For All Those Looking to Purchase a PS3

I picked up a new 80GB PS3 a month ago from Craigslist for a great price. I didn't really do any research before buying it. That came to bite me in the butt yesterday.
I'm mainly into racing games and was waiting for Pro Street to come out. After I saw such poor reviews, I decided not to get it. So, I went to Gamestop and purchased Gran Turismo 4. It turns out that the Sony game doesn't work on the new 80GB model. Why??
Recently, Sony got rid of the PS2 chip in the PS3 models so save money and instead uses an emulator for backwards compatibility. The earlier versions of PS3 play about 90% of PS2 games, the new models play about 40% with a slight delay.
At first I think it was only the 80GB model that was switched to emulation only backwards compatibility. But I checked the Sony website yesterday and there are no specifics. There is a little disclaimer at the bottom that says "*** This product has limited backward compatibility with PlayStation® and PlayStation®2 format software. Many PlayStation®2 format software titles operate, but full compatibility is not guaranteed. Updating the system software may improve compatibility. Visit www.us.playstation.com for system software updates." It doesn't specify that it's only the 80GB model that has the software only emulation so I assume all three models got rid of the PS2 chip.
This is just a heads up for all those looking to purchase a PS3. From the PS3 website you can check to see what titles work with what versions of the PS3.
It just bothers me because I hadn't heard about the switch. Even if I had read the new disclaimer on the box, I wouldn't have known there was a difference. I know some games don't play on all models so I would have assumed that is what the disclaimer was for, not because they redesigned the backwards compatibility of the thing.
I am trying to find someone on craigslist to trade models for me. I'd hate to go buy PS2 to play one game. At least Gamestop is having a sale on old model PS2's for $60 this week.

I am sure you could pick up a PS2 for super cheap on craigslist or eBay.

But that is lame. Makes me want a PS3 even less...

I could care less. I really want a PS3 but the only games I like are on the PS3 itself.

cheesybanana said:

I am sure you could pick up a PS2 for super cheap on craigslist or eBay.

But that is lame. Makes me want a PS3 even less...

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The cheapest I have found something is $75. Everyone in selling systems with games so the prices are higher. At least with Gamestop I get the 30 day warranty.

that sucks. the ps3 in the perfect world should be able to play all sony games designed for any edition/version of the PS3

That's interesting Bry, I had read an article describing that your situation only applied to the new ps3 that's offered at the lower price.

http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/topstocks/archive/2007/10/18/sony-screws-up-again-with-new-ps3.aspx

that's the article that I read. I know how you feel because the most played game on my ps3 is actually gt4.

And regarding Gt5, not sure if you've seen the list of cars available.
http://www.zerotohundred.com/newfor...3-s-gran-turismo-5-complete-list-of-cars.html

I wouldn't buy a PS3 to play PS2 games. I have a real PS2 for that. It is compatible with 100% of PS2 games.

I haven't seen the list, i'll check that out. It's just going to make me want to play GT4 even more now. How many times was GT4 delayed? I know it's supposed to be released in 2008 but I can't wait at least 6 months for a good racing game. GTA5 will kill some time though.
I think all the PS3's got a $100 price drop recently. The 80GB version was the first to be released without full backwards compatibility.
As for the list of 10000 cars, how many hundreds will be versions of the Skyline?? ;D

Joe Redifer said:

I wouldn't buy a PS3 to play PS2 games. I have a real PS2 for that. It is compatible with 100% of PS2 games.

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I didn't buy it to play PS2 games. I could have obviously saved $350 and purchased PS2.

Holy thread revival here, but the Gran Turismo issue has been fixed for the 40 and 80 gig PS3. My brother got an 80 for Christmas and GT4 plays just fine. Also plays great on my 60 (with hardware support).

nukemm said:

Holy thread revival here, but the Gran Turismo issue has been fixed for the 40 and 80 gig PS3. My brother got an 80 for Christmas and GT4 plays just fine. Also plays great on my 60 (with hardware support).

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Thanks for the heads up. I found someone to trade on craigslist for the 20GB version. It has the emotion chip it has almost full backwards compatbility. Without that chrome trim, it matches my TV perfectly which also has that piano black finish.

I'm going to get a PS3 eventually. Once MGS4 and GT5 come out, its definitely something I'm going to get.

bryphotoguy said:

Thanks for the heads up. I found someone to trade on craigslist for the 20GB version. It has the emotion chip it has almost full backwards compatbility. Without that chrome trim, it matches my TV perfectly which also has that piano black finish.

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youre trading an 80 for a 20?

you got to be joking

mikeyman said:

youre trading an 80 for a 20?

you got to be joking

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If the 80GB doesn't do what he wants it to do, it's worth a lot less than the 20GB for his needs. Sure, it may sound weird to you, but it makes sense from his perspective.

mikeyman said:

youre trading an 80 for a 20?

you got to be joking

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1. I don't use the card readers so there was no loss there.
2. It's located 6 ft from my modem and I prefer wired over wireless so no loss.
3. It saved me $100 because I didn't have to purchase a PS2.
4. I bought the 80GB version new with 2 games for $450 on Craigslist. I sold all three games so my cost was around $375, less than what a new 40GB sells for and FAR less than what a new 60GB sells for new.
5. I now have a PS3 with the emotion engine so I am not running through emulation. With emulation, there is a delay so if I ever want to pick up Guitar Hero or other games where timing is critical, I can play them worry free.
6. A new 100GB HD for the PS3 is $65 with shipping. I was running out of room quick on my 80GB PS3, so a bigger HD was inevitable.

Being said, I am extremely satisfied I was able to save $100 and trade to a better system in my opinion. I would think most people would rather have a PS3 with the emotion engine than without.

You said it, bryphotoguy. I went to 4 GameStop/EB Games stores before I finally found a refurbished 60 gig. I didn't care about the card reader so much (although as much as I use it now I wouldn't get rid of it), but I needed the wireless connection (I'm not running cable all the way across my house), so the 60 was the best choice for me. That being said, I have 10 seasons of Stargate: SG-1 on DivX, so I'm going to need a bigger HDD soon, too.

I was running out of room quick on my 80GB PS3, so a bigger HD was inevitable.

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What exactly were you putting on the PS3 hard drive that took up so much space? Also, how are you able to transfer users as well as the PS3 OS over to the new hard drive?

Joe Redifer said:

What exactly were you putting on the PS3 hard drive that took up so much space? Also, how are you able to transfer users as well as the PS3 OS over to the new hard drive?

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Tons and of demos and videos and stuff.
No, I didn't transfer anything. I was going back to PS2 games because I was tired of my PS3 games so there wasn't anything I really needed to backup. I am not a online player so there wasn't anything to really save.
A couple days ago I think I DL'd like 3GB worth of demos and videos. I played the demo for the new Burnout game. It's pretty fun. I can't wait for that.

im stickin with my lovely 360