Can't give you any info as to how long the repair will last, but I fixed a 40GB SKU last weekend using the reflow method.

I'd recommend using Arctic Cooling MX-3 thermal paste if you can order it online although AS5 or MX-2 (and a list of other TIMs) would both be better than the factory paste as well. Also, order non-corrosive (does not require being washed off) solder flux to prep the joints before reflowing with the heat gun to keep them from getting brittle. A flux pen is probably the easiest to use.

I think it's the YLOD.

... I have failed

Let it cool, it obviously overheated. You should buy one of those external heatsinks, works for mine =)

You got YLOD bro. There are multiple complex "do-it-yourself" fixes for it or you can send it to sony and pay $150. I'd advise you to get a slim if you choose the $150 out of warranty fix because a YLOD console would YLOd again...no exceptions. I learnt the hard way.

There is a relatively easy hair dryer YLOD fix that you can find on youtube. It worked for me but you shouldnt view it as a true "fix" because your ps3 would last only a few weeks at best after the trick. However, it can buy you time to get your data off the HDD...something sony's fix cant even guarantee.

Does anyone still believe that the those of us who got YLOD are an unlucky 0.1%? I'd say its a lot more than that with all these threads that have been popping up. I alone have 2 YLODs under my belt

A 0.1% failure rate on a complex consumer electronic piece of equipment like the PS3 is statistically impossible. I know you just pulled that number out of nowhere, but I can't recall anyone actually claiming it was that low.

Generally, a 3-5% rate of failure is considered acceptable for A/V type equipment. For computers (which the Xbox and PS3 are), those numbers are both higher and a lot less static than they would be for something like a DVD player, meaning over less time, you will continue to see greater rates of failure.

Laptops for example, have an average lifespan of about 3 years before failure. Seems a bit low, but if a given laptop was used regularly on a daily basis over those three years, it doesn't seem outrageous. What can skew that data is when an older laptop is supplemented by a newer one and the old one is relegated to low use, reducing the average regular run time. Naturally, if you stop using an old laptop altogether, about the only way it will fail beyond then is when the battery no longer holds a charge or it's intentionally broken.

Eventually, there will be better info on what the real rate of failure is on the PS3 although my guess would be for those older 60GB units past 3 years, eventually all of them are going to fail at one point if they continue to see heavy use.

Under 2 years though, is really pushing the line on how long something like a computer should last, even if used on a daily basis for extended periods of time (say 40 hours a week, which over three years would be well over 6,000 hours of run time).

So the original 40GB SKUs from late 2007 really shouldn't be failing at a rate greater than 5% if QC was within lower ranges. I have a pretty good feeling that it's actually quite a bit higher than that though.

Sony waits two days to answer my email and tells me to call them.

What is so secretive that they must tell me that they'll charge me £120 and give me a refurbished PS3 on the PHONE?

When you call the SCE service department, it takes about 5-10 minutes to get your repair/refurb process rolling.

It's not much different than call, wait for a service rep, explain the error or play it over the phone "beep, fans whir, beep, beep, beep, power clicks off and silence." They've processed enough of these that they'll tell you it has to be sent in.

Phone service reps handle work orders immediately. Can't say the same for e-mails which don't have the same priority as a customer on the line.

yea Im battling with that decision right now. I know I could get it fixed by a third party for about 80 bucks. Then I figure I can get my data that I want off the drive then sell it to get a slim so I don't have this problem again. It just pisses me of because it seems that this problem is widespread with the 60 gigs and the solution that sony has come up with doesn't seem reasonable to me. Oh well maybe I'm just spoiled I never had a system fail on me and I been playing games forever.

Here's the deal with getting it fixed locally; you get your data back, assuming your console isn't a 100% loss and they can resurrect it. If that's worth your $80, go for it, with the idea in mind that you will either be buying a new console later, or will be having it repaired again.

A refurb from SCE, while almost twice as expensive, is virutally guaranteed to last longer (at least for the bare minimum 90 day warrantee). The problem with getting a refurb is that your data will be gone. Even if you pull the HDD, it's keyed to your old console and even any back up you may have made would be similarly keyed. So if your local repair guy offers a similar 90 day guarantee on his work or better, decide whether your money or your data takes priority.

I think what makes dealing with a premature bricked console a lot harder is when you spend $600 on it. A three year lifespan is short at that price, assuming you weren't using it 40+ hours a week. Even $400 is too much to spend on a console that dies within two years.