I don't know much about the sony playstation 3's... It is a gift for my 14yo cousin. It seems like there are different versions. I know they cost a lot, and that is ok, I just don't want to get ripped off ... to badly.

I don't care about any movies or games at this point, as his parents will buy that
I found this that seems like a good deal
http://www.cranberrymerchant.com/0/5887748.html

any thoughts?????

the 60gb version has a retail of $600, and the 20gb version is $500, that "store" is a huge rip off. thats like giving somebody $500 for a Celie D.

I agree, the only reason for buying that now is because of availability, but it is def a rip off!

Best,

3Ball

Here is what i am planning on building, tell me what you would change
I am mostly concerned with gaming performance, without spending diminishing $$$ carelessly for diminishing returns to having bleeding edge stuff. money is not a concern per se, however I think the extra $$$ for the 6400 over the 6300 justifies itself, whereas the extra $$$ to go above that does not. Same thing with a 680i mobo versus a solid 965 mobo, 7950 vs 8800 etc etc. I am trying to hit the sweet spots so to speak.

CPU: E6400
MB: Abit ab9 pro
GPU: EVGA 7950 Super clocked
Mem: 2 gb corsair xms C4 4 4 4 12
PSU: OCZ gamestream 700
HDD: Raptor 150gb
Case: Antec 900

I figure the 8800 are to much $$ right now, so i figure in 6 months or whenever i can sell the 7950 and get the 8800 .... if and when i play a game where i need it. I don't remember why i choose that mobo, but i had some reason for it. I will jimmy rig something for the wiring. I will get this nifty thin IDE cables or something.

Thanks for the insight on the PS 3 also.

Im not sure if buying and selling a 7950 will make up for the cost of the 8800 whatever it may be 6 months from now, you may just end up spending a total of about the same or possibly 25 to 50 bucks more if you were to get it now, when you consider that I would think that the xtra 6 months of life on the 8800 would be worth it, but I could be wrong! Also if you get the AW9-D you can drop a quad core in it later on if you want...you never know!!! 8)

P.S. If you are OC'ing then I would maybe consider getting the Xeon 3050, same as 6400, but higher quality chip using less voltage @ around 10 bucks more!

Best,

3Ball

dont buy a ps3 buy a 360, theyre cheaper and better. less problems better core. the list goes on

Halo 2 is for the xbox/360, that means its the best console in the world. period.

I wasn't a fan of Tribes before Bungie stole the concept, so I don't enjoy Halo.

I agree with stevenp, the ps3 overheats as well and the controllers disconnect continuously. I enjoy both systems, but I do like the 360 more, but that is mostly because of the titles. I would just buy whichever console depending on what games they offer and the controller that you like the best. They are going to run games very very similarly and look pretty much the exact same. It all comes down to programming between the 2.

P.S. They both suck at playing older titles, lol...oh well!

Best,

3Ball

Also could you describe what you mean by the stolen concept of the game Heyyou, because I play both and have never noticed anything(they seem completely different to me). Just curious!

Best,

3Ball

Halo:
Amazing solo first-person shooter, hours of real LAN parties with it on Blood Gulch, Prison, and so on

Halo 2:
Shiny and colorful Halo variant. Built for multi-player on XB Live only, solo play was rather bland and lame. Weapon performance was lame, sword is even lamer. Overall i call it a "Shiny Halo w/ multi-player"

Halo 3:
Since its not out yet i can't say much but from what i read it sounds like what Halo 2 should have been.

A word to Microsoft: Your not that great at making premiere games so don't tell the people who can how to build them. Halo 2 should have been the end all of the Halo series, and i would have waited another year to get the game Bungie originally wanted.

Halo 2 = overrated, and i'm not at all excited for 3 after what 2 did to me

I don't know if this will help you, but I'll give you my 0.02$.

I've been a happy owner of the PS2 slimline for almost 2 years. I never owned a PS1 because I played the games I wanted on an emulator for the PC. I also enjoyed PC games so much more. When I bought the PS2, it was a gift to myself for finishing my second year of medical school But I would have never bought it if they didn't come out with the less expensive slimline version. I should also mention that I bought mine new with a mod chip in it, and I would have never bought one without the chip. I bought it primarily to play games not available on the PC like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy (with the exceptions of 7, 8, and 11).

As for the PS3, I would never buy one right now. I would wait until they come out with a slim version in the future and spend 600$ on a 8800GTX instead. If you have to upgrade your entire computer just to have it then it's not worth it.

How old is your little brother, by the way? As a kid, I was much happier with Nintendo than anything else (Neo Geo, TurboGrafix16, etc). I know that times have changed, but I would still recommend Nintendo to young children given its...." wholesomeness" is probably the one word I have to describe it. I enjoyed PCs even more than Nintendo in my youth. Those were the days before modems so I was left alone to break and fix my computer repeatedly, learning a lot in the process. It's quite different now.

Didn't see that he is 14-years-old, sorry. That sort of changes everything

Buy an old 7950 now off Ebay and then upgrade to DX10 later.