http://kotaku.com/5339968/sony-annou...his-september-[updated]
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090818/...tion_price_cut
In what has been one of the worse kept videogame secrets (Seriously, 50 different leaks claims and ads all confirming it. Nintendo doesn't let any out unless they want them out), Sony will now have a slimmed down model of their console, the Playstation 3.... and boy does it look lackluster to the original. How did they manage to fit a whole 120 gigs in that when it took that big model to fit 80??
With this being their 5th playstation model to date (40, 60, 80, 120 gig models, not to mention different versions of those models with backwards capability), they have effortlessly put out more versions of a console than any other company before them (The closest being the X-Box 360 with it's standard model, arcade model, and Elite Model, plus the separate boxed version of the standard upon original release).
On this note though, they have finally put themselves on competitive ground with Microsoft and Nintendo. Microsoft's cheapest console, the arcade model, is about $200 U.S.D. The Nintendo Wii which has yet to have a price cut is priced at $250 U.S.D. And now, Sony has marked their price from the infamous "Five Hundred and Ninety-Nine U.S. Dollars" to a now MUCH more reasonable $299 U.S.D, as well as dropping the price of the 80 gig model
Here's the big question though: Will Sony make a come back? They lose plenty of money off the playstation 3 console already, and I doubt they've worked it out well enough that they can turn a profit on it. Anyone who wants a playstation 3 (and still bitch about settling on a 360) no longer have a right to complain.
Here's my thought though: They've been the underdog for the whole console generation, being forced to reside in third place in the console market and perpetually second place in the handheld. They've released this new slim model, but what's the point of it?? They still lose money, possibly more than on the original model now. The factor that held them back was the price, not the size of it. If people really want the console they'll make the space in their house. I'm sure they can build up sales, but it's far too little to help them muscle back to even second place.