PS3 Price Drop
April 20, 2007
The cost of the PS3 has been criticised a fair bit but now there is speculation that Sony could be cutting the price themselves. Some stores and e-tailers have already either temporarily or permanently cut £25 off the £425 RRP to try and shift the seemingly surplus stock that they have to shift. Approximately $100 (£50) could be officially taken off the price of the console. All well and good for those that could wait a few weeks after the already delayed launch. The early adopter tax for the PS3 might leave those who rushed out to buy the console on launch day staring at the space on their shelves where those extra games could have been residing. But then, they knew what they were letting themselves in for, they probably did the same for the other consoles that are now festering and unloved in the attic; no competition for the PS3.
I’ve always considered the PS3 to be a value for money console. It does have a blu-ray spinner, which gamers probably won’t be too interested in now but might be when games can be packed with a multitude of extra playability over the comparatively insignificant storage of even a dual layer DVD for the 360. The PS3 might be considered expensive now, but it already offers everything and more that is offered in the 360 integrated into one box. The 360 comes pretty close to the cost of a PS3 with all of the extras added in. Microsoft’s claims of offering the consumer more choice simply doesn’t cut it for me. They could have included it all in one go, but the elite just proves that they want to make the most money rather than caring about customer’s choice. Besides, how can the 360 be cheaper when there are now reports of red “rings of death” appearing on consoles that are merely a year old. When SNESs are still playable, it simply isn’t acceptable for a year old console to be replaced so many times. This comes at a cost to the customer that pushes the cost well above the PS3. Even more customers are on their second, third and in some cases fourth units in a little over two years since the 360s launch. Hopefully, the PS3 will prove to last longer and offer customers with the satisfaction deserved for their £425.
It’s still not clear whether the rumoured price drop will remain stateside (like that of the PSP down to $170/£85). It’s been out in the US for much longer, does that also mean that they’ll get the price cuts first? Will the UK official price fall anytime soon? Are stores losing potential profits by selling at a reduced cost or would it be a greater risk to hold the price and not sell as many units? So many questions, but as with all things, the future will reveal all. The PS3 price will fall, it’s just happening a little sooner than I expected.
by: Chris Chapman
