PS3 on Watchdog
Discussion
So it appears that Sony have been pulled up on Watchdog over the Yellow Light of Doom on the PS3. "The programme quoted the figure as 12,500 consoles - half a percent of that 2.5 million figure - but a spokesperson for Sony said the number is less than that."
So, hands up who has had the YLOD on their PS3?
That's me then, anyone else?
So, hands up who has had the YLOD on their PS3?
That's me then, anyone else?
The Sony spokesmen also went on to explain that the yellow light is just a warning light to say there is a problem and that it covers a wide range of faults. Thats why Sony was getting the arse a little because unlike the single Xbox overheating fault which gave it a bad name, the yellow light on the PS3 could mean any number of faults and Sony doesnt want to worry people because there is not a wide spread single fault to the console like the RROD.
E36Rob said:
The Sony spokesmen also went on to explain that the yellow light is just a warning light to say there is a problem and that it covers a wide range of faults. Thats why Sony was getting the arse a little because unlike the single Xbox overheating fault which gave it a bad name, the yellow light on the PS3 could mean any number of faults and Sony doesnt want to worry people because there is not a wide spread single fault to the console like the RROD.
Sorry, I should have pointed out that I was referring to terminal YLOD's, which resulted in a new PS3.plfrench said:
Have Microsoft been on Watchdog previously? Surely Xbox failure % is in double figures... I'd have thought that <0.5% failure rate is less than many electronic goods out there, so it seems strange to pick on PS3.
Yes they havehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56-gQq62Hyc
Gun said:
I've had my PS3 for a couple of year now and haven't had any problems with it, I can count the number of crashes on one hand. I am, however, on my third Xbox.
Snap. Got my PS3 on Launch day, and it's been rock solid. I take it to work quite a lot to beat the guys at F1, and GT
and it gets a fair bit of use these days - little big planet especially! No issues.Also on my 3rd xbox.
I like the way people are using the old "launch day PS3 here, zero problems", comments, as that's the exact same conversation most 360 owners had.A few years later however.. 
My mate at work has lost his import 60 gig PS3 and now his UK one has just died with the same error.He also had one repaired and it lasted about two weeks and died again! It will be interesting to see how bad things get as time goes on and it's as old as the 360.Maybe that's why they pushed out the PS3 slim, as it may be a more reliable machine.
My mate at work has lost his import 60 gig PS3 and now his UK one has just died with the same error.He also had one repaired and it lasted about two weeks and died again! It will be interesting to see how bad things get as time goes on and it's as old as the 360.Maybe that's why they pushed out the PS3 slim, as it may be a more reliable machine.
Eurogamer ran an interesting article on this very subject. Apparently the console repair centre they interviewed was of the informed opinion that the 360 and PS3 share the same fundamental issue - i.e. they no longer apply lead-based solder in the build process, and this is more prone to fracture.
Applying engineers' thinking, it will probably be down to duty cycle, or the number of cold to warm to cold cycles that really lifes it.
Empirically though it does appear from surveying the owners I know that the PS3 is way more reliable
Applying engineers' thinking, it will probably be down to duty cycle, or the number of cold to warm to cold cycles that really lifes it.
Empirically though it does appear from surveying the owners I know that the PS3 is way more reliable
It's amazing how a feature like this brings out the Sony vs Microsoft fanboys...
Nobody said that the xbox didn't have a crappy failiure rate - the whole point of the complaint was Sony's abject refusal to do anything after the 1yr warranty is up, and they're specifically denying there is a fault.
Microsoft, on the other hand didn't admit there is an inherent fault, but they did extend the warranty for the RROD to 3 years, which is something Sony aren't doing for the YLOD.
Yes, we have the EU on our side (for once) and yes you get the whole "reasonable time period" which, for a £350 console should be in the region of about 2-3 years of normal use, but that involves the retailer, not Sony, and it is one of those things that *if* this became a big problem, on the scale of the RROD - could end up putting smaller retailers out of business, due to volume of "I bought this PS3 two years ago, it has YLOD and sony want £140 to fix it, I get reasonable time to expect it to work so eat my small claims court action, retailer"
Sony have dropped the ball on this imo. Yes there is a 0.5% return rate (by Sony's figures - Microsoft estimated the 360 failure rate at 3% and look how wrong that was), but by not enhancing the warranty terms, they're hammering more nails into the coffin that they're making for the PS3.
The problem is down to RoHS more than anything else. The use of lead-free solder in devices that can go from ambient to +70oC in a few minutes, then back to ambient is crippling the devices. Lead-free solder doesn't cope as well as lead-content solder to changes of temperature, it fractures and you have a dry joint.
The RoHS solder is not Microsoft's fault nor is it Sony's fault - it's the bloody eco weenie movement's fault, but at least Microsoft have taken steps to say "yes, we're aware of this problem so for 3 years, don't worry about it". Sony are saying "After one year, f
k you - fk you right in the arse..."
Nobody said that the xbox didn't have a crappy failiure rate - the whole point of the complaint was Sony's abject refusal to do anything after the 1yr warranty is up, and they're specifically denying there is a fault.
Microsoft, on the other hand didn't admit there is an inherent fault, but they did extend the warranty for the RROD to 3 years, which is something Sony aren't doing for the YLOD.
Yes, we have the EU on our side (for once) and yes you get the whole "reasonable time period" which, for a £350 console should be in the region of about 2-3 years of normal use, but that involves the retailer, not Sony, and it is one of those things that *if* this became a big problem, on the scale of the RROD - could end up putting smaller retailers out of business, due to volume of "I bought this PS3 two years ago, it has YLOD and sony want £140 to fix it, I get reasonable time to expect it to work so eat my small claims court action, retailer"
Sony have dropped the ball on this imo. Yes there is a 0.5% return rate (by Sony's figures - Microsoft estimated the 360 failure rate at 3% and look how wrong that was), but by not enhancing the warranty terms, they're hammering more nails into the coffin that they're making for the PS3.
The problem is down to RoHS more than anything else. The use of lead-free solder in devices that can go from ambient to +70oC in a few minutes, then back to ambient is crippling the devices. Lead-free solder doesn't cope as well as lead-content solder to changes of temperature, it fractures and you have a dry joint.
The RoHS solder is not Microsoft's fault nor is it Sony's fault - it's the bloody eco weenie movement's fault, but at least Microsoft have taken steps to say "yes, we're aware of this problem so for 3 years, don't worry about it". Sony are saying "After one year, f
k you - fk you right in the arse..."Frederick said:
...at least Microsoft have taken steps to say "yes, we're aware of this problem so for 3 years, don't worry about it". Sony are saying "After one year, fk you - fk you right in the arse..."
You make a fair point, but my understanding is that the RROD is created from a single problem. Sony is saying that the YLOD is a warning light that comes on in a variety of circumstances. As a result it would be much harder for them to make a blanket rule relating the YLOD as it would need to be viewed on a case by case basis to establish if it were user error or a system fault that created the problem.k you - fk you right in the arse..."Frederick said:
Sony have dropped the ball on this imo. Yes there is a 0.5% return rate (by Sony's figures - Microsoft estimated the 360 failure rate at 3% and look how wrong that was), but by not enhancing the warranty terms, they're hammering more nails into the coffin that they're making for the PS3.
From a PR perspective it would look much better if Sony agreed to cover the costs. If their argument is 'it's only 0.5%' then it wouldn't really cost them much in the long run, and it would let them boost their fanbase as the obvious MS comparisons would be made. I guess it's tough to make that call when you are in a company that is losing millions each year at the moment.Dare2Fail said:
Frederick said:
...at least Microsoft have taken steps to say "yes, we're aware of this problem so for 3 years, don't worry about it". Sony are saying "After one year, fk you - fk you right in the arse..."
You make a fair point, but my understanding is that the RROD is created from a single problem. Sony is saying that the YLOD is a warning light that comes on in a variety of circumstances. As a result it would be much harder for them to make a blanket rule relating the YLOD as it would need to be viewed on a case by case basis to establish if it were user error or a system fault that created the problem.k you - fk you right in the arse..."Dare2Fail said:
Frederick said:
Sony have dropped the ball on this imo. Yes there is a 0.5% return rate (by Sony's figures - Microsoft estimated the 360 failure rate at 3% and look how wrong that was), but by not enhancing the warranty terms, they're hammering more nails into the coffin that they're making for the PS3.
From a PR perspective it would look much better if Sony agreed to cover the costs. If their argument is 'it's only 0.5%' then it wouldn't really cost them much in the long run, and it would let them boost their fanbase as the obvious MS comparisons would be made. I guess it's tough to make that call when you are in a company that is losing millions each year at the moment.Gassing Station | Video Games | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff