did you really expect the majority of people here to even consider the xbox? There is so much MS hatred on this board there is no way.

Personally, in my house we have.

3 ps2, 1 gamecube, 2 xbox, 4 dreamcast.. and at least one of every other system ever made (3 male rommates and one of them is a collector)

Now a few thoughts:

#1 i didn't like GT3, i love racing games and i didn't like GT3. People talk about how realsitic it is, all that is crap. No way no how does any driving game come even close to real racing, ever. That said Project gotham racing on the xbox looks fantastic and is really fun. FUN.

GtA3 is going to be out on everything but the cube come march, so don't base your opinion on that.

Someone was talking about the xbox hardware being obsolete already.. whatever.. and the gamecube/ps2 aren't? you must be high if you believe that.

There really aren't any games right now on teh ps2 that won't be on the xbox in a month that i want. NONE.. and furthermore, there is a fantastic rally game coming out for the xbox.

Addressing the controller.

#1 if you are pver 12 yrs old, or over 5'3" you will probably not have any real problems with the xbox controller. Yes it is bigger, however it is also more comfortable. The ps2 controller is crap..that said, if you get used to it, it will feel alkward to switch to anything.

Gamecube: Looks alright, but talka bout recycled. Their game release cycle is horrid right now.. and the games that are out either a) get old fast b) are made for little kids.

DOA3 absolutely spanks super smash brothers too, IMHO. Remember i play all 3 of these systems regularly. So i am not just defending a purchase.

Back to the comment about the xbox hardware being obsolete. President of sony has announced that they have to release the ps3 2 years early due to the xbox.. so hmm, what does that say about capabilities>?

Also, if you don't have a DVD player, don't even think of using the sony. It is horrid. At least the xbox can play dvd's well as well.. if that is a feature you want.

If you do end up with a PS2, i HIGHLY suggest you get an extended warranty (i would with the xbox too , just to be safe). The failure rates for sony's dvd drives are ASTRONOMICAL. I personally know someone who is on his 3rd ps2, and my room mate has 2 that died, he repaired one.

think i am makign it up, check this out

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&q=%2B"playstation+2"+%2B"read+error"

http://groups.google.com/groups?hl=en&q=%2B"playstation+2"+%2B"broken"

To me sony is "the corporation"

I owned a ps2 for a week after its' release, and i tried to return it due to freezing and so forth. Sony told retailers that if there was a problem they were not to take back the units.. if they did they wouldn't be reimbursed for them. As such i was instructed to call sony for a refund, only when i tried they denied a refund and told me to send it in for repair. My experience with sony has been so horrid in teh last 5 years, let me tell you, i won't be buying again any time soon. The only product still working is a high end digital camera.

All that aside, you should play the units at a store, try to get a good sampling, see what you like. I only posted all this to combat the anti xbox sentiment. I own one and i am very happy with it.. it runs circles around the ps2 in pretty muchevery category. People want to flame off about game choise.. well think back to what games were out 3 months after the ps2 release.. they were almost all crap.

Get what you like, but asking for advce on it online is opening a bag.. research yourself, it will make things better.
you can start by reading this as well

http://www.anandtech.com/showdoc.html?i=1561&p=1
(anandtech.com search for xbox last 4 pages are a hardware comparo to ps2)

and try this

http://www.xboxusersgroup.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=NS-Everything_there_is_to_know&file=index

you can goto xbox.ign.com or ps2.ign.com or videogames.com to see released games and reviews.

and finally to address the guy who said the xbox hardware was obsolete...

comparison
==========

Main Processor Speed:
X-Box: 733 MHz
PS2: 295 MHz
GC: 405 MHz

Memory:
X-Box: 64 MB Unified
PS2: 40 MB Partitioned
GC: 43 MB Partitioned

Polygon Performance:
X-Box: 116.5 Million/sec
PS2: 66 Million/sec
GC: 12 Million/sec

Storage:
X-Box: 8 GB Built In; 8 MB Memory Card
PS2: Optional HD; 8 MB Memory Card
GC: No HD; 4 MB Digicard; 64 MB SD Card

Memory Bandwidth:
X-Box: 6.4 GB/sec
PS2: 3.2 GB/sec
GC: 2.6 GB/sec

Networking:
X-Box: 4 Controller Ports; Broadband Built In
PS2: 2 Controller Ports; Broadband Additional
GC: 4 Controller Ports; Broadband Additional

Sound:
X-Box: 256 Audio Channels (6.1 Dolby Surround)
PS2: 48 Audio Channels
GC: 64 Audio Channels

Max Resolution:
X-Box: 1920x1080 (Widescreen)
PS2: 1280x1024
GC: 1050x600

DVD Player:
X-Box: Additional Add On
PS2: Built In
GC: None