120GB PlayStation 3 to Replace 80Gb?
Dual Shock incoming? Incredible confusion rules...
The 80GB PlayStation 3 may be getting replaced by either a 120Gb or 160Gb model, according to the latest rumour doing the rounds. Remember the 80Gb? No, we don't either, because we never had in the UK in the first place. The United States, however, does... or did... depending on who you read.
The sources for the rumour? First up is Ars Technica's unnamed mole who mentioned, "Sony is, in fact, phasing out the 80GB PS3. Sony is going to stay with the two-SKU approach though, and the prices look to stay the same".
Sounds paradoxical? Not really, if you then drop in the speculation that a 120Gb PS3 will be brought into play...
"The Spiderman 3 pack-in will disappear as well once the 80GB unit is gone. In order to maintain a similar value proposition to the 80GB/Spiderman 3 bundle, I expect to see a storage increase to 120 or 160GB at the same price point, plus the new Dual-Shock 3 controller..." the mole went on.
Ars Technica, is also able to support its own mole by quoting a Sony rep who said, , "We're currently working with two SKUs in the market, and we don't see that changing..."
But wait, why does the mole reference a bundle that doesn't exist? Spider-Man 3 comes with the 40GB PS3, not the 80GB, which comes bundled with MotorStorm. You can see for yourself on the PlayStation website here. Is the mole indicating that the current 40GB bundle is also set to change? The way the sentence reads doesn't seem to suggest so.
Next up for a turn in the rumour mill US retailer Best Buy and a leaked memo. The memo, dated January 22nd according to PS3Fanboy, states that the 80GB PS3 would no longer be manufactured and that once it had sold out only the 40GB model would be available in Best Buy shops.
"This means that there currently isn't a version that is PS2-compatible", the memo states.
It also indicates that 80GB would be taken off the company's planogram (a diagram indicating where retail products should be displayed) on January 28th... today in fact.
Next piece of grist to the mill? A GameStop manager - going by the handle Kaizer_911, rather than a real name. He (or indeed she) told QJ.net, "I went ahead and looked in our Back Office Inventory screen and found that the only SKU listed as Active for the PS3 consoles (new ones that is) was the 40GB. The 20, 60, AND 80 GB SKUs were listed as Deleted."
The removal of the 80GB PS3 from production, then, looks like a pretty good bet. It will also be far from surprising given that Sony has mentioned that the 40Gb is key to its strategy - we're sure it said, "Going foward" as well, but what the hell.
Sony in Europe told us, "We have made it clear from the outset that this was our intention to focus all our efforts on our 40Gb machine going forward"....
Sony Japan has announced the withdrawal of the 20 and 60Gb SKUs - Japan never had an 80Gb SKU.
Similarly, comments last week from SCE CEO, Kaz Hirai, indicate that Sony's strategy is very much geared towards the 40Gb PS3 in Japan.
However, SCEJ - just to be confusing - is also rumoured to be releasing new models, "...to respond to end-user preferences sometime in the future".
SPOnG's not entirely convinced we should listen to anybody at all on these matters until we see a press release in front of our eyes. Just a month and a half before the 80GB PS3 was announced for the US, a Sony rep went on record to say, "We’re constantly looking at new… configurations [for PS3], but currently there are no plans to change current hardware offerings [in North America]."
Nevertheless, SPOnG contacted Sony for comment, but no one was available at the time of press.
It seems to be a reasonable assumption that, should the 80GB PS3 be withdrawn from production, any replacement will lack backwards compatibility. It was, after all, stripped from the PS3 for the 40GB model and there have been recent indications that Sony may be interested in selling PS2 titles as 'PlayStation 2 Originals'.
Confused by what PS3 SKU is where? Is Sony getting global signals screwed? Give us your thoughts in the Forum.
The sources for the rumour? First up is Ars Technica's unnamed mole who mentioned, "Sony is, in fact, phasing out the 80GB PS3. Sony is going to stay with the two-SKU approach though, and the prices look to stay the same".
Sounds paradoxical? Not really, if you then drop in the speculation that a 120Gb PS3 will be brought into play...
"The Spiderman 3 pack-in will disappear as well once the 80GB unit is gone. In order to maintain a similar value proposition to the 80GB/Spiderman 3 bundle, I expect to see a storage increase to 120 or 160GB at the same price point, plus the new Dual-Shock 3 controller..." the mole went on.
Ars Technica, is also able to support its own mole by quoting a Sony rep who said, , "We're currently working with two SKUs in the market, and we don't see that changing..."
But wait, why does the mole reference a bundle that doesn't exist? Spider-Man 3 comes with the 40GB PS3, not the 80GB, which comes bundled with MotorStorm. You can see for yourself on the PlayStation website here. Is the mole indicating that the current 40GB bundle is also set to change? The way the sentence reads doesn't seem to suggest so.
Next up for a turn in the rumour mill US retailer Best Buy and a leaked memo. The memo, dated January 22nd according to PS3Fanboy, states that the 80GB PS3 would no longer be manufactured and that once it had sold out only the 40GB model would be available in Best Buy shops.
"This means that there currently isn't a version that is PS2-compatible", the memo states.
It also indicates that 80GB would be taken off the company's planogram (a diagram indicating where retail products should be displayed) on January 28th... today in fact.
Next piece of grist to the mill? A GameStop manager - going by the handle Kaizer_911, rather than a real name. He (or indeed she) told QJ.net, "I went ahead and looked in our Back Office Inventory screen and found that the only SKU listed as Active for the PS3 consoles (new ones that is) was the 40GB. The 20, 60, AND 80 GB SKUs were listed as Deleted."
The removal of the 80GB PS3 from production, then, looks like a pretty good bet. It will also be far from surprising given that Sony has mentioned that the 40Gb is key to its strategy - we're sure it said, "Going foward" as well, but what the hell.
Sony in Europe told us, "We have made it clear from the outset that this was our intention to focus all our efforts on our 40Gb machine going forward"....
Sony Japan has announced the withdrawal of the 20 and 60Gb SKUs - Japan never had an 80Gb SKU.
Similarly, comments last week from SCE CEO, Kaz Hirai, indicate that Sony's strategy is very much geared towards the 40Gb PS3 in Japan.
However, SCEJ - just to be confusing - is also rumoured to be releasing new models, "...to respond to end-user preferences sometime in the future".
SPOnG's not entirely convinced we should listen to anybody at all on these matters until we see a press release in front of our eyes. Just a month and a half before the 80GB PS3 was announced for the US, a Sony rep went on record to say, "We’re constantly looking at new… configurations [for PS3], but currently there are no plans to change current hardware offerings [in North America]."
Nevertheless, SPOnG contacted Sony for comment, but no one was available at the time of press.
It seems to be a reasonable assumption that, should the 80GB PS3 be withdrawn from production, any replacement will lack backwards compatibility. It was, after all, stripped from the PS3 for the 40GB model and there have been recent indications that Sony may be interested in selling PS2 titles as 'PlayStation 2 Originals'.
Confused by what PS3 SKU is where? Is Sony getting global signals screwed? Give us your thoughts in the Forum.
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Comments
realvictory 28 Jan 2008 13:28
1/10
Sony's SKUs have been a mess from the beginning. First they were telling people what they want, and they were right, except they were charging too much. Now they're so keen to give people what they want, they're forgetting what their original vision was.
Now the prices are coming down, they've got rid of the high-end version and replaced it with an unnecessarily cheaper, unnecessarily inferior version. I would say that the falling of prices is best time for a high-end model. They should maybe have done this the other way round: release a basic version that would be more affordable when the prices were high, and release an advanced version later on, once the prices had fallen. They key is, people don't want budget versions, but they don't want to spend £400+ either.
The biggest problem is that it seems like Sony is happy to remove features, while Microsoft is continually upgrading the XB360. So while you can get an XB360 Elite for less than you could get a 60GB (e.g.) PS3, now you can't get a 60GB PS3 at all - so that's a bunch of potential customers lost to MS (well, they may not have bought a PS3, but now they're even less likely to). Apart from people who already have an XB360, but the only reason they have to buy a PS3 then is for Blu-rays, or unless they have a lot of spare money - which is a small minority, I think.
The funny thing is, too, that while they're cutting out features to make things more affordable, the [cheaper] market that they're aiming at will probably just buy a PS2 anyway, or you can get an XB360 for £150, so I can't see what they're trying to do. The only difference, as I said, is Blu-ray; but the people who generally don't spend a lot of money at once, I can't imagine them giving a crap. If they wanted to make a budget version, then they should have made a budget version, not something halfway in between.
Now the prices are coming down, they've got rid of the high-end version and replaced it with an unnecessarily cheaper, unnecessarily inferior version. I would say that the falling of prices is best time for a high-end model. They should maybe have done this the other way round: release a basic version that would be more affordable when the prices were high, and release an advanced version later on, once the prices had fallen. They key is, people don't want budget versions, but they don't want to spend £400+ either.
The biggest problem is that it seems like Sony is happy to remove features, while Microsoft is continually upgrading the XB360. So while you can get an XB360 Elite for less than you could get a 60GB (e.g.) PS3, now you can't get a 60GB PS3 at all - so that's a bunch of potential customers lost to MS (well, they may not have bought a PS3, but now they're even less likely to). Apart from people who already have an XB360, but the only reason they have to buy a PS3 then is for Blu-rays, or unless they have a lot of spare money - which is a small minority, I think.
The funny thing is, too, that while they're cutting out features to make things more affordable, the [cheaper] market that they're aiming at will probably just buy a PS2 anyway, or you can get an XB360 for £150, so I can't see what they're trying to do. The only difference, as I said, is Blu-ray; but the people who generally don't spend a lot of money at once, I can't imagine them giving a crap. If they wanted to make a budget version, then they should have made a budget version, not something halfway in between.
PreciousRoi 28 Jan 2008 13:46
2/10
1. people would love to be able to buy a budget PS3...as a cheap BluRay player.
2. Sony ALWAYS does this, since teh PS...its become their modus operandi.
3. there are valid reasons why they do this, but valid reasons don't excuse it.
2. Sony ALWAYS does this, since teh PS...its become their modus operandi.
3. there are valid reasons why they do this, but valid reasons don't excuse it.
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Joji 28 Jan 2008 14:14
3/10
More crazy Sony Shiznit! Does a week ever pass without a dose?
So they want to make the hard drives for ever bigger, nothing wrong with that in the long run, Problem is that it'll be very confusing for customers, be they Blu Ray fans or gamers.
My prime concern is still lack of BC. I still think the phasing out of BC is a clear shot across our faces, that Sony is planning PS2 games for download to match Xbox games downloads on 360.
If Sony enforce this PS2 downloable games intiative (I'm willing to bet this will happen by 09, if not sooner), I can't say I'll be happy or bother using it, unless games unreleased in the U.K appear on it.
Problem is customers still prefer physical product, as any game sitting on a hard drive is never a guarantee, like that of a boxed cd/dvd game. Its always gonna be that way with myself and others.
So they want to make the hard drives for ever bigger, nothing wrong with that in the long run, Problem is that it'll be very confusing for customers, be they Blu Ray fans or gamers.
My prime concern is still lack of BC. I still think the phasing out of BC is a clear shot across our faces, that Sony is planning PS2 games for download to match Xbox games downloads on 360.
If Sony enforce this PS2 downloable games intiative (I'm willing to bet this will happen by 09, if not sooner), I can't say I'll be happy or bother using it, unless games unreleased in the U.K appear on it.
Problem is customers still prefer physical product, as any game sitting on a hard drive is never a guarantee, like that of a boxed cd/dvd game. Its always gonna be that way with myself and others.
HyperTails 28 Jan 2008 14:30
4/10
The problem here is that they can't make up their mind. First an SKU comes out, then they change their minds and release another.
What they should do is simply put out the 120Gb version, drop the price of the 40Gb version a little bit, add backwards compatibility, and leave it at that.
But at this rate, its only a matter of time before they change their mind and replace the 40Gb with another SKU...
What they should do is simply put out the 120Gb version, drop the price of the 40Gb version a little bit, add backwards compatibility, and leave it at that.
But at this rate, its only a matter of time before they change their mind and replace the 40Gb with another SKU...
Spinface 28 Jan 2008 17:26
5/10
To my mind, changing the SKUs is fine. What Sony shouldn't be doing is flip-flopping between high-end and low(er)-end models. That's what makes it confusing.
If a SKU comes off the market, it should be replaced with a superior one at the same price. Otherwise, if Sony wants to change it up, it should bring down the price of an existing SKU.
If it doesn't want to do either of those things, leave it alone. Don't make a customer say, 'oh, I wanted that high-end model, but now it doesn't exist and I'm stuck with the budget option.'
Realistically, though, the people that are investing in the PS3 at the moment are still by and large likely to be clued in enough to make an informed choice.
I sincerely hope that when Sony announces that the 80GB is coming off the market it has a simultaneous announcement for a superior model to fill the void at the same price point.
If a SKU comes off the market, it should be replaced with a superior one at the same price. Otherwise, if Sony wants to change it up, it should bring down the price of an existing SKU.
If it doesn't want to do either of those things, leave it alone. Don't make a customer say, 'oh, I wanted that high-end model, but now it doesn't exist and I'm stuck with the budget option.'
Realistically, though, the people that are investing in the PS3 at the moment are still by and large likely to be clued in enough to make an informed choice.
I sincerely hope that when Sony announces that the 80GB is coming off the market it has a simultaneous announcement for a superior model to fill the void at the same price point.
imaballa 28 Jan 2008 17:45
6/10
It makes perfect sense considering 2 rumors circulating around the industry:
1) 40GB price drop $299
2) 80GB disc. 120GB replacement
This probably wont happen for 4-5 months but 40GB will be $299, and introduction of new 120GB for $399 all with rumble sixaxis. Smart move on Sony's part getting the price lower and adding in sixaxis.
Backwards compatibility should be added to both models, with the recent speculation from the job posting at Sony looking for someone to do backwards compatibility for PS3.
1) 40GB price drop $299
2) 80GB disc. 120GB replacement
This probably wont happen for 4-5 months but 40GB will be $299, and introduction of new 120GB for $399 all with rumble sixaxis. Smart move on Sony's part getting the price lower and adding in sixaxis.
Backwards compatibility should be added to both models, with the recent speculation from the job posting at Sony looking for someone to do backwards compatibility for PS3.
deleted 28 Jan 2008 17:48
7/10
OK MS has three SKU`s currently, two intially and revised 2
Started with
Core = System Basic + Wired Pad
Premium = System Chrome + 20GB HDD + Wireless Pad
Next Was
Elite = System Black + 120GB HDD + Wireless Pad + HDMI
Next Was
Revised Premium = System Chrome + 20GB HDD + Wireless Pad + HDMI
Revised Core/Arcade = System Basic + HDMI + 512MB Mem Card + Wireless Pad
So Now We Have
Arcade(revised core), Premium(revised) and Elite, see the pattern, although MS is releasing SKU after SKU like sony each one is an improvment on the last and justifies the means to release a new SKU, I wont go into Falcon and so on as too many options as all three systems can contain Xenon, Zephyr or Flacon dependant on time frame but eventually all will contain Falcon.
The point being made is Sonys PS3 doesnt Justify the revisions, by now it should have two - three SKU`s only
Sony Basic (Smaller HDD, Less Ports etc. No BC)
Sony Premium (High Cap HDD, Full Connections and Inputs & With BC)
Possibly a mid range or something (less ports no BC and High Cap HDD)
there is no need ot release such an amount of different SKU`s, its confusing the consumer, i had a freind over xmas looking for a PS3 for her little boy (aged 5) while i first tried to convince that a Wii maybe a little more child freindly (ie games for kids on that system and not many on ps3) she still wanted one but she had no idea what she was getting the SKU lineup was confusing her, seeing a 60gb with BC and 40GB without she didnt care but wanted the best for her son, googling the results ended up with sites informing her of US and Jap SKU`s and left her even more confiused, so i told her differences and let her make her mind up, to which she picked a 60GB (which she struggled to get) for the BC mainly.
Sony needs to lose the high profile electronics maufactor with the PS3 sure we can handled 50 TV`s released a week, or 200 mobiles a month coming out, but with consoles two or three is enough.
ps: i do understand that the UK has only had 2 SKU`s in total for PS3 but im talking about the consumer, think to how i pointed out the google search, not everyone lives gaming.
Started with
Core = System Basic + Wired Pad
Premium = System Chrome + 20GB HDD + Wireless Pad
Next Was
Elite = System Black + 120GB HDD + Wireless Pad + HDMI
Next Was
Revised Premium = System Chrome + 20GB HDD + Wireless Pad + HDMI
Revised Core/Arcade = System Basic + HDMI + 512MB Mem Card + Wireless Pad
So Now We Have
Arcade(revised core), Premium(revised) and Elite, see the pattern, although MS is releasing SKU after SKU like sony each one is an improvment on the last and justifies the means to release a new SKU, I wont go into Falcon and so on as too many options as all three systems can contain Xenon, Zephyr or Flacon dependant on time frame but eventually all will contain Falcon.
The point being made is Sonys PS3 doesnt Justify the revisions, by now it should have two - three SKU`s only
Sony Basic (Smaller HDD, Less Ports etc. No BC)
Sony Premium (High Cap HDD, Full Connections and Inputs & With BC)
Possibly a mid range or something (less ports no BC and High Cap HDD)
there is no need ot release such an amount of different SKU`s, its confusing the consumer, i had a freind over xmas looking for a PS3 for her little boy (aged 5) while i first tried to convince that a Wii maybe a little more child freindly (ie games for kids on that system and not many on ps3) she still wanted one but she had no idea what she was getting the SKU lineup was confusing her, seeing a 60gb with BC and 40GB without she didnt care but wanted the best for her son, googling the results ended up with sites informing her of US and Jap SKU`s and left her even more confiused, so i told her differences and let her make her mind up, to which she picked a 60GB (which she struggled to get) for the BC mainly.
Sony needs to lose the high profile electronics maufactor with the PS3 sure we can handled 50 TV`s released a week, or 200 mobiles a month coming out, but with consoles two or three is enough.
ps: i do understand that the UK has only had 2 SKU`s in total for PS3 but im talking about the consumer, think to how i pointed out the google search, not everyone lives gaming.
Marty 28 Jan 2008 19:33
8/10
it's only confusing to the customer if the customer knows about the changes and flip-flopping over configurations.
john doe just walks into a store and sees what's on sale, not knowing or caring about the past versions or what may or may not be around the corner. he sees that it will play burnout or gta or whatever and he sees that the price (which he may have been keeping an eye on)
you guys are all looking at this from an insider's or hardcore gamer's point of view. insiders and hardcore gamers mostly know what's been going on and are if anything bemused at the changes rather than confused over what you can get for your bucks
john doe just walks into a store and sees what's on sale, not knowing or caring about the past versions or what may or may not be around the corner. he sees that it will play burnout or gta or whatever and he sees that the price (which he may have been keeping an eye on)
you guys are all looking at this from an insider's or hardcore gamer's point of view. insiders and hardcore gamers mostly know what's been going on and are if anything bemused at the changes rather than confused over what you can get for your bucks
TimSpong 29 Jan 2008 04:44
9/10
Marty wrote:
john doe just walks into a store and sees what's on sale, not knowing or caring about the past versions or what may or may not be around the corner. he sees that it will play burnout or gta or whatever and he sees that the price (which he may have been keeping an eye on)
You are right. But ideally we're informing new users once they're into gaming as well as engaging with old hands - who often know better than us [than me] - to keep them up to date (Hello! Old hands! Wake up! Someone kick them...). We have to give context to the former... and depth (and arguments|!) to the latter.
Cheers
Tim
alexh2o 29 Jan 2008 09:37
10/10
Looks to me like Sony is just going for one global SKU... 40GB! Japan and PAL are now just 40GB, all thats left is the US to come over. Considering the PS3 has a universal power supply, it pretty much means Sony only need make one, cheap, global SKU. Their logic here is not rocket science.
All the rumours of 120GB or 160GB may be something for the future, but I doubt we'll see much now.
All the rumours of 120GB or 160GB may be something for the future, but I doubt we'll see much now.