Price War: Xbox 360 vs. PlayStation 3 -- Fight! Clovis NM

Source: NRDC Study "Lowering the Cost of Play: Improving the Energy Efficiency of Video Game Consoles."

Service Please

Don't forget the recent shifts in each console's underlying soft architecture. Microsoft's "New Xbox Experience" which debuted last week offers several new features, perhaps most importantly the company's new and exclusive partnership with Netflix (see my review, parts one and two). Sony isn't sitting idly by, either. While it's PlayStation Home service is still in closed beta, it may turn out to be an even more radical shift than Microsoft's NXE (think The Sims, except the part of Sim John or Jane Doe is played by you).

Bottom Line

Everyone has their own "optimal" configuration based on personal tastes. Some people would gladly pay more or less for access to a given franchise, or to work within the strictures of one platform's architecture versus another's. The comparisons above are meant only as a shopping aid. What you buy, why you buy it, has to ultimately jibe with your personal interests. As far as I can tell, the race at this moment has no clear price winners -- it's down to picking the features (and games, if we're talking exclusives) that matter most to you.