The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home computer game console developed by Sony Computer system Amusement. It is the successor to PlayStation 2, and also belongs to the PlayStation brand of gaming consoles. It was very first launched on November 11, 2006, in Japan, November 17, 2006, in North America, and also March 23, 2007, in Europe and Australia. The PlayStation 3 competed largely against Microsoft s Xbox 360 and also Nintendo s Wii as component of the 7th generation of computer game gaming consoles. The console was initial formally introduced at E3 2005, and also was released at the end of 2006. It was the first console to make use of Blu-ray Disc as its primary storage space medium. The console was the first PlayStation to incorporate social pc gaming solutions, consisting of the PlayStation Network, in addition to the first to be controllable from a handheld console, through its remote connection with PlayStation Portable and also PlayStation Vita. In September 2009, the Slim version ...