Some users are experiencing very unsettling problems with their new 3DS. It appears the first run of consoles has some problems on the hardware and software side. The two most widely reported problems are loose hinges and the 3DS black screen of death. Some hiccups are to be expected with any piece of hardware, but these issues are so prominent, Nintendo has created a support site that addresses the most common problems.

Accident-prone PS3 and PSP owners are probably rejoicing over Sony’s latest PlayStation Protection Plan announcement. Yes, there is now an official protection plan available through Sony that will cover your video game systems after the one-year warranty each system comes with expires. It’s going to cost you though.

The Sony Protection Plan is actually more like three mini-plans that all fall under the same blanket term. There’s one specific PS3 plan, and two PSP plans. The PS3 plan, which is $44.99 for one year and $59.99 for two years, and offers the same features as the manufacturer’s warranty, only for one or two years more. If you buy the plan and something goes wrong with your PS3, you pay nothing to send it off to Sony to have it repaired. You can only buy it if your system’s one-year manufacturer’s warranty hasn’t expired yet.

There are two PSP plans, with one slightly more specialized (and expensive) than the other…

My Xbox 360 was purchased in 2008. Even though the Xbox 360 website said my serial number indicated my console was out of warranty, I knew you had extended all Xbox 360 warranties for three years after the date of purchase. Armed with this knowledge I called customer service to dispute this matter. The gentleman who answered the call was polite and accommodating. After answering a few easy questions, he proceeded to send me a shipping label with detailed instructions on how to send my console back for repair.

GameIndustry wrote an interesting article regarding the unapologetically surprising success of Microsoft’s XBox 360 and how at this juncture, in it’s battle to succeed over Sony, it’s dominance may be undermined by what they so eloquently describe as the “problem of hardware reliability and customer service, an area in which the Xbox 360 has a more »