PS3 New and Old, Fat and Slim Compared

Regardless whether you have a launch PlayStation 3 will full PS2 backwards compatibility, or an 80 GB with software PS2 emulation, or an even newer machine with no PS2 hardware at all, it all looked mostly the same from the outside. Regardless of which one you have, people will now be able to tell that you have "one of the older ones."

The new PS3 Slim unveiled today is little different in function to the present 80 GB and 160 GB on store shelves, but in form it's 33 percent smaller, 36 percent lighter, packs a 120 GB HDD and consumes 34 percent less power. Sadly, no PS2 backwards compatibility.

All in all, it sounds like a nice refresh, right? Only if you're not ever planning on installing your own OS – likely a build of Linux – on your PS3. Sony revealed that the new PS3 slim does NOT support the installation of third party OSes, which means the PlayStation 3 from here on out will be a pure gaming and entertainment machine and not so much a super computer in a box that Sony was originally selling it as.

If you're worried about none of that and you're just eager to play some games and watch some Blu-ray movies, then the differences are mostly cosmetic. Check out these pictures for the comparison:

Oh, and Sony thinks that the new PS3 Slim is a bit too slim to stand on its own, so it'll be selling an optional vertical stand for $24. What do you guys make of the old vs. new, fat vs. slim?

Click here for more pictures of the new PS3 Slim.