Troy Benedict Says Welcome to part two of my comparison of the Xbox 360 Elite and the PlayStation 3. This article will focus on which system offers the optimal home theater experience.I will briefly go over the structure of this series. During the comparison I will first look at the simple facts of each category and pass a judgment based only on the facts. I will then take a deeper look at each system's strengths and weaknesses in each category. For example, I will offer a counter-point in some instances or discuss any hidden fees or required accessories that aren't mentioned in the simple facts.
Most people might immediately think that the PlayStation 3 is the better deal, simply for Blu-ray. But is it really? Simple Facts:
- The PS3 and Xbox 360 can play CD and DVD format discs.
- Both can be easily set up to stream video over a home network, from a Windows-based PC running Windows Media Player 11.
- Both can output resolutions of up to 1080p.
- Both systems have standard and high-definition television and movie content that can be "rented" from their respective online video service. Each video services has some exclusive content only viewable on that console.
- Only the PS3 has the option to buy and own select digital movies from its online video service.
- Only the PS3 can play high definition Blu-ray discs.
- The Xbox 360 can play HD-DVD formatted discs by using the official HD-DVD drive, however the HD-DVD format is no longer supported.
- On average, Blu-ray titles are significantly more expensive than the DVD version.
- Both systems have one HDMI port.
- Only the PS3 has an optical digital output port.
- Both systems come packaged with standard definition cables. HDMI or component cables require additional purchases.
- The Xbox 360 has Netflix integration, but requires a Gold membership and a Netflix account to use.
Judgment: Blu-ray is a really good selling point for the PlayStation 3. However, you're not going to experience the benefits of Blu-ray unless you have an HD television and either an HDMI or component cable.
On standard definition television, using the included composite cables, both systems are equal.
However, on high definition televisions, the PlayStation 3 is the better deal, hands down.
Deeper Look: Both the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 are capable of high resolution graphics and video, but neither system comes packed with the required cables. The non-Arcade versions of the Xbox 360 used to come packaged with a set of component cables, but this is no longer the case with the new Xbox 360 Elite packages. I find it a little more forgiving for the Xbox 360 not to come packaged with any HD cable, simply because it doesn't have a high-definition disc drive. The PlayStation 3, however, because of it's Blu-ray functionality should, in my opinion, come packaged with at least a set of component cables. Essentially, some additional costs are required for high-definition, regardless of which system you own.
It is a fact that only the PlayStation 3 can play high-definition Blu-ray discs out-of-the-box. But is it also a fact that both the 360 and PS3 systems can play DVDs, and both can upscale DVDs to 1080p (but the end product isn’t as crisp and clear as true high-def, as should be expected). DVD is still the most popular and accessible video disc format, despite what popular online retailer's top-ten lists may say. Most popular movies will see a Blu-ray release, but not all content released on video will make it to Blu-ray. Standalone Blu-ray movie releases are typically $10 more than the DVD equivalent, and are $20-30, if not significantly more, for boxed sets.
The Xbox and PlayStation offer premium video content in both standard and high definition versions. Both systems have exclusive movies and television series that can only be watched on the respective system. Typically, rentals run no more than $6. The PlayStation store allows users to purchase and own select movies for around $15. Some titles are available for cheaper. The Xbox 360 does not offer a download-to-own services for movies.
The Xbox gold members with Netflix accounts can watch any available Netflix Instant Watch movies or television series. An annual subscription for a gold membership is $50 and the cheapest Netflix membership runs about $10 per month.
The Netflix Instant Watch began as an option for Netflix members to watch a movie instantly from their computer’s web browser, and has grown to integrate itself with other hardware systems, namely the Xbox 360.
The Netflix integration was included with last year's major update to the Xbox 360 dashboard, nicknamed The NXE (New Xbox Experience). Since then, the available video catalog has grown tremendously and the functionality of Netflix on the Xbox has improved greatly.
Entire seasons of television shows and a larger selection of movies are available to watch in HD through the Instant Watch. Improvements to the streaming service, included with this year's most recent update, load movies much faster than they ever have, and even those who have slower broadband connections, now claim to be able to watch HD content without issue.
While the selection of quality titles and variety of available HD-content via Netflix Instant Watch is impressive, only a very small percentage of popular titles are actually available in this format. As I write this article, only 4 titles of Netflix's Top 100 list are available to watch through Instant Watch. 4%, no matter how you spin it, is a VERY low percentage.
I truly and honestly think that that digital distribution is going to be the way of the future, but it’s going to take time. One only needs to look to music distribution services like iTunes, Zune, and Amazon to see how viable this option is. Xbox and PlayStation both have a tremendous library of games available only for download, and both have an ever increasing catalog of video on-demand content from their respective video stores, both in standard and high-definition. With digital content, one doesn't need to have a Blu-ray or HD-DVD drive to watch high-definition content, but we're not quite to that point where everybody is on board with this idea. Disc-based formats, especially for games and movies, is still a very popular and preferred option.
Netflix for the Xbox can be a huge rival to the blu-ray HD exclusiveness of the PS3, but it's going to take some time. The availability of HD content is slim, and only a very small percentage of the current popular titles, are available through the Instant Watch.
Chances are, if you have a PlayStation 3, you probably also have a Netflix subscription to take advantage of their available Blu-ray library. Netflix offers Blu-ray discs as part of its rental service, and more than 85 of the Top 100 movies are available in Blu-ray.
Even though Blu-ray is more expensive, the costs are becoming more reasonable, and it's obvious that the format is gaining popularity. No matter which system you go with for your home theater experience, you are going to have to spend some money.
If you're looking for the best high-definition home theater experience, you're going to need a high-defintion television. The best and easiest HD experience comes with the PlayStation 3.
While Netflix's Instant Watch might make for a pleasant experience for some movies and television series, until it offers more popular titles, in high-definition, the PlayStation 3 and Blu-ray will have the upper hand.
These are reasons why the PlayStation 3 is the best option for your home theater experience.
Next up on the pound-for-pound comparison of the Xbox 360 and PS3 is: which one has the better game library?
Stumble On The Goozex Report!
29 comments:
And dont forget you can also download PlayOn on your PC and stream netflix instant queue through your ps3 just as good as the 360 and all you need is a netflix account as PSN is free. Also SONY pictures movies are not available on netflix instant queue on the 360 because those movies belong to sony. Thats a lot of movies you cant watch.
"Both can output resolutions of up to 1080p."
LIE!
360 can output UPSCALED 1080p, not NATIVE
Also, you talk about the home theater experience, but neglect to mention the extreme advantages the PS3 has in the sound department. While the 360 can only do up to Dolby Digital 5.1, even with an HDMI cable, the PS3 can do Dolby Digital Plus, DTS, DTS-HD, Dolby True HD, DTS-Master Audio, PCM 5.1 and PCM 7.1 at up to 24bit/192hz!! If you are watching a Blu-Ray movie, that's a significant advantage over DVD and Netflix. The PS3 can also do games in PCM 7.1 as well. In addition, the PS3 has HDMI 1.3a while the 360 only has HDMI 1.2 making the PS3 more future-proof. So IMO, for Home Theater, it's not even close.
"Only the PS3 has an optical digital output port."
Since when... i am staring at my 360 right now with an optical cable running to my amp...
The reason they say PS3 only has a optical output is because many people don't notice the optical output on the ac and hd cord
You mentioned DVD playback being supported, but not the fact that the 360 has the worst DVD player ever. Best graphics chip in a console and a $30 Walmart DVD player blows it away. Very sad.
Netflix has HD streaming =)
The title of this article states "Which offers better hometheater experience?"
Yet you forget to mention the audio dept. dont forget that the PS3 offers all DTS and Dolby Digital formats, plus 7.1 PCM, and the recent PS3 slim offers even more, Bravia Sync through HDMI and DTS-HD- Dolby Digital HD on bitstream (a god send). Plus the PS3 offers HDMI 1.3 which offers full range RGB and super White, some thing the XBOX 360 cant out put.
When it comes to theater systems PS3 is in a class of its own, a class where neither the WII or 360 dare to touch.
PSN Video Service has more exclusive content.
X360 does not upscale dvd's they look absolutely terrible compared to the ps3
360 by far and here’s why; the 360 can is a Media Center extender, if your PC has BLURAY you have it on your 360 now. You can watch any TV Recorded by your PC and Media Center; you have tons of Media Center plug-in that allow you to watch things like You Tube, use things like Skype, and stream Pandora. They also have a plug-in for Hulu on the way with tons of other ones. The ability to watch Netflix movie with your friends is killer. I know the PS3 has a browser but watching Netflix through a browser isn’t the same as watching it through the 360 viewer. I can also stream music from Media Player and Zune. Any movies you cannot find on Netflix you can download from MS store and watch them.
They both have positives and negatives, the only solution get both. My PS3 plays my Blu-rays and my 360 plays my camcorder 1080p .mov's. The 360 plays DVDs very poorly.
I have to disagree entirely even though the report is not biased towards any particular system. Why? You make three cardinal errors in your deductions:
1. "On average, Blu-ray titles are significantly more expensive than the DVD version."
FALSE! On Average, a DVD is released for $20-25 SRP and a Blu-ray at $30-35 SRP. However, with Actual Retail Price factored in, most Blu-rays end up either being cheaper than a new DVD or roughly the same exact price. You can get great Blu titles for under $10, some titles that simultaneously would cost you much more to purchase on DVD. Considering how much DVDs cost 3 years into their market penetration, Blu-ray is actually being sold at a cheaper price than DVD was in the same time frame. The argument that "Blu-ray is more expensive" is almost always a complete farce, as I have yet to pay more than $20 for any one Blu-ray title.
2. Damning the PS3 based on the lack of an HDMI or Component cord.
I have one thing to say which refutes such a ridiculous argument entirely:
Oh, boo hoo. You have to pay $5 dollars for an HDMI cord. Why should I have pity on you again? This isn't 2006, HDMI cords don't cost $50 anymore, there is no logical complaint to be made here.
3. Digital Distribution is the way of the future.
Umm...no? It's a nice option, but the technology behind Digital Distribution can't even hope to keep up with the technology behind home entertainment. As it is, finding legal Digital copies of any move, music, or video game file in even semi-decent quality right now is incredibly hard to do. The quality always ends up suffering somewhere, whether it be bitrate or screen resolution or even just the level of High Definition actually presented. As it is, it is difficult to find music files to download which provide FLAC or better quality, let alone finding any movie or game files like that. Now, I'm not saying Digital Distribution won't have it's place, I'm simply saying it has no chance of taking over. Why? Because, people like to own something and collect something. Remember Divx players? Yeah, they were the competition for DVDs, and they failed because even if you owned the disc, you had to pay a fee to watch the film EVERY TIME you wanted to watch it. Digital Distribution reminds me of that, because the company is still in complete control of what you do and don't own and how long you own it. When the Music, Movie, or Video Game content is placed on a format you can take home and own and use for yourself without big brother constantly watching, you're going to be more likely to purchase that option, aren't you? Well, judging from how incredibly badly DVD beat out Divx, I'd have to say your answer to that would probably end up being "yes". Regardless, the fact still remains that the quality of Digital Distribution lags incredibly behind the quality of Disc Distribution. Music companies are re-releasing popular albums now in even better quality than ever before...in disc form. Movie companies are re-rendering and cleaning up films for re-release in the highest quality possible....in disc form. Video Game companies put the most effort into their most popular games delivering the highest quality possible...IN DISC FORM. I'm not living in the past here, it's the past, present, and future, and I do not forsee a time when anyone will want big brother deciding what they can and can't "own" and for how long, or a time when people won't want to own something outright in a manner in which they can hold it in their hands and know for sure that they own it.
I'm sure a lot of people will tell me I'm full of myself or I'm a snob for high quality or whatever...so be it, the fact remains you can't get the same quality or even the same product from Digital Distribution as you can in Disc form. It's time for people to stop living in delusion and accept the fact that not everything is going to be just like the Jetsons. You don't see any flying cars around here, you don't have a damn robot nanny, so stop expecting Digital Distribution to be the "messiah" or something. It's simply another option, not "the next step".
im watching The Final Destination right Now on my PS3. I downloaded it last night through my PS3s Web Browser along with the 2,000 other Titles i have gotten over the past 2 years. all right in front of me on my 320GB PS3 (soon to be 1TB) with 1.5TB of External HDDs. I KNOW a 360 CAN DO THAT.
"""NOT"""
To the only person who said he'd go with the 360:
Sure, *if* your PC has a blu-ray. Given the fact that most console gamers choose the console because they don't want to upgrade their PC, chances are there aren't many console gamers with blu-ray drives. Not to mention the fact that all the stuff you can stream from your PC to your 360 is just as easy to do with the PS3. Thanks to Windows 7 I don't even have to install additional software on my PC to access all the media from my PS3. And even better, I can be visiting my family in Colorado and stream movies from my PC to my PS3 which are still at home in another state and then watch it on my PSP, and I can even do that with my massive MP3 library. I can't do that with my 360.
How can you review the home theater experience each console provides and completely neglect sound? The majority of the investment of a high quality home theater system is going to be in audio equipment. The PS3 runs away with the audio portion of this debate. It's not even close. I can't help but doubt you have a decent HT setup of your own after reading this, thus disqualifying you from being able to provide an accurate assessment.
You make this much closer than it actually is. Perhaps you should have a separate category called "Streaming Integration", where I agree with you, it's close. HOWEVER, if you are only focusing on a HOME THEATER EXPERIENCE, the 360 is hopelessly outclassed! As noted by others, you missed all of the advanced audio options of the PS3. In all aspects and especially in a HOME THEATER with a display larger than 50 inches, Bluray on the PS3 just embarrasses poor DVD on the 360. Spin streaming and Netflix however you want, but the PS3 over 360 in HOME THEATER is akin to a perfect game shutout with 27 backwards Ks and the winning team scoring 50 runs just to add insult to injury.
According to reviewLAB.net; Approximately 25% of American households have HDTVs. They also state that 18% of the sales were spurred by HD gaming, Xbox360 and/or PS3.
So... my qestion is, what percentage of HD gamers actually own a HDTV, Xbox360 and PS3 respectively? I'm going to guess about 30% for Xbox360 owners and 40% for PS3 owners.
Meaning a large majority of the people here don't know what they are talking about and are simply fanboying!!!
I own a PS3 and a 360, and have both connected to my Full HD 1080p Aquos with HDMI cables, also both connected by optical audio to my HT, and I can tell you for sure that when it comes to watching a movie, the 360 is not even close to the PS3, and I'm talking about DVDs. I love both consoles regarding games, but when it comes to HomeTheater experience there is only one, the PS3.
In response to Clinton:
I have an HDTV, a PS3, and I had a 360 -- but I sold it because I had no use for it with my set up. I honestly found myself playing games and watching movies only on the PS3, even when I was able to access Netflix instant streaming for nearly the entire time I owned the 360. It has nothing to do with being a "fanboy", it's simply a fact that one console delivers an undeniably better quality in every field possible. That console is the PS3.
Clinton - first, not everyone who posts here lives in the U.S., so your use of statistics, is endearing, but also irrelevant. Since I'm the same "Anonymous" as just prior to your post, I will let you know I use a Mitsubishi HC7000 projector onto a 100" screen. On top of that I have 7 monoblocked speakers and a JL Fathom 113 sub, so sound is important to me and is noticeably superior from a PS3 over a 360. So no, I'm not "fanboying", I am simply stating the visible and audible truth - PS3 obliterates the 360 for HOME THEATER!
Stopped readying any further when I spotted this
"Only the PS3 has an optical digital output port"
What? Are you guys for real?
Please do some proper research next time before posting crap like this.
Complete and utter fuck up and I don't even know who won ;)
i think its quite obvious.
1 the ps3 supports 1080P movies off disk the 360 does not. 2 the ps3 supports DTS dolby trueHD and HDMI 3.1a. how can you call a system "next gen or "HD" when the 360 does not support native 1080P or DTS.
You mention that music has now switched to digital downloads but they are small downloads.Who the fuck is gonna wait days for 25Gig-50Gig downloads? Certainly not me!
Also the PS3 is the better machine out of the box and a much better home theatre machine
even though i would love to watch true 1080P in digital streaming form i know it aint possible as of today.
the bandwidth that would require isnt exactly standard.
so if you want to experience the best moviequality at home right now - blu-ray is a clear winner in this department.
A realistic and colorful article which gave me many ideas.Great representation!
regards,
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