Does the red light flash and does it turn yellow for a second

Press and Hold the power botton until you here 3 beeps, and then you will see the thing says "restore" or choose option you want..... if nothing, unplug and replug the cord, press and hold the power botton again until 3 beeps and then leave the cord plugged in do the second time press and hold til 3 beeps.then the restore option should show up.... hope that helps.

I hear a lot of people say this, why is that butten even there then if it's so terrible?  Is it some sort of last resort?

I know when my PS3 doesn't connect to any blueTooth devices (my controllers mainly) I have to turn my PS3 off and then flip the switch but I don't actually turn the PS3 off by that switch (though I did once and I got the message the OP talked about).

this happened to me before my system died good luck. My stem when from this to no turning on anymore

ok, I'm going with the press&hold till it beeps multiple times approach. If that doesn't work...

...is it overheating in an enclosed space?? If so, put it in the open, let it cool for a few hours, try again while in the open.

...did you have a recent brown/black out or a lightning storm? Either of those could cause a power surge which can severely damage electronics. If so and nothing else seems wrong, sometimes homeowner insurance or power companies will cover the cost of damaged goods. Due to the low price of the PS3 though and being the only broken item you may not be able to collect on it.

... it could just be some other random problem and you should really just call Sony.

Still, it sounds like a surge.

Get surge protectors people.

I wouldn't go to the extreme that these people go, but I agree with the idea. It is like a PC. You don't just pull the power cord, you go through the proper shutdown sequence first, then pull the power cord. The switch on the back is like pulling the power cord, and the PS3 does have a HDD, so using the normal shutdown is the better way to go to prevent system corruption.

oh, and if you do and you have to call Sony, tell them you plug straight into the wall. A lot of companies void the warranty if you tell them you plugged it into a surge protector (or other device between the item and the wall). Companies like to be jerks, so don't tell them and you won't run into any problems.

I'm pretty sure it isn't overheating (only the bottom even feels at all warm, the top/sides don't even feel like the system is on).

I think a surge is the most likely cause (other than a hardware problem), except that we've had no storms and no blackouts. All the other appliances also seem to be working just fine, so I am a little worried.

I think I'll call Sony in the morning if it still isn't working. I might pick up a Slim though, as I could get a 120gb with a few games for €299 last I checked. I'd miss my BC (60gb launch is what I have now) and my saved game data too. I wouldn't bother with a 250gb, seeing as I just purchased a 500gb hard-drive (which I intended to put in this system )

The blinking red light is an overheating warning, I had mine shutdown similiar to what yours did. I switched TV channel to watch something else and came back to ps3 and it was off., then I got the blinking red light and had to flip switch in back to get it to reset. Soon as I started it back up the power supply blew, I could actually here the fuse pop.