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Four years after the original PlayStation 2 was launched in 2000, Sony bought out a slimmer and a much more compact PS2. It was around the same time the highly popular Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was released which made the redesigned console liven up the PS2 franchise. A couple of years later, Sony launched the PlayStation 3. A vast majority of these PS3 consoles sold to date were sold at a loss, even original 60 GB model. Thankfully, the guys at Sony have bought about some changes in the manufacturing procedures and the redesigned Cell processor as well as other similarly small and power efficient components reduced Sony’s manufacturing costs significantly.
Sony hopes that this trimmed version of the PS3 will similarly improve Sales of the PS3 which has not only lagged behind Nintendo Wii and the Microsoft Xbox 360 but also took some luster off the PS brand. This revamped version was launched as the PS3 slim and could well herald the start of a new profit making era for Sony. The Sony PS3 Console powered with a 45nm Cell Broadband Engine processor sports a 256MB RAM and has BD ROM Blu-ray player and a 120GB hard disk drive. The graphics adapter is a 256MD nVIDIA RSX which provides a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. Lighter and smaller than the hefty 60 GB classic, how was Sony’s console evolved? Read on to find out.
What’s New?
The Sony PlayStation 3 Slim is actually pretty similar to the original PlayStation 3. The Slim offers a smaller size, reduced power consumption and more importantly a lower price. The usage of the 45nm manufacturing process ensures a lower power usage and shrinking in the size of the unit. The PS3 Slim also allows you to bit stream Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD audio. The lift up flap housing and array of memory card are gone, so are the ability to install a different OS, play older PS 2 games and the set of 4 USB ports. Though the new matte look makes the console look less premium, it eliminates the fingerprint and dust prone-ness of the original. There is a blu-ray disc drive an inbuilt Wi-Fi as well something that the XBOX 360 does not. This perhaps explains why it is more expensive than the 360. Mind you, if you account in the cost of a Wi-Fi adapter and a Blu-ray disc drive to the price of a 360, the PS 3 Slim is cheaper. Overall, more practical and buyable.
Design:
A Slimmed Down ‘PS 3’:
Undoubtedly, the first thing one would notice in the PS3 Slim is the design. The design is very similar to the original PS3 but only two thirds of its size. At 2.6 inches tall, 11.4 inches wide and 11.4 inches deep, it feels like a little brother of the original PS 3. It has a dull matte finish with a plastic casing that neither feels classy or robust. The mirrored strip beside the opening of the disc slot and the plastic on the sides make it glamorous. It feels textured and this makes it feel inexpensive.
Stripped Down:
Remember the chrome trimming with the Silver PS 3? It is now replaced with a plain PS 3 logo on the top of the case. The touch sensitive on/ off and eject buttons are absent and we have actual buttons that work when you push them. The number of ports has been reduced from 4 to 2. The master power switch is removed and the newer power button present on the front has a low response time and boots up the console in 20 seconds.
Ports:
The Playstation 3 Slim 120GB Gaming Console does not have as many USB ports the original PS 3.There are only 2 USB ports around the front and behind the back is the HDMI, AV multi-out, optical out and Ethernet ports. The presence of a HDMI connection will satisfy most users and the optical out for connecting it to an AV receiver to take advantage of the Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master. Like the original, the HDMI connection can output 48 bit Deep colour and X.V colour. There is an AV multi connection with a cable which allows you to hook up to TVs which do not have HDMI. There is a memory card missing. And the power cable is now replaced with a slimmer 2 pin cable.
Controller:
Inside the controller is a high precision six axis sensing system that detects fine movements in roll, pitch and yaw and all the three dimensions of movement. This means one thing: Future PS 3 games would involve the usage of hands rather than just thumbs. The PS 3 controller looks like its Dual Shock predecessors; it lacks the force feedback vibrations as it would interfere with the sensing system. It runs on Bluetooth technology and is a hot swappable system. The latter would allow you to pause your game and connect a USB cable to charge your controller while playing.
Looks Cheap:
What we did not really like about the PS 3 Slim is the fact that it looks cheap. As part of a cost cutting measure, Sony has had the choice of removing all the aesthetic design features of the original. We are not against it, but the XBOX 360 sells for cheaper and looks better than this.
Accessories:
Apart from the main gaming console, there is the Sixaxis wireless controller, an AC power cord, an Audio / Video cable and a USB cable provided with the package.
Hardware:
In terms of Volume, the Sony Playstation 3 Slim Game console with Blu Ray Player is one thirds slimmer than its predecessor and at 7 pounds; it joins a league of a more reasonable weight class unlike the original which weighed 11 pounds. It has a 45nm Cell Broadband engine processor and a 256MB RAM. The Cell processor and the co developed Nvidia graphics processor helps the system about 2 trillion calculations which makes it 350 times faster than the PS2, There is a BD ROM Blu-ray disc player and a 120GB hard drive. There is the BD ROM Drive that keeps your discs safe in the event that the console gets moved about. If you have ever accidentally tapped your XBOX 360 the wrong way and found your CD rendered unusable, you would appreciate the feature. The 256 MB Nvidia RSX provides a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. Its HDMI ports boast of delivering uncompressed and unconverted digital picture and sound which enriches the Home Theatre experience. There is also support for Dolby Digital True HD and DTS 5.1 which provides a great sound experience. The wireless interfaces supported are Bluetooth and IEEEE 802.11.
Setup:
Setting up the Sony PS 3 Slim Console is easy as well. When turned on, there is a standard setup option that lets you choose your video and audio outputs, video connections and network settings. If you choose HDMI, the PS console determines the best settings according to your equipment and lets you confirm the changes. One can further refine settings under the XMB menu.
Interface:
The PS 3 uses a version of Sony’s Xross Media bar Interface. While the same interface was slow on the BRAVIA TVs, it was worthwhile on the Slim. It lies at the centre of the PS 3 and is more accessible than the Xbox interface. There is access provided to the PlayStation Network as well for which one does not need to shell out extra.On a machine as powerful as it, the menus were fast and responsive. The easy to use and good to look at menus also respond fast to user input. One can even download themes from the PlayStation Network to change appearance of the menus. Viewing files on a USB is weird as one has to press the triangle button and choose View all which we think is unnecessary.
Supports:
The Sony PlayStation 3 Slim supports a wide variety of formats and hence saves you from forking out for a media bridge. The File format is not fully comprehensive with MPEG4/H.264, MPEG 2, AVI (MJPEG), AVCHD, DivX and WMV video support. If you have a diverse set of videos, you will realize that there are holes in the codec support for some of these file types. But do not worry, there are conversion software that will cure those problems and save one from the “The File is Corrupted “messages. The Music support gives you AAC, WMA and MP 3 as well. One can access BBC iPlayer directly from the XMB too. It also can be used to act as a media hub to stream contents from DLNA compatible networked devices such as computers and hard drives that are connected on routers. There is an inbuilt web browser that allows you to access the Internet.
Features:
If we talk about features on the PS 3 Slim, there is nothing new. However, as a cost cutting measure, Sony has stripped down features like the ability to add another OS such as Linux. One cannot play PS2 games and this might be a negative for some users. The PS 3 uses an all in one remote control which is luxurious, but one cannot use a universal IR to control it. But Omitted features aside; one can expect to achieve the same capabilities as the original PS 3 at a cheaper price. Did we mention that the console has an inbuilt browser and Wi-Fi?
HDMI:
For 1080p video HDMI is a preferred connection as the output is capped at 1080i. It does not offer multichannel analogue outputs and even the audio options are limited. The PS3 supports only multichannel PCM, it had to decode Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus and DTS Master Audio and convert them to PCM. Now the transmitter is changed to allow a raw bit stream output for Dolby TrueHD, DTS HD Master Audio etc. But secondary audio like PiP or those clicks and beeps in Blu-ray disc menus.
Blu-Ray Player:
The PlayStation 3 is not only a great gaming console, but an equally good Blu-ray device as well. The PS 3 games are encoded onto the Blu-ray disc media format which holds 6 times more data than a standard DVD. This increase in capacity along with the powerful processor and great graphics promise mind blowing fames. The PS 3 supports CD ROM, CD RW, DVD ROM, DVD R and DVD+R formats as well.
The PS 3 software update version 2.20 and above includes BD Live support with which one can play discs that support Blu-ray Disc Profile 2.0 and connect to the Internet while playing the discs. But the fact that the PS 3 has a BD ROM player gives it an edge over its rival the Xbox.
BRAVIA Sync:
When you connect the PS 3 Slim to the 32 inch BRAVIA L series TV, you can utilise the BRAVIA Sync and manage the system with the TV remote. To enable it, Go to System settings and select the Control for HDMI option. Once you do that, one can navigate through the XMB Menu and control video playback. You also can turn the display off and the PS 3 with the power button. But you cannot turn the pair back on. It is a neat feature, but considering the limitations, it is pretty useless as you will still need the DualShock 3 handy.
Gaming Device:
The PlayStation has always been intended to be a gaming device and in this field, it is more powerful device than the Xbox 360. In terms of graphical fidelity, the PS 3 is good. But in terms of being an all round gaming device, the Xbox lies miles ahead of the PS 3 thanks to the ton of games available. Sure the Xbox was launched a year early and has more titles than the PS 3 does. But the Xbox 360 has a great gaming platform and XBOX live is way better than the PlayStation network and hence it leads in sales. The PlayStation is expected to catch up with the Xbox 360 soon., let us hope it does.
New Titles:
Apart from the several games which are exclusively available on the PS 3 as well as an extensive list of major gaming titles, The PlayStation is still a gaming console. There are several top titles in high definition waiting to be released such as the Call of Duty Modern Warfare, FIFA 10, Final Fantasy XIII, Metal Gear Solid 4, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Tekken 6, Gran Turismo 5, MAG and many more
Backward Compatibility:
Other than the original 60 GB model, no other version of the PS 3 is compatible with the older and popular PS 2 games. If you own a PS2 and loads of PS 2 games and plan to ditch them to upgrade, beware. If you want to play all your PS 2 games, you will need to hang on to your old console.
PlayStation Network:
Like the XBOX Live, Sony has introduced the PlayStation Network and with 120GB storage capacity one can store downloadable games, music, photos and videos. The PlayStation network has applications such as PlayStation home, a 3D gaming community that allows interaction, communication and sharing of your gaming experience. While connecting to the network is free of cost, the games and other content come at a cost. Since it is newly launched, it has a couple of loop holes and as of now, the Xbox Live is much better than this.
In-built Web-browser:
There is a built in browser in the PS3. One can connect a standard keyboard to it for typing without using the tedious virtual keyboard Sony provides. The browser is fairly decent and offers limited flash support. The web browser allows accessing the XL version of YouTube as well as other media sharing sites such as Picasa etcetera. One can transfer files from your PC or other media device over the network without the need of a media PC.
NetFlix:
The PS 3 Slim 120GB allows Netflix streaming and one needs an Instant Streaming Disc that uses BD Live to stream movies and television episodes from the Netflix server. Netflix streaming requires a membership subscription, the Streaming Disc and a broadband internet connection. For installing and title selection, a computer and a PS 3 are needed. After the Streaming Disc is inserted, your PS 3 will sync up your Instant Queue and one can hop over to their Netflix account to watch your selected titles, just like a DVD queue. While it is free and easy to use, it lacks quality and is bothersome. Hopefully, with time, things video and audio quality would improve.
Performance:
One might wonder that whether the new slimmer processor and its stripped features might affect the performance of the PS 3 Slim. There is no need to worry as Sony has retained the internal power horse it was originally.
Blu-ray Playback:
The results surprised us and hence we had to test them over again. The Blu-ray player is actually slower, just a tiny bit slower than the 60GB PS3. The time taken in between inserting the disc and having it register in the menu was the same, about 10 seconds. Time taken for the movie to get loaded was a few seconds quicker on the classic. Not a huge difference, but considering that it has been quite some time since BD ROM technology has been around, it should have been better off.
Home Cinema:
One of the major trump cards that the PS 3 Slim has is its in built Blu-ray drive that allows you to play back Blu-ray movies in full HD 1080p. The most important home cinema feature is the ability to bit stream Dolby DTS and DTS HD Master Audio to a receiver over HDMI. To be sure we checked the console through a HD audio receiver and popped in a CD. After selecting bit stream from the BD/DVD Audio output format from the Video Settings, the audio output never sounded better. Does it make any difference? Unless you are an audiophile, it would not make much difference to the regular users.
1080p/1080i Playback:
The PS 3 handled all video content flawlessly well. The Sharpness test showed that no edge enhancement was added to the video after decoding. The machine delivered 1920 x 1080 pixels without any sort of cropping. The machine makes sure that the images from a movie are not tampered with and the image is portrayed as it was intended to. Since it decodes video and audio well, we give it a thumbs up.
DVD Playback:
One of the key factors that determine the picture quality of the standard def content is the quality of the Film mode detection. Though the player was not able to smooth jaggies in extreme angles, one part where PS 3 is impressive is Scaling. These scalers do not over emphasize on things or cause things to get blurry. Instead the image is “scaled “ up to smooth edges and ensure detailed areas remain as they are intended to be.
Noise:
Not only is the PS 3 slim power efficient, but it operates a lot more quietly as well. With less energy being wasted as heat, the fan does not need to work hard and hence lesser irritating noise is pumped out. The 17 blade fan and the 95 mm fan seemed to be slightly quieter than the original even while playing games. Most of the noise produced is actually from the disc drive. The Spinning disc makes more noise than the fan and is annoyingly loud enough. The PS consoles have always been pretty quiet. When compared to the XBOX 360, the PS 3 is stealthier.
Power Consumption:
The one area where Slim shines is the electrical efficiency department. Though the results are not as drastic as the newer fat models, the power consumption has been cut nearly to half since its initial 90nm CPU iterations. The results remained the same across all applications but the consumption during plugged in mode or when the unit is idle is almost as much as the original PS3 consumed.
Warranty:
There is a warranty period of one year provided on the Sony PlayStation 3 Slim from the date of purchase.
Verdict:
The PlayStation 3 Slim is an attempt for Sony to boost their dwindling sales and will it work? We guess it would. Considering that the major problem with the original PS 3 was its price, Sony guess cleverly cut down costs by compromising only on aesthetics and a few features. What they did not compromise is on quality. It is a great blu-ray disc player and its DVD and HD Playback are great. Its inbuilt Wi-Fi and browser are a great plus as well. But if Sony really wants to capture the market, they should work on the PlayStation Home concept and try adding a couple of other features to this marvelous piece. On the whole, a highly recommended model.
Sony PlayStation 3 Slim - Technical Specification Table
Video Memory Installed ( Max )Video adapter memory - 256 MB - GDDR3 SDRAM - IntegratedBluetooth , IEEE 802.11 and gigabit EthernetSupported Format (Progressive)AV Output, HDMI Output, SPDIF Digital Output, USB 2.0Blu-ray drive, XrossMediaBar interface,Cell processor, Nvidia RSX graphicsMotion Detection, Vibration, BluetoothA/V cable, Network cable, USB cable
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