This straightforward improve made my PS3 really feel model new

This Black Friday, I made a decision to splurge and purchase my very first OLED TV. I had heard nice issues about OLEDs and was debating between a 4K OLED monitor and a 4K OLED TV. Ultimately, my buddies satisfied me that an OLED TV can be the only option to switch my ageing Samsung monitor, so I went for it.

My predominant purpose for upgrading was gaming — enjoying on my Switch 2 and PS5, in addition to connecting my PC to take pleasure in a few of my favourite video games in 4K, like Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 and Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle. Since organising the TV earlier this week, I have been blown away by how wonderful video games look on OLED — deep blacks, vibrant colours, and quick response occasions are incredible, particularly with the PS5 supporting 120Hz VRR.

Nonetheless, whereas gaming on the PS5, it occurred to me that I ought to take a look at one thing else on my new TV. Earlier this 12 months, I lastly got a PS3 for the first time after skipping it for an Xbox 360 again within the day. I loved it, however I had been enjoying it on a monitor, and whereas it regarded fantastic, the image high quality wasn’t the sharpest. Naturally, I spotted that with my OLED TV, the PS3 may look higher than ever — and which may be an understatement. On this display screen, it appears like an entire new console.

OLED elevates the PS3 to a brand new stage

It brings previous PS3 video games again to life with glorious distinction and vibrant colours

Clearly, the PS3’s picture high quality cannot compete with the PS5. However after I hooked it as much as my OLED TV, I nearly forgot I used to be enjoying on a console that is practically 20 years previous.

The primary recreation I attempted was Uncharted 2, and I used to be instantly impressed. OLED screens excel at distinction and deep blacks, which was clear through the recreation’s intro sequence, the place you are hanging off a practice on a snowy cliff and through the nighttime museum heist. These scenes normally seem washed-out on older LCD TVs, however on an OLED, the blacks had been actually black, not the same old grayish tone I’ve seen earlier than on LCDs.

That alone makes previous PS3 video games look extra detailed than they did on older TVs. Since OLED panels can totally flip off particular person pixels, shadows and darkish scenes out of the blue achieve depth and readability that the PS3 has at all times technically been capable of output, however few TVs may show accurately till now.

On high of that, colours on the PS3 look much better on an OLED because of the panel’s extra vibrant and correct coloration replica. I examined this with the PS3 model of The Final of Us, and whereas it clearly does not match the remake on PS5, the OLED display screen made the decade-old recreation look surprisingly fashionable. The improved coloration accuracy makes the world and characters stand out in a manner I might by no means seen earlier than on older TVs with the PS3.

After all, any console, PC, or streaming system can profit from being linked to an OLED TV. However utilizing the PS3 actually highlighted how spectacular it was for its time. Video games like The Final of Us and Uncharted 2 nonetheless look gorgeous in 2025, though I am enjoying their unique PS3 variations, and it is sufficient to make the ageing console really feel surprisingly new once more. If you wish to play the most recent and biggest variations of those video games, the PS5 is clearly the way in which to go, however on an OLED show, the older variations come again to life in a manner I did not anticipate.

There are some limitations

Decision is what holds it again

The most important limitation of enjoying my PS3 on an OLED TV is, unsurprisingly, the decision. The PS3 wasn’t designed for 4K gaming, so it is onerous to not discover that its picture is not as crisp as what you’d see on a PS5. PS3 video games had been constructed for 720p/1080p HD, not 4K UHD, and that distinction reveals on fashionable screens. Nonetheless, the OLED’s vibrant colours and deep distinction assist compensate for the decrease decision.

One other downside is the shortage of HDR, which merely did not exist through the PS3 period. However even with out HDR, the pure distinction and brightness of an OLED panel nonetheless make the picture pop greater than it ever did on older LCD TVs.

General, you probably have an OLED TV or monitor and an previous gaming console like a PS3 or Xbox 360, I extremely suggest attempting it once more on the newer panel expertise. Whereas older video games clearly will not look pretty much as good as fashionable ones, viewing them with enhanced colours and distinction on an OLED makes them look far more detailed, and it is a enjoyable journey down reminiscence lane to revisit older video games you have not performed shortly. OLED displays and TVs are additionally turning into extra reasonably priced, so if you wish to swap to OLED with out spending a fortune, there are various choices accessible, together with budget-friendly choices like a 27-inch monitor, which you can find for below $600.