Ad Technique

Sony has stepped up their advertisement efforts with the Playstation 3. Their new "It Only Does Everything" ads attempt to tell what kind of awesome value one might get by purchasing a PS3 for $300. From what I've heard, the PS3 has some really cool features, such as built-in wi-fi, browser capabilities on the Playstation Network, built-in Blu-Ray players, and more. One might think to themselves, "Wow, that's an amazing value!" And one might be right.


Then Sony really tempts us (myself included) with the promise of even more great features, such as full Internet browsing capabilities, direct links to sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Netflix, printing capabilities, online chat with friends while in gameplay mode, music downloads and playlists to be installed on the system from the Internet, and of course, amazing online gaming experiences. A gamer such as myself who owns a Playstation 3 might have to lift his or her jaw off the floor at this point.


Here's the kicker: all of those aforementioned features are an absolute nightmare to install into the system. Sony neglects to inform consumers of the hassle they have to undergo to receive these features and the constant updates necessary to keep them in prime functioning order. Its bad enough updating the system every time I get a new game, let alone updating it to be compatible with Facebook and Twitter and the printer in my neighbor's house.


It seems that the Playstation 3 does do everything, or nearly everything, but at the cost of lost game time, ibuprofen, and a small portion of one's sanity, does it really need to?