Sony PlayStation 3 Blu-ray Player Reviewed
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Sony's PlayStation 3 (PS3) has been covered in the press ad nauseum, and we're guilty, too. But no Blu-ray player guide would be complete without this iconic product, which is widely considered to be one of the best Blu-ray players on the market, despite its low price, when compared to even the newest standalone, non-game-console players on store shelves today.Read other top performing Blu-ray player reviews here.
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As a Blu-ray player, the performance of Sony's PlayStation 3 is simply outstanding. The player upconverts standard-def DVDs with much better than expected results visually, providing sharper, better-defined images than do most of the standalone, upscaling DVD players for sale at Wal-Mart or Costco. But, of course, Blu-ray discs and high-def games are where the PS3 really shines. Blu-ray movies are vivid and especially crisp, with skin tones looking natural in ways you might expect from a more expensive player. Blacks look deep and have excellent shadow detail, even when putting the PS3 up against the better $2,000 Blu-ray-only components out there.
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What is truly great about the PS3 as a Blu-ray player is that it has been somewhat future-proof so far. With Sony putting out firmware upgrades periodically, they are constantly making improvements to the player that are downloadable and serve as instant upgrades to your player. For example, one quibble with the player was that it didn't decode DTS-HD Master Audio, but as of June 2008, firmware upgrade version 2.30-2.36 fixed that problem. Now the player decodes Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio, giving users the latest surround sound formats. That same upgrade also added BD Live (Profile 2.0) support, meaning users can connect to the Internet for additional downloaded content for any BD Live-enabled disc, participate in live events and gaming activities, interact with peers and more. No player in the market has been able to go from opening day to today's latest technology without being left behind other than Sony's PlayStation 3, and that is one hell of a compliment.
Read about the high points and low points of the PlayStation 3 on Page 2.
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Comment on this article
Great review!!
I often play PS3 on the Straight Talk Express. It helps pass the time between campaign stops.
Playback is mediocre, many newer players are as fast or faster and perform better, remote sucks, GTA IV rocks! Buy it as a bridge if you want a new game system and are delaying Blu-ray, but don't buy this as your primary player. The new lines coming out are much better.
I've had the PS3 since launch, I'm open to getting a standalone Blu-Ray player but I still haven't seen one (including those over $1000) that is significantly better at Blu-Ray playback than my PS3.
Load times, audio & video quality & firmware upgrades make the PS3 a great Blu-Ray player for everyone.
Agreed, great review.
I've owned a PS3 for two years now and I bought it specifically as a Bluray player, not as a game console. I can say with confidence that people that bought other players at the same time I bought my PS3 are left with units that don't comply with the latest BD profile and they can't be made to comply even with a firmware update. In that sense the PS3 really is the most flexible player.
It's also been reviewed and compared to Pioneer's Elite BD player, not shabby at all for what most people consider a 'game system'.
Probably the biggest thing the PS3 has over any Bluray player out there is it is a power house of a computer inside and you can connect external hard drives to the PS3 and have your entire DVD library archived and available to watch at the touch of a button. And yes it upconverts those too! Don't want to buy a USB Hard Drive? No problem, you can stream video content to it too.
I'm not the biggest Sony fan out there, but I wouldn't trade my PS3 for anything.
Well, I`ve been down this road before. When you consider all the variables, especially during and after the format war, the PS3 is the best bang for the buck Blu-Ray player, that also is a game console. Sure, at this time, there are stand alone players that will be better, but whatever Sony did here, was good and right on time for the moment.
I have to say i have only owned the ps3 for 2 months now.I have been very impressed so i decied to look and see if there were any reviews.Wow was i satisfied to find out my comprimise with my wife paid off.I wanted to buy an Elite BD player since i own a Elite reciever,after reading the reviews on the ps3 im very happy with my decision.Great bang for the buck!
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