For the past 10 years or so, between black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, and December 25th, consumers are bombarded through the media with ads from Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft game console makers to buy their console. The competition between the console makers is fierce. Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft are the main players in the arena now after several makers dropped out of the market a few years ago. These are all seventh-generation consoles since they were released after 2005.

The battle between the makers has been fought in several areas, namely computing power, features, number of game titles available, and price.

Nintendo Wii:

The Nintendo Wii comes with an IBM PowerPC chip with a processor speed of 729 MHz called "Broadway". It has an internal flash memory storage capacity of 512 MB. SD and SDHC cards can be used to increase the external memory from 2 GB (SD card) to 32 GB (SDHC card) and a video chip manufactured by ATI called "Hollywood". It capable of producing 480p, 480i, and 576i standard definition video. The Wii is backward compatible, it can play some Nintendo Cube games.

Sony Playstation 3:

The Sony Playstation 3 comes with a much more powerful chip compared to the Wii. The chip called "Cell Broadband Engine" has a processor speed of 3.2 GHz. It uses a hard drive for storage and the hard drive is upgradable, starting from 20 GB to 250 GB. Only the 120 GB and 250 GB models are currently in stores. The Playstation is capable of producing 480i, 576i standard definition and 1080P high definition video and is backward compatible to most Playstation 2 games. Sony will be adding a motion controller in 2010 to the Playstation 3, something similar to the Wii remotes.

Microsoft Xbox 360:

The Xbox 360 comes pretty much with the processor power as the Playstation 3. It has the same processor speed of 3.2 GHz. The name of the chip is "Xenon". Like Playstation 3, Xbox also uses a hard drive for it main storage medium. The graphic chip in Xbox is made by ATI with 512 MB of memory. With this chip Xbox 360 is also capable of producing high definition video. Xbox is also introducing motion controller similar to Nintendo in the near future. Xbox is backward compatible to the 478 original Xbox. Xbox comes in three versions: Xbox 360 Arcade, Xbox 360 Pro and Xbox 306 Elite. The production of the Xbox 360 Pro has been discontinued and will continue to be sold until inventory runs out.

Nintendo Wii:

The Wii is equipped with two USB 2.0 ports. It has WiFi and Bluetooth capable and can be connected to a router by LAN adapter for internet connection. The Wii disc reader does not play DVD-video or DVD-audio discs. The Wii supports up to 4 remotes.

Sony Playstation 3:

The Playstation 3 is equipped with WiFi, Bluetooth, gigabit ethernet for LAN connection, four USB 2.0 and an HDMI connection for high definition output to an HD television. The Playstation 3 plays Blue-ray discs for games and movies, DVDs, and CDs. The Playstation 3 supports up to 7 remotes.

Microsoft Xbox 360:

Xbox is equipped with three USB 2.0 ports, IR port, and 100 gigabit ethernet for LAN connection. You must add an accessory for WiFi connectivity. The Xbox disc reader does not play Blue-ray discs for games and movies.

Nintendo Wii:

There are 54 games available for the Wii as of March 2009.

Sony Playstation 3:

There about 250 games available write now for Playstation. By Christmas 2009 there will be more than 300 games available.

Microsoft XBox 360:

There are currently 723 games currently available for the XBox 360. Most of these games are available through Xbox Live or are downloadable.

Nintendo Wii:

The Wii currently sells after a price reduction in September 2009 to $200.

Sony Playstation 3:

Sony reduced the price of Playstation in August 2009 to $250.

Microsoft Xbox 360:

The XBox 360 Arcade, XBox 306 Pro ( as long as supplies last) and XBox 360 Elite are priced at $200, $250 and $300 respectively.

When it comes down to decide which console you want, you have to ask yourself two critical questions.

• What do you want?
• What do they have to offer?

• Are you family oriented?
• Do you enjoy video games for leisure or company entertainment?
• Do you like moving around instead of just sitting there?

If your answer to these questions is "Yes," then the Nintendo Wii might be the right console for you.The Wii allows a variety of opportunities for families or groups of people to come together to participate in a single activity. Most of the games made for the Wii are also rated E for everyone. This helps with keeping that door open for having the family involved. Don't forget to look into their sport titles. Even athletes will sweat playing these games.

• Are you a true gamer at heart, conquering game titles is second nature, and enjoy getting the most out of your electronics?

Then the Playstation 3 is great at fulfilling all of these needs. You get great titles for all types of gamers. The latest Playstation 3 comes with a large variety of games from shooters to RPG's (Role playing games), the serious gamer will be satisfied. Plus Playstation 3 is a good Blue-ray disc player.

• When you were born, did the doctor cut a controller cord instead of an umbilical cord?
• Do you thrive off of any type of competition as long as there's Achievement Points at the end?

If you said "Yes" to these questions then Xbox 360 could be for you. XBox comes with the largest variety of games, a user friendly community of gamers of all types on Xbox Live, and even the option to play videos (Blue-ray with added DVD accessory), the Xbox holds a lead in the eyes of most gamers in regards to game consoles.

In end if you still cannot decide which one to buy, many of the same game titles can be played on all three consoles and if money is no object you can always buy all three.