PS3, power ON or power OFF?

[cartman1337]

The fact that a lot of really good friends who have clearly had PS3 consoles since day one are startinf to have the consoles go wrong on them or corrupt their data so they disappear for long periods of time or have to redo all their hard work.

I thought this type of BS was for XBOX and Microsoft only - I've come to expect a bit more from Sony!


I'm afraid any silicone-based technology (i.e. computers/game consoles) that is used for an extensive period of time, and especially when it's turned on and off a lot, is prone to eventually fail. It's just one of the downsides to technology. :'(

[OthersGirl]

whaddya mean "especially when it's turned off and on a lot" ???

This is like the great computer debate. Some people believe it's better for the computer to stay running -- that stopping and restarting the comp is largely what causes damage and failure ---- (assuming its cool, etc blah blah blah) ------ But then, others say its best to shut it down at night.

Same with the ps3. Sony puts that Life With Playstation crap so that when youre not gaming you can be donating your computing power (yada yada yada)..... Seems like THEY stand behind lettign that puppy run.

So what is the answer? And is your answer fact or opinion? LOL ---> i'd really LOVE to know, truly. Is it better for my ps3 to stay on? or turned off?

By the way ---> I have a fan on my ps3, hooked to the right side, connected into usb.. and my system is ALWAYS cool to the touch. ALWAYS. no matter HOW long it's on.

Okay.anxiously awaiting the knowlegeable reply to THIS question.......

[cartman1337]

Let's just say this: I think there's a reason that the general lifetime of a server in a large corporate has a longer lifespan than most of the computers in the same company. Here at work we have some servers that have run faithfully for up to 10 years. They're ALWAYS on; it means less wear and tear than a computer than boots every morning, starting from a cold state (most technology works best once its warmed up to its recommended working temperature). A computer booting is generally doing more work, both on the hard drive and with the circuitry, than a computer idling or even working on a program (that usually is hardware intensive only at load times, and not in general use)...

So in general, I'd say any technology is likely to last longer if it stays on continually. Even simple things like light bulbs are prone to reduce their lifespan if they're turned on and off a lot.

Of course, I've never done any extensive research into this, but based on my experiences in general, both from work and private, I think a system staying on all the time is likely to last longer than one which is turned on and off a lot. But of course, there's electricity bills to consider in all of it, so economically you might not be better of leaving your PS3 on all the time either... ;)

[clint_westwood]

my ps3 gets all hot and bothered and overheats very quickly.................but hey, who wouldnt with clint in the room ;D

i am deffo backing up later today when i leave the office

[Roughdawg4]

So when i turn my ps3 on and then play a game should i wait a minute before doing that to let it warm up?

[cartman1337]

So when i turn my ps3 on and then play a game should i wait a minute before doing that to let it warm up?


Nah, shouldn't be necessary. It's the actual boot-up of the PS3/computer/equipment that does the most wear and tear to the system, and that you can't do anything about anyway. Once it's started it shouldn't matter much how long you wait before you start a game...

[yunatidus4ever]

This topic has been moved from "what annoys me most about Hot Shots Golf"

[OthersGirl]

well my ps3 is basically always on. Thats the theory I went with too, backed up by the "life with playstation" -- which made me think that sony is of same mindset. Better to leave it on.

Clint, my ps3 NEVER even gets warm. Do you have a fan on yours??? mine stays cool to the touch :P

[Roughdawg4]

So should i not turn off my ps3 then?

[bcus28]

I leave the button on the back always on, never turned it off. As far as the actual power on, I turn it off when not using the ps3, so mines only on for about 15hours a week (over 2 sittings usually) and is well ventilated. I do have a fan next to it though I'll turn on if I get paranoid about over heating, but rarely do that.

Which reminds me, I think I had cars12345 problem once or twice when I turned it on it would immediatley shut off with red light blinking, which I think was caused from over heating- could be a different problem though I don't know for sure.

[p1um5mu991er]

mine's on all the time but that's because i'm using it :P

[OthersGirl]

The fan I'm talking about runs the entire time the ps3 runs. It connects to the right side of the system and plugs in with usb connection to the front. Start ps3 up, fan starts. Honestly, it's cool -- never has gotten warm, and ....

:::ducks head slightly::::

I only turn my system off about once every week or two -- overnight to give it a rest --- but basically, it's on 24/7.

LOL

[jleviathan]

Cartman is right for max lifespan of eletronics on is the way to go
unless you are overheating that can cause more damage then on off can do.
Just seem to me an awful lot of PS3s going down in a short period
for all the reasearch that was investerd into them do'nt you think?

oh by the way yhe best way to make sure to have a working PS3
is to have another one you never turn on

[The-Dreamcaster]

it irritates me that companies almost certainly know this and still produce the same machine because they know it will make people buy another 1.

Is it me, or the more you paid for the model you bought, the longer it lasts.
so XBOX360 Elite and top o the range PS3's will last longer than lesser models?

[Roughdawg4]

that is a little wierd because u think it shouldnt matter either way

[OthersGirl]

I've heard some people saying that it seems like its the 60gig ps3s that are dying. Is there any truth to this? We need a poll. LOL. no but seriously ---

Mason, Cars, Ghetto, Spurs, Jacob, (who else?) which ps3 did they have??? any pattern here?

[bcus28]

Mines a 60gig I bought brand new in June07, hope it doesn't die soon. As for that fan attachment I heard stores of it harming ps3's but it could be isolated iccidents like any electronic devices.

And no worries, I'm working on replacing silicon with aluminum nitride!

[cars123456789]

mine was the 60gb and yes it is the 60gb the most

[zog66]

mine's the last 80 gig with backwards compatibility, and i lost my laser about a week before the 1 year warranty expired. whew, at least i didn't have to pay for it.


othersgirl - you mean the nyko type intercooler ? Had one of those on my 360, and i got RROD, when i took it off everything was fine. I decided not to use it anymore.

I just have mine pushed almost all the way to the left of the shelf it sits on, since the heat comes out of the right side, and I keep mine off in between sessions. Now that I think about it, i may start leaving it on all the time.

[Roughdawg4]

Are the PS3s now backwards compatible? Mine is but someone told me they dont make them anymore and i dont think he is right

[interyernan]

Nothing after the first batch release of the Ps3 are backward compatiable. All the new typr consoles can only play ps3 games, they only have 2 usb ports on the front and no liftable flap on the left side for memeory cards etc. Bit stupid really.

[zog66]

your friend is right, no more BC at all.

[zog66]

damn yernan beat me to it.

[Roughdawg4]

So if my PS3 dies i cannot play PS2 games anymore? WTF kind of sick **** is that?

[jleviathan]

60 GB is the bad one? bad news it's probably the most sold model sony has out. any body got any idea what seems to be it's defect?
I have owned SONY game systems since ps1 that still works
have 3 ps2 all still ok except 1 that wont read the blue coloured game disks SONY has had enough time to work out the bugs in the ps3 before putting out this 60gb model. Maybe they are just gettig sloppy or caught the corprate bug of who gives a damm about there loyal customers.
any info on problams will be appresiated thanks

the ps3 is now not able to play ps2 software without special programming
and thats only for certian models kinda stupid huh SONY was so proud of the backward compatablity of their systems. what happend?

[interyernan]

Sony beeing Sony! It would just be too easy that way! Another case in point is with Cars and other people finding the PS3's breaking down - why not make it so your hard drive is just like a glorified PS2 memory card and interchangeable with different consoles. Problems like motherboards frying or lasers going means that unless you back your info up your going to lose everything when a new console appears or is purchased. Why - we invest a lot of money in games, accessories and downloadable content it just seems a bit of an F you for people who put soem much time and effort into a game or games to only lose it all and have to start again when the manufacturer is at fault.

[jleviathan]

Gee wouldn't a memory card backup be a novel idea.
somthing simple that everybody can use wonder why nobody thought of that?????
you can save your data on a dead ps3 as long as it's not your hard drive that is gone but you better have a working knowledge of replacing and downloading harddrive information and a pc to do it on
thanks SONY average mom and dad just have all the time in the world to figure that out
lasers fail? how long has this tech. been around should not be happening
at all. cheap parts is what I suspect

[interyernan]

It's not as easy at it appears, you can't just take a working hard drive out of a dead ps3 and put it in a new ps3 and have it work. The new ps3 will ask to format the hard drive thus losing all the information you got. Apparently hard drive's get given a signature by the console they are in causing them not to register on other consoles without the formatting. CRAZY!
As for getting the info from a hard drive to a computer without running a standard back up when the ps3 is working is, impossible - so we've been told.
So yes, average Joe is screwed!

ADVICE: Everyone go out and by a little external hard drive (my recomendation is anything Western Digital) that connects via usb to the front of you ps3 console and once a month do a full system back up. Add to that once a weekd to a full game save back up and then if anything goes wrong you won't have lost too much information.

[Roughdawg4]

Will it even backup saves you cannot copy like resident evil?

[interyernan]

You should be able to back up EVERY save regardless of game.

[zog66]

yup just bought a WD 500 gig drive for that very purpose.