Video Game Consoles

CNET has reviewed all of the major video game consoles and handheld game systems, and it maintains a running list of the top video game consoles on the current market. Links to longer reviews offer lots of… technical information, and a succinct pro/con analysis proves helpful as well. CNET's reviews are among the most up to date on the market. Price and other changes have leveled the playing field between the Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite and the Sony PlayStation 3 Slim, writes Jeff Bakalar. In a separate review, Bakalar and David Carnoy give the Sony PSP Go an average rating, saying it's not quite a "must-have," at least at present.

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Though PC World is very up to date, finding hardware reviews among the many software reviews, news bits and rumor postings is a chore. Additionally, ratings aren't always given, nor are products typically… compared to each other. However, analysis is detailed and balanced. The new PlayStation 3 (120 GB) gets very high marks -- a "superior" rating. The Sony PSP Go earns higher marks from PC World than from other reviewers, but it still ranks lower than other gaming consoles on the site. The Xbox 360 Elite is reviewed, but not rated.

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For the first time, PCMag.com included video game consoles in its annual service and reliability survey. The Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 3 shared the Readers' Choice award, and both had noticeably… better ratings from PCMag.com readers than the Xbox 360. A trouble spot for Microsoft is that 29 percent of Xbox 360 owners say their console broke down at some point, compared to 7 percent for PS3 and 2 percent for the Wii.

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Britain's TrustedReviews.com is an excellent source for reviews of electronics and computers. Its reviews are consistently among the most detailed available, and editors cover a good number of video game… consoles. Among recently reviewed consoles, the Sony PlayStation 3 Slim gets the highest rating. The Sony PSP Go and Nintendo DSi earn lower marks. In an older review, the Microsoft Xbox 360 Elite earns a Recommended award.

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Wired has a good collection of reviews for video game consoles. While its reviews are based on testing, the analysis and commentary is less detailed that at other sources we rank higher. Wired appears to… prefer Nintendo consoles -- three Nintendo products are the highest rated on the site, with scores of eight out of 10. The Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DS Lite get very good reviews, while the Sony PlayStation 3 Slim and Sony PSP Go get lower ratings.

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Nearly every major video game console attracts a good number of reviews at Amazon.com. There is decent variation in ratings, although most consoles receive very high scores. Still, it's easy to see which… video game consoles fall flat -- the Xbox 360 Elite and Sony PSP Go both have lower-than-average ratings. Some reviews posted to Amazon.com seem overly enthusiastic or a bit one-sided, so we give the most weight to reviews that offer balanced opinions.

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