Skip the PS3 Slim and get one of these Blu-ray laptops

With all the buzz around the new "slim" version of Sony's PlayStation 3, you'd think Sony had an exciting new product on its hands, rather than a slightly smaller, somewhat cheaper version of the existing PS3 (and without any significant new features, or even the return of PS2 backward-compatibility).

If, like us, you've become addicted to the high-definition joy of Blu-ray movies, but your gaming tastes run more toward World of Warcraft, Sims 3, or even Plants vs. Zombies, we suggest taking a look at one of these Blu-ray equipped laptops, such as the Sony Vaio NW160J, detailed below.

Sure, they're all vastly more expensive options than the PS3's newly discounted $299, and if you're shopping based on price, this entire concept may be thinner than the PS3 Slim itself. But, for the extra money, you get not only Blu-ray, but also a 15- or 17-inch high-definition display and a fully functioning high-end PC. (Note that we'd skip the Panasonic DMP-B15K portable Blu-ray player, despite its laptop-like clamshell design.)

With HDMI ports standard, it's easy to hook any of these up to a big-screen TV, and, unlike your PS3, Netflix on-demand and Hulu are no problem. Adventuresome types can even play with installing alternate operating systems--something now missing from the latest PlayStation firmware.

Check out the gallery below to see our Blu-ray gaming laptop choices, or if you prefer, we've set them up in a side-by-side comparison chart here.

Gallery: Blu-ray gaming laptops

[hightechfanboy]

The only problem with a blu-ray laptop is that you cannot use as your primary player for a home theater. Especially now with the slim version that can be put on a home theater shelf and it won't look awful between all your equipment.

[bcookin]

A very important difference between using the PS3 and the laptop as your Blu-ray disc player is the sound output. I'm guessing the laptops don't output the highdef audio through the HDMI. We're just now starting to get sound cards for desktops that are able to do that. I can't imagine there are laptops that can do that yet. I don't even see an audio section in your comparison charts. I'll stick with my playstation for now

[mullendarrell]

Can you elaborate on "highdef audio" ? My laptop has digital audio output in SPDIF format. Isn't that the same thing? What codec or format are you refering to as highdef?

[sephus6]

The PS3 can transmit audio through HDMI - many laptops cannot.

By "Highdef Audio" he is referring to Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. These are just now being supported by 3rd party sound cards (around $300) for desktop PCs. The likely hood of your laptop being able to output these formats over SPDIF are slim to none. You can still get down sampled DTS mixes, but not the full uncompressed streams these other formats provide. This is one major issue with HTPCs and Blu-Ray or HD-DVD playback :(

[ikramerica--2008]

All these audio formats are worthless. You think you are hearing something worthwhile, but are simply hearing informations separated in various ways that still are intended to be blended into a seamless soundstage, and that doesn't require any of those formats. A seamless soundstage can be effectively created with 4 channels if mixed correctly, which includes a phantom center and full range LR (no sub), and LR side surrounds (NO BACKS), hopefully the full range LR are bi-amplified. A center, while sometimes considered desirable for dialogue, is never properly matched to the LR and can actually "locate" sound too effectively, taking away from seamlessness. Only if you can get identical center/LR does it really add to the experience, though often you might think it's necessary because you can "hear it". You can get this 5.1 into 4.0 setup from plain old low compression DTS with the center turned off and LFE mixed into the front channels, or even lowly DD, since compresses surrounds are not the end of the world when they have so little information going to them anyway. If you want to feel the explosions, add a sub as well, but don't turn off the bass to the LR, just output 60Hz and below to the sub as a supplement. This is known as a sub-bass setup, rather than a sub-woofer. 4.0+LFE as it were.

Sometimes less is more, and in home theater, it turns out that's the case. Watch movies over time in that setup and you'll actually enjoy them more, with less fatigue and distraction, than the 7.2 setups with discrete channels all around that everyone is pushing (to sell more equipment).

[ivandrago]

For the most part almost all laptops with the HDMI output do transmit HD audio through the same HDMI port. I've had HDMI/Blu-ray laptops since March of last year, and all of them have worked that way. I'm sure your can find a few that don't do this, but so far I haven't spotted one without audio support through HDMI.

[SactoGuy018]

Another problem with a Blu-ray compatible laptop is the cost--they cost at minium a couple of times the cost of the new PlayStation 3 Slim. And they don't play PS3 games, either.

[ivandrago]

The last 3 Blue-ray laptops that I've purchased charged me $150 for the upgrade. It's not very expensive at all.

[luehashbrown]

"...unlike your PS3, Netflix on-demand and Hulu are no problem."

Last time I checked, a PS3 could do all of this. I don't know what you are thinking there.

[opinionated_jerk]

You have Silverlight on your PS3? How's that?

[apinkston]

PS3 never had Netflix on-demand. There is a video section in the Playstation store, but you'll have to buy/rent each one and when you rent, the title is only good for 24 hours once you begin playback. After that, the file becomes unusable. Trust me, it happened to me. I rented 12 Rounds uncut, and watched the first boring 40 minutes or so and then forgot about it and then came back 2 days later.... and I guess I'll never know how that movie ended, lol.

Also, PS3 did have access to Hulu at one point, but I believe after update 2.80, people weren't able to access the Hulu website. Hulu made a statement about the block, and Sony made comments about trying to fix the issue. This was a few weeks ago, so I'm unsure of what will happen at this point.

I wish Veoh would become compatible.

*Also, like some other user said, all the options for audio will probably NOT be in the laptop, whereas the PS3 pretty much has them all.

[heygeo]

He's talking about Playon for the PS3.. it allows you to stream netflix and Hulu....

that being said.. its not officially supported and the 360 netflix marriage will provide far more comprehensive functionality shortly

[kewell82]

I hope they fix the Hulu issue soon or even at all. I wonder why Hulu blocked the PS3 from accessing videos?

[x181]

because hulu is an evil company plotting to take over the world contrary to what hulu wants you to believe. you just need to run your ps3 through a proxy which would then add false headers to imitate a computer browser.

[sephus6]

This is one of the most pointless articles I've ever read. Just because both options have a blu-ray player doesn't mean they are valid for comparison. It's like comparing a truck to a smart car - just because they both have tires.

This is a terrible attempt to plug a couple of laptop options by using another product that currently has a lot of buzz. I expect more from CNET.

To Dan & Scott - What were you thinking?

[opinionated_jerk]

I'll second sephus6 on this. I have to have both, but I don't think of consoles and PC's in the same category. Not yet anyway. Maybe eventually. And towing with my MR2 spyder is not as easy or viable as expecting better fuel economy from my Expedition... I as well suspect you are correct that Dan and Scott did this for hits based on PS3 news... and yet it worked flawlessly... I followed the link from Google news and read the article... and I sort of want a new laptop now, too.

I also see no correlation between the decision to buy a PS3 vs. a $2K gaming laptop. One is a reference level Blu-Ray player (hint: its the cheap one) that can support full audio formats and fits neatly into a home theater. The other is a piece of gaming hardware with a blu-ray drive slapped in. I would be surprised if anyone ever actually compared these laptops to a PS3 in their purchasing decision.

[make_or_break]

There's virtually NO market-driven cross-connection between the two genotypes. First off, who in blazes are you targeting this notebook to? Certainly NOT a family...because what happens when the computer is away from the house or when the computer is being used as computer, and others want to watch a movie or play games. And does the laptop with its usual single-person focused games really capable of handling multiple players as well as the typical console?

This is a topic that only a tech geek with too much time on their hands (or deadline to meet) would've even considered, let alone proposed as a viable subject to write about. The rest of the world would just save hundreds of dollars and simply buy the PS3 and continue to use that computer that they ALREADY OWN instead of trying to re-image some sort of false quest for a convergence that never actually was that just was aching for fulfillment.

[black_burn]

Great post.
I was thinking the same.
A slim PS3 and a &2K gamming laptop are very different.

[bartok06]

Since you guys seem to think only fan boys are commenting on this:

http://www.pcworld.idg.com.au/article/315730/why_do_press_hate_sony_playstation_3?pp=1

PC World.au cites this post and points out how the media still reacted negatively despite finally getting the price cut that they complained about for so long.

[chosen_1_4ever]

Actually the PS3 cannot do Netflix on demand and hulu has blocked the PS3 browser. You can go there, but it will give you an error sayin your platform cannot play this video when you go to play something. But, there is a program called tversity and you can use that to play ANY media you have stored on your computer (if you have a home network)

So for 299 AND a desktop I already have, there is nothing I can't just download and stream to my PS3 (or copy to my PS3 and watch or listen to, cause Tversity lets you copy media from your PC to your PS3 HDD)

And that still doesn't include streaming sites like youtube or justin tv that work just fine on the PS3 (I kept up with almost every football game last season using justin tv from my ps3, forget payin for some satellite)

Only thing I can't do is my power user stuff on the PS3, but that's what I already have a laptop for.

[The_Souljourner]

Wow. I created an account and switched browsers (comments not working in Chrome?) just so I could comment and say what a terrible article this is. How can anyone possibly suggest paying more than 3 times as much for something with a tiny slice of similar functionality? It really boggles my mind. You might as well try to tell me I should buy a Prius instead of a mountain bike because the Prius has air conditioning!

[lvcsslacker]

Is it the beta version of chrome? 3.blablabla? I think it works in 2.whatever version.

I will NEVER buy a sony product, ESPECIALLY a vaio. I bought one, within 8 months it failed, they claimed it was due to liquid being spilled on it, and had suffered major corrosion. As a result of that, they stated it was not covered under manufacturer warranty. Unfortunately, I never spilled liquid on it. I went and bought two Dell's, at LESS then what I paid for the vaio with an awesome warranty that would allow me to drop it in the bathtub if I desired.
Thats the real reason sony is doing poor sales, their products and customer support are extremely poor.

[Dodo_Birdie]

What does this have to do with the article?

[roachbrain]

He spilled something on his Laptop and won't admit it to get pass warranty issues.

[vito7272]

Not that this post has anything to do with the article, but I'll respond anyway. I've had a Vaio laptop for 4 years and have yet to have a single issue. And I HAVE spilled liquid on it. It got pretty good dose of vodka & cran and never skipped a beat. Pretty much all of my electronics are Sony because they seem to be bulletproof.
Either way, it's all covered by homeowners insurance anyway!

[Dodo_Birdie]

What a deceitful article. I'm shocked that CNET would host such garbage. Actually, Sony does have an exciting new product on its hands and the PS3 doesn't have blu-ray *only*. What is this sentence supposed to mean: "if you're shopping based on price, this entire concept may be thinner than the PS3 Slim itself."

What would anyone want to watch blu-rays on a 15 or 17 inch screen. With a screen this small you would have difficulty in telling a difference between blu-rays and DVD. Let's not forget that you also need to buy a program to play those blu-rays (like PowerDVD) and the sound coming out of those laptops will also be inferior.

It's just a horribly stupid comparison. Why would you want to use a laptop as a center of your home theater? It's not designed for that (increases risk of laptop overheating/breaking), is far more expensive, and will not do as good a job.

Why would authors bash PS3 slim on its lack or backward-compatibility with PS2? What does that have to with blu-ray? Or the fact that Sony decided to remove the ability to install other OS (on all PS3 models) starting next firmware version? This article is a complete joke.

[Dan_Ackerman]

You know, for a Sony fanboy, you should have noticed that two of the products we're suggesting you check out are Sony ones ;)

[Hashbrun]

Dan, calling someone names really shows your lack of professionalism. And what's more, you are an editor... A real journalist would've responded with tact or maybe a rebuttal to make feel the first poster a little bit ashamed of his post.

The worst part is, nobody will take away that "editor" position from you. I guess that's why you work here instead of a reputable news source. You have what it takes to work for Variety though, or maybe the National Enquirer...

[Noobiablos]

Dan.....for someone that actually does work on the site......you should really read the TOS.

[lacjack]

Another thing he and everyone else who is reading this should take notice of, is the xbox360 sponsorship on...wait for it... http://www.danackerman.com

Dan Ackerman, bought and paid for by xbox live marketplace!
Creditability, gone.

[bartok06]

Dan, I can't believe that you would resort to name calling and "gotcha" tactics when someone presents a perfectly cogent and informed argument. Further, the commenter does not make any reference to the superiority of the PS3 or any other Sony product. My respect for you has considerably lessened.

[AppleProLeo]

Oh Dan, Dan, Dan, what a shame...and I used to like you. I don't think you should be calling anyone a fanboy especially when it seems as though you have sold out. At least a Fanboy defends a product over it's (or perceived) merit where a sell out does it only for the money regardless of the products quality- a BIG no no when your a (supposedly) journalist.

And you haven't answered the big question, why do you compare a Game Console to a Notebook? I mean who in their right mind thinks about using a Notebook as a Game Console replacement or a TV Set Top box alternative.

[Pacman33]

Are we starting a new war between PS3s and notebooks now that the console war has gone out of style? You left out many other factors that must be considered if you want people to "skip" one product for the much more expensive one. A good example woul be remote controls. How many of thos laptops come with them? If I choose that as my blu-ray player will I have to get up each time I have to skip a scene or play around in the menu?

[Ckmost]

wow this article is moronic..... Why don't we compare Fords to Ferraris? Sure, they're all vastly more expensive options than the Fords, and if you're shopping based on price! The cheapest model laptop is a mere 400% more expensive:(

Pretty raunchy attempt to ride the buzz of the new ps3, IMO

[Caos285]

wow dis artical just got me mad because when the ps3 was at a high price the ps3 was in the laptops situation n now that ps3 lowered da price now its like the price cut didnt matter??? n when the ps3 was in that situation noone defended it and still noone does ***!!!

[st430]

this is the most stupid article ever.
compare a 299 concole to a PC laptop that is double/triple the price,
which does not play the same type of games at all.
If price does not matter, the original PS3 would be selling like hot cake.
why don't you buy a seperate blue ray player for 160$ and buy a xbox instead?
At least that's closer than yours.

[spinod]

Why is Cnet the only tech site that is so negetive to Sony no matter what they do? Every other site, IGN, gaming sites, tech sites, even Yahoo is running some good articles about PS3 Slim. They are all excited for it and all hope that it does something good for Sony. Yet I come here and right of the bat (within hours of the announcement) i see 3 articles that are negetive about the PS3 Slim. "Oh its bad" "oh it wont work" Hey but a laptop instead of the PS3 Slim (not that its the same thing or more expensive or anything)." Seriously, what the hell is up? Did Sony do something to tick you guys off or is MS throwing money at your face? This article alone is un-professional. Were you guys not just complaining about the PS3 price the other day? Now your saying PS3 is cheap but you prefer a Laptop with no media center capablities like PS3, no PS3 game support, and costs twice as much now?

Then you go on to say its nothing special, forgeting that Sony invented Blu-ray? For PS3 none-the less? And sorry that we are not rich and actually think a 100 dollar price drop is more than "slight" in our eyes. You don't have WoW or those other games? Well sorry to tell you but EA is working on Sims 3 for PS3, Plants vs Zombies will be hitting PSN in the future, and Sony is getting plenty of MMO games to hold you from WoW. You do have video streaming via a INTERNET BROWSER on the PS3, PS3 offers a video service identical to Netflix, and yep its all HD compatible. Im just surprised you guys actually listed a Sony vaio...probably didn't notice the Sony logo on it did you?

Not to say Laptops are worthless, but why are you beating the PS3 with whatever stick you can find? You went from saying PS3 is inferior to Xbox, and how much it sucks in your eyes, to comparing it to PC the second Sony makes PS3 the better deal over Xbox. So what PS3 has to be a fully functional Laptop for 299 in order for you to be happy? Or will you start comparing it to cars then? "People are all excited that PS3 is now 150, but we have better suggestions! Blu-ray TV's in cars! They only cost a couple thousand, but whatever its the only thing we could find to knock down the PS3 sales..."

[ywkhgqo]

that was beautiful, thank you

[montex66]

None of these laptop has a screen resolution capable of display a true 1080p HDTV image that is native to Blu-ray. Not. A. Single. One. They would have to have a resolution of 1920x1080 to get the benefit of a blu-ray disc. But they don't. How stupid is it for cnet to claim that a laptop that isn't capable of showing a blu-ray movie without degrading the image is somehow better than a PS3 hooked up to a 1080p HDTV is beyond looney. I just want to know if any of cnet's writers Dan and Scott are going to wear leather jackets as they strap on the water skis to go jump the shark.

[ScottStein8]

You can always output at 1080p to that same TV you were going to hook up that PS3 to.

[spacemonkey086]

ya and even if they did the screen is still way too small. how are you going to watch movies on the couch with your family or girlfriend using a laptop.

this article is an epic fail. the ps3 slim is one of the biggest announcements of the year, up there with the iphone 3GS. all of the real gaming sites are buzzing about this, and cnet comes out with this BS? the quality of articles on this site are getting worse and worse compared to the blogs like engadget or gizmodo. theres so many consumer electronics items out online or at best buy that they havent even reviewed yet.

[davesurfer]

Uh, excuse me? The ASUS N90Sv A2 & HP HDX18 both have a 1920 x 1080 screen. The last one, the MSI GT725-212US has a 1920 x 1200 screen which is even higher than Blu-ray res! So before writing "Not. A. Single. One" read more carefully next time.

[blusky08]

what is really being expressed here is that the major features of the PS3 include the ability to play it on a large TV screen, and it is a dedicated disc player as well. A lapto is NOT a dedicated DVD/BD. Unless one has a spare laptop with a remote control, it requires being hooked up for each use and/or manual control of movies. In addition, PC games generally become obsolete much more quickly as operating systems change whereas console functionality can and often does exceed a decade.

Not to be uncharitable to the author, but such a "stretch of the imagination apples to oranges" comparison-on the morrow of a PS3 price upgrade/price-seems to imply a strong agenda. Intelligent adults expect news that is as unbiased as possible and free of hidden agendas. As such, I find this article shameful, my good sir. Shameful.

[meaFILMS]

Article FAIL!

This is the worst title and comparison article simply to plug a few laptops with Blu-ray drives and ride the tails of the PS3 slim announcement. Annoyingly not creative at all!

Doesn't CNET have senior editors anymore?

I hope that right now in the offices of CNET everyone including that guy with the stained office chair, the girl that does nothing and the random hot girl that always wears inappropriate clothes are all laughing at Dan & Scott.

Apparently most visitors of CNET.com are smarter than the two of you hence the backlash of comments!

Good luck in your new jobs!

[x181]

how much did they pay you to publish this article? what a shameless plug of an article.

Is this indicative of how disaffected and lonely the PC gaming set has gotten? So sad to see. Maybe a better article would have been to profile hardware choices for PC gamers interested in Blu-Ray? Or better yet, stir up the console zealots with a new round of PS3 vs. Xbox.

[spacemonkey086]

ya i would much rather watch a blu ray on an expensive laptop that probably isnt 1080p than watch it on a 52" full HDTV and be able to play all those ps3 games.

NOT.

[spacemonkey086]

dont buy a ps3 slim, buy a flamethrower or a bow tie or some swiss cheese.....