Meet the PlayStation 3

A console built like a supercomputer

The PlayStation 3 launched in November 2006, powered by a CPU designed with IBM, Toshiba and Sony - the Cell Broadband Engine. It was the first console to make Blu-ray its primary format and offered real HD gaming at a time when most TVs were still standard definition.

Sony sold around 87 million PS3 consoles before production ended in 2017. That is a vast number of machines still sitting in living rooms, garages and repair benches - and like all complex electronics, they develop faults. Knowing the PS3 makes you a genuinely useful technician.

What makes a PS3 a PS3

• Cell Broadband Engine - the custom CPU with one PowerPC core and eight specialised SPE cores at 3.2 GHz
• RSX - the NVIDIA-designed graphics chip that renders the games
• 256 MB XDR main memory plus 256 MB GDDR3 for the graphics
• Blu-ray drive - reads Blu-ray discs, DVDs and CDs
• Internal 2.5-inch SATA hard drive - user-replaceable in every model
• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth - for online play and wireless controllers

Why this course is different

This course teaches the whole job, not a single trick. You will learn what to check, in what order, so you can work through a fault you have never seen before instead of memorising one script. Every lesson maps to a real, common PS3 failure.

Tip: You do not need a rare console or expensive equipment. A used PS3, a basic screwdriver and Torx set, and a clean desk are enough to complete every practical lesson in this course.