Sony: PS3 'keeps entertainment simple,' 360 and Wii don't

by Randy Nelson { Jan 8th 2009 at 9:15PM }

Checking our inbox this morning, we were greeted by an email from Sony cautioning us that, unlike PlayStation 3, the Xbox 360 and Wii aren't good values for our gaming dollars. There was even a chart (above) attached to spell it out in black & white (& red).

The informercial-esque message -- titled "Keeping Entertainment Simple" -- made our day with colorful accusations, including one that the Xbox 360 "requires ... multiple upgrades and additional external devices, putting a burden on the wallet and adds clutter to the entertainment center." That clutter would be the Wireless Network Adapter, which snaps onto the back of the 360, we suppose. So cluttery!

There were even lighthearted jabs at Wii, like the "fact" that its "lack of enhanced features comes at the expense of a comprehensive entertainment solution." Still, it was the ominous warning that Sony's competitors would "continue peddling add-ons in an effort to keep up" (what, like the PS3 Wireless Keypad and Bluetooth Headset?) that solidified this email as an office classic.

Tags: comparison, marketing, microsoft, nintendo, scea

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 7)

Mike @ Jan 8th 2009 9:20PM

It seems they kind of have a point though...

Poisoned Al @ Jan 8th 2009 9:26PM

...which they don't have a hope of hitting.

Troy @ Jan 8th 2009 9:29PM

Well, I don't want or need wi-fi or blue-ray, so I'm glad MS offers them as options rather that require me to pay for them.

GundamWingEW @ Jan 8th 2009 9:37PM

You're kidding right?

Entertainment is in the eyes of the beholder. For millions of people the Wii is all the "entertainment" they'll need. It may shock sony fanboys like tmac but all these things sony keeps referring to that the ps3 can do don't amount to a hilla beans with the average person.

That's the truth if you're honest with yourself. Joe Blow or Joe Sixpack barely understands how to setup the Wii, Bluray, or the concept of wireless half the time yet sony thinks that adding all this stuff in their machine will somehow make Joe think that it's a great deal...?

Umm no.

And then the 360 while having a lot of the same features as the ps3 has remained true to GAMING first and foremost. It's got the best library of games. The best online service. And ultimately it provides arguable the BEST HD gaming experience.

sony is in last place for a lot of reasons and this is just a few of them.

Jack of all trades...master of NONE.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 9:37PM

fair enough, troy. And what about people who DO want wifi and blu ray in a game console? wouldn't the ps3 be the better value in that case?

ahhhh...

J @ Jan 8th 2009 9:39PM

some people think ps3 has the best library of games. I'll go tell them they're wrong.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 9:40PM

"Well, I don't want or need wi-fi or blue-ray, so I'm glad MS offers them as options rather that require me to pay for them."

It's a good thing Microsoft made 'em so easy and cheap to get if you DO want 'em, then.

oh, wait.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 9:41PM

"some people think ps3 has the best library of games. I'll go tell them they're wrong."

Subjectivity.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 9:43PM

"And then the 360 while having a lot of the same features as the ps3 has remained true to GAMING first and foremost. It's got the best library of games. The best online service. And ultimately it provides arguable the BEST HD gaming experience.

sony is in last place for a lot of reasons and this is just a few of them.

Jack of all trades...master of NONE."

I don't know why people like you act as though, since the PS3 has multimedia features, they're skimping or making the actual gaming more complicated.

When they say that they're 'keeping entertainment simple', they mean that, out of the box, you're getting a device that'll do pretty much anything you want it to - adapters not required. Of course, that point is negated by the PS3's crazy price point, but dollar for dollar it's a damn good deal, considering what ya get.

mister_d @ Jan 8th 2009 9:45PM

Yes, they do have a point. The problem is, the average person looking to buy a new console isn't going to start adding up the extras they might buy and comparing them to the standard features of another system on price. They're also not going to look at something as popular as the Wii, then decide it lacks features and so everyone who has or wants one must be mad.

cranium @ Jan 8th 2009 9:48PM

Sony just won't learn

GundamWingEW @ Jan 8th 2009 9:51PM

@ cranium

Pretty much sums it up...no more comments are really needed but I look forward to them anyways.

Especially the spin from the sony defense league...

J @ Jan 8th 2009 9:52PM

"jack of all trades... master of none"
Stop trying to state opinions as facts, jackass.

I've never thought, while playing a ps3 game, how much more enjoyable it would be playing it on the 360. I just enjoy it.

So far it's still the best value blu ray player.

"That's the truth if you're honest with yourself. Joe Blow or Joe Sixpack barely understands how to setup the Wii, Bluray, or the concept of wireless half the time yet sony thinks that adding all this stuff in their machine will somehow make Joe think that it's a great deal...?"

...If your "honest with yourself"?

Joe Blow used to not even know how to use the Internet and browse websites and download mp3's. Why'd companies bother investing in faster internet speeds? While it may be business-savy, I don't like encouraging companies to appeal to the lowest common denominator.

Joe Blow will learn.

Flit @ Jan 8th 2009 9:54PM

"they mean that, out of the box, you're getting a device that'll do pretty much anything you want it to - adapters not required."

Wii does the same thing, and the 60 gig Xbox will too, ya know, if you buy game systems to play games. It's not like the other two systems are unusable until you buy a WIFI adapter or anything.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 9:55PM

Kickassness,

I was responding to gundam's "360 has the best gaming library" comment.

He stated that as if it's a fact that helps prove the 360 is better.

I was being sarcastic when i said
"some people think ps3 has the best library of games. I'll go tell them they're wrong."

Get it, now?

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 9:56PM

"Wii does the same thing, and the 60 gig Xbox will too, ya know, if you buy game systems to play games. It's not like the other two systems are unusable until you buy a WIFI adapter or anything."

Some of us like having these features, though. Yeah, I buy a game console for games, first and foremost, but that doesn't mean that added features don't help to further justify the purchase.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 9:57PM

J, I thought everyone here knew that I'm obscenely stupid. You new around here?

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:00PM

What is your point gundam?

If I WANT the bluray and wifi, according to you, i should still get the 360, pay $100 for the wifi adapter, and by a separate stand alone blu ray player.

Don't act like you're any better. We're BOTH spinning this.

You can't argue your point by saying "oh you're just bias." That's called an ad hominem. I can be the biggest dick, and still be right.

Just as you can be the biggest dick, and still be wrong.

GundamWingEW @ Jan 8th 2009 10:05PM

Aww the old sony fanboy stanby routine...personal attacks galore.

It may be an opinion but it's a pretty much accurate description of the ps3. It is a master of nothing. It's gaming is severely limited.

LMAO you think it's the best Bluray player out there? Obviously you haven't heard of the Panny DMP-BD35K or any of the other much cheaper Bluray players that perform just as well if not BETTER than your beloved ps3?

And as we discuss this CES 2009 is wrapping up after all the major companies and a few new ones announced NEW Bluray players around the $200 range.

The ps3 had little value to begin with due to the Bluray player since the format war was raging on. Even now that it's over other players are available to the average consumer at a lower price and are dedicated strictly to playing movies.

So it's got a lot more competition and it's value is not as much as it was.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:10PM

None of these fools - gundam, flit, cranium, troy -have addressed what a person SHOULD get if they do care about those features.

For those who DO care about having all of it in one, the ps3 IS the best value. That's NOT an opinion.

Thinking the 360 is STILL the best gaming console despite all that, IS an opinion, just as thinking that the ps3 is the best despite XBL being more functional.

I don't care about XBL just as you guys don't care about blu ray. So i got the ps3, and you got the 360. I paid extra for blu ray, you paid extra for XBL. That doesn't make either of us wrong.

So stop confusing opinions with facts.

STOP arguing with OPINIONS.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:11PM

Hey, Gundam, it's starting to sound like you don't know what you're talking about.

Most cheaper Blu-Ray players lack BD Live, Dolby True HD, and tend to be really slow and unintuitive to use. Not to mention, they take much longer to load, and many do not have the range of video and audio options that the PS3 does.

In other words, please don't talk out yo ass - there aren't many players that perform better than the PS3 does, and the ones that do aren't gonna be easily found for under $400.

Oh, and, it's gaming isn't 'severely limited'. Yeah, it still has a few less exclusives than the 360, but this year has been stellar for the PS3, and to try and act as though the system has no games at all... that's just stupid.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:19PM

gundamn,

Like i said, so you're saying that if i want blu ray and wi fi with gaming, you think it's best to get:

1. $200 xbox360
2. $100 wifi adapter
3. $200 stand alone blu ray

?

or just:

1. $400 ps3

You don't care about blu ray or wifi, so go enjoy your 360. But I do, so the ps3 is the best value.

What don't you get?
You want to tell me that it's wrong that I enjoy blu ray and value wifi?

Don't think you're getting voted up because you make any sense. It's because there are many more defensive 360 fanboys here than there are ps3 fanboys.

Jcarpio @ Jan 8th 2009 10:24PM

okay, i'll bite on sony's argument. How about the reasons i'd buy a gaming console.

360 arcade: 1 retail and 5 arcade Games included

360 premium: headset, hdd, HDTV/SDTV connection cable and 2 retail Games included

360 elite: headset, hdd, HDTV/SDTV connection cable, HDMI cable and 2 retail games included

wii? a pack in disk with 5 minigames included

80 gig ps3? 0 games included

GundamWingEW @ Jan 8th 2009 10:24PM

Fatass you don't know what you're talking about. Why don't you do research and look up CES 2009?

Several companies have announced Profile 2.0 players.

CURRENT players such as the Samsung BD-P1500 support Profile 2.0. So I don't know what the hell you're talking about. It depends on which company you look at.

Even the Panny players are in the $230 range depending on model. Not sure and don't care what price sony sells their overpriced electronics.

Again there are current players on the market that are at $199 and are Profile 2.0.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:26PM

"It's gaming is severely limited. "

What the fuck does that mean, gundam?!

Now you're just being silly and exaggerating.

Is the gameplay in LBP, MGS4, Uncharted 2, and Resistance 2 SEVERELY limited?
"SEVERELY?"

Yes, the multiplatforms usually give the 360 platform some extra content, but that makes it FAR FAR FAR from "severely" limited on the ps3.

I think your intelligence is severely limited.

GundamWingEW @ Jan 8th 2009 10:28PM

I didn't take the time to look at your list after you mentioned the failure that is LBP.

Anyways besides MGS4 there's nothing in sony's library that is worthy of any attention.

And fatass you're the one who's talking out of your ass. Clearly you haven't looked at recent prices for Bluray players.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:32PM

I've been reading and watching CES coverage all day, mang.

Most $200 range players aren't 2.0, and the ones that are, are missing other features that higher end blu-ray players (and the PS3) have.

Panasonic models seem to considerably lower the amount of features the lower you go in price. The cheapest I could find a fully featured one was at $300 (funny enough, it was the one you listed), and while that is a stellar price, I just don't understand why all you've seemed to be capable of doing in this thread is poo-poo the PS3 - it's a great Blu-ray player for its price, and for that price you get quite a bit more than just a blu-ray player.

Whats with the console warrior BS that's been gripping the mindsets of Joystiq users these last few months?

GundamWingEW @ Jan 8th 2009 10:35PM

LOL....another holier than thou Joystiq poster.

Seriously get over yourself.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:36PM

"And fatass you're the one who's talking out of your ass. Clearly you haven't looked at recent prices for Bluray players."

I have, and as I say, many just plain don't perform as well. Take that as you will.

"I didn't take the time to look at your list after you mentioned the failure that is LBP."

LBP is a good game. Yeah, it's marred by some issues, but don't paint it as a failure, because that'd be like painting GOW2 as a failure - another game that had quite a few issues, but is still a fun game in the end.

"Anyways besides MGS4 there's nothing in sony's library that is worthy of any attention."

And now, I know that you're totally trollan. Either that, or, as a 360 owner, you're just not interested in keeping up to date with the PS3's library. Lemme tell you, though, for most of us, there's quite a selection available on the PS3. We get that you don't like (or don't know about, or will blindly bash, I don't know) a bunch of the PS3's titles, but don't talk like the PS3 has nothing to offer the rest of us, mang.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:38PM

"LOL....another holier than thou Joystiq poster.

Seriously get over yourself."

Well, excuse me for not bashing other systems into oblivion because they aren't my thing. Didn't know that was a bad thing.

Holier than thou, my ass. I just don't understand why, this far into the console war, with each of the systems having plenty of reasons to be owned and enjoyed by gamers, there are still so many gamers who act as though (insert console here) is worthless, or has no games (lol this is 2009, even the Wii has games), or this, or that.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:39PM

OMG, that's still just you're opinion, gundam.

Are you seriously oblivious to the FACT that you are ARGUING with OPINIONS?

You are truly retarded. (opinion)

and jcarpio,

that is the most biased incomplete list.

You included "HDD" when u listed 360 elite.
But when you listed the 80 gb PS3, all it got was a "?"
WTF do you think the 80 gb stood for?

So along with the non-proprietary HDD, there's also the other 2 other features whose value we've all being arguing over this whole time.

And if you get the bundled ps3, they DO include games.

At least you didn't argue with opinions, jcarpio. Instead you argued with limited facts.

copa @ Jan 8th 2009 10:40PM

"It seems they kind of have a point though..."

GiantBomb agrees. They've fleshed out the chart here:

http://media.giantbomb.com/uploads/0/26/855758-xboxisfornerds.png

Mr Khan @ Jan 8th 2009 10:43PM

First comment: guaranteed to be upvoted or downvoted, or your bandwidth back!

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:44PM

It's okay, kickassness.

It's the thought that counts ;P

You're not stupid. Just blinded by anger over gundam's trolling. You ended up attacking everyone, lol.

Little Big PSN ID: johnnynumber5 @ Jan 8th 2009 10:44PM

GundamWing/Vesper/Asshat/Whatever

Glad to see your back from being banned again. Oh and stop being such a vesper ... err ... yourself.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:50PM

"You ended up attacking everyone, lol."

Where?

Hate to toot my own horn but I've got to be one of the most civil posters on this site. You've gotta be civil when you're a certified Wii Defender, ya know.

Flit @ Jan 8th 2009 10:50PM

"For those who DO care about having all of it in one, the ps3 IS the best value. That's NOT an opinion."

yes it is. Value is not a fact, it's opinion, Dumbass. Cost is a fact.

WIFI does not add 'value' for me, nor does a disc media player, whichever format, considering i can stream HD movies off of Netflix. The 'value' of netflix to me is HUGE compared to buying $40 blu ray discs, or hell, $20 DVD discs.

I'd imagine it's this kind of thinking that's causing PS3 to fall behind, "we put all this stuff that we think is valuable in it, why don't people think it's valuable!? You should get ANOTHER JOB to buy one of the Valuable things!"

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:52PM

Hey, kickassness. I think we're leaving our comments in the wrong section. There are people saying the same things as us on the other pages, and getting voted up.

Let's go over there and rejuvinate our self esteem. There's no need to stay in the front lines.

Look for me and let's start our own string of comments. :) And by that I mean I'll hijack another ps3 fan's post that already got 3 hearts.

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:55PM

"WIFI does not add 'value' for me, nor does a disc media player, whichever format, considering i can stream HD movies off of Netflix. The 'value' of netflix to me is HUGE compared to buying $40 blu ray discs, or hell, $20 DVD discs."

First, I dunno what you're talking about when you say that the PS3 is 'falling behind' - it was behind to start with, and has recently been picking up steam. Still has a ways to go, but yeah.

Second, what may not add value for you, can add value for some of us. My PS3 is in my bedroom. My computer is downstairs. Meaning? Wired ain't a possibility, mang. I have Netflix, and a good amount of their content isn't available in HD (oh, and, uh, you can stream/dl on the PS3 too. selection isn't as vast, but it doesn't require a subscription and allows the whole disc thing to be bypassed). And if you're paying $40 for Blu-Ray discs, you're shopping in the wrong place, lol.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 10:57PM

kickassness,

I was joking about you "attacking everyone."

What I meant is that because of gundam pissing you off, you got so angry you couldn't tell who was on your side. ;P Like me.

You just pointed your guns outward, started shooting and spinning. But not really, cause I fail. =\

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 10:59PM

"What I meant is that because of gundam pissing you off, you got so angry you couldn't tell who was on your side. ;P Like me."

Nah, I'm just real awful at detecting internet sarcasm. I don't get angry over the net...

...unless you dis my Wii...

Jcarpio @ Jan 8th 2009 11:03PM

@J

Facts are facts, I get to play something using a wii or a 360 the moment I come home with the box and hook it up. even if i just bought 1 game along with the purchase. i'd still have more games to play on those systems. The HDD represented something that's used for gaming that's why i mentioned them.

I looked at PS3 over christmas. but i saw that it was almost a 500 dollar purchase if i wanted to play something when i got home.

Oh and one more gripe about the PS3. If you market it as a blu-ray player include hi-def cables and a remote.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 11:05PM

flit flit flit... tsk tsk.

Let me requote my quote, that you quoted.

"For those who DO care about having all of it in one, the ps3 IS the best value. That's NOT an opinion."

The key part of this quote is the very beginning, and the context, which is that we were referring to Blu ray and wifi.

For those who DO CARE...[[[DO CARE]]]... about wifi and blu ray. the ps3 IS the best value. That is a fact.

Then you argued, and i'm paraphrasing, "oh it's not a fact, because i DON'T CARE about blu ray and wifi."

Did you spot the fail hidden in your argument, yet?

The Fatass of Kickassness @ Jan 8th 2009 11:06PM

"If you market it as a blu-ray player include hi-def cables and a remote."

This, I can agree with. The controller functions well enough as a remote but there's no excuse not to have at the very least component cables bundled with the system.

required @ Jan 8th 2009 11:11PM

I agree. The PS3 is a much better value and a much more fulfilling experience. In addition I totally adore their PSP interoperability. It's nice being able to remotely control the PS3 from anywhere in the world.

J @ Jan 8th 2009 11:13PM

jcarpio,

What's your point? We're not talking about the same thing. Now you're saying the ps3 has less value because it leaves out cables.

I said your list failed because you didn't mention that the ps3 ALSO includes HDD, and blu ray and wifi. Your list was intentionally incomplete.

And again, just because you don't care about wifi or blu ray doesn't mean the ps3 isn't the best value IF YOU DO CARE. That was my main argument, which you completely disregarded. And believe it or not, there are people who care, so they should get the ps3 and remember to buy cables.