PS3 Slim In The Living Room -- Not Just For Gamers

With its new PS3 Slim, expected to ship on Sept. 1 with a list price of $299, Sony seems to be making it easier for customers to make it a permanent fixture in their living rooms.

It's "Slim" nickname comes from the fact that the PS3 Slim was redesigned with an internal volume only two-thirds that of the original PS3, making it a smaller, thinner, lighter device.

That new size, combined with a new optional stand to allow the device to be set in a vertical position, and a new textured design, make the PS3 Slim easier to blend into a living room than earlier models.

The redesign also resulted in a cut in power consumption by about one-third, which Sony said allowed it to reduce fan noise, a must in a living-room setting.

The PS3 Slim, with the new lower price, may be worth considering as an alternative for anyone, not just gamers, interested in watching videos in both the Blu-ray and DVD formats, especially considering that a stand-alone Blu-ray player from Sony can be purchased from Target at a sale price of $249. The regular price for the player is $299. Even low-end models from Curtis-Mathis start at $169 at Target.

New with the PS3 Slim is BRAVIA Sync. When a PS3 Slim is connected to a Sony BRAVIA LCD TV with the HDMI cable, users can directly operate the PS3's XMB (XrossMediaBar) technology for content shortcuts using the TV's remote control. The PS3 Slim's "System Standby" feature also automatically turns off the gaming console when the BRAVIA TV is turned off.

Sony hasn't ignored the gaming aspects of the PS3 Slim. It still has the Cell processor and all the game-oriented capabilities of the original. Sony also said that Sony Consumer Electronics Worldwide is in the process of releasing several new game titles, including Uncharted 2: Among Thieves; EyePet; Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time; Heavy Rain; God of War 3; MAG; ModNation Racer; and Gran Turismo 5.