3 is quite expensive. WINNER: Xbox360.

Based on the four areas of concern discussed above, the Xbox360 is the clear cut winner.

But the more important question is: is the Xbox360 the clear cut winner for you as well?