The True Cost of Console Ownership in 2009

[wraggster]

With the price of Wii Motion Plus bringing the cost of a full Wiimote to a whopping $80, we thought we'd reexamine the true cost of buying a console today. Which is truly the cheapest?

We're going to pretend we're either a family of four or an apartment that wants a system loaded up with four controllers. We'll assume you want to be able to recharge your controllers rather than wasting money on disposable batteries, and we'll pick the model of each console that we'd recommend to a family member asking us for advice. We'll also factor in the cost of 2 games, because nobody buys a console without a game.

So what's the true cost of going out and buying a system today? Let's find out.

Playstation 3
Cost of console: $400 (80GB)
Cost of 3 extra controllers: $43 x 3 = $129
Cost of charging station: $25
Cost of 2 games: $120
Cost of HDMI cable: $3

Total: $677

Wii
Cost of console: $250
Cost of 3 extra controllers: $36 x 3 = $108
Cost of 3 Nunchuks: $18 x 3 = $54
Cost of 4 Wii Motion Pluses: $20 x 4 = $80
Cost of charging station w/ 4 rechargeable batteries: $49
Cost of 2 games: $100
SD card: $12 (8GB)

Total: $653

Xbox 360
Cost of console: $300 (60GB)
Cost of 3 extra controllers: $37 x 3 = $111
Cost of 2 rechargeable batteries: $12 x 2 = $24
Cost of recharging station w/ 2 rechargeable batteries: $30
Cost of 2 games: $120
Cost of Xbox Live membership: $43 (13 months)

Total: $628

As you can see, the prices of all three consoles are incredibly close, and you can obviously fiddle with these configurations to change them. If you only want 2 controllers and are planning to only play Wii Sports, the Wii is still the cheapest, but a fully-loaded Xbox 360 with a year of Live is actually cheaper than the fully-loaded Wii (although it's the only console without WiFi, so add $80 if you really need that). And the PS3 is surprisingly close in price, thanks to its controllers having built-in batteries and its free online service. The Nintendo controller scheme really rockets it up in price, and it's pretty amazing that a Wii with 4 controllers is only $24 less than a PS3 with 4 controllers.

So really, it comes down to what you want in a console. But it's surprising to see that, in real-world prices, all three systems will set you back about the same amount, with the Xbox 360 being the cheapest of them all even when you factor in a monthly fee for online gaming.

http://i.gizmodo.com/5211540/the-true-cost-of-console-ownership-in-2009

[mike_jmg]

It's really surprising that the price for all three fully loaded consoles is pretty close

I would add enough rechargeable batteries for each controller, that should be 8 not 4, but in the end it really comes down to the console you like the most.

In my case I got my 360 for half the retail price in my country, with a 20Gb Hard drive, one controller and a remote, even if it is one of the first models, it is still a fully functional Xbox 360 :thumbup:

At first I wanted a PS3, but with that opportunity and seeing most of the games I like are no longer exclusives, the choice was pretty obvious.

My friend who owns a PS3 is kinda pissed cause the games look the same on both consoles. He's like "How can games look the same if the PS3 uses Blu-ray discs, why use Blu-ray if the same game fits on an HD DVD". And I'm like "yeah"

[ndstal]

whered you get an 8gb sd for 12 dollars?

[ICE]

I am no where near an ethernet cable so no wifi is a deal breaker for me. That would tack on another $80 on the 360. Besides that I thought the usb ports on the front of the PS3 was for charging the remotes.. lol

[nomi]

I have a 360 and i don't think its the cheapest. You have consider the functions that each console gives.

The 360 does not offer blu ray
The 360 requires a $100 wifi

I think by adding the wifi ini the 360 you surpass and other console. I don't understand the reason behind no wifi or why it's a 100 dollars.

anyways, i like those numbers but you have to add in these little extra costs..


Cost of charging station: $25

Cost of HDMI cable: $3

You don't really need a charging station for the playstation 3 and why is there no HDMI price for 360!?
Also where do you get $3 HDMI cables? :S

[Darksaviour69]

The 360 requires a $100 wifi



not true if your xbox is right beside you router (like mine is)

;)

[PoorKingz]

If 360 had builtin wifi like the PS3 and Wii, then I might have gotten it when I had the money. The wifi addon is expensive though.

[quzar]

not true if your xbox is right beside you router (like mine is)

;)

Yes, but the idea is to make the three consoles as equal as possible. I call BS on the full motion addons. AFAIK the things aren't even out in the US and even when they are how many things will use them right away? You might as well list 4x classic controllers too since some games use them.

[Qmark]

Who the hell needs four controllers?

[mike_jmg]

whered you get an 8gb sd for 12 dollars?

Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Sandisk-SDHC-Memory-SDSDB-8192-Package/dp/B0018BOLIC/ref=pd_bbs_5?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1239772787&sr=8-5) comes to my mind



not true if your xbox is right beside you router (like mine is)

;)

yeah mine too, not right beside, but close enough

[Accordion]

what a mess.

Four controllers is questionable, but the charging station on PS3 is absurd given any powered USB slot is a charging station.

I think a wifi adapter should be on the 360, as well as the ehternet adapter for the Wii.

[sorceror]

Besides that I thought the usb ports on the front of the PS3 was for charging the remotes.. lol

Exactly. I plug 'em in and run Life With Playstation overnight. Charges the controllers and helps biology research at the same time.

(Plus, for less than $15 I got a PS2-to-USB adapter that lets me use two wired PS2 controllers - which I already had - with my PS3. So, one extra PS3 controller, and two PS2 controllers, and bang - four player LBP action. :-> )

[MicroNut]

360 vs. PS3 vs. Wii hardware problems should also be considered in the total cost of ownership.

[fishears]

This whole story is DICK!

Why are 4 Motion Pluses included? They are not required for any games.

Take off that $80 and the Wii comes out cheapest.

This is DICK, pure DICK!

[ICE]

The point is how much a fully loaded console costs. Wii Motion Plus is included because if it wasnt the Wii wouldnt have everything. A PS3 with no charging dock can still charge its remotes. A Wii with no Motion Plus cant play certain game modes.

[apex05]

What really matters is you can spec the Xbox360 how you want, £130 if you just want to play games against £300 minimum for a Ps3, then with the Xbox360 you can upgrade as your needs grow.

[chuggman]

Let's make some other assumptions like You don't need to pay that much... and like 2 controllers is enough most the time. also what about downloadable games and stuff!

Playstation 3
Cost of console: $400 (80GB) new current PS3 without PS2 capabilities means either keep old ps2 or to buy a ps2 for ps2 games. I have 20GB PS3 which means ps2 but no wifi :(
Cost of 1 extra controller: $60
Cost of 2 cheap maybe used games: $ 60
HD Cable=$10
optional 20$ for PS store= 20$
Total: $530/$550

Wii
Cost of console: $250
Cost of 1 extra controllers: $40
Cost of 1 Nunchuks: $20
cost of 2 classic controller: $40
Cost of 2 Wii Motion Pluses: ?? not released
Cost of recharge battery kit w/ 2 AA batteries: $20
cost of 4 AA recharge battery 10$ (this always gives a set of 2 extra batteries charging which is a plus)
Cost of 2 cheap used games: $60
SD card optional: up to 100$ 32GB
HD component 480p cable: 10$
Nintendo point card 20$ optional
Total: $450/$470/$570/570+ motion plus... $500 probably most realistic.

Xbox 360
Cost of console: $300 (60GB)
Cost of 1 extra controllers: $40
Cost of recharge battery kit w/ 2 AA batteries: $20
cost of 4 AA recharge battery 10$ (this always gives a set of 2 extra batteries charging which is a plus)Cost of 2 used cheap games: $60
Cost of Xbox Live membership: $60 (13 months+xboxlivearcadegame or two 20$ optional)
different HD cable than one included like HDMI for upconverting DVDs $10 Optional
Total: $470/$500 if membership is optional than - another 40$.


So this is really stupid trying to calculate this because as humans we have lots of options. If our budget really calls for it we can slash the HD cables, on the x360 we could slash the 60GB HDD and only use system to play native xbox360 games. The wii could slash a lot of assesories.
Truly the 2 systems for managing a reasonable budget on would be the 200$ 360 and the 250$ wii. the PS3 is still most expensive. though the 80$ wifi for xbox 360 is a joke too. Also to take advantage of of xbox certain games xbox 360 features requires the membership. this is just like the wii motion plus. if you don't play or use a feature you don't need to pay for it.

[Malksta]

$25 for charging station? You can charge controllers on the console itself, your laptop, or your PC.

[Triv1um]

Haha, when I brought my PS3 (UK release date) it cost me about £550 just for the console, 1 pad and 2 games. Haha.

How times have changed.

[DKing]

This comparison is fairly meaningless at least for me. I don't need/want half the stuff listed. I went with a 360 Arcade console for $160 (Thanks Dell), add an extra controller for $40 (Play & Charge kit which got me a USB recharger) and a 120GB hard drive for $120. $320 and I was good to go! Games also aren't $60 unless you buy new releases. Can find older stuff or used games for all consoles for a lot less than what they have in this chart.

Oh and I did buy another video cable for HD. Forgot how much it was but wasn't a whole lot.

[Arwin]

I've been paying xbox live membership here in Europe for six years now I think, paying 60 euros each year. Hopefully it gets cheaper, but right now, if you assume a life-span of the console of 5 years, the price of the online service is a bit higher than currently shown.

But yeah, this kind of list is a bit meaningless. To me personally, the PS3 is the best value by far, as I can reuse a lot of my old PS2 peripherals (Buzz, SingStar - the latter now even with Guitar Hero 3 guitar, so I could play the World Tour demo with guitar and voice already, nice!), and my Driving Force Pro racing wheel. BluRay is a big plus as well (together with all the other excellent media features), the browser is an awesome addition (nothing beats being able to access youtube and the likes easily in the livingroom) and I like the gigabit network card as well as the included wifi, which I also use with the PSP for remote play and such. I also added a 320GB harddrive for 60 euros, and I could go on for a long long time. ;)

The cost of Live means that I think this year I will finally end my Live subscription (I have a 360 too but almost never using it).