A Cheaper PS3? All Signs Point to Yes

Mounting evidence points to a big announcement from Sony ahead of the console's first birthday.

The rules of supply and demand say that there are only so many people that will buy a product at a certain price. If the demand is there but the price is too high, there will be pressure on the price to come down. How much pressure? Ask Sony.

The PlayStation 3, which turns one year old next month, did well in its first few weeks and months but sales have been slipping now for some time. In the US the PS3 is regularly one of the weakest selling consoles, according to numbers from NPD Group, and the situation isn't much better in Japan.

In the UK, sales of the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 are around the same so far in 2007, says MCV, but look behind the numbers and you'll see that more than half of all those PS3s were sold at launch in March, pointing to a quiet six months since then.

Even Sony has admitted that part of the reason for this is that there aren't enough compelling games on the system, and the usually quiet summer probably didn't help. But it's nearly Christmas now, and that's the time when game companies really start to cash in.

Many people, from buyers eyeing the console to publishers and retailers hoping to sell more games, feel that a price cut is just what the PS3 needs. Until now, Sony has avoided that option. Instead it has toyed with its line-up, replacing models and introducing new bundles while never quite bringing down the price.

Now evidence is mounting that Sony could be about to introduce another model, a 40 GB version that will perhaps lose some functionality while trimming the price at the same time.

Rumours that Sony is working on a cut-down model of the PS3 have been around for some time. In early September, Ars Technica cited a source saying Sony has a PS3 equipped with a 40 GB hard drive coming that would be priced at $400 versus the $600 asking price the current top-end PS3.

That report and others were given credence when a new model of the PS3, the CECHG01, popped up in the database of the US Federal Communications Commission. This same model then appeared on Bluraysavings.com, an informational site for a US Blu-ray movie offer. All mention of the CECHG01 has since been removed from the site, but not before being screen-captured by PS3 Fanboy.

The latest finger to be pointed at the new PS3 model is a set of documents from US retailer Best Buy reported on by Engadget. Though the veracity of the documents isn't certain, they do specifically mention a 40 GB PS3, which will be in stock - but not necessarily on sale - on 28 October, meaning it would probably be ready to buy well before the unofficial start of the shopping season in the US on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.

One sticky issue that has not yet been addressed is that of the reduced functionality of the rumoured 40 GB console. Reports suggest that the new PS3 could lose some or all of its USB ports and, perhaps most controversially, not support any PlayStation or PlayStation 2 games. That's fine for newcomers but not so for those upgrading from the PS2 and hoping to keep all their gaming on one console.

Of course, the biggest unknown is whether this new model of the PS3 even exists. Sony has, in keeping with its mum approach until now, stayed clamped on the matter and all requests for comments, whether related to the hardware itself or the accuracy of documents related to it, have been turned down.

One thing's clear, though: the pressure on Sony to do something isn't going anywhere.

Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo