PS3 question on backwards capabilities

My nieces want a PS3 for Christmas. They have a bunch of PS2 games. Will a PS3 play PS2 games? Does it depend on what model PS3 you get?

As stated in this thread, only the very first PS3s were backwards compatible with PS2. The hardware emulators were phased out very quickly; refurbished models do exist but they’re $350 and up.