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$499 PlayStation 3 Confirmed
Gamespot is reporting that the rumoured price drop from earlier this week is a reality. Starting on July 10th, the current 60GB model will sell for $499. Coming to US shores in August is the 80GB version only available in South Korea at the moment, which will retail for $599. They're bundling that unit with Motorstorm, so it's not just another 20 gigs for $100. "The price drop further indicates that, after a slow start, Sony is now aggressively trying to expand its customer base in the US. The move comes none too soon. According to the latest figures from industry-research firm the NPD Group, the PS3 only sold 82,000 units in the US in May, compared to the Xbox 360's 155,000 units and the Wii's 338,000 units." So, is this it? Will this price drop make you buy a PS3, or are you still holding off for the big games this fall?
I want one for the Blu-Ray player. I have a 61" DLP set that is just screaming for Blu-Ray or HD DVD, Personally I like Blu-Ray. Currently stand alone Blu-Ray players are $650+ (from a quick Google search). From the reviews I have read it holds up fairly well against them. Plus an awesome gaming machine.
If you could reason with religious people, there would be no religious people
It's the only game I need that's only for PS3. I might even wait until they port it though. $500 for one game is too expensive.
Also going to wait to see what Wii games are out this Christmas. With the immense popularity, I expect Wii will get a surge of games - but knowing that games take time to make, I wonder when it will happen. Perhaps Fall of '08.
Wow, you have 3000+ computers and you can't afford a single PS3? It really must be that expensive:)
Calling a $500 price "aggressive" may not be appropriate, really. Realistic, perhaps; it's still $200 pricier than an HD-DVD player or a basic XBox 360. I'd call it barely reasonable, but not aggressive.
Sony's continual disdain toward customers over the past few years was the guaranteed nail in the coffin for me. My hard earned cash will go to entertainment elsewhere.
A new motorcycle is looking much more tempting, entertaining, and far more invigorating than a PS/3 could ever be.
Sorry Sony it was just too little too late, better luck next time.
You know, I have one simple request. And that is to have sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads!
And honestly looking at FFXIII despite being a huge FF fanboy doesnt make me bite at all, not for 500 dollars. As for the other PS3 killer apps right now, more than a few are actually out or coming out on the 360, which I already own.
Im sure a bunch of people are going to jump on me with bluray this, and HDMI that, but quite frankly Sony really think about what made their PS2 a huge seller. They though it was the diehards, and built a system perfect for them. What they forgot was the casuals, of which the 100 dollar PS2 became a big seller not the 300 dollar original pricetag version.
"Slashdot, where telling the truth is overrated but lying is insightful."
So they drop the price $50. That's how much one game costs.
What the PS3 needs is expandable RAM, to more than 256/512MB. Not for the games, though they'd probably benefit to become more complex. But to run Linux on it, of course.
--
make install -not war
...for $499 USD? Zing. It's Bridge Racer! BRIIIIIDGE RACER.
I mean really.. more then 500 bucks for a game machine? Thats is nuts. I really dont know too many people who spend so much money just to play video games. Yes, I know you can play DVD's on it too, but in my neck of the woods you cant get a blue-ray DVD anyhow...so whats the point? I know the Xbox is not too much less expensive, but in my mind to most consumers, see these two as basically the same thing except one is expensive and one is obscenely expensive. I know that each system has their fan-boys, but my god! Who spends that much cash to sit in front of the tv? Btw, I am not sitting at a desk writing this..laptop in the garden for not much more then a PS3 ;)
With the new 42" Westinghouse 1080ps coming in as being nearly universally loved by the AVSforum crew and cheap cheap.
:-)
Plus 5 free Blu-Ray discs. Albeit not the best choices. My credit card is going to be a bit light.
Good think the Corporate American Express Card has no limit
For the PS3? Or the Wii, for that matter? Why on earth do we have to wait for almost a year after a console is released before getting AAA titles on it?
Games are what will make me decide which console to buy. I got a PS2 first, because of the exclusives. I eventually picked up a GC for Zelda. Until the games start appearing, I'll be sitting on the fence for any of the next-gen systems.
no.
no.
...is that now it only needs to be $100 cheaper before I'll buy one.
The PS3 is a relatively cheap Cell platform. It might work well as a test bed for some Cell stuff I would like to work on, and I could afford one even without the grant I would need to afford more serious Cell hardware. I have a Wii for games, so I probably wouldn't want it for that purpose. Though I suppose if there was a PS3-only game I just had to play (or was lent and forced to play by gamer friends), I might drag the thing home and play with it, but it's not likely in the near future. Someone forced a PS2 on me a couple years ago, and to this day I have purchased exactly two games for it, and then mostly out of guilt for not utilizing perfectly good gaming hardware.
When the 80GB PS3 is released in the USA, the average age of 80GB PS3 users is expected to drop from 85 to 23.
This just confirms that Sony is in full-blown panic mode... They keep talking about the long-term viability of the PS3, and I can see why since it is a pretty nice piece of hardware. But they're obviously very worried about their near-term prospects so I could easily see how they'd cut another $100 before the end of the year if things don't turn around quickly.
But I'm holding off until all the DRM disappears and they call off the RIAA dogs. Why should I buy from a company that treats the customer like a crook? All this talk about boycotts is just that, huh?
What?
are doomed to repeat it.
Anyone remember the NeoGeo?
Well anyway it was set to debut at $599 want to know why it didn't do so well? Due to the price. $500 and up game consoles don't sell that well. Sony needs to find a way to lower the price to $299 on the base model and $399 on the advanced model or else the Wii and XBox 360 will eat their lunch.
Remember, Slashdot does not have a -1 disagree moderation, and no, troll, flamebait, and overrated are not substitutes.
The PS3 is still too expensive. But the bigger problem is, there just aren't any "must have" games. I was at Wal-Mart the other day, and just for kicks I was looking at the PS3 game selection. There were about, oh, 25 titles or so, and fully HALF of them were crappy movie tie-in games. That's nuts.
The Wii is slightly better off, in that there are at least 3 or 4 really fun games. But in my opinion, it's not worth buying yet either. But the good Wii games are fun, and they are nice and "console-y". Which brings me to the 360-
Well, it has the most games, of course. But am I the only one that finds the 360s selection of games really dull? It seems like there are a lot of FPS and sports games, and not a heck of a lot else. I expect this will be the case with the PS3, also. It's almost like they are trying too hard to cater to the "hardcore" crowd. Lots of "heavy" games, not too much stuff that's simple to pick-up-and-play. Well, I guess the Live! Arcade games are. But all of those games could be done on the Wii, easily. Never mind the emulated games, which I refuse to pay for because I've been playing them for free for almost a decade now via PC emulators.
the ps3 has been "worth it" to any videophile since its release simply because of its bluray capability. It now has DVD upscaling.
for the more pure gamers out there - the ps online system isn't bad - the downloadable content can be quite good
My opinion isn't indicative of your average gamer. I bought an Xbox just to see the Halo 2 phenomena. I learned that voice chat lets you know you're playing with 12 year olds who get mad whether they win or lose. I learned that Halo 2 had no depth besides a couple insta-kill moves. I had my fun with it though. I won't buy a next gen system until I find a game that breaks ground with online play because that's all I like.
God spoke to me.
enjoying it not only for playing MotorStorm, NFS Carbon etc. but also for as a media center hooked up to my 42 inch Plasma TV. This after throwing out the Xbox 360 garbage can that used to crash and burn more times than my 10 month old falls off while walking.
I'm buying a PS3 the day the price cut comes effective. Three words: Ninja Gaiden Sigma. I played the demo at Gamestop yesterday and WOW.
You bastard!
I resisted the (rather more expensive) Westinghouse 37" 1080p unit in favor of a Gateway 24" monitor back last December.
Now you're sorely tempting me to go for the (now $1300) 42" 1080p unit...
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
I already have a PS3 but I'll be picking one up for my brother for his birthday because of the price cut. You really can't argue with the value the PS3 provides. You get an awesome game machine, free online gaming forever, a fully capable Blu-Ray player, an upscaling DVD player, HDMI output, user-upgradable 60GB hard drive, and a Cell processor computer capable of running Linux all for just $500. Motorstorm, Resistance and Ninja Gaiden Sigma are three great exclusives already out. More awesome exclusives like Gran Turismo, Heavenly Sword, MGS and Hot Shots Golf are just around the corner. Looks like the PS3 is really rolling now.
http://www.westegg.com/inflation/infl.cgi
Compared to the neo geo, the PS3 is a flippin bargain.
He didn't say he couldn't afford it; he said that he, cannot justify buying one... big difference.
:)
Don't feel too bad about it, though; Sony made the same mistake.
Hey, look! It's Bono's brother.
I've been debating getting a Game Cube or PlayStation 2, now maybe I'll seriously look at the PS2. :-) Prices are soo much better at the trailing edge.
"Enjoy what you're doing! If it becomes drudgery, you're doing it wrong!" - Jim Butterfield
"$499 PS3 rumored"
"$499 PS3 denied by Sony CEO"
"Sony rejects $499 PS3"
"Sony Spokesman says $499 a hoax"
"$499 PS3 confirmed"
I haven't played a console game in at least 5 years.
I think the WII looks cool, and maybe I'll get one when it is available in stores readily.
The 360 looks good as a media extender. I like my appletv, but lack of codec support really hampers it.
Or I could get this one imported for $582 AUD but have no warranty. Both options are bad, but the fact I could almost get TWO from America at the same price makes the warranty issue not look so bad after all.
Sony doesn't stand a chance against the Xbox or Wii(which is still regularly sold out) in Australia any time soon. Even with the best damn games on the planet $1000 is a ludicrous price, next to $350ish Wii or $500ish 360. I could in fact get both consoles and some games for the same price... Bluray doesn't even enter into consideration.
Yes, I know, Kaz quit. Still, this YTMND is still good. I still won't by it for that amount.
The Rapture is NOT an exit strategy.
Wii sold more then all of them combined? note is said america, it'd be interesting to see how sony vs wii goes in japan where both companys have a huge brand following. the japs are insane for brand names.
If you mod me down, I will become more powerful than you can imagine....
Call it a linux computer in the fine print on the side of the box.
Then a generation of ppl will learn to make fun free 3D opengl games while looking at the word SONY.
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
"So, is this it? Will this price drop make you buy a PS3, or are you still holding off for the big games this fall?"
That's it? Where's the third option, "neither of the above". I want my third option, god damn it!!
Let's see, what does $499 PS3 change. XBOX360 is $399, Wii is $250.
For your extra money, you get poor list of games, $65 a pop, and Blu-Pending-Disaster support, at around $45 a pop.
I'm about as excited about all of this, as I would be if Epson released $50 cheaper printers. It's about the ink, people!
This is absolutely fantastic news.
It will now cost me $100 less to not buy one.
Nope, but it will play Haze when it comes out.... and Killzone 2. Just because it doesn't have the acceptable, but seriously overhyped MS flaot title doesn't mean it's not a great system. It will have something comparable tho.
:(
Now I wish I'd waited a while.
On the bright side, Super Stardust HD is pretty fun. :P
grey wolf
LET FORTRAN DIE!
it's a year too late, similar capabilities as XB360, blu-pay lock-in, weak online play and community, sparce game selection, and unusually sparce exclusives... XB360 has too many exclusive titles that are actually good. Motorstorm rocks though. Price drop is a good thing, but seriously, this far behind needs to be cheaper than the XB at this point and needs some exclusives.
To buy a PS3: Blue-Ray DVD. But by Christmas prices of internal BD-RW will drop and I'll get one for less than the cost of a PS3 to play BD Movies on my Gateway 24" 1080p monitor (better than my TV). So... really no reason to buy a PS3. To buy an XBOX360: HALO 3. That simple. Don't buy into HD-DVD, I think it will die eventually as Blue-Ray gains more and more support. But damn, I really want to play Halo3.
What did Sony do wrong with the PS3? They pulled out all stops to make it a success but the results have been disappointing. Sony can't be faulted for the superior technology of the PS3 or the huge marketing effort and hype. Or maybe that was the problem: too much technology and hype. After the initial buzz and sales bump, things seem to have gone downhill. And the surprising Wii, the dark horse in the race, with less technology and overshadowed initially by the excitement over the PS3, has now pulled ahead, way ahead. There is a lesson here somewhere.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
I just don't know, why does Sony have to make these decisions so hard for us consumers.
I guess since I already have a fairly large GC library (Adding all the time at very inexpensive price) I can easily say FU PS3.
Resident Evil 4 (WiiEdit) is a Terriffic Game on the Wii and $29.99 retail makes it a no brainer, with enough left over for a few VC games.
OSGGFG - Open Source Gamers Guide to Free Games
Considering that the current trend is dropping PS3 exclusives in favour of crossplatform or even 360 exclusive content, there's little reason to buy now. Until they build up a PS2 quality/quantity library of exclusives in North America the fact that it's a Sony product will outweigh any possible benefits of the system.
If he has more than 3000 computers, I don't think he'll have enough room for the PS3.
Sigh. I know I'm going to probably get modded "Flaimbait" for this, but here goes anyway...
It's only been two years since the CD rootkit scandal and already it seems the consumers have either forgotten or forgiven Sony. So please bear with me while I just take a moment to point out that there are probably still holdouts like me out there who *really* meant it when we said we would never buy from Sony ever again.
We now continue with your regularly commercial sheep-like programming existance where electronics are mass-marketed to you as shiny new objects.
It's true no man is an island, but if you take a bunch of dead guys and tie 'em together, they make a good raft.
I wondered about that. "announcing" a price-drop tend to make no sense whatsoever. It'll only ensure that sales (at current price) drop to near-zero since everyone who wants one, but are *not* desperate for one (if they where desperate for one, they'd have it already) will hold off buying atleast until the price actually does drop. I guess when the price-drop is only a short time off this effect doesn't much matter.
2nd Quarter
NDS: 74,435
PS2: 45,962
PS3: 27,645
WII: 26,676
360: 21,440
PSP: 20,068
To date
PS2: 2,052,193
NDS: 589,873
PSP: 288,757
360: 181,561
WII: 106,538
PS3: 54,728
The PS3 didn't outperform the Wii and 360 by all that much and arguably might still have enjoyed a post-launch boost for at least some of that period but it does seem to be doing surprisingly well.
Boffoonery - downloadable Comedy Benefit for Bletchley Park
That's bad luck. I thought wrong. I thought PS3 will run out of stock soon after hot titles are released, and price will go up. But no, it was the opposite.
Digital switchover and maybe the next World Cup are probably the main things that may drive a significant increase but they are still years away.
Boffoonery - downloadable Comedy Benefit for Bletchley Park
You're about their least-favourite kind of customer - you like their heavily-subsidised hardware, but for running Linux on, not for the games. You'll cost them $200-300 with no hope of making back even close to that on game licence fees.
leatI never really understood why Sony went to the trouble of making Linux available for the PS3 (at least, not why they did it for free). I can only think it was Krazy Ken's engineer training overriding his good sense. Yes, they got some good PR from it, but only in a small segment of the market, and that segment almost by definition isn't interested in buying games for their new toy.
They also ran the very real risk of universities etc buying up thousands of PS3s to build cheap HPC clusters, which would have been a financial disaster far outweighing any kudos they gained.
Why would anyone engrave "Elbereth"?
As soon as I can find one. I'm a PC gamer, I only consider buying one console per generation, and this time around, I'm going with the Wii. The PS3 and the 360 both can't offer me stuff I can get a better version of on my PC.
Unless things drastically change (price gets cut further, and Wii dies) I don't see myself ever buying one. I have a shitty TV, and a PS2. I don't really care for HD movies right now.
Wow, that's the craziest "advantage" I've ever heard anyone cite :-) "PS3 is slow right now because it's hard to program for, but you should buy it anyway because one day hopefully they'll figure it out" - where do I sign?
Here's a thought - why not just wait until when/if they do figure it out, and then buy it? It'll be cheaper too.
Why would anyone engrave "Elbereth"?
I'm going to go with "too little, too late." I imagine the PS3 will hit its stride in about 18-24 months... it is a powerful system with loads of possibility. The question is whether any developers will remain interested by then.
You might get a N64/GC situation. Sony itself is a pretty good set of development studios and it's first tier developement (Gods of war, Gran Turismo, ICO, Shadow of the colossus, SOCOM, Wipeout etc..) might be able to keep it alive for the next generation and we might all remember the PS3 fondly like the Dreamcast. Both Technically well put together but killed by Sony's marketing.
"There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."
Ever considered that not everybody wants to play online?
Believe it or not, there are a lot of people out there that don't have their Core 360 hooked up to broadband, that aren't particularly interested in playing last-generation games (or perhaps they already own an Xbox 1), but who are interested in saving $100. Why should they be required to scrape up 30% more for a HDD they don't care about?
It's called "market choice", and it's generally held to be a good thing. But since PS3 fans apparently prefer "hardware potential" even over playing games, you're having trouble seeing the point of view of those who can't afford that luxury.
Why would anyone engrave "Elbereth"?
What happened to taking a loss on the console, and then recouping the cost in games and licensing? Was this not wildly successful with Nintendo and the PS1 (Though I forget how much the PS1 originally was).
-- My Sig is a P228.
You're right. The 3D Castlevanias are all crap. The DS is where the real Castlevania action is at. However, I'd love to see a sidescrolling Castlevania done on the PS3. That would be one hell of a game.
...they drop the price down to $300 for the 60 gig unit, $400 for the 80, and so on...yeah, that's right, I'm never buying a PS3!
I bet it doesn't even have a touch-screen interface and EDGE!
erroneous: look me up in a dictionary
I think the lack of GPU support in Linux is by design. It's hidden behind a hypervisor. If it is being hacked, Sony will release a firmware update and make the hack impossible.
Title says it all.
And I'm a diehard Sony fanboy.
No, I didn't get one. I will if/when the price drops down to earhtly levels.
What a PS3 owner told his friends: "It's a nice machine, but don't get it yet, there are not enough good games."
What a Wii owner told his friends: Nothing, they were busy playing Wii Tennis.
This is why the PS3 is failing after a strong start, and why the Wii is only increasing in popularity.
As a device the PS3 is very nice - BluRay player, quite quiet, integrated PSU.
As a gaming platform it leaves a lot to be desired due to there not being many great titles available for it.
By the time it is $399 there will probably be far more good titles available, and it will be far more compelling.
I don't think I'd want to risk a 360 right now - I'm hoping the 65nm shrink later this year will solve the RROD issue and there will also be GTA4 by then. I'll play with my Wii in the meantime.
In other words expect a full video / music download service and possibly IPTV to be announced at E3. It's been a long time coming seeing as it was such an obvious and natural feature for the PS3 to have.
"Stuff is worth what people will pay for it."
Clearly, the PS3 isn't worth $600 to very many people. I'll be surprised if it's worth $500 either. Despite all the technology they've crammed in there, the games library has almost zero appeal. Boring, joyless games plus Blu-Ray does not equal $500.
With the Wii outselling PS3 6-to-1 in Japan, there's little reason to think third-party software makers will turn this around.
Yeah, that worked really well the last time around, Sony. :rolleyes:
You're right on many counts. The PS3 is certainly:
1 =All&cons2=PS3®2=All&cons3=X360®3=All&weekly =1 the only thing "really rolling" is the steep decline the PS3's sales are taking.
Blu-ray player
Upscaling DVD player
HDMI out
I'm pretty sure when I want a Blu-ray player, I'll buy a PS3. Right now, I don't, so to me the PS3 is an exceptionally expensive game console, that plays about the same as the Xbox 360, but has fewer decent games. And it looks like the vast majority of people feel this way about it as well - there just isn't the demand for Blu-ray / HDDVD, which is crippling the PS3 sales.
I mean look at this: http://www.vgchartz.com/hwcomps.php?cons1=Wii®
- Gameboy - very cheap, much lower quality.
- PS2/XBox - cheap, lower quality
- X360 basic - medium price, decent quality, very hamstrung feature set
- X360 basic plus memory card - medium price, decent quality
- X360 plus HDD - higher end of medium price, improved decent quality games
- X360 elite - higher end of medium price again, no improvement for pure gamers
- PS3 - highest end of medium price, best of the medium price gaming options.
- Typical gamer PC - about 2-3 times the cost of the mid range but capable of higher resolutions, better AA, more processing power available to AI, etc.
- High end gamer PC - about ten times the cost of the mid range but capable of powering 2560x1600 30 inch displays with anti aliasing, DX10 effects and a mouse so you can actually play FPSs without needing the game to cheat your aiming.
;)
But is there anything cheap that can run games that are not published by a large company? And where does Wii fit into your analysis?I remember that the console was created to sell to hotels and not individual consumers, and that it was released to the consumer market purely out of demand.
I remember that the console's arcade symbiosis made it impossible to compare to standalone consoles.
I remember that the console thrived for over 15 years.
Yet, everyone who as a kid couldn't afford one likes to characterize it as a failure.
Neo*Geo was successful. Neo*Geo CD was a small success. The Neo*Geo portable certainly was a failure. The original console was not. SNK didn't lose money on that.
Please stop perpetuating what has become an urban myth. If you want to bash an expensive console for failing, have your way with 3DO and Jaguar. Neo*Geo is not a good comparison in any way to PS3.
Right now there just aren't enough exclusive games out there that I like to warrent the purchase -- yet. Meanwhile, the 360 has quite a library coming this fall and that's going to keep me far too busy to even consider another system. Even at half the price, it's not a question of cost anymore for me. It's a question of time and good games. Once we get a few good Square titles released or maybe some good exclusives that I'm interested in then I'll make the jump. I'm sure the purchase is inevitable, just not immediate.
still haven't seen a Wii for sale in ANY store I visit. Plenty of PS3s though. I think this whole Wii thing is a hoax. ;)
Dude. It's not a great game. It's a piece of crap with absolutely awesome graphics. I mean, the game has an average ratio of 58% on gamerankings.com.
Now, I will admit that I have only played the demo (which is great to impress your friends with, by the way), but the thing is virtually unplayable. You spend most of the time trying to hit invisible enemies that hit at you from off camera. How this game ever got into production is beyond me - I guess Sony needed to fill the shelves with something.
If the PS3 were the only console I had, I guess I would have been forced to buy it. In this case, I might have played it for a bit (I might also have cut open my wrists, which seems like a good alternative to playing Genji). Maybe I would have got used to the camera and all the invisible enemies beating the living crap out of me. However, I have to wonder why in the world I would want to go through this learning curve if it is so freaking annoying. What in the world posessed you when you decided to play this game for more than five minutes?
Sir, your post is really funny, stupid funny.
You start with:
And you did what MS fanboys always do. You assumed someone can play games on the $299 Core.
and after a random anti-Microsoft rant you finish with:
So yes, you can play games on the Xbox 360 Core system for $299, assuming...
So, your rant is completely out of place, if someone wants to play the new Xbox-360 games he just have to pay the $299 + a memory stick which as someone else state is about $20...
Not that I care about the systems being discussed in this flamewar... I am a happy Wii user which only plays each odd weekend
Ubuntu is an African word meaning 'I can't configure Debian'
I'm on my first replacement XBox 360 which is someone else's broken unit that Xbox repaired and sent to me to replace my broken unit. Did you hear that the failure rate is so bad and customer service is so horrible that Xbox decided to punt - refund everyone's repair bill and triple the warranty? They better send me my $140 pronto.
I have to tell you that if I bought a PS3 for the discounted $500 plus I guess all the gear like controllers, wireless NIC and such that you need to get a FUNCTIONING unit, and it broke, I swear to God it would end in a hostage situation.
Sony needs to keep that in mind when they pump up sales - they need to have a model that's reliable enough in the field so that they don't end up LOSING money in the end, trying to support it.
There is nothing derogatory about "liking long-established brands" that, you know, happen to be from Japan. Shit, people in the 60's were reluctant to buy an asian car because they wwren't "made in the good ol' U.S. of A". Doesn't mean Americans back then were racist.
Any other poltiically-correct bullshit you want to add?
I never spellcheck and I freely admit it. Save your karma for more worthwhile "lol erorrs" replies
I'm not waiting for a specific price point, I'm just not enamoured with the product. They have generated no "need to own that" within me for it. And therein lies the failure.
If there was just one really revolutionary , fun game for it then I might be swayed. The problem is for me to believe that I would want to play said game somewhere, maybe at a friends house, in order to seal the deal and get me to buy one. And to this point besides one gadget and gaming accumulator where I work I don't know a single person I socialize with who owns one of these things.
Where is this generations Katamari?
I'm a fiscal conservative, it's a pity we don't have a political party anymore
That's a good start. Only $250 more to go before I'll buy one. Maybe in 2009?
This changes nothing. It does close the gap between the 60 gb and the 360's Pro system. However, offering an 80 gb version at $600 is stupid, since the Xbox 360 Elite edition (120 gb hard drive) + bundle is going for $560 at Gamestop/EB. This is nothing more than a pure sleight of hand by Sony's marketing group. I don't even know why they're bothering with the $600 model. For $100 more the XBox 360 Elite gets you HDMI, 100 GB more disc space and a free month of Live Gold. The new premium $100 upgrade for the PS3 nets you a free game (which you are essentially paying for because of feature #2) and an extra 20 GB. Woo hoo!
I'd never believe I'd be sitting here, a Wii owner, and pointing out that the 360 is still a better deal than the PS3.
Consumers aren't stupid Sony. Dropping the price of admission by 1/6th for a sinking ship, doesn't change the fact that you're still riding on a sinking ship.
Insert Sig Here
This is what happens to a greedy company that is used to being "king of the hill". Sony felt that they were untouchable and that *everyone* would run out and buy the newest PlayStation when it was released. They used this platform to force their BluRay technology (and the price tag associated with it) on people that didn't even need/want it. It's not fun when the tables are turned and you go from the front of the line to the end. I hope this has been an eye-opening experience for Sony.
Price drop good. $500 still bad. I'm somewhat interested in a PS3, but I'm not $500 interested. If it gets to $400 without tossing out too many features, I may start getting tempted to buy.
Well, IMNHO they've got another $200-250 to go before I'd feel even slightly interested, seeing as the games are currently crappy.
Then again the XBOX doesn't have very many good games IMNHO either, so maybe someone would buy it at that price.
The Wii at even, an even price point still looks like a better deal from where I sit as it's looking to have some distinctive game rather than consolejacked PC game, and also has a nice selection of games from older systems, both Nintendo's and other's.
Sony should have followed Microsoft's lead by making the Blu-ray an optional accessory rather than holding consumers hostage by bundling it with the PS3. I'm not about to shell out an extra $200 just so I don't have to experience the "horrors" of getting up to swap a disc mid-game or mid-movie, and I sure as hell am not going to spend another few thousand replacing my 1080i with a 1080p because of a piss-poor design decision.
I'll get a next-gen console when it hits $200, maybe $300, which the X360 will reach long before the PS3 ever will (and no, I don't mean the X3Shitty that lacks a HD).
to bash the playstation 3. I used to bash it as well before I bought my own. However I have to say that out of all the next gen consoles, the PS3 is the one getting the most of my time, and the one that has me pumped for it's new releases. I'm on my 4th 360 now, I can't seem to get one that works and I'm not alone. However when it does work it's been a fun system, just wish the live community was more mature. My wii is fun when my nephews are over, but I mean you can only stand so much wii sports and cooking mama. Sure zelda was great, and I look forward to smash bros and metroid prime 3; but the lack of a multiplayer component is making me sick of the unit. Right now I'm waiting for home, warhawk, and little big planet for the my PS3. Not to mention the re-release of ninja gaiden was amazing. The rather well managed backwards compatability (which I'm sure someone right now is reading this thinking "but I know there are 100 or so titles that don't work" out of a library that's how large?) allows me to continue buying new ps2 releases without keeping old hardware around. After the 1.81 patch to my PS3 it has become my prefered DVD player, that is of course over a standalone hddvd player I own as well. I know this has essentially been me rambling, but all I'm trying to say is you guys are bashing a unit that you are really half cocked on in terms of what is or isn't viable with this unit. I understand price point is a major concern with this unit and quite frankly Sony doesn't have anything to worry about right now. They're selling to distributors just fine and are moving units despite how many you see on store shelves. If you are waiting for the price to drop that's fine but don't lie to yourself and claim you aren't buying the unit because it's lame or something is lacking, just admit it's because you are guarding your hard earned dollars and quit trying to convince the rest of the world it's not worth theirs. All I think when I read bashing comments is "I can't afford it, and if I can't have it I don't want you to have it because if you have it I'll only want it more and I still can't afford it" so I think it's worth mentioning. Trade in a PS2 and 2 controllers to EBGames - Gamestop along with this price cut = $200 off the cost of the unit, I don't see where people get this unit is more expensive than the xbox 360, especially considering the retail price of the elite (only 360 worth buying now) is $561.97. I think I'm gonna stop here, having to post and work jumping back and forth I'm sure is ruining my message, and it's not like it will matter anyway in the end. People are gonna believe what they want to believe no matter what.
PS3 is a high end piece of gaming machine. The price is set high enough that not many people would be likely to buy it. But their target buyer is still regular end user. If such machine can have such a high performance, they should just ditch the regular end user and upgrade it even higher to become a main frame. And sell it to company, such as Hotel (where every room has a tv.), Hospital, Karaoke store, Arcade Store and delivery a high end graphic gaming experience using a main frame and client machine. So that Sony can sell PS3 technology with a higher price tag and still be able to sell a lot of it and make enough profit.
Sony is so stupid it hurts. $499 is a lot of money but their current offering isn't worth it. A quick software update that provides an excellent media experience - one that rivals XBMC - would have me as a customer in a heartbeat.
Are you getting the hint, Sony?
How about lowering the price of the games themselves!
I have seen the prices of those PS3 games! Holy smoke! $60.00!
I will not buy a PS3 since I have a 360 already. I do hope that the PS3 takes off a bit more for the purely selfish reason of believing that competition would be good for us xboxers. MS points and the silly prices charged for every little thing, is out of hand. I'm tired of seeing old 80's arcade games going for $10 in points, gamer pictures at $1/each and map packs at $10 for four maps as well. Even paying $40-$50/year for the privilege of connecting to Xbox Live seems excessive to me.
I don't buy much on Live because it is too expensive but some of it is desirable. My hope is that some PS3 competition will bring the price of Live access and other downloadables to a more reasonable level.
Perhaps time will tell.
I'd rather borrow "Mota-stohm" from a buddy for the week that I'll find it entertaining, and use the $100 to plop a 320Gigger in there.
What's really crazy about that statemtent is it would be "frowned upon" doing the same with my PS2. hehe
Its called price discrimination, they knew that about 1 million people were willing to pay $600 for the PS3, so why should they sell it to a person with high price elasticity (a.k.a. cheap bastard) for $400. If they had priced it at $400, no one would be able to get one, even the people willing to pay more. Hell, with Nintendo's shortages, they should have had a higher price point at first, why let Ebay take your profits.
Definition
In first degree price discrimination, price varies by customer. This arises from the fact that the value of goods is subjective. A customer with low price elasticity is less deterred by a higher price than a customer with high price elasticity of demand. As long as the price elasticity (in absolute value) for a customer is less than one, it is very advantageous to increase the price: the seller gets more money for fewer goods.
//TODO: Insert catchy phrase
Sony may be trying to jam their stupid hd format down my throat, but at least I don't have to pay $70 a year to play online
A couple people have already mentioned that the hardware within a PS3 is unbalanced; several simple to overcome bottlenecks exist. Want me to actually consider the PS3 something that will be viable for years? Then at least let me upgrade the ram...
Also: keeping the price slightly higher means there are fewer kids, and whiners, playing in any online game I might play with a PS3. If I bought one. Which I was thinking about doing, until they started talking about lowering the price.
I completely agree that the XBox 360 "library" seems larger but if you look closely it is a bunch of mediocre games that have been "upgraded" which makes the selection rather dull. There are some inventive games for the XBox 360 but they are more glimpses what what could be which gives it a "tech demo" feel instead of a completed game. [i]Gears[/i] was too short. [i]Dead Rising[/i] was simply a grand last gen game upgraded (completely with the same old broken save system).
My assessment of the "current gen" is that all 3 major players are doing horribly at the moment. In particular Microsoft and Sony continue to miss the mark where both created an expensive system but have left gamers wanting for more. People can claim Sony's hardware/software is too complex and hence the slow release rate but why is Microsoft still struggling here as well? Games aren't flying out of publishers for either system. In fact Microsoft biggest success on the XBox 360 is the small style downloadable games from XBLA, not the expensive mega budget game!(*) Nintendo on the other hand went in the other direction which more or less denies the tech trends gamers have been demanding. No matter how cheap and simple the Wii is, will we see a hugely complex game on it?
At this point no one is "winning" where even if we declare Nintendo the winner it is a might big loser prize.
(*) I will predict now that [i]Halo 3[/i] will be an awesome game but sales will be lower either of its predecessors. Shockingly lower.
No. That's still too expensive for a machine that just plays games. I don't want to watch films and listen to music on it, I have superior devices for that (and don't plan on going to HD-DVD or Blue-Ray anytime soon). Besides, I had no interest in the Playstation 2, save for the four or five exclusive games that looked to be worth playing. And in retrospective, there aren't any more than four or five games sitting in the closet with my original Playstation that I'd considering worth having. I had a lot more fun with my Dreamcast and GameCube and intend to continue doing so once I get a Wii.
"He who can destroy a thing, controls a thing." --Paul Atreides, Dune
Like the large majority of Americans first I have to get an HDTV. I won't be doing that anytime soon since I don't have cash laying around to blow on a TV. I suppose I could just go into debt, but that got old when I started paying bills.
Seriously if Sony wants to sell a bunch more PS3's they should bundle it with an HDTV.
It's a serious outlay of cash when you need $500 for PS3, $50 for a game and $500 for a TV to make it worth even having. From everything I've seen PS3 doesn't look any better on an SDTV than some of the latest PS2 games. The controller is even 90% the same. Not many arguments for upgrading without a nice widescreen to enjoy it on.
-- taking over the world, we are.
With all the problems the Xbox360 is having, I would think that it would be a great time for someone( Sony/etc ) to offer a $100-$200 discount in an exchange program to 'help' those poor Xbox360 users get a more stable console.
;-) Or maybe put Edubuntu on them and sell them cheap to India school kids but cheaper than the $500 Microsoft PC ofcourse.
After the third exchange with Microsoft, you'd think people would be tossing these things off the roof. Why not offer a $100-$200 discount coupon to help them with their problems? After 1.5 years of this, Microsoft is only now offering a three year cycle of exchange for another bad unit and for many, there's only 1.5 years left.
And while you're at it, build a Linux Custer of all those Xbox360's and find ET already( Seti - http://setiathome.ssl.berkeley.edu/ ).
LoB
"Anyone who stands out in the middle of a road looks like roadkill to me." --Linus
A million gamers yawned, and then were silenced.
They went back to playing Wii tennis with their first girlfriend ever.
Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.
Call me cheap but 500 is still too much I will get a ps3 in 3-4 years when they have a bundle of $19 dollar games and I can get a system for $250 same with the x-box 360 I can just play my "last-gen" Wii for a few years tell the price drops on the next gen graphics systems.
Are they keeping the IPTV functionality that the Koreans are getting with their 80GB PS3's?
No offense intended, but I don't follow this line of reasoning. It's not like microsoft has ever been a paragon of virtue or humility. They are both self-interested corporations that look out for their own interests at all times, regardless of consequence. In the past, Nintendo has demonstrated similar behaviour. None of them are angels, they are all the basically the same.
I don't have a Wii, PS3 or 360 and I'm not likely to own any of them any time soon. I could afford to buy all three if I wanted, but I what I have today is enough for the forseeable future. I expect that I will get a next-gen console at some point, but my decision will be based on the games. I will get the system that plays the games I want to play.
Sony's behaviour does not alter whether the PS3 is a good gaming system or not. It provides value for the money or it doesn't, and the same goes for the Wii or 360. It's only entertainment and the vendors are equivalently malevolent. So go out and purchase what you want and have fun. There's no need for mental gymnastics to persuade yourself or anyone else that one decision is better than the alternatives.
(However, the fact that a slashdotter would sooner do business with microsoft than Sony is more than a little amusing!)
*** Where are we going? And what's with this handbasket?
If you align the launches of the next gen systems, the PS3 is doing just as well as the xbox360. http://www.vgchartz.com/hwcomps.php?cons1=Wii®1 =All&cons2=PS3®2=All&cons3=X360®3=All&align= 1
Wii is this gen's PS2 from the looks of it...
To be honest with you, it's a high price to pay. 500 could get me a lot of nice things at the clothes store, a new sofa, or even a nice new system for my car. But you WOULD pay 500 for a new sound system right? Why. Because it's worth it, it sounds good, that's why (or you think it will help you get laid) I am buying a PS3 today at target for 500.00, because I know I will play it religiously, and I know what I am purchasing. A state of the art gaming system that will last 5 years in technology terms. The only thing that scares me? Sony has released 3 diffrent models!! What a stupid thing to do! How am I sure that purchasing this model, that they won't announce the ps3 v23.21 with a direct feed to you tube for extra video streaming power next week?!
To be honest, I don't care. I will use it for what I initially purchased it for, playing some bad ass video games with awesome graphics versus my friends online, and to me that's worth the price tag that comes along with it.
It's sad sony still hasn't figured it out.
I don't care about blueray.
The system has no good games.
I enjoy my 360 as I have a wide selection of titles.
The system does not play games in 1080i, it does do video but I already have a dvd upconverter.
My TV does not do 1080p so I'd get 720p which I personally think doesn't look as good as 1080i for games. Please correct me if I'm wrong on this but it's all I've read on the subject.
It comes with 1 controller.
I've already invested in all the 360 gear, I am not really wanting to spend another 100 dollars on accessories. The PS2 memory card converter even costs something like 30 bucks.
I honestly can't see the value in purchasing a system that has no exclusive titles I really care about. Most people like me just don't see the point when they've already spent so much on their 360s.
I don't care about blueray.
Nor do I, I'm not even buying an HDTV set until 2009 when they will retail at $300 for a 40 inch set.
The system has no good games.
I enjoy my 360 as I have a wide selection of titles.
True, and this is the deciding factor. My Wii and my PS2 and xBox get more game play - because there are games for them that are fun.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
But hey, that's ok - we really don't mind paying well over the odds for exactly the same machine, only crappier because it does emulation in software, not hardware. I mean, it's not like there's some vast global communication network which allows us to see what's happening in other countries and make comparisons. The UK price is still £425, or $850. A cut to the same price as the $US price would mean a drop to £250, at which price I'd have one. Until then, Sony can collectively and severally, smooch ma bahookie.
Paying more for less, for no good reason - no wonder Sony are an industry giant.
They've already had a $500 PS3... and it bearly existed. Are they going to drop its price to $400? No fucking way, the 20GB model is unquestionably getting dropped (like it really ever existed in the first place). So, now what? We get a 60GB model that bearly exists, and an 80GB model that's everywhere.
Seriously, this isn't a price drop, it's just a bait & switch with a slightly higher end model.
Multiplayer Gaming (defined): Sitting around, discussing single-player games with my friends, at the bar.
"Ninja Gaiden Sigma (also on 360 but not as well done)"
Well hot dog! Where can I buy that 360 version that isn't as well done? I don't think I can, because I don't think it exists.
What amazes me is that you managed to evaluate the relative quality of a game that does not exist.
Unless... wait... were you actually comparing a just-released PS3 game to a 4 year old original XBox title?
"Not working with EA on Madden was a HUGE mistake."
Oh good heavens are we ever on the same page here. I can't believe Sony didn't have their finest developers on a plane to EA the second they heard the terms "30fps", "PS3", and "Madden" in the same sentence.
Not to be a troll or fanboi, but how has hardware reliability been on PS3's? Compared to what we heard aboutt he 360 when it was out for this long, is it just me, or has the PS3 been more reliable? Not that it matters anyway, as I'm a poor, broke college student who will be bumming off of an old, (probably) 25" standard definition TV, so Bluray and high definition games are of no use to me for the next few years.
This price drop indicates that Sony is in a desperate situation. Sony has seriously slipped up here and needs to pull out all the stops in order to catch up with this next gen battle. Let's review what is going on here:
t ra/SonySlashesPlayStationThreePrice.aspx
1) Cost - Sony really botched up with the cost. No matter what fellow geeks out there say - $599 is way too much for somebody like me. The average gamer isn't able to generate that kind of income. Remember Neo Geo? It was technology advanced, but nobody was willing to fork over $700 for the system, $100 per game, and $200 for games. This is EXACTLY the same mistake Sony is making with the $599 price tag. Now that it is down to $499, it MAY be able to catch up.
2) Games - Sony has blatenly ignored the gamers out there, both causal and hard core. So far there has been nothing to justify the cost of the system. Also, Sony has lost most of its "exclusive titles". Meanwhile Microsoft and Nintendo have created games that newbs, casual and hardcore gamers enjoy. Sony's only justification? Ridge Racer and giant enemy crabs http://lexluthorbeating.ytmnd.com/....
3) Wii - The Wii has had a strong head start. Outselling PS3 almost 7 to 1 in Japan will give Sony alot of work ahead of it. Sony needs to find a weakness in the Wii's momentum to stop it. However, that may be akin to trying to find a weakness in Fort Knoxx...
4) Blu-Ray - This whole deal with the next-gen DVD format is way too soon. Not everybody can rush out there and get the next big thing... Most wait till they have to get it before switching and, despite what a lot think, not everybody has even made the switch to regular DVD...
To sum this all up - Sony has their work cut out for them because of the starting blunders. IF they want to suceed with this, they need to make games that people WANT to play. Funny bit is - Wii is making a profit with each sale and despite a lot of defective 360s, is still going strong. A good site to look at is at http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/Ex
Just posting to undo a mod
It can giggle all it wants. The galaxy's not gettin any of our Bourbon.
That post is pure misinformation. The provided link doesn't support the assertions made.
.... until I could paid for it myself. I got cheapo hand-helds that were popular on my time (you know, machine to play USian football or football, with tiny red LEDs on and off in lieu of players).
But a "toy" costing several hundred dollars? Nope, too irresponsable even if you have the money.
IANAL but write like a drunk one.
I haven't posted here in a while - but this thread caught my eye and pissed me off!
Everybody is making these broad generalizations about cost, value, and quality. I thought it might be worth posting what my experience has been.
Keep in mind this is *my* experience and may be useful to people similar to me!
I bought a PS3 within a couple weeks of release (got lucky and found one in Best Buy) - I live in NYC and I have the money to afford it. I have only bought one game since then, "Resistance: Fall of Man", and I agree that so far the game list is weak.
However, I own approximately a dozen Blu-ray movies and watching these has been worth the cost of the system. Beautiful picture and sound - makes having a 1080P TV worthwhile. Since the 1.80 firmware it also has surpassed my upscaling DVD player as the best way for me to watch standard DVDs as well.
Beyond this - the media server functionality works well and I am trying out various 3rd party products to increase the video codec support. I also went out an bought a couple SA-CDs since they have thrown in that capability as well.
I am not a "sony fan-boy" but the quality of audio and video that the PS3 brings into my apartment is unlike anything I have had before. I don't regret buying it at all - I can't wait until the games get better over time (remember PS2 launch... similar launch title weakness)
Or at least, that's how I always refer to them.
BTW, the NeoGeo was actually $700 at launch. A single controller was $100. I remember it vividly like it was yesterday.
If the new, expensive system falls down in price, that forces prices of older systems down as well.
No rocket science frankly
IANAL but write like a drunk one.
I've been MS free for many years now...
If you don't go with nintendo (who have been very aggressive about protecting their property..)
MS as a company is far worse than Sony.
I'd choose SONY.
If you look at the linux FUD MS spits out, the fact they released a console without adequate testing and that they're trying to get into the game business not by innovating but by buying there way into it. I think MS has spend 4 Billion trying to get into this market.
Its like choosing utilities, you can' win. I know those who won't buy comcast out of principal, but if dish network gives them a hard time they're out of luck.
After the initial rush the sony PS3 is like a brick in the stores. I have seen often enough people looking at the box taking it, seeing the price putting it back it is almost the same every time I am longer than 20 minutes in a store.
Oh no that the console is sold around 900$ over here does not have anything to do in a region with people generally having lower income and higher taxation than in the US. Sony get a clue, you could have a winner, but lower the price!
You post to that group, and that disqualifies you from making serious comments about anything.