Why the PlayStation 3 is an Essential Part of your Home Entertainment System

The PlayStation 3 was released by Sony back in 2006 and described as an entertainment system. The initial response was lukewarm thanks to a high price tag and a lack of supported games. By 2008 the PS3 was lagging in the console war but with Blu-ray becoming more popular and a number of clever updates planned by Sony this year sales have grown. The original PS3 console has been superseded by a new slim version which is smaller and more efficient, the firmware has been significantly updated, there is now a huge library of games available and the price has come down. These are all great reasons to get a PS3. Let’s take a closer look at the benefits.

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You can play titles from the original PlayStation on the PS3 but there is no support for PlayStation 2 games. You can also download new games and demos direct to the hard drive. Sony is developing a new controller for the PS3 which will bring Wii style control to the console as another option. There is no doubt it is the best gaming console available at the moment and it is capable of much more.

The PlayStation 3 has an XMB (Cross Media Bar) menu system which is very easy to navigate and one of the choices is to access a web browser. Since you can hook the PS3 up to your TV (HD or standard) in a variety of ways this gives you Internet access on your main TV. In the UK they have also added a direct link and special support for BBC iPlayer which allows you to stream recent shows for free.

The PlayStation 3 supports Blu-ray discs. It can be connected to an HDTV via an HDMI cable and it is capable of outputting footage in full 1080p high resolution. It also supports high definition audio including Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio.

Not only does the PS3 support Blu-ray playback but it can also play DVDs as well. In fact it doesn’t just play them. It upscales them to 1080p as well. It can handle original DVDs and DVD-Rs. The upscaling compares well to mid priced Blu-ray players and is only outshone by top of the line devices which are a great deal more expensive.