In case you've missed all the speculation, industry news source MCV has revealed that videogame retailers are finding it increasingly difficult to buy in PS3 stock - this has led several to suspect an imminent price drop, and a hardware re-design. Indeed, there were reports two months ago that Sony has two factories in Taiwan primed to start manufacturing slimline versions of the machine. And of course, we know that production costs have been slashed by 70% and there's nothing a global corporation likes to do more than pass on savings to the consumer. We should all know for certain next week: Sony is set to announce its plans at the Gamescom event in Cologne.
The global install base for PS3 hit 23.8 million at the end of last month, according to Sony. However, current figures are showing declining sales in the last financial quarter for all of the current consoles - though this can be explained as a seasonal phenomenon: the industry tends to slow down in the summer months.
So is this Sony reacting to the recession or seeking to gain on its closest rival, the Xbox 360, in an absolutely key winter period? Or is the manufacturer merely following a well-worn tactic for gradual price reduction? It'll be a bit of all three, naturally. What's clear is that an autumn 2009 release for a slim machine would mean that the PS3 is working to a more accelerated timeline than its predecessor. PS2 received its first major physical makeover in 2004, four years after launch. PS3's could be coming within three years. The pricing is more or less concurrent, though.
So, current price £299.99. Shall we take bets at £249.99 for the 80GB model? Lower?
