The answer should be obvious. Any time you reduce the resolution, you increase the framerate with the same number of objects on the screen. (or increase the number of objects with the same framerate). It's a tradeoff. For example, with PC games, you can choose to turn the effects sliders up higher and get the same framerate if you lower the resolution.

it's too expensive to render it at the max

 The PS3 is equivalent to max setting, and never drops below 30fps (it's locked at 30, so never goes higher).

 Doesn't this disprove your theory that the PS3 is the same as a high end CPU and a cheap video card?

This topic should simply be removed because it's plain and simple trolling, but I suppose it doesn't hurt to throw in an honest answer. The PS3 doesn't (necessarily) suck so much as the developers do. Really, you could have the best hardware in the world and it wouldn't matter if the majority of the programmers working on it weren't very good at their jobs. Like many of the people at EA, Activision, TakeTwo and a number of other developers who are sure to have their games on that list. While on the other hand I do see one Sony 1st party game in 1080 and a 2nd party in ~720 and that's not bad for a machine that's only been ut for about a year. No one has ever maximized the hardware potential of a console in the first two or three years, and many consoles didn't see that level of programming skill applied to them until after they were 5 years old.

The strength about the PS3 is the processor not the GPU. The GPU is equal to the 7800GTX, no question on that. The 9800GX2 easily puts the RSX to shame but it will take a PC with a QX9770 and a 9800GX2 to outperform what the PS3 is truly capable of thanks to the CELL processor.

Yeah I agree, but nobody seems to use the CELL. It just lays there being unused. I really want to see what the cell is capable of as a gpu. The only problem I see is the small amount of ram , and low bandwidth compared to pc gpus.

Edit: But I don't agree it's that powerful. Maybe equivalent to a 8800gt single. 

 Wait, so nobody is using the CELL? Not even sony? serious question, not being a smart ass.

^ We are talking about as a spare gpu.